Tag: Matthew 13

God Gave: MT e39

When I was younger in the faith, it was really easy for me to play the hero.  When I was immature in the faith it was easy to see myself as David.  That I would go get the five smooth stones, or I would be Shadrach, Meshack or Abednego in the fiery furnace and my faith would be unshaken.

I have matured I have seen that maybe I am not so much of a hero. 

In our last time together we were in Matthew 13 where we find the parable of the “Pearl of Great Value.”  We were making a comparison that just as Jay Leno found this $10 million car in the middle of the field and it was rare and of great value (to someone), that it was a hidden treasure.

There are a series of parables in Matthew 13 of talking about the Kingdom.  There is:

  • The parable of the sower
  • The parable of the wheat and tares
  • The parable the mustard seed and the leaven

Jesus is making the point that the kingdom of heaven has a hidden value.  The main character in each of the parables that lead up to our parable of the Pearl of Great price is God.  He is the hero.  God is the hero in these passages. 

It is easy for me to say, “I have found the kingdom and I am going to give up everything for the kingdom.”  Please, I invite you, read the whole chapter.  The hero in each parable in Matthew 13 is God.  That is the main character.

It is possible that the pearl of great price is Jesus.  It is not me who gives up everything.  It is possible that this is one interpretation.  That “God so love the world that he gave His only Son” (John3:16).  God gave everything for this pearl of great price that we have in Christ.

Let me know what you think of this.  Commentators are split.  Some see it one way and others see it differently. 

In my book, Jesus is ALWAYS the hero.

S.D.G.

Great Value: MT e38

There is a man named Jay Leno, some of you know he use to host “The Tonight Show” on NBC. 

Jay has always been a car enthusiast and quite a number of people know of his collection of automobiles.

Recently, Jay came across a car that was sitting in a barn in the middle of a junk yard.  The car was worth $10 million.  It was a Mercedes and there were less than 30 of this particular car made.  The one he found was the only one of this model that had not been refurbished.

Ten million dollars for a car.  Very hard to comprehend.  It is incredible.

It reminds me of a story that Jesus told, found in Matthew 13.  It was about a pearl of great price.  Someone found it and sold all that they had to buy that pearl.

As Jesus is telling this story he is giving laser focus that there is treasure in this world.  Treasure is something that we value. What treasure is differs for each of us. We will sacrifice for what we treasure.  That is the point of Jesus’ story.

When you find something you greatly value, you make sacrifice to gain it.  Someone, somewhere will pay $10 million for this old car Jay Leno found.  They are paying that because this is the value that they place on that car. They will pay with an actual money amount.

With Christ, and His kingdom, you do not buy your way in like this. You do give up yourself.  You sacrifice yourself.

What does that look like? What is the deeper meaning of the Pearl of Great Price?

We can explore that next time.  Until then,

S.D.G.