The Skinny on the Sermon Excerpts from Lay Pastor John Goldrich Sunday, July 27 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field.” ~ Matthew 13:44 “Give it up, turn it loose” All of us have been shopping and have come across an item that we just had to have, even if we did not have the funds to purchase it. We would do anything to get it going so far as to sell off our possessions to get it. That was the predicament that Amy found herself in one day while shopping in the mall. As she was talking on the phone while browsing in a jewelry store, she spied that one diamond ring she dreamed of purchasing, and now it was on sale! She abruptly ended her conversation, rushed to her bank, and withdrew all of her money from her savings account. That wasn’t enough so she went home to get a prized antique and took it to the pawn shop. She walked proudly into that jewelry store and purchased that ring. The purchase cost her a savings account and an antique that had been in her family for years. In her mind, though, the ring was worth it. This got me to wondering: Would Amelia had been willing to do the same thing when it came to getting into the Kingdom of God? Would she be willing to give it up and turn it loose to gain entrance into a place far more wonderful and grand that anything here on earth? The answer to my question can be found in this morning’s scripture reading, Matthew 13: 31-33: 44-52 (abridged). “He told them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed[. …] Though it is the smallest of all seeds, when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.’” […] ‘The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. ‘Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it. ‘Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. […] The fishermen […] sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ “Therefore every teacher of the law who has become a disciple in the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.” Theology Jesus taught in many parables to give people understanding of the mysteries of the kingdom, and I’ll examine a few here. The mustard seed is so small but when planted its stands 10 to 12 feet tall as the largest of garden plants; it is so grand that the birds make it their home. Jesus used the mustard seed as a metaphor for unusually small beginnings that grow into large outcomes. Jesus ministry began with just 12 disciples but from this small group would come the worldwide kingdom. In the parable of the pearl, the fishermen would not give up until he found the one pearl of great value, and that is the kingdom of heaven. This kingdom, we are told in the parable of the hidden treasure, is worth giving up all that we have to get it. The parable of the householder centers on how the kingdom will involve new as well as old revelations. The scribe here is a believing disciple. As with the owner of a house, this type of scribe brings new and old understandings concerning the kingdom that Jesus had taught him from the Old and the New Testaments. What about us? Let us focus on the parable of the pearl and the parable of the hidden treasure. In both we must give it up, turn it loose; we must be willing to pay the ultimate price for inclusion into the kingdom. Jesus was like a determined explorer looking to buy us back from the dark side. He was willing to pay the ultimate price to get us. What are we giving up and turning loose to get our spiritual treasure? “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field.”
Posted on: Mon, 04 Aug 2014 22:37:01 +0000
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