Have you figured it out yet? I'll give you a couple of minutes to give me your best guess, or you could just keep reading. The answer is they both like to talk about buried treasure! A couple of times this past week, I've been reminded of Matthew 13:44, "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field." I watched a podcast that discussed it, and heard Jon Foreman's "Your love is strong," where he sings a line that says,"The kingdom of the heavens
is buried treasure
Will you sell yourself
to buy the one you've found"
I've been thinking a lot about that verse this past week and asking myself, could I describe my relationship with God like that right now? If I'm answering honestly, the answer is no. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy spending time with God and loving on others, but I think the guy in this parable is way more committed to obtaining the treasure than I am. I would love to actually be watching this kind of story unfold from an outside perspective. First, he stumbles upon this treasure hidden in a field (nice, random place to find some treasure), and he gets joyful! He is excited beyond belief that he found this treasure. He quickly covers it up and does what is necessary to get that field and own that treasure. I can imagine this guy running full speed to the nearest marketplace to find the guy he can buy this field from. However, there's a catch.
He has to sell everything he has to get this treasure. That's a risky move! What if the treasure turns out to be fake and unreliable? What if the treasure just lets him down in the end? Now, this is a parable, and Jesus is talking about the treasure being the kingdom of Heaven. We can have faith that this treasure is reliable and better than anything we could hope for since we get a relationship with God, our creator, that we will get to enjoy for eternity! It's worth far more than everything we own combined!
However, knowing this and living this are two very different things!
I constantly have to check myself and ask myself, am I valuing my possessions, job, relationships, etc. more than I value my relationship with God? Do I exhibit the same joy that the man in this parable did when he found an amazing treasure? Do I let that joy move me to worship and a deeper love for God? I'm thankful for grace, because I know I don't have the level of joy and love that this man does. I have some, but not nearly to the degree with which this guy has. Jesus calls us to love Him more than this world. I know this, but there are times where I know my life does not reflect this. A few chapters later in Matthew he says, "For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?" (Matt 16:26). I don't want to be the guy that gains the world, yet forfeits his soul! I have to real intentional about making sure God is who and what I value above all else. If I'm not careful, idolatry creeps in and causes me to turn my focus away from God. Like I said earlier, I'm thankful for grace, and the fact that God joyfully welcomes me back home every time I wander away from Him. I'd invite you to examine your life in light of this parable. Are there idols in your life that have placed themselves above the greatest treasure of all, God? If so, I hope you fall deeper in love with God and His amazing love, mercy, and grace! We don't deserve any of it, yet He gives it to us anyway! He delights in us, so let us delight in Him!
