11-5-17 Hidden Treasure: What’s it Worth?

Scripture:  Matthew 13:44-46

          Have you ever hunted for treasure? (00) We all have – for a spouse – a perfect job – the best car or a Pokemon with (00a) Pokemon Go? Or maybe some have even hunted for gold or money?

Reality TV has a plethora of shows about treasure hunting”

(01) Gold rush

(02) Bearing Sea Gold

(03) Treasure Quest: Snake Island

(04) Curse of Oak Island

(05) Cooper’s Treasure

(06) The Detectorists = looking for treasure while missing the treasures right beneath them.

MOVIES

(07) Treasure of the Sierra Madre

(08) Jewel of the Nile

(09) National Treasure

(10) Pirates of the Carribean

(11) Indiana Jones Series

"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.

45 "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46 When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.

Jesus used parables as a way to teach people. Till now his parables were meant for the crowds and often hid some meaning about the kingdom of God. Now he tells two similar parables to his disciples, not to conceal, rather to reveal the kingdom of God. These two parables, one about a treasure and the other about a parable make a similar point in contrast to the parable of the wheat and weeds, which look forward to the 2^nd coming of Christ and the consummation of the kingdom of God, these two parables emphasize the current presence of the kingdom of God in the world.

          There is one kingdom of God experienced two ways – one day it will be experienced by being present in it – until then, it is experienced by the kingdom being present in you. Then it will be experienced fully, now it is experienced in part.  How is that possible? Revelation 3:20 NIV “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.” He – Jesus, will be in my day to day life now even as much as when I am eating. But later - in the kingdom of heaven – I will eat with him.  For now, he is in me, so I experience the fullness of the kingdom but limited by my faith in this world – then I will experience the kingdom with no human limitations.  Living Bible “Look! I have been standing at the door, and I am constantly knocking. If anyone hears me calling him and opens the door, I will come in and fellowship with him and he with me.”

IN THE FIELD

If you owned property and had a ton of cash and banks did not exist – where would you keep that cash? In the ground. Here are some pics of banks in Jesus day. (Pic of caves in Qumran where the dead sea scrolls were found). It was customary in Jesus day, if you had treasure worth anything, to bury it in the ground. Sometimes people would come upon treasure by accident – maybe the land owner had died or forgot where the treasure was buried and then there are those who are treasure hunters and go looking buried treasure. Both are covered in these two tiny parables.

          This finding seems by accident "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. He couldn’t steal the treasure, or try to buy it – that would cost too much -  so he let it lie briefly and sold ALL he had to purchase it. The story is NOT about a man who did not tell about the treasure -apparently the current land owner was unaware of it or would not have sold the property. The point of the story is that the treasure he found was worth EVERYTHING the man had. He sold all he had to obtain the single treasure worth more than anything/everything he previously owned. The treasure is the kingdom of God and a few verses later Jesus lets them know how blessed they are to see what was previously hidden that the prophets longed to see. Compare to the rich young ruler who wanted eternal life – “I keep the commandments…Matt 19:16-24 Jesus answered, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth. Then Jesus said to his disciples, “I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Not all finds buried in the ground in Israel are by accident:

In 1992 volunteers from Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota, excavating in Caesarea dug up 99 gold coins that had been stashed in a makeshift safe beneath the floor of what was once a private dwelling. Caesarea is considered one of Israel’s richest archaeological sites in that diggers are still unearthing treasures after 21 years of digging.

I’m sure the guy who stashed his gold coins under the floor of his home in biblical times did not anticipate that someone else would find his stash of coins in 1992.

THE COSTLY PEARL

45 "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46 When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.

Instead of accidently finding a great treasure – this is a person who finds and sells pearls. He was searching for them and when he found the greatest pearl ever – he realized it’s worth and sold everything to obtain it. Whereas the one with the hidden treasure was taking a chance on the value of the treasure – this person knows exactly what this is worth – for more than everything he had accumulated up to this point. Again, the point is not that you can buy your way into the kingdom – the point is the incomparable worth of the kingdom to everything else we have in this life.

          Jesus uses a pearl because it is an extremely valuable and precious gem on its own, let alone the greatest one ever found.

WHAT IS JESUS WORTH?

What is the kingdom of God worth to you? What is having a personal relationship with Jesus worth to you? Do you have a clue what that relationship is worth? Here is someone who knew not the worth of what was right before him:     A story is told of a man who loved old books. He met an acquaintance who had just thrown away a Bible that had been stored in the attic of his ancestral home for generations. "I couldn't read it," the friend explained. "Somebody named Guten-something had printed it." "Not Gutenberg!" the book lover exclaimed in horror. "That Bible was one of the first books ever printed. Why, a copy just sold for over two million dollars!" His friend was unimpressed. "Mine wouldn't have brought a dollar. Some fellow named Martin Luther had scribbled all over it in German."

Meredith Andrews    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dg7h6GiNTLg

Song based on Acts 20:24  However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me — the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace.

WORTH IT ALL

All I am Lord here before You  /  Reaching out for more  /  You're the promise never failing
You are my reward, Jesus, You are my reward

I let go of all I have just to have all of You  /  And no matter what the cost I will follow You
Jesus everything I've lost I have found in You

When I finally reach the end I'll say  /  You are worth it all

There's no riches or earthly treasure  /  That will satisfy  /  Every longing is for You Jesus

Set this heart on fire  /  Oh, set this heart on fire

I let go of all I have just to have all of You  /  And no matter what the cost I will follow You
Jesus everything I've lost I have found in You

When I finally reach the end I'll say  /  You are worth it all  /  You are worth it all

God cared for us so much that he did not send an angel or anyone else to reveal the kingdom of God – to reveal God himself. Jesus came as God in the flesh. He is a treasure worth everything we have and everything we are. Kristin Lewis, about 8 years old, mentioned that her mother's birthday was soon approaching. She was asked if she was going to make a birthday card on her father's computer. She said, "No. If you make one on the computer they don't keep it on the refrigerator as long as when you make one yourself."     (COMMUNION)