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(The parables: The hidden treasure, The pearl, The dragnet, The householder)
The hidden treasure: “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.
The pearl: “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.
The drag-net: “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net which was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind; when it was full, men drew it ashore and sat down and sorted the good into vessels but threw away the bad. So it will be at the close of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous, and throw them into the furnace of fire; there men will weep and gnash their teeth.
The householder: “Have you understood all this? They said to him, “Yes.” And he said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.”
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The Word of God touches our lives everyday.
Recently, the All Whites, the New Zealand national soccer team have been on tour matching their skills and talents against other national teams. It is a privilege and honour to represent your country. It is a great opportunity to be part of any national team. For many boys and girls it would be a dream come true, a miracle if they could play in a national team. It would bring great joy to them and to their family and friends who have shared in their life.
The All Whites goalkeeper had been playing with exceptional skill. His skill and talent came unexpectedly to the attention of several talent scouts seeking to bolster the strength of their own team. A selection into a stronger and wealthier team is what many players dream about. It would mean a tremendous boost to any football player’s career and followed with larger financial rewards.
But alas, poor goalkeeper was penalised for partying too long and not being suitably prepared for the next scheduled match. As a result, he missed out on the next game, missed out in continued surveillance by the talent scouts, and perhaps missed out on a great opportunity. I don’t know why. Didn’t he realise what was happening to him? I don’t know the full story but it has made a useful introduction to show how easily it is to miss out on life’s opportunities which can come to us most unexpectedly.
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All of us have missed out on life’s opportunities great and small. In many ways God touches our lives everyday. It doesn’t matter who we are or what we have done God is with us, with each one of us. He touches our lives in unexpected ways even through our mundane daily routines. Why does God bother? We are his creation, we are special to him.
Have you considered the morning rays into your bedroom or the joyous singing of birds when the sun rises? Again, have you considered someone’s spontaneous smile, or greeting, or even an invitation to get together? Some days, the traffic to school, work or the shops seems so light and the parking couldn’t be more convenient. Again, some days, we want the All Blacks to win and they do. We all have those days where something special happens that brings us joy or thanks. They are moments to treasure. There are many more daily occurrences with the potential to bring us joy. Unfortunately they have been taken for granted, missed, or just walked by unaware that something special was happening to you, unaware that God has touched your life.
God can enter into our lives no matter where we are, whether at the football, waiting at the doctor’s surgery, shopping, housework, school or at a party, simply anywhere. When God enters into our life, touches our life, he is simply beckoning us to further seek him out and to take hold of him. God, the living Word is the greatest treasure that can give us lasting joy in our life now and forever. He loves you and desires you to have this treasure.
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Sometimes it is easier to see God in action when we look upon Jesus Christ, the living Word. There, Jesus moved amongst the poor and rich touching their lives. He met them at work, at a wedding, in their homes, at church, in their travels, and even on the beach. He healed them of their sickness, fed them, visited, comforted, and taught them about the kingdom of heaven. To these people it was as if they had found a great treasure, a treasure that changed their lives forever and what joy they had found in Jesus Christ.
In all cases, when Jesus, the living Word touches our lives it is a call to further seek him out. When you are left pondering questions like, Why me? Why did it happen to me? Can someone help me? Why have I been given so much? What does this moment of joy mean? What will tomorrow bring? Will there ever be peace on earth? Is their life after death? Will I get another opportunity to prove myself? Then turn to God, the living Word.
Even if we don’t often ask ourselves those truth seeking question or seek for the answers from the Word of God, our body and soul feel and long for fulfilment and peace in life. Our ears listen to friends, family and to those we trust for insight into a better way of life. Our lifestyle reflects our relentless search for a peace of heaven. In our current western society we are seen to change our partners, change our clothing as fashion demands, change our cars, homes, and electronic gadgets, change our churches and religion, change our thrills and Barbie dolls all because they haven’t been satisfying. We keep on changing the things around us in the hope that it will change us, but it doesn’t.
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It is only when we stop, look, and listen to the Word of God that we will discover the truth about ourselves and about God. Even if the Bible is too hard to read or understand, seek out someone to help you. God has promised to reveal himself to all who seek the truth, because the Word of God is the truth, the way, and the life. It promises to touch your life in an unexpected way. There are so many gems in this treasure chest that we call the Bible that the smallest of gems will be enough to brighten your life as if you owned the kingdom of heaven yourself. Where everything else has failed, the Word of God can change your life now and forever.
We also need to consider another part of the living Word of God who can touch our lives in unexpected ways. Road rage is on the increase because we don’t like it if some other road user disturbs our way of doing things. It can easily become a case of revenge. How do you react when stopped by the police for speeding? How do you react when your wife, husband, friend, teacher, or employer tells you off for doing something silly or wrong? Most reactions are aggressive. We get angry, embarrassed, ignore, or we yell and lie and even hit out. We don’t like to be told we are wrong or made a mistake. How do you react when the Word of God says to you to love one another, and we know deep down that we haven’t?
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We tend to keep a mental hit list of personal attacks on us rather than a list of God’s gracious blessings. Yes, at times
God touches our lives by sending messengers to correct us. These messengers maybe in the form of mum or dad, a police officer, your children, a Christian, or even a Buddhist. God can use anyone anywhere anytime to touch your life. The thing to do is to be still and listen. For it could be that God is speaking to you through these people.
The Word of God says that we should, honour our father and our mother. It means that we are to fear and love God so that we do not despise or anger our parents and others in authority, but respect, obey, love and serve them. How do you react to God’s Word?
Listen to it. Be moved by it to repentance. Let your body and soul confess together, “I am the one, I am sorry.” More than often, the words are cast in a remorseful sigh, which is sufficient. God loves a repentant sinner and is always ready to touch our lives in new and wonderful ways. Let the Word of God change you so that you may have life now and forever. The living Word of God has the power to discard the sin and evil in your life. It has the power to heal and to give you peace in your life.
In one way, the living Word of God is like a large drag net. It draws us in and touches our lives. We can’t escape it. The strange and unwanted fish in the drag net are being cast out to die. So it is with our sin and evil in our lives.
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The Word of God has the power to cast them out to die. The thing that remains is joy, peace, and love for God and one another.
When we have received and taken hold of the Word of God in our lives then we indeed have a great treasure, a pearl of great value, and a drag net full of good fish. We become rich in God’s own wealth, so much so that we want to touch other people’s lives with the wealth that we have. As Christians who share in the wealth of God, let us freely go out to comfort and care for people according to their needs.
In summary, the living Word of God is the greatest treasure we could ever have. It is living because God continues to daily touch our lives in unexpected ways. When God touches our lives it is an attempt to draw us closer to himself where we can find the treasure of peace and eternal life. And when we possess it then we will have more than enough to give away to others as well. Amen.
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Sermon Notes (Matthew 13: 44-52)
Structure:
The wheat and the weeds (13; 24-30)
The grain of mustard seed (13: 31, 32)
The leaven (13: 33-35)
The wheat and the weeds explained (13: 36-43)
The hidden treasure (13: 44)
The pearl (13: 45-46)
The drag net (13: 47-52)
The themes in the parable of the wheat and the drag net are parallel. The theme is on judgement. These texts also represent the old, the Torah. The other texts show the new, the way of Jesus Christ.
13: 52 shows a reverse order. The words new and old show a reverse order. New has precedence over the old. In other Bible stories sometimes a reverse order is shown where the younger is chosen over against the older brother. Likewise the New Testament has precedence over the Old Testament. Nonetheless, they are together and indispensable. The larger text of the old (Torah) borders the smaller text of the new, as seen in the above structure. Together, the text of Matthew 13: 44-52 highlights the importance of the whole Word of God.
The parables in Matthew 13: 44-52:
The hidden treasure: The Word can come to us unexpectedly. What will you do?
The pearl: Those who search for wisdom will find it. What will you do?
The drag net: The new and old, Christ and the Torah promise to bring judgement. In an immediate and personal sense, judgement will bring cleansing from sin and renewed life.
The householder: Therefore, those who have and taken hold of the Word of God respond by loving God and one another. They have the wealth of God and share it with others as Christ did.
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