Again,
the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: Who,
when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and
bought it.
Matthew
13:45-46
The value of finding
your name written in the book of life and having a mansion in heaven is
priceless… Nothing of this earth can compare; the most precious gem isn’t
comparable to the divine words well done…
This passage simply puts my everyday affairs into perspective… So many of us
find ourselves daily struggling and fighting to reach heights defined by our
peers; however, when we come to know the truest of treasures (the kingdom of
heaven) we will be like this merchant man spoken of in the gospel of Matthew
and sell all of our goods to obtain it… On earth we always believe we have the
best until we see something better… A new car we love today, but strive for the
one which comes off the assembly line tomorrow; a new job we embrace today, but
will soon find ourselves seeking other employment with a higher salary… You
will never be satisfied on this earth... Nothing will fill the void within unless
you cast all your value in Eternal Life… There
is nothing of this earth which I can obtain that will bring the happiness and immeasurable
joys of heaven… There are two ways for us to understand this story told
here in Matthew on the one hand we see the Love of God and on the other we see
the love that we must display toward Him…If we are able to read these verses
and contemplate the Love of God, we can see that just like this merchant man
God sold all He had for us to buy us and bring us back into a right
relationship with Him… We need to look at these verses in that light because we
are the pearls that are being talked about in this chapter… Stop allowing
people to put price tags on your life or tell you that you are of no value… My
bible tells me that Christ died for me and thought it not robbery to leave His
home in glory… If Christ was willing to do that than I must have a value that
you simply cannot see… God says you’re priceless and because of that He sold
all He had (gave His son) to purchase you… Matthew paints a portrait today of
what the eternal kingdom will look like and represent! It is compared to a
merchant who is seeking good pearls and finds one at a great price so he sells
all that he has to obtain it… God was seeking one who would follow Him, one who
would obey Him and when He found you He said my son is worth the price… If God
thinks that you are worth the price of His own son, why do you allow society to
devalue you? If God gave all that He had to buy you, why are you selling
yourself short? These are the questions that we must ask ourselves knowing that
God teaches us today that there is no value on this earth that equals you… Why
does God value us so high, because you were created in His image; Genesis 1:
26-27 says, “Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our
likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the
sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures
that move along the ground.” 27So God created mankind in his own
image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.”
Now
that we see the love of God, let us look at the reverse and place ourselves in
the place of the merchant man and God is the pearl… You and I have been
searching long and hard trying to find answers and paths to solve problems of
life… So the question I have today is
what are you willing to give up (worldly possessions) to obtain your answers…
The merchant in this story found something that was valued more than anything
that he had already gained; today we must come to realize that the precious
promises of God and the happiness that resides within Heaven will outweigh any
of the pleasures of this world… He sold all he had to increase what he had,
what are you holding back today, what are you refusing to sell today (drugs,
habits, people…) these are some of the possessions that we must sell, these are
some of the items that we must give up in order to increase the value of our
lives and the relationship that we have with God… This merchant was searching
for happiness, he was searching for peace of mind and freedom, and when he
found it he immediately gave up everything that he had… What are you searching
for in this life, what is your motivation or your goal to reach? Is it
happiness, stability, peace, solitude? The
fact of the matter is that we all are searching for something, and within
Christ we can find it! This passage has a two part meaning though, the
merchant found the pearl at a great price! Now that you know the road to
achieve your hopes and dreams (which is Christ), now that you see the light at
the end of the tunnel, how much is it worth to you? You see Christ with open arms awaiting your arrival, you
can see your joy, your peace, and your happiness, but you realize that it is
going to cost a great deal of sacrifice to receive it… It’s a great price to
pay, the price can be in a realm of darkness, that price can be manifested in
times of despair and loneliness, that price can be established on islands of
misfortune and trials… Are you ready to
give up all that you have, are you ready to loose some friends, can you be
removed from some situations, and can you stand to see some of your love ones
be cancelled out of your life? These are the questions that the merchant
had to answer; these are the questions that we have to answer… It is very easy
to say we are Christians and we are a child of God, but when we go through
challenges it helps us to appreciate the rewards of our labor… God says your
labor is not in vain; the question is do we believe that? If so, sell yourself and all the things you have desired on this earth
to obtain that good pearl (salvation)!
BE BLESSED!!!
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