Articles
The Value Of The Kingdom
"The kingdom of heaven is like unto a treasure hidden in the field; which a man found, and hid; and in his joy he goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is a merchant seeking goodly pearls: and having found one pearl of great price, he went and sold all that he had, and bought it" (Matthew 13:44-46).
Everyone is taught to be wary of the deal that is too good to be true, because more often than not, it is. A free car is never really "free." That e-mail from Nigeria promising you hundreds of thousands of dollars is a scam; do not send them any money! While that "hot stock pick" sometimes might make you money, more often than not, it probably will not. Most everyone has a story about having high expectations for some great and wonderful thing that proved to be too good to be true.
But what happens if we actually do come across something that is wonderful and good-- and it is true? What if we could discover something that, in reality, is worth far more than anything we could ever own or dream to own? What if you were promised security in the midst of every situation? Peace no matter the circumstances in which you find yourself? Unwavering hope for the present and future? The prospect of unimaginable glory for eternity? How much would that be worth to you?
These things are what Jesus offers people in His Kingdom (Romans 8:18-25, 31-39, Philippians 4:7). He describes this Kingdom for us in many parables, and two of them really show us just how valuable we are to consider His Kingdom to be: the parable of the treasure in the field and the parable of the pearl of great price (Matthew 13:44-46).
In the parable of the treasure of the field, a man, for whatever reason, is digging in a field, and he finds treasure in it. He buries the treasure, joyfully goes and sells all that he has, buys that field, and thus obtains the treasure (Matthew 13:44). In the parable of the pearl of great price, a merchant is seeking pearls to buy, and happens to come across one magnificent pearl, and he goes and sells all that he has in order to buy that pearl (Matthew 13:45-46).
There are some distinctions in these parables that are profitable to consider. In the parable of the treasure in the field, the Kingdom is likened to the treasure itself; in the parable of the pearl of great price, the Kingdom is likened to the merchant seeking pearls. The merchant is more of a "specialist"-- he has seen many pearls, he knows what he is seeking, and he finds the ultimate pearl. The man in the field, on the other hand, does not seem to be a "specialist"; it would seem that he discovered the treasure by chance.
Some people, therefore, come upon the Kingdom of God by chance. Others are seeking the Kingdom and then find it. Some may not be very knowledgeable about God; others might be quite knowledgeable about spiritual things, seeking divine truth. Nevertheless, however one ends up finding the Kingdom, the result is to be the same: it is to be held in such high esteem that it is worth getting rid of any hindrance, any possessed object, so as to obtain that Kingdom.
Thus we return to the question: what is the Kingdom worth to us? How much is confidence, hope, peace, and ultimate glory worth to us? We know what the answer to the question should be-- it should be worth giving up everything else in our lives so that we obtain it. This is what Paul emphasizes in Philippians 3:8-15: counting everything as rubbish so as to gain Christ, to strain forward toward the upward call of God in Christ.
But do we really think the Kingdom is that worthwhile? Are we really willing to suffer the loss of everything else in life so as to gain the Kingdom? Are we willing to be entirely transformed so as to conform to the image of Jesus, and no longer walk in the ways of the world (Romans 8:29, 12:1-2, 9; 1 John 2:15-17)? Are we willing to be entirely expended for Jesus' cause and suffer in order to obtain that glory (Romans 8:17-18, Galatians 2:20)?
The Kingdom costs everything because it is worth more than anything else we can have or imagine. Perhaps we may not have been looking for it; nevertheless, the treasure is before us. Perhaps we have been searching; the pearl is there for us to find. But once we have found it, what then? Will we understand that the Kingdom is good and it is true, and be willing to suffer the loss of everything in order to obtain it? Or will we find the cost too high and walk away? Let us recognize the exceeding value of the Kingdom of God, and be willing to be entirely expended for Christ's cause today!
