2019 Theme: 'Buy the whole field!'
“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.
“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.'
(Matthew 13:44-46, NIV)
Jesus addressing people in Matthew 13, draws comparison of what the Kingdom of God resembles to. In Matthew 13:44-46, Jesus compares the Kingdom of God to both a treasure hidden in a field and to a pearl of great value which, when both found, prompted their discover to sell everything they had in order to possess them.
The comparison ,brought by Jesus, pretty much reflects or represents the discovery of a treasure that holds more value than anything we could possess from houses,cars, business, bank accounts, etc... The treasure (when discovered) prompts the discover to sell everything he owns in order to raise funds that will enable him to own the treasure. For the discoverer, separating himself from what he owns does not constitute a loss but it is a gain on the contrary.
Jesus is pretty clear in the parable brought in this article:
1. The Kingdom of God is not visible to everyone:
'the Kingdom is found by those who seek It. If it was visible by all, then even the atheists and the unbelievers would taste it. But they can't, because they need to seek It. The Kingdom of God is clearly not something served on a silver plate. Jesus clearly said :'Seek first the Kingdom...( ref.Matthew 6:33). He never said that the Kingdom will show at our doors. The Kingdom is not visible to everyone except to the ones who seek It in first place.
2. There is a cost to access the Kingdom:
In the parable brought in Matthew 13:44-46, Jesus clearly emphasizes that there is a cost accompanied with accessing the Kingdom. The cost equates to a sacrifice that every man and woman must make in order to enjoy the Kingdom of God. In the parable of Jesus, it is clear that the two discoverers can not possess the treasure and the pearl unless they separate themselves from what they own. The things they own constitute the very burden that will stop them from accessing the treasure and the valuable pearl. It is also clear that it is impossible for the discoverer to own both the treasure and their current possessions in the same time. There's got to be a sacrifice to made, a choice to be made where one thing has to fall in favor of the other. But they can not have BOTH in the same time.
(May the Spirit of Jesus speaks to you as you read this)
Some people hardly experience the Kingdom of God because of their refusal to separate from certain things they own which God considers as burden impeding their access. In the Kingdom series, I explained in this post that the Kingdom of God is a territory where God rules in sovereignty and where the constitution of the territory is His will expressed through His Word. Many claim to be believers but they don't experience the Kingdom of God because:
a) God is not their King ( they have other kings and queens in their lives such as culture, sin, relationships, money,self-ego,racism,etc...).
b) They are not ruled by God's will expressed through His word but by principles pleasing to their flesh (e.g: wisdom of the world,wisdom of the fleshly sight or of the trendy progressive culture...)
In the same way that Jesus describes the choice and sacrifice the two discoverers made, God will not accept that any believer holds on to both God and the burden impeding them from experiencing His Kingdom. God does not share His place with stuff dear to human flesh...Many are caught up in relationships,choices,jobs,activities,desires disapproved by God...It is time for separation if you want to experience the Kingdom of God.
If you wish to deepen the understanding of point number 2, I suggest you read the following posts:
3. The treasure is a new life to be found and to hide at times:
If you had to move from your country to another country, it would automatically means that you would be living a new life with a brand new purpose (as long as you conform to the culture and lifestyle of the country where you immigrate). I say this because I know certain people who move from their countries of origin to another country but in the same time they refuse to conform themselves or to integrate themselves in the country that receives them. For example, I am originally from the DR Congo and I lived in South Africa since 2003. I speak English while in my native country we speak French. I carry a South African identity card while in my native country we carry a different card. I live a different life because I decided to integrate myself within the South African society.
BUT on the other hand, I know of many fellows from my country of origins ,living in South Africa, who don't speak a word of English in spite of living here for years, they don't make any efforts to regularize their immigration status and so forth...As a result, they cannot benefit from the land or as a result they cannot draw an effective experience from the land where they live.
It is the same with the Kingdom. When we enter into the Kingdom, we also enter a new territory. It also means that our lives are supposed to change for a new purpose as long as we conform to the culture of the Kingdom of God as Paul advises us in Romans 12:2:
'And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.'
We cannot enter the church on a weekly basis without conforming to the culture of the Kingdom. Just like immigrants travelling from one country to another while refusing to learn anything from their host country. We cannot be present and absent in the same time.
To experience the Kingdom, every believer has to conform by letting his mind being renewed so that they may prove the perfect will of God.
The first man, in Jesus parable, decides to hide the treasure after discovering it. And there is a lesson behind his action: 'the treasure is so valuable that if anybody else had to find it, he would take it for himself.' After Jesus was born, Herod tried to kill him by exterminating all the babies who were born in the same period and region Jesus was born. But God commanded Joseph, Jesus earthly father, to run with the baby to Egypt in order to find a hide-out. The new life we receive in the Kingdom is a life of purpose and sometimes it will be necessary to hide the secrets of our purpose until the right time allows us to come out in the open. Satan does not know everything and he knows less of the things that God hides.
4.Buy the whole field!:
After the man had found the great treasure, He decided to buy the entire field. This also means that the field belonged to someone. Now catch this revelation: 'if the man decides to only buy the portion of the field where the treasure is hidden, then owner might suspect something. The owner may be wondering as to why the man only wants a specific portion of the field. The same wonder may lead the owner to dig in that specific portion of the field and in the process, the owner might find the hidden treasure...But in order to remove all suspicions, the man (the discoverer) decides to buy the WHOLE field.
Even in our walk with the LORD, we cannot choose to take a bit of X and refuse to take a bit of A. Our walk with the LORD is a full engagement in which we take everything that His will wants us to do. Sad to say that many of us walk in a part time manner: 'we choose to do the will of God when it is convenient not understanding that being 'picky-choosy' opens the door for the intruder (Satan) to come and steal what is ours. For an effective life of purpose, we have to take the whole field (even the parts of the fields that are not attractive...). Buying the whole field is a key component to obtain the treasure.
Buy the whole field in 2019 and beyond....