Biblical Text: Matthew 13.44-52

£15 million pounds. That was the advert I saw from the National Lottery. But this lottery draw was different, because someone was guaranteed to win. Someone in the UK has ended their week £15 million pounds richer.

So, let’s try a brief thought experiment. Imagine I have that winning ticket in my pocket right now…and I am willing to give it to you…if you’re willing to let go of a few things. What would you sell to get that £15 million?

Your car? Your computer? Your house? Unless all you own adds up to more than £15 million, it would make sense for you to sell it to get that ticket. 

But what if my challenge went further? You would have to sell everything. Absolutely everything. Nothing could be kept. Not even those things that have sentimental value. Photo albums, wedding rings, letters, furniture, records, phone, everything. Would you do it?

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.”

In both of these parables someone comes across something of such immense value, everything else pales in comparison. In the first it’s not clear he’s even searching for treasure, but as soon as he realises what he has found, he sells all he has to get it. In the second, he’s been looking, perhaps he’s seen many valuable pearls before, but upon seeing this one, he is willing to let go of everything he has to buy it.

Perhaps you hear this and you think, “this seems a bit impulsive, unwise, reckless.” Perhaps. Maybe that’s simply because we’re attached to our stuff. Or perhaps we have no desire to be rich (if that’s the case, then according to Paul in 1 Timothy 6.9 that’s good news). But, if we’re thinking about money and material wealth this does, on some level, make sense. If all my possessions are worth far less, then it would make sense to sell them all to gain so much more.

However, we’re not talking about money, or not directly at least. We’re talking about the kingdom of heaven, something of much higher value than a winning lottery ticket. Jesus tells this parable to show his hearers just how valuable it really is. And he tells this parable to God’s chosen people…who already they think they have everything they need spiritually.

This kingdom is here….it’s just waiting to be found…and if you are searching, upon finding it you’ll want to give everything you have to possess it, everything you’ve found till now will be as nothing. And this kingdom demands everything…that would normally be a red flag, but not in this case. Because placing your hope in this kingdom will bring peace. As Jesus says, “wherever your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6.21). It might look reckless and impulsive from the outside, some won’t understand, but it will be worth it.

I’m reminded of the words of missionary Jim Elliott, “he is no fool who gives what he cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose.”

But what of that last parable?

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of every kind; when it was full, they drew it ashore, sat down, and put the good into baskets but threw out the bad. So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Three parables. One of these is not like the other.

Just before our reading Jesus has explained the parable of the wheat and the weeds, where both grow together until the end the age, and then they are separated. This parable is similar, and the two bookend the parables of the treasure and the pearl. Those two parables are not about riches, even though we may need to let go of material wealth to commit to God’s kingdom. The kingdom of heaven is one that does not leave room for another…it is all encompassing. There is a joy in finding that kingdom, and there is also a cost. We let go of the desire for material wealth, and we let go of so much else, and we strive for our actions to reflect that kingdom. We commit to live in such a way that our love of God and love of neighbour shine through. Finding this kingdom changes how we act.

It seems to me unavoidable that judgement is part of the gospel message. If there is no judgement, there need be no salvation. If there is no judgement, what we do matters little. You can’t read Jesus’s words and think what we do doesn’t matter (Matthew 7.21-27). But, as is very clear in this passage, judgement is not our responsibility. We may have to remind ourselves and others of the reality of it, but ultimately judgement is God’s.

May you come to know the joy of finding the kingdom of heaven. May you experience the freedom of letting go of all that holds you back from that kingdom, sin and otherwise. And may you ultimately find yourself safely in the hands of a just and merciful God, and lead others to Him. Amen.