Day 1 — Treasure Found, Goodness Tasted
Opening prayer
Lord God, please open my mind to understand your Word, and open my heart to receive what you want to teach me today. Help me to see Jesus more clearly, love him more deeply, and respond to you in faith and obedience. Amen.
Headline
Before we can share Christ with others, we need to be freshly convinced that he is the greatest treasure of all.
Matthew 13:44-46
44 “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.
45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls.46 When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.
Psalm 34:1-10
1 I will extol the Lord at all times;
his praise will always be on my lips.
2 I will glory in the Lord;
let the afflicted hear and rejoice.
3 Glorify the Lord with me;
let us exalt his name together.
4 I sought the Lord, and he answered me;
he delivered me from all my fears.
5 Those who look to him are radiant;
their faces are never covered with shame.
6 This poor man called, and the Lord heard him;
he saved him out of all his troubles.
7 The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him,
and he delivers them.
8 Taste and see that the Lord is good;
blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.
9 Fear the Lord, you his holy people,
for those who fear him lack nothing.
10 The lions may grow weak and hungry,
but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.
Comment
There are many ways people might answer the question: What is a Christian?
Some answers might be fairly neutral: a believer in Jesus, a churchgoer, a religious person. Others might be more positive: a caring neighbour, a generous friend, someone who tries to do good. Others, sadly, might be much more negative: a narrow-minded fanatic, a judgmental hypocrite, or someone who thinks they are better than everyone else.
Our answers will probably depend on our experience of Christians, and perhaps on whether we are one.
But today I want to define a Christian differently:
A Christian is someone who has found treasure.
I am not talking about material treasure. The Christian faith is not a promise that God will make us rich, successful, comfortable or free from trouble. I mean spiritual treasure — something infinitely more valuable.
And this imagery is not mine. It comes from Jesus.
In Matthew 13, Jesus tells two short parables. In the first, a man finds treasure hidden in a field. Perhaps he was working away, not expecting anything unusual, when suddenly he discovers something of astonishing value. So, in his joy, he sells everything he has and buys the field.
In the second parable, a merchant is searching for fine pearls. He knows what he is looking for. He has seen many pearls before. But then he finds one pearl of surpassing value, one pearl that eclipses every other. So he too sells everything he has and buys it.
The two stories are similar, but not identical. One man seems to stumble across the treasure unexpectedly. The other is searching carefully. But both make the same discovery. Both find something of such value that they are willing to let everything else go in order to have it.
Jesus introduces both parables with the same words: “The kingdom of heaven is like…”
The kingdom of heaven is God’s good and loving rule, now made known in Jesus. To enter the kingdom is to acknowledge Jesus as King, to turn back to God, and to receive the life, forgiveness and hope that he gives.
And Jesus’ point is very simple: his kingdom is treasure. It is worth more than anything else.
That is where we begin this three-week reading plan, because our new series is called Worth Sharing. My prayer is that God will use this series to help us become more willing and able to speak of Jesus, to invite others, and to step out of our comfort zones for the sake of the gospel.
But we need to start here: before we can share Christ with others, we need to be freshly convinced that he is worth sharing.
We do not commend what we do not treasure.
That is true in ordinary life. If we discover a great café, a beautiful holiday spot, a wonderful book, or a helpful doctor, we naturally tell people. We share what we treasure.
So if knowing Christ is the pearl of great price, if his kingdom is worth more than everything else we possess, then it would be strange not to want others to discover him too.
That does not mean evangelism is easy. It is often difficult, and next week we will be honest about why. But the first question is not, “Why am I so bad at evangelism?” The first question may be, “Have I forgotten the treasure?”
Psalm 34 gives us another image. David says:
“Taste and see that the LORD is good;
blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.” (v.8)
David speaks as someone who has experienced God’s goodness personally and wants others to know it too.
That is what I am praying for over these three weeks: that we would taste again the goodness of the Lord; that Christ would become precious to us again; and that, as we rediscover the treasure we have found, we would long for others to find him too.
Why does God want me to hear this today? Perhaps because before he calls me to speak of Christ, he wants me to treasure Christ again. He wants me to remember that the Christian life is not first a duty to perform, but a treasure to receive, enjoy and share.
Reflect
- When I hear the word “Christian”, what definitions or associations come most naturally to my mind?
- In what ways have I experienced knowing Christ as treasure? Has that treasure become familiar or ordinary to me?
- Who helped me to “taste and see” that the Lord is good?
Action
Take a few minutes today to complete this sentence in your own words:
“As a Christian, I have found…”
Closing prayer
Lord God, I thank you for the treasure of your kingdom and for the goodness I have tasted in Jesus Christ. Forgive me when I forget his worth or treasure other things above him. Make Christ precious to me again, and reveal his goodness to those to whom he is still hidden. Help me, over these coming weeks, to grow in love, courage and prayerfulness, so that I may gladly share the treasure I have found. Amen.
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