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Book: Matthew
 Print ( PC Only )
Matthew 13:44 The Hidden Treasure
I. There are four things that need to be understood in order to understand
the parable. The Kingdom of heaven; the treasure; the field; the man.
A. The kingdom of heaven is where God reigns.
1. We realize that the universe is divided into two
opposing forces that could be described as the kingdom
of darkness and the kingdom of light.
a. Satan reigns in the kingdom of darkness.
b. God reigns in the kingdom of light.
2. These powers are mutually exclusive, and in constant
conflict with each other. It is a battle of good
against evil.
3. The battle is over the control of man who was created
by God and was endowed by God with the power of choice.
4. You are in the heat of the battle, it rages around
you. "We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but
against principalities and powers, against the spirit
forces that are in high places."
5. Satan uses lust and greed and seeks to lure men into
his ranks. Once in his ranks, he holds you by force, so
that you cannot escape except by divine intervention.
a. The scripture describes the three pronged
attack, as the lust of the eye, the lust of the
flesh and the pride of life.
b. These are very powerful motivators, and the
world has succumbed to the enticements, so that
the world is marked by the lust and greed of
man. Thus to announce yourself as a citizen of
the world is tantamount to saying that you are
in the kingdom of darkness.
c. God's word says, "Love not the world, neither
the things that are in the world, for he that
hath the love of the world in his heart, has
not the love of the Father." 1Jo 2
6. In contrast, God uses love as the main motivator to woo
men to a voluntary surrender to Him. He alone has the
power to set you free from the kingdom of darkness.
When the disciples asked Jesus, "Who then can be
saved?" Jesus responded, "With man it is impossible,
but with God all things are possible."
B. You this day are living in one of the two kingdoms. You are
there by choice.
1. If you have surrendered to Jesus Christ to be the Lord
of your life, then you are in the kingdom of heaven. If
you have not surrendered to the Lordship of Jesus, then
you are in the kingdom of darkness.
2. It should be noted that Jesus declared that the reason
that men are in darkness is because they love the
darkness rather than the light because their deeds are
evil.
3. You need to know that one day the kingdom of darkness
will be cast into outer darkness forever. A place so
far beyond the farthest galaxy that no light has ever
or will ever reach there.
4. When this takes place it will leave only one kingdom in
the universe, and that is the kingdom of heaven. The
Bible describes it as a utopia that it calls heaven. No
death, no pain, no sorrow, no sickness, no sin, the
chief characteristics will be righteousness, peace, and
joy.
II. The field. In the other parable of the kingdom of heaven the field is
identified as the world. This poor fallen mass of humanity fraught
with wars, crime, violence, hatred, wrath, envy, strife. Living
under the power of darkness.
A. In the beginning this earth belonged to God, for He had created
it. The psalmist cried, "The earth is the Lord's and the
fullness thereof."
B. When God created man and placed him on this earth, he gave the
earth to man with the command to take care of it, to dress it
as a garden, to bring it to its full potential.
1. In this the environmentalist are out of their tree when
they try to blame the Christians for the environmental
damage done to the earth because of their biblical
perspective.
2. It is the greed of man that is destroying the
environment. Those who are destroying the jungles of
the Amazon are not Christians, but great industries
interested only in profit for themselves. The
Christians that went into those jungles were only
interested in bringing the natives into a better
life by introducing them to Jesus Christ.
C. In the beginning Adam lived in perfect harmony with God and
enjoyed the earth which was as a garden and produced abundantly
for his every need.
D. One day however, Satan came into this paradise to seduce man to
leave the kingdom of God, by disobedience to God, and to join
the kingdom of darkness which was in opposition to God. He
promised him that he could be like God.
1. When man obeyed the suggestion of Satan to violate the
commandment of God, he passed from light into darkness.
2. That was the beginning of the worldly system that took
control over the earth and has since been in control.
E. Now the field is the world.
III. The identity of the man who discovered the treasure and gave
everything in order to buy the field is discovered by the
question. Who gave everything to purchase the world? We realize
that the answer to the question is Jesus.
A. The scriptures declare that we are redeemed, not with
corruptible things such as silver and gold, from our former
empty lives, but with the precious blood of Jesus Christ, who
was slain as a Lamb without spot or blemish.
1. Jesus declared that His mission was to seek and to save
that which was lost.
2. He then called to all those who were bound in the
darkness of this world, who were tired of the misery,
pain, and suffering that was brought about by man's
sin. He said, "Come unto Me all ye that labor and are
heavy laden, and I will give you rest."
3. Jesus said that He had come to give His life as a
ransom for man. We were being held hostage by Satan,
but Jesus through His death on the cross paid the
ransom.
4. Paul speaking of Jesus to Timothy declared that He gave
Himself as a ransom for all.
B. Jesus then is the man who for the joy of potential treasure
gave His all to purchase the field.
1. We are told in the book of Hebrews 12:2 that Jesus,
who for the joy that was set before Him, endured the
cross, despising the shame.
2. The joy of possessing the treasure.
C. That leaves but one unresolved issue, what is the treasure
that He valued so highly that He was willing to give everything
to obtain it?
IV. The treasure must then be the church which we are told He purchased
with His own blood.
A. Paul told the elders of the church in Ephesus to feed the
church of God which He had purchased with His own blood.
B. The Lord wants you to know just how much He treasures you.
1. It was the prayer of Paul for the church in Ephesus
that the Lord might give to them the Spirit of wisdom
and revelation in the knowledge of Him, that having
their eyes thus opened that might know the hope of
their calling and the riches of the glory of His
inheritance in the saints.
2. Basically that they might understand how great God
loves them and treasures them.
C. Jesus by thus purchasing the earth can now free all who desire
from the kingdom of darkness, and they can come into the
Kingdom of heaven. They can come under the rule of Jesus
Christ. The invitation is to make Him the Lord of your life.
D. Are you happy with the direction the world is going. Do you
delight in all of the exploitation of others to pander to the
lusts of men? Do you thrill with the violence in the streets,
the possibility of being mugged while going to your car in
the parking lot mall?
1. Do you sometimes find yourself seeking to escape from
this rotten world?
2. Jesus Christ has paid the price to ransom you from the
kingdom of darkness. All you have to do is to yield to
His love, and submit to Him as King, and you will enter
the kingdom of heaven.
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