Hidden
Matthew 13:44-52
July 30, 2017 – Redeemer
In every parable that Jesus told he revealed something that was hidden. As I mentioned in last week’s sermon this revelation is usually the surprise of the parable – a surprise because Jesus reveals that God does not work like you work. He lets the weeds grow alongside the wheat. He scatters seed all over the place, not just on the good soil. He hires guys for an hour and pays them for a full day’s wages – don’t let the Minneapolis City Council hear that. He’s willing to let any Tom, Dick, or Harriet into His Son’s wedding banquet, as long as they accept his free tuxedos and ball gowns. He’ll leave 99 sheep in the open field to search for one lost and likely dumb sheep. He’ll tear His house apart looking for a coin He lost and when He finds it throws a party that costs more than the coin.
You’ve heard the parable of the hidden treasure. What does it teach us of the Kingdom? What is the surprise? Who is the treasure? Who is the man walking in the field? What does it mean to sell everything and purchase the field?
99.9% of people answer “Jesus” is the treasure. For surely in God’s Kingdom Jesus is the treasure. And wasn’t He hidden? Hidden in a little baby born in Bethlehem. Hidden in a humble Jewish teacher. His greatest work was hidden on that gruesome cross outside Jerusalem. His greatest gifts for you – forgiveness of sins, eternal life, the bodily resurrection, cannot be seen. They are hidden in the world – hidden in the water of baptism, in the word of a preacher, in the bread and wine of the Lord’s Supper, hidden by faith in your heart. If you’re looking to see something incredible in the Church you might as well move along. There is nothing for your eyes to see, but there is treasure for your ears to hear and your faith to receive. Surprise – all your sins are forgiven you. Surprise – you’re living forever. Surprise – God favors you, not because you are His favorite, but because He delights in the saving work of Jesus for you and when you believe that He favors you in Christ.
If Jesus is the treasure, then you must be the guy walking in the field. You’ve found Him and by faith you know He is priceless. So, what does it mean for you to “go and sell everything you have and buy the field?” Is that simply a metaphor for faith? Is this another way of Jesus explaining the first commandment, “You should, fear, love, and trust in God above all things?” Or is Jesus saying what He says His disciples later in Matthew, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?” (Matthew 16:24–26, ESV)
Most people, and most Biblical scholars throughout church history have taken the parable the way we just did. That interpretation certainly squares with much of Jesus’ admonishment and encouragement to His disciples. When you follow Jesus, you must deny yourself. He called His disciples to leave their jobs, forsake their families, and He called many to give up their lives for Him. But there are some challenges with this common interpretation –let me ask you, “Have you or are you willing to sell everything you have for Jesus?” I asked a woman that question on a visit this week after I read the parable. Her answer was, “Well, I couldn’t right now. I need it. But if He was coming tomorrow I could.” Honest answer, and therein lies at least some of the trouble with this interpretation – it seems to put the work of God’s Kingdom squarely in your hands. You find Jesus. You give up everything you have for Jesus and that’s how the Kingdom of heaven works. If that’s the teaching of the parable it leaves the Kingdom on shaky ground, because it leaves it on you. Do you, day in and day out, gladly and willingly sacrifice everything for Jesus? Putting him ahead of your family, your work, your pleasure? If that’s the Kingdom can you be certain you’re in? Do you find that interpretation very surprising or does it make sense – if I believe in Jesus I should be willing to give up everything for Him. There’s no surprise in that.
So, let me unearth a more surprising interpretation. When Jesus tells parables about the Kingdom of Heaven – God in Jesus is almost always the primary actor. He does the work. The Son of Man plants the seed. The King throws a banquet for His Son. The owner plants a vineyard, hires the workers, pays the wages. The Shepherd looks for the Sheep. The woman hunts for the coin.
In those last two parables (the lost sheep and lost coin parables) we also hear a truth which is emphasized throughout God’s Word – God does the seeking, finding, and choosing. The Shepherd finds the sheep. The woman finds the coin. The King finds guests for the wedding banquet. In the Old Testament God found and chose Israel to be His treasured people. They weren’t looking for Him, He was looking for them. Jesus found Andrew and Simon and James and John and Mary Magdalene and Zacchaeus and Paul. “The Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” (Luke 19:10, ESV)
Finally, we come again to that phrase, “he goes and sells all that he has and buys the field.” I will not deny that Scripture clearly teaches and calls us to pay a price for following Jesus; however, let me ask you this? In the Kingdom of heaven Who finds whom? Is your confidence that you found Jesus and have paid the price to treasure Him or has Jesus found you and paid the complete price for you to be in the Kingdom? Again and again, Scripture makes clear that Jesus paid the price of our salvation. “The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:28, ESV) “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us.” (Galatians 3:13, ESV) In the book of Revelation, the heavenly assembly is gathered around the Lamb of God, Jesus Himself, and sings, “Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation,” (Revelation 5:9, ESV) Ransom and redeem are money words, payment words. Jesus Christ paid the price to buy us out of sin, death, and hell.
Jesus gave up the honors of heaven for the mockery of earth. He gave up His throne for a diaper, a manger, a crown of thorns and a cross. He gave up the angels’ song for earth’s scorn. But that was nothing compared with the price He paid for you. He not only gave up His life and poured out His blood – He gave up His place, His Sonship. Covered with your sin Jesus was lost to His Father at the cross – forsaken by God, so that you could be forgiven and found. Do not doubt your forgiveness. It was the blood of God’s only begotten Son and His sacrifice that paid the price for you.
Now, we finally get to the surprise – you are the treasure of the Kingdom of heaven. Surprise – even though this morning you have confessed that you’re not worth anything but death and punishment because of your sins, God loves you with forgiveness. Surprise – God values you and treasures you so that He paid the ultimate price that you would be in His Kingdom. He gave all He had – His only begotten Son over the death. He bought the field, the whole world, so He could forgive you and have you. Even when you don’t see it, even when you are buried in the ground, even then you can be confident that you are the treasure of the Kingdom, for your Father has paid the greatest price for you in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Pr. Bruce Timm
29 July 2017 anno Domini