The Hidden Treasure - Matthew 13:44

I want to share something with you today something that most of you don’t know about me. First, I was diagnosed with diabetes about 4 years ago. Since being diagnosed I have developed a few medical needs. Second, most of you don’t know that I am extremely wealthy. Not like Tiger Woods wealthy but more like Bill Gates wealthy. I know I know I you may be shocked but it is true. I am loaded.

Today is a once in a life time opportunity for you. Today you could walk out of this room a millionaire. Of course there is going to be a cost associated with getting this money but I am sure a few of you will walk out today with a nice chunk of change.

As I said I have diabetes and you may have noticed or maybe not my hair has been thinning. What does having diabetes have to do with losing hair? That would be a fair question but let me point out an example. See Pastor Wes back there? He also has diabetes and look at the top of his head. This is what I have to look forward too. I am in serious trouble as you can see! However, (open my wallet) I have 1 million dollars here for a set of hair plugs. Any of you thick headed guys are you willing to sell me a set of hair plugs for a million dollars?

Great!

You may or may not know that diabetes affects your blood. I have to much sugar in my blood and I need a few bags once in a while to freshen up with what I have. I am curious is there anyone in this room who would be willing to sell me a pint of their blood for 2 million dollars?

Great!

Part of my disease has also caused one of my kidneys to stop functioning and the other is failing fast. I really need a kidney. I am curious if anyone would be willing to sell me 1 of your healthy kidneys for 5 to 10 million dollars? You only need one and if you sell me the other think how your family will be set. Your kids kids will have enough for college. You can retire today and just enjoy life. Do I have any takers for 10 million?

Great!

Well there are just one more things I need. Do you know if you do not take care of your Diabetes you can become blind? My eye sight is failing fast and I need a new set of eyes. Is anyone willing to sell me their eyes for lets say 20 million? Anyone? Please I really need a new set of eyes. Or are your eyes invaluable to you? Would any of you sell your eyes? Our eyes are too valuable to sell.

(Note: I do have diabetes but this was just used as an illustration, I am fine)

Let me ask you one last question. How much money would it take to sell your soul? Is there a price? If your eyes are invaluable how much more worth is your soul? Jesus told us it is better to pluck your eye out if it causes you to sin rather than being cast into fiery hell. Jesus also said in Matthew 16:26

“For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?

There is nothing more valuable then your soul? But then why do we insist on selling it for things that are absolutely worthless? No one will sell their eyes but what will they do to lose their soul or compromise their walk with Christ.

Let me ask a few rhetorical questions:

Why do you spend 20 hours a week watching TV but only 10 minutes in your Bible?
Why do you spend 5 hours on the golf course 2 hours at the driving range but refuse to spend any time reading the Bible or praying with your wife?
Why do you continue to surf the web for hours looking at pornography but get annoyed when your wife wants to sit down with you and talk for 5 minutes?
Why are you willing to spend time fostering business relationships to make yourself more money but refuse to share your faith in Christ because you are to afraid of what people will think of you?
Why do you cheat on your taxes because you believe the government takes to much money from you but refuse to give to the church with a cheerful heart?
Why do you live a life seeking self pleasure and only believe God should bless you but are never willing to suffer for our Lord and Savior?
Why one week do we say we love our church and pastors but the next week we leave the church?
Why do you love your sin more than Jesus?
Why did 136,000 promise to cross the Jordan River and only 40,000 showed up?

Because we are not willing to sell out to Christ but instead we sell out to the world and end up losing our souls, for what? For our own personal selfishness and pride.

Why is that people choose foolish things over the things of God is a simple fact? Jesus says in John 3:19-20

19 “This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil.
20 “For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.

They LOVE sin more than they love God. What do they truly love... is themselves.

Please open your Bibles to Matthew Chapter 13 and we are going to take a look at the hidden treasure parable in verse 44.

44 “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

A very smart man told me once we should never read a single Bible verse(STR.org). But we should always read before and after the verse to get the complete context of what God is communicating to us. Let’s get a total overview of Matthew 13 and see what God is trying to tell us in this passage.

In the beginning this chapter in Verse 1 it tells us who Jesus is talking to and that is the multitudes. He is speaking to everyone both followers of Christ and the unbelievers in 7 different parables. Later in this chapter he then sends the multitudes away and explains these parables just to the disciples.

The primary theme of all these parables are about the Kingdom of Heaven and how do I get there? Who is there? And Why they are there. And what is the Kingdom of Heaven?

Nav’s Bible Dictionary defines it as this:
God’s rule of grace in the world, a future period foretold by the prophets of the Old Testament and identified by Jesus as beginning with His public ministry. The kingdom of God is the experience of blessedness, like that of the Garden of Eden, where evil is fully overcome and where those who live in the kingdom know only happiness, peace, and joy. Or in simple words it is Heaven and Salvation!

As a side note:
When you read in other Gospels they refer to the Kingdom of God. Why did Matthew not write like the other Gospel writers using the Kingdom of God. Because he wanted to respect and honor the Jews and avoid using God’s Holy Name. Instead they would use the word Heaven as an alternative way to refer to God.

Jesus begins this set of parables with the Sower and Seeds. Jesus describes 4 different HEART conditions and 4 different HEART responses. There is only one condition of the heart that allows someone to enter the Kingdom of Heaven and that is one who HEARS the words of the Kingdom. It is the man who hears God’s word and understands it and his life bears the fruits and brings forth much fruit. He hears and he does and he enters the Kingdom of Heaven.

Next in Matthew 24 we have the Parable of the Wheat and Tares. This describes the Kingdom of Heaven where God who plants good wheat seeds in a field and Satan comes in and plants the tares. They are almost indistinguishable but at the end of the age there is a separation between the wheat and the tares. The tares are bundled up and thrown into the fire, they are the ones who commit lawlessness. The wheat represent those who are righteous and they will shine in the sun with the Father. This is the who is in the Kingdom, it is the righteous.

Then in verse 31 Jesus tells the parable of the Mustard seed and this describes the Kingdom of Heaven starting out very small. It begins with the Jews but it grows very large to include all the Gentiles. Just as the mustard seed was so small but would grow into a large bush as tall as 15 feet high.

In verse 33 Jesus then gives the parable of the Leaven Bread. This again is like the Mustard seed and describes how the Kingdom of Heaven starts out small but ends up much larger than it started.

And we finally get to the parable we are studying this week. The hidden treasure in Matthew 13:44. Let me read it again.

44 “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.


The first part of this parable describes what the Kingdom is like and then tells us how to obtain this great reward. And this reward is available now to those who find it. But it is not available to all.

The treasure is hidden and not everyone will find it. The treasure is ultimately our salvation into the Kingdom. The treasure is not sitting out in the open for everyone to find. It is only revealed to some. We know this simple fact because before we get here we have been building up to this fact. There are some who hear the word of God and respond to it and some that don’t. We even have some who look like believers but at the end of the age they are bundled up with the other tares and cast into the fire.

This great treasure of salvation is only for a few. It is hidden and only a some will find it. If we go back to verse 10 in Matthew 13 Jesus explains why it is hidden and we also get the answer of why he speaks in parables to the multitudes.

The disciples ask him in Verse 10 why do you speak in parables and he answers:

11 Jesus answered them, “To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted.
12 “For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him.
13 “Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.

Then He references a prophecy in Isaiah that the Messiah will come and speak in parables. And if we skip down to Verse 16 He says:
16 “But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear.

Jesus tells them it was GRANTED TO YOU TO KNOW the mysteries of the Kingdom. You didn’t figure it out on your own but I have allowed you to understand. I have even allowed you to find the treasure of Salvation. It has been GRANTED to you by me but to others it has been hidden from them and they will never find it.

There is some serious theology to deal with in this passage. It goes back to the Sovereign Will of our God. He is in control of all things! Even he who finds the treasure and he who does not.

In the second half of the verse we see the man finds the treasure then he hides it. He does not obtain the treasure at this point. He has to go sell all his possessions to obtain the treasure. After he sells all he has he is able to buy the field and obtain it. And this is where the conviction of this parable becomes so poignant, so convicting and troublesome for us. It is what God is asking each of us to do. To give up everything and follow Him. It becomes personal for each one of us.

Instead of searching for God’s real treasure men ignore it and go after the worlds treasure. In Job 28 Verses 1-11 God writes how men will search after earths treasures. They mine for silver, the refine gold taken from the dust of the earth, copper is smelted from rock, man searches the deep gloom and shadow for precious gems. He will do so much work to obtain the riches of the world but at the end of the day it is worthless.

Jesus tells us in Matthew 6:20 these kinds of treasures will be destroyed by moths, rust and will even be stolen by thieves. They have no value in heaven.

And in Job 28:12 God says all these things you are searching for are worthless. But what is of worth? Finding wisdom from God. Finding the fear of the Lord, that is something worth finding. It is finding a knowledge of God that saves ones soul. It is just as finding the hidden treasure in the field. There is nothing more valuable than that.

Here is the basic application of this parable in each of our lives. If we want to gain this invaluable treasure it comes down to such a simple thing but at the same time it is one of the most difficult things to do. It is to SELL ME. What do I mean it is to deny everything that is selfishly important to me and to forsake those things. It is selling off all of me.

It is as my shirt says, I want to be a LOSER.

Jesus tells us

Luke 24 “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it.

Jesus is telling us if we can lose ourselves then I can gain everything, the treasure is ours. Is it not amazing that this free gift on one hand seems to cost us everything but on the other hand all that we have He gave to us. We are just giving back what was is His in the first place.

Remember the Church of Laodecia? If you are lukewarm God is going to reject you. He is going to vomit you from His mouth. Do not deceive yourself if you are not willing to give up everything then you are going to lose it all. Just as Pastor John and Pastor Fred spoke about the young rich ruler. He was not willing to give up what was most precious to him. Instead of giving it up to God he walked away sad. Yes he kept his riches of the world but he lost his soul. For what?

I want each of us to think about this one thought as you drive to work. Am I sold out for Christ completely? Am I willing to give up everything to gain eternal life. It is a free treasure but it only cost one thing ourselves.