Tuesday, March 8
Scripture: Matthew 13:44-46

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. 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, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.”

PARABLE OF THE PEARL, THE HIDDEN TREASURE & THE NET LET DOWN

In the classic "Stanford marshmallow experiment" psychologist Walter Mischel tested delayed gratification in young children by offering them either an immediate reward of a single marshmallow or two marshmallows if they could wait a few minutes. As you can imagine, they had a very hard time waiting for the greater reward. But how different are we than those children?

In this passage, Jesus tells two parables about the kingdom of heaven, ultimate value, and delayed gratification.

Things of value have a cost. This is true almost by definition. However, as Eugene Petersen points out in his book A Long Obedience in the Same Direction: Discipleship in an Instant Society, in our culture many of us have "the assumption that anything worthwhile can be acquired at once. We assume that if something can be done at all, it can be done quickly and efficiently." (And this was written back in 1980 before the days of the Internet, which has only increased this trend.)

Jesus tells these stories about people who recognized something of extreme value, something that could not be obtained immediately but instead had a high cost. Indeed, the cost was everything. But the value was such that the trade was worth it. What will we be willing to pay for something of ultimate value? The merchant found a single pearl of great price, which he could not simply obtain immediately; instead he had to make a sacrifice, selling possessions of value in order to obtain the higher good.

Behavioral economists and psychologists have done experiments that show our strong preference for keeping what we have. Even merely touching an object ignites a sense of ownership and desire: if a customer sees something on the store shelf, that item has a certain perceived value. However, as soon as the person physically picks up the object, their mental accounting of the value goes up. Jesus calls us to go against this desire, to give up what we own for something greater. In both parables, the treasure is found, implying a search. For what are you searching? What will you do when you find it?

Notice the common cost in both stories: the man "went and sold all that he had," in order to obtain the hidden treasure and the pearl of great price. Are we willing to give up everything for the supremely valuable treasure which is the Kingdom of Heaven? Or would you rather merely eat your one marshmallow today?

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, as we wait for the ultimate treasure, for that pearl of great price, give us patience. And may our desire and longing be turned toward You and the treasure of Your kingdom. Give us wisdom to see the value of giving all for Your Kingdom. Give us the desire to search diligently then open our eyes to see the hidden treasure, and for the joy of finding it, inspire us to sell all and buy in to Your Kingdom, the only treasure that truly satisfies our hearts.
Amen.

Matthew Weathers, Applied Instructional Technology Administrator