The Greatest Prize

The Greatest Prize

Read: Matthew 13:44-46

“The kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.”

Matthew 13:45-46

“Anything that takes God’s place is out of place.”

—Abe Van der Puy

IN WORD There are several ways to approach this parable, but one of them is to understand Christ as the pearl and us lost human beings as the searching merchants. The implication is that when the gospel comes into a person’s life, it is everything. It is not a philosophy to add to the mix, or an access to God that will help us accomplish our goals. It is a radical rearrangement of all of life.

We have examples of this in the twelve disciples. They left careers and families in order to follow Jesus and the promise of His kingdom. We also have a clear example in Paul. “But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. I want to know Christ” (Philippians 3:7-10).

IN DEED Is Jesus everything to us? Or one loyalty among several? If someone asked us how much we would give up in order to know Him, is there anything we would hold back? Do we believe only when it doesn’t cost us too much? It’s easy to know the right answer to these questions; a wholehearted abandonment to Christ is more difficult and more profound. What is the pearl of your life?