Lesson 4

Review:

We have been in our series in dealing with the parables

Why did Jesus speak in parables?

Read: Matthew 13:10-17

Last week we dealt with the Parable of Sower...The point was the word of God falls on different soil, but must take root in some one’s life

Set Up:

Question: Have you ever done something without counting the cost? Ex: As a teenage boy, I did some really stupid stuff.

The Bible talks about counting cost, especially, when it comes to discipleship & following Jesus

The Bible talks about counting the cost of following Jesus a lot

Luke 14:28–33 “ For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? 29 Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.”

Following Jesus will cost you something...Maybe even everything

Jesus is going to show us the cost of the Kingdom in two parables

Question: Do you think Jesus and His kingdom are worth something?

I. What is the Kingdom of God & The Kingdom of God?

John Mac, “It is the realm over which Christ Himself is the undisputed King of kings and Lord of lords.”

Graeme Goldsworthy defined the kingdom of God as, “God’s people in God’s place under God’s rule and blessing.”

The Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Heaven are synonymous with one another.

We live in the period of the already and not yet.

Quote: The Kingdom is synonymous with the sphere of salvation - that eternal realm where the redeemed have their true citizenship.

Philippians 3:20 “But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,”

If & When we accept Christ, we become part of the Kingdom of Heaven where we are submitting to God’s Rule & Reign over our life.

II. What is the Cost of the Kingdom of God?

Money cant buy it

Christ blood on the cross paid the way for us to enter the kingdom

2 Corinthians 5:21 “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

1 Peter 1:18–19 “knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.”

So with Jesus paying the price for us on the Cross shouldn’t we count the cost of what it means to surrender to him as Savior & Lord?

Jesus is going to reference that

III. The Parable of the Hidden Treasure

Read: Matthew 13:44–46

Background:

Hidden Treasures were common in Jesus day

In a reality of political upheaval, it was common for people to burry there riches by means of protecting them

When war took place, Rome would take everything after they laid waste to the cities

Josephus wrote about the after math of the Temple being destroyed in AD 70 under Titus Vespasian: “No small quantity of the riches that had been in the city (were) still found among its ruins; a great deal of which the Romans dug up: but the greatest part was discovered by those who were captives, and so they carried it away. I mean the gold, and the silver, and the rest of that most precious furniture which the Jews had, and which the owners had treasured up under ground, against the uncertain fortune of war.”

So treasure hidden in the ground was not a very uncommon thing

Might Be Thinking:

Was it wrong to do what he did?

The short answer is that Rabbinic Law was specific about it...It was okay

Quote: “When an object of value whose owner was unknown was found outdoors (even just outside the threshold of the house) the landowner had no necessary claim to it.”

He could have just taken the treasure and run but he didn't do that.

So lets look at the Parable real quick and point out some things:

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up.

What does this tell us? He come across it...He stumbled onto it

We don't know what the treasure was...But we know that to the man, it was a treasure of great value and price. Which he went and covered up

Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

He in Joy he gives up everything to by the field for the treasure

What's the Point of this Parable?

The man was so overjoyed that he gave up everything to gain the treasure.

IV. The Pearl of Great Price

“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.”

The man was likely a wholesaler

He would go from city to city, searching through markets, fishing ports, trade fairs looking for high grade pearls.

In Jesus day pearls were like diamonds to us extremely valuable...Think about the pearls before the swine

If you had a fine pearl you owned a fortune

They were hard to come by because divers would gather the pearls from dangerous deps

The merchant sought this fine pearl because it would be a major investment

The Main Point: He sold all that he had to obtain this fine pearl

Something to Understand about both of these men: They put everything into one investment… Every financial person you talk to would discourage you from doing such a thing.

They put everything into one investment & Jesus was connecting it to the Kingdom

The Point of Both Parables:

Everything of Value in the world, everything the world looks at as shear importance is of sheer loss compared to knowing Christ and being part of the Kingdom.

Philippians 3:7–8 “But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ”

Some Truths we can take away:

The Kingdom should be valuable to us

The Kingdom is sometimes stumbled onto & sometimes sought

The Kingdom should bring much joy to the believers life

There is a cost - requires us to forsake all

Big Question: Are we willing to give up everything for Christ & His Kingdom?

Questions: Do you think we have counted the cost of following Christ?