Fool's Gold

As I was thinking about today’s Gospel reading the most famous of the verses came into my mind over and over again.  “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” I try not to focus too often on these types of verses because we know them so well but this week they stuck in my head so I decided to focus on these words.  I started to think about the different kinds of treasure that we hold dear as a society and so I thought about rubies and diamonds and gold and silver.

Then I thought more about gold and it made me think about fool’s gold which then led me to think about the 2008 film Fool’s Gold featuring Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson.  Now after looking it up on IMDB.com I soon realized that it didn’t get very good reviews from critics or from viewers like you and me, but there are two main reasons why it is a part of our video library at home. 1. It’s a chick flick. 2. It has to do with treasure hunting.  

I have to admit that movies, books and shows about finding treasure has always fascinated me.  In fact two other movies that are in our movie library are National Treasure 1 and 2, and a favorite trilogy of mine (sorry I’m not a fan of the fourth movie) is the Indiana Jones series.  

I decided to re-watch Fool’s Gold as research for my message today and I’m glad I did because there are some great themes that run through that movie that really speak to today’s message.  As the movie started there were a couple of screens that described what had happened to the treasure that was buried at the bottom of the ocean and how it got there. Apparently King Philip V of Spain was attempting to bring a dowry back from the new world, and in his haste to bring the jewels across the sea he sent the fleet to sail during hurricane season and shortly after leaving for Spain the fleet was lost and the treasure is still missing at the bottom of the ocean.  

This is where the movie Fool’s Gold comes in.  Matthew McConaughey is a very poor man whose two main goals in life are to find this lost treasure and stay married to Kate Hudson.  Through a bunch of series of random events there are several different groups going after the treasure through different means. They are all desperately trying to lay claim and gain fame through this lost dowry.  The one thing I have to admire about McConaughey’s character is that no matter what happens he is faithful to his two goals in life and everything he does is toward those goals. 

The one thing I have to admire about McConaughey’s character is that no matter what happens he is faithful to his two goals in life and everything he does is toward those goals. 

I think that it is hard for us as humans to always be so steadfast as we want to be, and God knows it.  Think about how hard it was for the disciples. And not just for the disciples but for people who wanted to be Jesus’ disciples.  Jesus tells the wealthy man that he has done everything right in life and all that is left is for him to sell all his possessions and follow Jesus and the man simply can’t do it.  We also hear the short stories of the people that want to follow Jesus but they have various reasons for why they can’t do it right now. I have to say goodbye to people first or I have to bury my father.  There seem to be many excuses for why they can’t follow Jesus right now. After Jesus cures the 10 lepers only one returns and thanks him for the miracle that just happened. We get busy and focused on other things in our lives and sometimes we forget to add God to the mix.  

As for the disciples, we know that they fell asleep at a time when Jesus needed them the most in the garden.  We know that Peter denied knowing Jesus and that the others ran off when his arrest and death became imminent. 

Judas betrayed Jesus because his heart was focused on the purse that he carried for the group on not on his friend Jesus.  The purse that Judas carried wasn’t the purse that would never wear out. Judas focused on the wrong kind of treasure and the wrong kind of purse.   

We all have times in our lives when the treasure that we focus on isn’t the treasure that we should be seeking.  The treasure we seek as Christians is eternal life with God in heaven and not the fool’s gold of the treasures on earth.  That doesn’t mean that we should not provide for ourselves and our families, but that money and possessions for the sake of money and possessions should not be our priority.

Now for McConaughey’s character finding that treasure was one of his priorities, but the other I mentioned was to keep his marriage together with Kate Hudson.  Although he doesn’t always go about it in the best way I believe that his heart is in the right place. He loves Hudson’s character and that love is what drives him to do anything it takes to win her back.  And believe it or not, finding that treasure is one of his ways to try to show that their life together has meaning and that this treasure hunting wasn’t a waste of time.  McConaughey almost died a couple of times to protect Hudson and does some pretty crazy and incredible stunts to protect her and to show her his love for her.  If he didn’t it wouldn’t be much of a romantic comedy now would it?  

McConaughey almost died a couple of times to protect Hudson and does some pretty crazy and incredible stunts to protect her and to show her his love for her.  If he didn’t it wouldn’t be much of a romantic comedy now would it?  

I know and believe that God is much like this only much more over the top and even crazier than this movie is.  It may seem like there is so much that God is asking us to do in these passages with the talk about being prepared and waiting up all night for the master to arrive, that we lose sight of the very first verse in this passage.  “Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”  Jesus again uses the imagery that he and God are the shepherd and and we are the sheep.  God and Jesus will protect us from those things in this life that will harm us so we shouldn’t worry about all the treasures.  God will provide for us. Not only will God provide for us here on this earth but it is God’s good pleasure to give us the kingdom.  It’s not God’s good pleasure to help us to earn the kingdom or to strive for the kingdom but that we are given the kingdom here and now.  Because we have the kingdom and because we know that God provides for our daily bread then we should build up for ourselves storehouses and purses that will store our treasure in heaven.  

Jesus again uses the imagery that he and God are the shepherd and and we are the sheep.  God and Jesus will protect us from those things in this life that will harm us so we shouldn’t worry about all the treasures.  God will provide for us. Not only will God provide for us here on this earth but it is God’s good pleasure to give us the kingdom.  It’s not God’s good pleasure to help us to earn the kingdom or to strive for the kingdom but that we are given the kingdom here and now.  

Because we have the kingdom and because we know that God provides for our daily bread then we should build up for ourselves storehouses and purses that will store our treasure in heaven.  

The reason that Jesus talks this way is that in biblical times people believed that when wealth was earned then it came from someone else, meaning that you were taking from someone else when you gained more.  There wasn’t really this concept that wealth could be gained from nothing. Storing our possessions and treasures here on earth and trying to take them with us meant that we would be taking away that wealth from anyone else in the future and depriving others from having anything.I believe this is why Jesus tells those he is talking with to sell their possessions and give alms to the poor.  Jesus wants there to be enough for everyone and wants us to realize that not everything in life is about what we physically have.  

I believe this is why Jesus tells those he is talking with to sell their possessions and give alms to the poor.  Jesus wants there to be enough for everyone and wants us to realize that not everything in life is about what we physically have.  

That is where he is going when he talks about storing up our treasure in heaven.  If we make our purse and store those things like love of God, love of family and friends.  If we gain possessions in heaven then there is no need for someone else to lose possessions because there is enough treasure in heaven for all the world. And if we share those things that God has given us we don’t lose it.  If you share God’s love with someone else, it only continues to grow. Sharing God’s good news about eternal life, a family of believers, love for one another is not something that should be kept to ourselves but should and needs to be shared.  If we give away money it’s gone, but if we give away those things God gives then it continues to grow exponentially.  

It is God’s good pleasure...in other words, it is God’s joy and delight to give you the kingdom, little flock.  Be prepared to share that news. Be prepared with your purse full of God’s treasure so that when Jesus comes again you will be ready for the journey.  Your purse will be full and your bags will be packed full of everything you will ever need. Knowing that it was all provided by God thanks to God’s one and only son Jesus.  There is no Fool’s Gold when we put our faith, our trust and our lives in God’s more than capable hands.  

Martin Luther

The kingdom of God IS the GREATEST TREASURE.  As Christians it is the reason we live, it is the reason why we come together and celebrate the Lord’s Supper.  It has nothing to do with anything that we do or earn on our own. It is something that God has given to us freely and gives to us anew each day.  God has poured all of God’s treasure into us so that we might know the gift of everlasting life with God and share it!You have the kingdom of God in your very own purse.  Hold onto it tightly and at the same time share it with the whole world so all may know what real treasure looks like. Amen. 

You have the kingdom of God in your very own purse.  Hold onto it tightly and at the same time share it with the whole world so all may know what real treasure looks like.

Amen.