Title: Foolish Believers
“The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field, and when a man finds it, he hides it, and rejoices, he goes back and sold all he has and bought the field. He went and sold all that he had and bought the pearls." (Matthew 13:44-46)
Jesus was speaking in parables about the nature of the kingdom of heaven. A metaphor is a type of rhetoric that explains in the light of the characteristics of a real object or event that both the one who conveys the meaning and the one who hears it are well aware of it. So, where is heaven compared to in the text? Treasures and pearls? Of course, that is also true, but the action revealed in the text, that is, the entire event, is the object of the parable. That is why it is said that the analogy is to both things and events.
Treasures and pearls mean the best and most valuable. That means heaven is good. No more tears and sighs and pain, and above all sin. Hatred, jealousy, and hurting each other are no longer there. It is only a place where you can enjoy eternal happiness with God.
However, this is common knowledge not only for Christians, but also for any religion or even an atheist. You must know that Jesus did not just say what everyone knows, that is, that the kingdom of heaven is good. It is not meant to emphasize only treasures or pearls. Rather, he was talking about the believer's point of view and attitude toward heaven on how to acquire and possess that good thing.
First of all, we need to change our perspective on heaven. Heaven should not stop at vaguely saying that it is a good place. What phrases do both parables have in common? "Sell everything he owns". everything in the world. Treasures and pearls are just precious metals used for ornaments and ornaments. It doesn't even solve your eating and drinking problems. Think about it. It is said that all real estate, including the house, land, cash, and automobiles, must be disposed of and bought.
All wealth is all that is achieved in reality while living on this earth. It is the purpose of life, the means of living, and all that can be the joy of life. They say you have to give it all away and change it. In other words, the purpose of life is to eventually go to heaven. However, it should not be a vague wish to simply believe well and go to heaven instead of hell after death. This means that while you are alive, from here on, you must live in God's bosom and obey His will.
In the parable, it is said that treasure is bought and hidden. Just because you hide it doesn't mean that you don't introduce the heaven to others and that you own it alone, it means that you won't sell it again. When a very rare gem that is truly unique in the world appears, you can dedicate your entire fortune to buying it for investment purposes. If you resell it after a certain amount of time, the profit can be huge. But Jesus said that you should not give up all your possessions to buy or resell. Those who have discovered heaven always possess it from this earth.
If you truly know and follow God from this earth, your life is not only heaven, but if you do not live the life of heaven on this earth, you cannot go to heaven even if you die. Strictly speaking, in Christianity, there is no judgment after a person's death. Those who have come to know God through the cross of Jesus from the beginning of their lives will continue to have a relationship with Him even after death, and those who do not will continue to have no relationship with God even after death. Instead, when a believer dies, only the reward in heaven differs according to his life on earth.
Why did Jesus die on the cross? Doesn't that mean that no one can wash away their own sins and that no matter how good they are, they cannot atone for their sins? In a word, it is wrong to say that good people go to heaven and evil people go to hell. In the human world, when humans judge each other, the righteous and the sinners may be divided, but in the eyes of God, all are equally pitiful and weak sinners. Only those who come out humbly hoping for your mercy will save them. So, the only way to live and possess the kingdom of heaven is to pass through the cross of Jesus. The precious treasure or pearl is the cross of Jesus.
The cultivator accidentally found the treasure, and the pearl was found while a merchant was looking for it. However, this should not be interpreted to mean that salvation can be obtained not only by God's grace but also by human effort. Both meant that they acknowledged that Heaven was worth changing everything in the world. The difference in how they were discovered was not the problem, but the focus was on giving up and taking everything because they knew how to see that they were both truly precious treasures and the only pearl in the world.
The wish for heaven is different for everyone in the world, but everyone has it. No one likes to die and go to hell. However, simply wishing for heaven and being able to exchange everything in the world because you like heaven are completely different stories. In the latter case, the denial of the value of this earth must be a prerequisite before acknowledging the value of heaven, whereas the former does not necessarily have to be. There is no fool who trades all his fortunes for precious stones and metals without the conviction that what I have is really futile and vain.
This world is like wild grass that will pass for a while, and I, too, have no choice but to return to the earth, so I must have hope for my eternal home. Furthermore, I must realize how poorly I am with sin, folly, and weakness, and have a firm awareness that my identity and value cannot be found only in God. With the confession that "I am a sinner who has no choice but to die", one's entire existence, entire life, and whole person must be completely broken in front of the cross of Jesus. .
In short, the true hope of heaven never arises without a complete breaking of oneself. Jesus is telling all human beings to thoroughly recognize the worthlessness of himself and everything he owns, who did not know God.
Are you vaguely wishing for heaven right now? Or have you already sold all your possessions to buy heaven and already own it? In other words, did you have any experience of being completely broken and crushed from the bottom of the cross of Jesus? In other words, in the eyes of the world, are you looking like a fool who sold all of your fortune and possessed an invisible heaven? Or are you portrayed as a clever person trying to grab the two rabbits of this earth and heaven with one hand?
3/13/2006