Parable of treasure

Parable of treasure

 

Matthew 13:44 『Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hidden in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.』

Regarding this statement, people may misunderstand that they can buy heaven by selling everything they have. When the disciples asked Jesus, “Why do you speak in parables?” Jesus answered, He said, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.”

This is to hide it from some people and reveal it to others. Regarding the subject of hidden secrets, Matthew 13:14-15 says, “And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.』

“Those who understand the secrets of heaven” that Jesus spoke of are “those who realize that they are sinners and repent.” Therefore, tax collectors and sinners who hope for God's mercy are the ones who realize the secrets of heaven. Because the Pharisees try to reveal their own righteousness, they become people who do not understand the secrets of heaven. Among those who have realized the secrets of heaven, no one can exclude Apostle Paul. He met Jesus in the light in Damascus. Then he ascended directly to the third heaven and heard the secret from God.

The secret is what is said in Acts 26:17-18: 『Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.』Apostle Paul explains this again in Ephesians 3:6.『That the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel:』

Apostle Paul also talks about this secret in Romans 11:25-26. 『For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:』 This word is mentioned in Isaiah 49:6. 『And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give. thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.』

The reason God chose Israel is because Israel is the model for all people in the world. This means that all nations should learn from Israel. Allowing Gentiles to be saved is a mystery of God that was already established before the creation of the world. So, in order to implement this mystery, God chose Israel first. God spoke to Apostle Peter through vision and revelation. In Acts 10:11-16, God tells him to spread the gospel to the Gentiles. Especially in 10:12-13, “Wherein were all manner of four-footed beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air.” And there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter; Kill, and eat.』Through these words, the gospel, the resurrection faith, is first spread to Gentiles.

『Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hidden in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.』Here too, heaven is the resurrected Christ. It is said that heaven is like a treasure, so resurrection is a treasure. But the treasure is hidden in the field. The field is the field of the heart. Field is 『Agros』 in Greek. There is cultivated land and uncultivated land. The cultivated fields are those who have found Christ in the law, and the uncultivated fields are those who have not found Christ in the law.

『the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy his goeth.』Here man means God. I am so happy that the saints found the resurrected Christ in the law. There is an old temple in the heart of a believer, and by selling it (dying on the cross), you can buy a treasure (new temple). The word hidden means that the treasure is a new temple built deep in the heart. This is what people don't know.

Pearls likewise symbolize present resurrection. Because saints can obtain resurrection through death on the cross, present resurrection was likened to a pearl. Likewise, among the fish caught in the net, the good fish symbolize the belief in the present resurrection and the establishment of a new temple (new man) in the heart, while the bad fish symbolize the old temple that must die. So, put the good fish in the basket and throw away the bad fish.