ON THE VANGUARD

DIGGING UP THE TREASURE
“’The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.’”
Matthew 13:44

I was going through my things this past weekend, looking for anything of value to keep verses anything that was no longer needed and could be discarded. As my search moved from the drawers of my dresser to the drawers in the bathroom, I found my old high school ring. It was still shiny, etched with the year 1993, and with the stone still in place. When my daughter saw it she asked if it was my wedding ring. I gave a slight laugh and told her no. But the search for the wedding ring was now on since she wanted to see it. While I have no reason to wear it now days, I still find myself keeping it. After about another ten minutes of searching I found it and showed her the simple band I had once worn. To her it was treasure and she immediately asked if she could have it.
Those who know me know that I am not one who is really into ‘things’. Flat screen TVs, fancy cars, big houses, even high priced food such as caviar hold no interest to me. My clothing seems to come from discount stores and goodwill racks, my car is a 1991 Honda Accord, and my TV is one of those old ones that still plays VHS tapes. Yet I am content. I am content because the treasure I have found was not located on a store shelf and bought on credit. In fact, not once have I ever had buyer’s remorse for the treasure I’m speaking of. What is this treasure? It is a relationship with God. I have heard it said, and will agree, that even a bad day with God is still an awesome day compared to a day with no God.
Perhaps I sound jumbled this morning in what I am trying to say, so I’ll just get to the point. Matthew 13:44 tells us the quick parable of a man who found a treasure. We don’t know from this verse if he was looking for treasure or just stumbled upon it, but either way, when he found it he was overjoyed. He hid the treasure, stuffing it back into wherever it was, and then went home and sold everything he had so as to buy this place where the treasure was. I can see him now, sitting there signing title papers with the biggest grin on his face, eager to get back to this spot and call it his because he knew the true treasure that lay there. He was probably anxiously clicking his pen or tapping his foot while each paper was explained and signed. But in the end, even though it cost him everything he had, it became his. Let us not miss that comment…it cost him everything he had. The treasure that was there far outweighed what he was leaving behind, but he still had to come to grips with the fact that this purchase would cost him everything.
I point the word ‘everything’ out because too many of us are still trying to have the best of both worlds. We are looking to have the familiar pieces of a ‘home’ we know while still enjoying the treasure from our new place. But even in reality, when you sell a home and move, you no longer have access to your old house. No, they take your keys when you sign the papers. Yet how many of us are still trying to the live in the house of sin we left behind while also living in the new house of God? This man had it right having sold everything to move into his new place where treasure was bountiful. This treasure is God. I don’t need high priced clothes and gadgets and all that jazz, I just need God. I am rich in having God alone, regardless of what my wallet shows. He is my treasure, and the legacy I want to leave for my children. Yes, I do want to pass some other things down to them, but I want them to see me as the man who sold it all knowing that the treasure I received in the transaction was the best thing that could ever happen.
So then, here’s the challenge. When my daughter saw my old wedding ring, she wanted it. Do we want God the same way? You may look at this man’s quickness to buy as a crazy radical Christian, but this should be our attitude. In my effort still to reflect God, I ask myself, “Have I sold everything I have in order to buy this land where the treasure is hidden?” To this question I can answer yes…I think. But remember, the key word is ‘everything’. Am I still trying to live with a foot in the old house as well as a foot in the new? If I am, then I truly have not found the worth of this treasure I dug up. I cannot live on the fence just as I cannot live in two houses at one time. A choice must be made, and it must be made by each one of us individually. Just as I will be accountable for my choice, so you will for yours. Will you sell ‘everything’ in order to buy the land where the treasure is hidden?