YOU ARE TREASURE

We adopted our son, Nelson, when he was two days shy of his tenth birthday. He was a troubled boy who had lived a hard ten years, seeing and experiencing more in those years than any adult should have to in a lifetime. In his previous life he was told things like, “Jesus won’t love you anymore,” if he wouldn’t obey his mother. When he came to us, his notion of God was warped and driven by fear. For months Terre, my wife, would reassure him, “What happened to you wasn’t your fault. God doesn’t hate you. He loves you. He loves you so much!” It seemed, though, that the words might as well have fallen on stony ground.

One Saturday morning Nelson snuggled between us as we prayed together as a family. Burying his head into Terre’s shoulder, he began to cry. At first, it was imperceptible, but once it became noticeable, Terre tenderly asked, “Nelson, what’s wrong? Why are you crying?” He whispered something, but that’s all it was, barely a whisper. Not understanding, Terre once more implored, “What’s wrong, son?” Again he whispered, but still we couldn’t tell what had moved our boy to tears. A third time Terre asked, placing her hand comfortingly on Nelson’s head, “Son, tell us what’s wrong? Why are you crying?” Once more he mouthed the words, this time just barely audible, “Because God loves me.” In that precious moment a brilliant light penetrated the darkness, a healing truth spoke to his brokenness, and a child understood something that many of us adults struggle to internalize: that we ourselves are treasure to God. It is a truth that can potentially transform the entire dynamic of our relationship with God.

In Matthew 13:33-46 we find two small kingdom stories that reveal a gargantuan truth. The first story (v. 44) is about a farmer who found a treasure buried in a field. Joyfully, and without hesitation, he sacrificed everything he had in order to possess the field. Obviously the newfound treasure was worth the sacrifice.

The second story is about a pearl merchant in search of beautiful pearls. In the course of his search he encountered the pearl of a lifetime. The merchant, like the farmer, sold everything in order to purchase the pearl. Thus, sacrifice for the sake of the one great treasure is the thread uniting both stories.

The popular interpretation of these stories is that the treasure represents the kingdom of God and men, recognizing the surpassing value, should be willing to make any sacrifice necessary to possess it. I would suggest, however, that there are some problems with the popular view and that there is another way of reading the story.

For one thing, in this collection of kingdom stories, Jesus has already said in the parable of the tares in the field that the field represents the world (v. 38). It’s reasonable to conclude, then, that the field also represents the world in the other parables. If in fact that is the case, then is Jesus saying that we should make any sacrifice necessary to come into possession of the world in which the treasure lies? That would be doubtful.

The other problem with the popular interpretation is that it sees the plowman and the merchant as representing believers, but in the other Matthew 13 parables that contain a central character, that character has been Jesus (the sower in the parables of vv. 3-9 and vv. 24-30). In fact, Jesus clearly identified himself as the chief character in v. 37, “He who sows the good seed is the Son of Man…” In this context, then, it would seem that the character of the plowman and the merchant are actually Jesus, not us.

If this is correct, then Jesus, not the seeker, is the one who finds the treasure and the great pearl, and Jesus is the one who does the purchasing and the possessing. The treasure and the pearl? Here is the surprise of the parable: they are you and me! Rather than being parables of discipleship, they are in reality parables of grace! They are about God’s redemptive purpose in Christ.

It was Jesus who sold all that he had to buy the field and the pearl. It was Jesus who became obedient, even unto death. It was Jesus who became poor so that we might become rich. It was by his precious blood, as a lamb without blemish or spot, that we were redeemed from life in the world. The price paid for the world in sin was the very life of him who was the delight of heaven. And in that mass of lost humanity there would be those (the treasure and the pearl?) who would respond to that costly sacrifice.

In these small parabolic gems Jesus announces our priceless worth in the eyes of the Divine. “You are everything to me! No matter the mess you have made of your lives, I will pay any price to make you mine.” Thus, you and I are central to God’s kingdom purpose.

Why am I crying? Because God loves me.