What Jesus Did : Matthew 13:45-46 - The Searcher's Goal
by Phil Ware
The Searcher's Goal - Matthew 13:45-46
"Also, the kingdom of heaven is like a salesman looking for fine pearls. One day the salesman found a very fine pearl. The salesman went and sold everything he had to buy that pearl." (ERV) Full Text
Key Thought
I don't know about you, but I love to read mystery novels. I search for the clues, listen for the hints, and dig for the foreshadowing. But the joy of the search is worth its price only when I reach its goal. In searching for God's truth, I travel on the road of assurance because I know he wants me to find his grace and discover his Kingdom even more than I do. But without stretching for his truth, I may not have truly appreciated all that he has done for me. Without surrendering to him completely, letting his Kingdom be fully recognized as what I have longed to find all of my life, I probably would have missed its power and beauty. The Kingdom brings joy, not because its demands are easy, but because it calls me to a life of wholehearted, singularly focused truth.I won't hold anything back as I follow.
Today's Prayer
Almighty God, King of All, I want to fully surrender to your call and serve your Kingdom with wholehearted devotion. You are worthy of my life and your Kingdom is worth any price I may pay. Please help my faith to remain strong, my vision clear and my heart set fully on doing your work. In the midst of this, I know you will keep me in your grace. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
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"The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field. One day a man found the treasure. The man was very happy to find the treasure. He hid the treasure in the field again. The man went and sold everything that he owned to buy that field. "Also, the kingdom of heaven is like a salesman looking for fine pearls. One day the salesman found a very fine pearl. The salesman went and sold everything he had to buy that pearl. "Also, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was put into the lake. The net caught many different kinds of fish. The net became full, so the fishermen pulled the net to the shore. The fishermen sat down and put all the good fish in baskets. Then they threw away the bad fish. It will be the same at the end of the world. The angels will come and separate the evil people from the good people. The angels will throw the evil people into the place of fire. In that place the people will cry and grind their teeth {with pain}." {Then Jesus asked his followers,} "Do you understand all these things?" The followers said, "Yes, we understand." Then Jesus said to the followers, "So every teacher of the law who has been taught {the new things} about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house. He has new things and old things saved in that house. And he brings out those new things with the old things."
-- Matthew 13:44-52 (ERV)
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