The Parables of Christ 13 The Pearl of Great Price

The Parables of Christ no. 13

The Pearl of Great Price

December 28, 2003

Rev. Brian Kocourek

Now, this morning we will continue in our study of the parables, and today we will study the Pearl of Great Price spoken of by our Lor4d in Matthew 13:45 and 46 which immediately follows the parable of the Hidden Treasure that we studied last night.

Matthew 13:45 ¶ Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: 46 Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.

Now, this parable of Christ at first glance is almost identical to the parable preceding it in verse 44 where Jesus speaks of the kingdom of God being likened to a man who finds hidden treasure in a field and sells all that he has to buy that field.

Now, last night we examined this thought that the man held that treasure in such a high esteem or of such a great value that he valued it higher than all the things he had accumulated through out his entire life to that point. Jesus tells us that he sold all that he had to gain that treasure.

Therefore we are looking at value or estimation. And we examined this thought of treasure and found that the greatest treasure is eternal life, and Jesus said where our treasure is there will our heart be found as well, and he also said out of the abundance of the heart the mouth will speak.

Therefore, where our treasure is there will be the thing we spend our time with, and where our treasure is will be the thing that we will spend our finances on, and where our treasure is will be the thing that we will talk about the most.

So if our conversation is about cars, we know what we treasure the most in life. If our conversation is always about hunting or fishing we will know what we treasure most in life. And thus we can tell what the heart of a man or woman treasures most by the things they talk about the most.

Then if your conversation is about your relationship to God as your father that is because that is where your heart and thus your treasure is as well.

In the same light we have another parable from our Lord that immediately follows the parable of the hidden treasure and that is the parable of the pearl of Great price which we read for our text this morning.

In this parable we see a man has found a pearl of great price and because he values this pearl as having greater value than all that he has, he is willing to sell everything that he has in order to gain this pearl.

Now, since this parable has a similar message as the one we studies last night and it has to do with the things we value and what that value means to us, I would like to go a little further with this thought on value and examine it more in depth this morning.

Webster tells us that the word value is An amount, as of goods, services, or money, considered to be a fair and suitable equivalent for something else; and hence the man was willing to sell everything he had to buy the field in order to obtain the hidden treasure. In this parable he is willing to sell everything he has in order to obtain this pearl of great price. Now, remember, Jesus is telling us that the Kingdom of Heaven is like the man that is willing to sell all to gain the Kingdom. So we are looking at what the man values the Kingdom and it is very apparent in both of these parables that Jesus is telling us the value of the Kingdom of heaven is worth more than all that we have in this life.

Now, let’s look at this word value for a moment. We know that the word value speaks of a comparison between two things. One is the object or thing, and the other is what price we are willing to pay to obtain it. So I want you to keep this thought of worth in mind, because there is something special about this word that brings us one step closer to the Kingdom, and that is that the word Worth is actually the root for worship.

When we speak of worth we are talking about the quality of the thing that renders that something desirable, useful, or valuable

Now, it just so happens that the word Worship according to Webster’s New World Dictionary and the American Heritage Dictionary comes from the combination of the two words, worth and ship. Worth speaking of value and ship the suffix that is used to speaks of the quality, condition, or state of being.

Therefore when we speak of worship we are speaking of the value that we place on the object of worship, and therefore the quality, condition or state of that object we so desire to place our value in.

Thus when we hear Jesus speak on the Kingdom of Heaven as being of such a great value that we spend all we have to obtain it, we are in essence looking at something that expresses true worth-Ship. In other words we are looking at the quality that is such that we value it extremely high and in fact higher than all that we have possessed in life.

The condition of this Kingdom of Heaven is such that we are more than willing to lay everything else aside in order to obtain it, and the state of being is such that we are single focused and has evaluated the cost and have found the cost to be a fair assessment of the true value. Thus we find that the Kingdom of Heaven is very valuable and is actually a place or state of worship or worth-ship.

In fact that is what worship is all about. Many people have a wrong notion of what worship is. They think only in terms of prostrating themselves before some object or deity, or singing songs of praise tot hat object or deity. But according to the correct definition of the word, which fits quite well with what Jesus is teaching here in these parables, the kingdom of heaven is a place where we know true value and how to apply it.

The Kingdom of Heaven thus is a place of worth-ship. It is a place where we will have a true understanding of the value of God’s Word. Worth-ship, the state of, the quality of, or the condition we apply worth to. Therefore we are talking about worth-ship. Now, in order to know the value you must know the thing that is being valued.

If you do not know the thing you are valuing, how can you honestly place the right value on it. That is the problem we saw in the stock market the last few years. People who did not know the real value of stocks were placing large amounts of cash into the market thus driving up the values, and causing hyper- inflation in the markets, and thus giving a false reading to the real value of those stocks. And that is why when the stock market began to sink, the people jumped ship light frightened rats, forsaking all just to get out of the sinking ship.

But the Kingdom of God is a place where the people have been taught. And they not only have been taught right, but they have learned what they have been taught.

Jesus said, in JOHN 6:45 It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me.

Therefore our worship has a rank as well, and that rank is the result of the order in which we place God. He is to have the pre-eminent place in our hearts, and minds and souls. Then any other would have to be a lesser being than He for if He is the Sovereign, He is the Top in rank, in order, and class. That is why I cannot for the life of me figure out how people can be so stupid when it comes to God in their life.

[Matt 22:36] when Jesus is asked what the greatest commandment is, He replied.. “To love the Lord your God, with all your heart, all your soul, and mind.” But in [Mark 12:30-33] He adds one other ingredient, and that is strength, which we find God Himself speaking of in the Book of [Deuteronomy 6:4-18]. So actually when God speaks in His Word about loving Him with all of our heart, He is speaking about Loving Him with all of our understanding. Then when He speaks of loving Him with all of our Soul, He is speaking of loving Him with all that we are as a person, because our soul is who we are, it is our life, our breathe and our being. Then finally He tells us to love Him with all of our might or strength, which is to say, with all of our energies. Because, we could say that we love Him and even do perhaps in our understanding, and in our being have a love for Him which supersedes our love for anything else, but that is still coming up short of what God wants. He wants us to place our energies into this love. He said, teach them diligently to our children! That takes an effort, and that shows your love to God.

For what woman would love a man, and never show it. She may say, I love you but if there are no outward manifestations of that Love then it really means nothing. For love in itself is self sacrificial in it’s nature. Paul tells us that “Love suffers long, and is kind, and does not envy, and is not over inflated, and does not behave itself unseemly, and is not self seeking, and is not easily provoked, and thinks no evil, rejoices not in iniquity, but only in Truth, it beareth all things, hopes all things, and endures all things, and it never fails.” Now, what is He saying? That Love is something that is very difficult to have because you can’t have it by keeping it to yourself. You must give it away, in order to possess it. And that is what the men did in these two parables that we read last night and this morning. They gave all that they had to obtain the hidden treasure and the pearl of great price.

You must exert what energies you have in the process of showing this Love, and proper worship, or worth ship. This proper showing of your love and devotion to the most valuable person in your Life, Your God.

I CHRONICLES 16:29 Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come before him: worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.

PSALMS 96:8 Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come into his courts. 9 O worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness: fear before him, all the earth.

Notice the Scriptures proclaims that our worship should show forth the value we place upon the Lord. It says, PSALMS 29:2 Give unto the LORD the glory that is due unto his name (or that is fitting in value); worship (worth-ship) the LORD in the beauty of holiness. He’s a Holy God, then give Him a Holy sacrifice.

Romans 12:1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship. ² Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then (when? After your mind has become renewed, then ) you will be able to test and approve what God's will is, his good, pleasing and perfect will.

In MATTHEW 15:7 Jesus says, Ye hypocrites, (and we know that a hypocrites is someone who knows to do something and they won’t do it, or they know to not do it and they do it anyway.) well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying, 8 This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honor me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. (and where the treasure is there will the heart be also, but here He is telling us that these men’s hearts are far from him. That ought to tell you right there that He is not the treasure of their heart and therefore their worship of him is a false put-on like so many so-called Christians worth-ship today. Jesus went on to say, that their worth-ship is in vain. It is meaningless, because it does not represent the true value they place in God. ) 9 But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.

Again we read from MARK 7:6. He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. 7 Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. 8 For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do. 9 And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.

Notice here Jesus is saying their worship is in vain because they have elevated their own thoughts above Gods thoughts. He says they lay aside the commandments of God in favor of their own traditions. And they teach for doctrine their own traditions, and lay aside that which should be taught for doctrine which are the commandments of God.

In JOHN 4:22 Jesus said, Ye worship (worth-ship) ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. (now , if you do not know what you are worth-shipping, then how can you worth-ship correctly? If you do not know what value to place then how can you give the right value to your worth-ship?)

23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. 24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

Then how do we show correct worship to God? We look at the Son of God for our example. He said the son can say nothing but what the father commanded Him to speak, and the Son can do nothing but what the Father showed Him first, and He said, My doctrine is not mine but the Father’s that sent me, and He said, I came not to do mine own will, but the Will of Him that sent me. Therefore we ask the question, How can we know what proper worship of God as our Father is? Well, we say what God says, we think what God thinks and we do what God says to do. We hold for doctrine only what God has given us to hold. And most importantly, we let go of our own will and receive the Will of the Father.

That is how we show that we worth-ship God. That is how we show that we place God’s word, and His thoughts even above our own thoughts and words. And there is no way we can truly worship God outside of spirit and truth. And notice that Jesus is telling us that there is coming a time that we will worth-ship God as our Father. Then how do we show proper worth-ship to a Father? By rendering to Him complete obedience as the Son of God did.

At the first exodus under the Pillar of Fire, the vindicated prophet Moses was commanded by God to tell the people, EXODUS 20:12 ¶ Honor thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.

At the second exodus under the Pillar of Fire, The Vindicated Apostle Paul said, EPHESIANS 6:2 Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise;)

And at the third exodus under the Pillar of Fire the vindicated Prophet William Branham said, LIFE STORY 50-0200 E-5 And young people, remember. If you're fortunate enough today to have a daddy and a mother living, love them, honor them. The hour will come when you'll think that they're the greatest people in the world, if you don't now. And don't never, little fellows, don't never give this slandering word, "old man," and "old woman." That's not the old man and old woman. That's daddy and mother. And some of these days when they go out of the room, the casket, of flowers, you hear them lowered down in the ground, the pastor say, "Ashes to ashes and dust..." It won't be the "old man" then. There won't be the "old woman," it'll be, "Mother." You'll be wringing your hands and crying. That's right. Now, while she's a living, give her her flowers now, and give dad his flowers. That's right. Now, and the best flower you could give them, is obey them. And that's the first promise in the Bible, the first commandment with promise, "Honor thy father and mother: which may lengthen the days upon the earth that the LORD giveth thee."

Honor thy Father and Mother for this is the first commandment with a promise. And what was the promise? Long Life. Then to honor God The Eternal Father correctly, has a promise as well, and we found last night that it is eternal Life.

JOHN 6:45 It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me. 46 Not that any man hath seen the Father, save he which is of God, he hath seen the Father. 47 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.

Therefore, when you believe what you have seen concerning the Father you receive eternal life. Why? Because all that are ordained to eternal life believe, Acts 13:48

ACTS 17:22 ¶ Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars' hill, and said, [Ye] men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious. 23 For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you. (Notice that their worship is in ignorance and therefore can not bring forth true benefits. For without worshipping God in Spirit and Truth our worship is in vain.) 24 God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; 25 Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things;

Paul is telling us here that God is sovereign, and our worship of God adds nothing to God at all.

I TIMOTHY 6:15 Which in his times he shall show, [who is] the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords; 16 Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom [be] honor and power everlasting. Amen.

Now, God, our Father is King. And He’s is the ONLY POTENTATE and He’s the only One that is sovereign. And without understanding the sovereignty of God we will never understand His Godhood, nor His Nature, and therefore we will never understand God, “Who He is” and “Why He does what He does”. Our conception then of God becomes only one that is made up in the minds of men. The God of our own imagination.

How different is the God of the Bible from the God of the modern So called Christian church! The conception of what God is and who He is that prevails in the churches today, and even among those who profess to believe the Message, is a miserable distortion, a blasphemous mockery of the Truth.

The God of the twenty first century church is a helpless, and effeminate being who commands the respect of no one. The God of the peoples mind today is the creation of their over-sentimental politically correct sappiness. The God declared in the pulpits today, should be an object of pity rather than of awe inspiring reverence. To say that God the Father has purposed the salvation of all mankind, and that the Son of God died with the express intention of saving the whole human race, and that God is now seeking to win the world to Christ; when, anyone can by simple observation, that it is apparent that the great majority of men are dying in sin, and passing into a hopeless eternity:

Then by professing to believe a God that is TRYING to save them, but obviously cannot, is to say that God is a disappointment, and that God is being defeated. And you cannot come to any other conclusion, if you believe He is Trying to save the world. Because it is obvious that the world is lost and on its road to hell.

To say that God is "trying his best" to save all mankind, but that the majority of men will not let him save them, is to insist that the will of the Creator is impotent, and that the will of the creature is omnipotent. To throw the blame, as many do, upon the Devil, does not remove the difficulty, for if Satan is defeating the purpose of God, then, Satan is Almighty and God is no longer the Supreme Being.

Then what are we worshipping anyway. For to truly worth-ship God we must know Him in His power, and resurrection, and we must understand He is sovereign, and that he is supreme above all that we think, do, or say. He must be the treasure of great price, or our worship is no worth-ship at all.

If God does not hold the pre-eminent position in our life then we are not worth-shipping Him. We might be praising Him, but praise can be given out in many different ways and to many different places, persons, or things.

But we are talking of worth, we are talking of Value, we are talking of Assessment, we are talking of Worth-ship. And God truly can not be Worth-shipped if we do not place Him at the top of our list in everything. There is none that is sovereign outside of God. There is none that is deserving of our all outside of God. There is none that is deserving of our all outside of God. Then why Worth-ship a job, why would we worth-ship a car, why would we worth-ship a house, or why would we worth-ship any other object that is temporary.

God and God alone demands out total separation from unbelief, and our total dedication. Jesus said, the greatest commandment is, “To love the Lord your God, with all your heart, all your soul, and mind and all your strength.

Let us bow our heads and our hearts in prayer.

Dear Father, we have come to understand what worship is today in a much better way, and we ask that you would help us to worth-ship you with all that lays within us. With all our heart which means all of our understanding, and with all our soul which means with all that we are, and with all our mind which means we must first become renewed in our mind that the mind of Christ might be in us, and with all of our strength which means with all of our energies. Then Lord, we will be giving you the proper form of worship. Not just laying prone before you in prayer. But our entire life will be worship to thee and of thee. Our lives will become a living sacrifice because that is our spiritual act of worship.

Grant to us this day that refreshing that comes from Your presence and fill us with the desire to worship thee in Spirit and Truth for we ask it in the name of your first born Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.