Saturday, September 6, 2008

The Pearl

Matthew 13:45-46 again,the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls,who,when he had found one pearl of great price,went and sold all that he had and bought it. Is the kingdom of heaven a pearl?or simply a metaphor for something of great value?how might we be enriched from it,and do we have to die before benefiting in any way?A logical mind would need to know the answers to these questions,and be convinced of the truth of the answers before pursuing this "kingdom of heaven" What was Jesus really trying to convey to his listeners,and to us?If its so great of a thing,then why the sales job? philippians3:19 whose end is destruction,whose god is their belly,and whose glory is in their shame,who mind earthly things I think this verse is a partial explanation of the choices people make.The instant gratification of what we want.the illusion of fulfillment and the "easier way",the lies of satan we've accepted into our belief systems telling us that our desires are to be fulfilled in worldliness and that our constant struggle for "the goal"will bring this fulfillment.when you look at it from this perspective,it seems as phony as it is.Of course the ultimate goal of satan is to prevent us from having any sort of relationship with God or experience a conversion and receiving forgivness.(mark4:12)The amazing thing to me is that intelligent people with free will would go for it.Perhaps satans most familiar lie is to convince us that this is all we can hope for or all we deserve.Caught in a tail chasing,bottomless cup filling existence designed to keep us too busy to realize how only he is being served by it and that moments of perceived fulfillment are so fleeting as to make them worthless.Or as Solomon said in Ecclesiastes,all is vanity,and a chasing after the wind. Matthew 6:33But seek ye first the kingdom of God,and his righteousness,and all these things shall be added unto you. When you subscribe to the ideology of this verse,a transformation in your life can occur.If you believe that we as a world of people were created to have fellowship with God and that there isn't a single one of us for whom he doesn't have a detailed plan ,in which we experience his abundant love and also find our meaning and true purpose.Seeking the kingdom means living in that purpose,having a sense of meaning in your life that is unshakable unto the end.We all face events and circumstances in our lives that can paralyze us with fear and hopelessness.Letting go and letting God is more that a quip people use.Like a child,who having a broken toy turned to God and said,"fix it" but after some time passed no repair was perceived asked God,"why" to which he replied,"my child,how can I fix it when you won't let go of it?"So many times in my life when I've faced difficulties,i've asked God to remind me of my purpose and where it is that I belong.Watching as people and situations find their own resolutions apart from me,just doing what i'm supposed to do and letting God do his job.

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