Jesus Wants You to be Rich!

⁴⁴ “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.” Matthew 13

Jesus often spoke to the masses in parables. He would use illustrations from everyday life to explain what “the kingdom of heaven is like”.

The parable of the “Hidden Treasure” is one of my favorites because it unlocks so much truth about coming to Christ.  So what does it mean?

As we have said, Jesus used illustrations from everyday life to explain what “the kingdom of heaven is like.”  However, things change and what was common to everyday life 2000 years ago may not be understood easily today.  Regarding this parable, one thing to keep in mind is that when Jesus walked the earth there were no banks to hold your money and valuables.  If foreign armies or raiders came, they would steal your treasure. People buried their money and valuables underground to avoid them being stolen. The Jewish historian Josephus put it this way: “The gold and the silver and the rest of that most precious furniture which the Jews had and which the owners treasured underground was done to withstand the fortunes of war.”^[1] Sometimes the owner of the treasure would be killed by the armies, raiders, or even die by natural causes and the treasure would be lost. No one else knew of it nor where it was.

The man in Jesus’ parable comes upon treasure hidden in a field. To obtain it he joyfully sells all he has to buy the field. Once he owns the field he owns the treasure which is worth much more than all he has now. Today it would be like selling a $200,000 house and $10,000 car to buy a field containing millions of dollars in gold. If you were certain of the gold’s worth and believed  you would own it once you bought the field, you’d gladly and joyfully sell your house and car in order to acquire the treasure.

What does this teach us about the Kingdom of Heaven?  Jesus said “whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple.” (Luke14:33) Jesus demands that we surrender all we have to Him and give up autonomy of our lives and follow Him (i.e. selling all we have).  The natural reaction to Jesus’ call is that the price is too great.  Most will say, “No thank you.” However the people who see Jesus for His infinite great worth and who believe that they will be with Him in His eternal kingdom gladly give all they have for the treasure (Jesus)! In giving up all they have, they will be rich beyond measure!

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^[1] MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (1985). Matthew. MacArthur New Testament Commentary. Chicago: Moody Press.

Want Proof of God?

¹⁸ For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, ¹⁹ because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. ²⁰ For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, ²¹ because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened.²² Professing to be wise, they became fools, ²³ and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things.  Romans 1

Many people claim they don’t believe in God. You hear them say things like “If only God would reveal Himself to me, then I would believe” or “There is no way to prove that God exists and I need proof.”  The idea being they would believe or even want to believe, if only God would do more to prove His existence to them.

You want proof of God?  Look around. The Bible says that creation is proof enough of God’s existence. For example, we know intuitively when we see an automobile that it had a creator--so too with the world. I understand that scientists have come up with a theory that says in essence “once there was nothing, then there was a bang, then something crawled out of water, and then after millions upon millions of years, there was us.”  However, this isn’t what we see when we observe the world around us.  What we see is created things have a creator.  You wouldn’t believe me if I told you that the computer I’m writing on evolved from nothing. Why would you believe the world came from nothing?

The majesty and glory of creation also points to God. When we see the majesty of the mountains, the beauty of the leaves in fall or the glory of a brilliant starlit night, it points to the Glory of their creator. “The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork.” (Psalm 19:1)

Creation’s witness to us is yes, there is a God. He sent His One and Only Son to save us from our own sin. Just as creation testifies to the existence of God, our lives testify to the law of sin and death. We all sin. No one can say that they have not lied. Sin causes death. However, God sent His Son to deliver us from the law of sin and death. His death on the cross paid for our sin and through His resurrection He overcame the grave. God now commands everyone everywhere to repent (Acts 17:31) and turn to Him in belief. 

I Am Not Ashamed of the Gospel

¹⁶ For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ,  for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. ¹⁷ For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.”  Romans 1

The gospel of Christ is nothing to be ashamed of, nor is there anything more glorious. No One is more beautiful than Jesus. The gospel of Christ is the greatest story ever told and our one hope in this world.   However, many people who believe the gospel shrink back from talking about it.  We may not think we’re ashamed of the gospel, but our actions might tell a different story.

It’s time to reassess our priorities. It’s time to turn back to our First Love. It’s time to not be ashamed of the gospel of Christ!

Here are just a few reasons to remind us why:

We should not be ashamed of the gospel because it is Christ’s. If we love Jesus how can we not love or be faithful to His message?  Our Lord gave everything to save His people from their sins.

We should not be ashamed of the gospel because of its power to lead the lost to salvation. The gospel is the sole hope for a lost and dying world.  God has entrusted us with the cure for what ails humanity. We must not conceal it.

We should not be ashamed of the gospel because those who have faith in it are righteous. When we believe in the gospel, God imputes Christ’s righteousness on us. Our one path to righteousness is through the gospel of Christ.

The truth is that most everything we are passionate about in this world will pass away. Sports teams, political parties, entertainment and so on, will one day cease to exist.  However, the Kingdom of Heaven lasts forever!  Stand for the One who will not pass away.

To Believe in Jesus is to Follow Jesus

24 “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: 25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.

26 “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: 27 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.” Matthew 7

This passage is often misunderstood. Here is a common interpretation: When the storms of life hit, as a Christian you’ll withstand the storm but if you aren't  watch out!  It’s not that Jesus does not strengthen you as you walk through the storms of life.  However, applied to the context of the passage, this interpretation is incorrect and doesn't fit.

Notice the “therefore” in the beginning of the passage. The “therefore’ connects this passage with the previous passage.  In the previous passage Jesus said that many will be surprised on Judgment Day. Although they called Him Lord they practiced sin, and in the end Jesus denies ever knowing them.  The “therefore” in this passage is saying “because many will be surprised on Judgment Day and cast away from Me, listen to what I am going to say.”

Jesus is comparing those who do and don’t follow His teaching to those who build houses. The person who follows His teaching is like a person who builds on a firm foundation. The person not following Jesus’s teaching is like a person who builds on a soft pliable foundation. Both houses may look beautiful and may appear to hold up.  But a day will come when the foundation will be revealed. Inevitably the storm comes, and the one on the poor foundation crashes to ruin.

One day the Lord will judge the hearts of men. The ones who followed Jesus will stand. The ones who didn’t follow Jesus will fall, and their fall will be great.

This does not teach salvation by works. Salvation is by grace and comes by believing in Jesus. However, when a person believes and Jesus says “follow Me,” those who truly believe in their hearts will follow Jesus. Those with a superficial belief and relationship with Jesus may call Him “Lord, Lord,” but will not follow Him.

To believe in Jesus is to follow Jesus. To follow Jesus is to live out His teachings. Decide to follow Jesus. 

Don’t Be Surprised on Judgement Day!

21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness’.” Matthew 7 ESV

This should get your attention! “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven.” On Judgment Day, there are those who will claim a relationship with Jesus, but Jesus will have nothing to do with them.

It is interesting that these people will plead their case with the Lord by claiming to have driven out demons and done many mighty works in Jesus’ name. Jesus doesn’t argue with the validity of the “mighty works” but says that in the end they were “workers of lawlessness [sin].” Performing signs and wonders is not proof of salvation, and Jesus will cast them away on Judgment Day.

What can be worse than believing you’re saved and finding out otherwise on Judgment Day? How do we avoid being one of those people? The Apostle Paul told the church of Corinth to “Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves” (2 Corinthians 13:5) Better to test yourself now than be surprised on Judgment Day.

How do we test ourselves? I can think of at least two ways:  First, do you love Jesus? Jesus is not a religion nor is He a means to an end. He is the living, risen, Son of God!  The Bible says we are to love God with all our heart (Luke 10:27).  We are to have affection for Christ. This manifests itself in love for His Word and love for His people. Not having affection for Christ should raise a huge red flag!

Another test follows the context of the passage. Is sin diminishing in your life?  Jesus denied knowing the people in Matthew 7:21-23. The one thing He said about them was that they practiced lawlessness. No believer attains sinless perfection, but there is a turning from sin. Where we once ran toward sin, now we run from it. When we do sin, we hate it.

   

Jesus teaches a significant number of people will be surprised on Judgment Day. They’ll find out they have no real saving relationship with Jesus. The time for self-examination is now. The good news is that if you’re reading this and feeling a sense of conviction about having a real relationship with Jesus, you can turn to Him now and follow Him. As long you are alive, it’s never too late.

Believer Beware!

¹⁵ “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. ¹⁶ You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? ¹⁷ Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. ¹⁸ A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. ¹⁹ Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ²⁰ Therefore by their fruits you will know them.”  Matthew 7

There are false prophets among us! Jesus warns us of them. You know if Jesus warns us that they’re here. We don’t like to think of anyone as a false prophet but they’ve been around since the beginning of the church. Many of the New Testament letters were written to combat their false teaching.

To make matters worse, these false prophets want to devour us! Jesus says that “inwardly they are ravenous wolves.” Christians are depicted as sheep in the Bible and wolves have only one use for sheep -- dinner.

Don’t expect to see wolves sitting openly in the pews at church next Sunday. False prophets come “in sheep’s clothing.”  They look just like you and me. However, although they disguise themselves as sheep, they can be identified as wolves. 

Jesus tells us that we can know false prophets by their fruits. What is coming forth from them? We often evaluate on the level of someone being nice, handsome, compelling, funny or charismatic. That’s not how God tells us to evaluate.  It’s by what fruit comes from them.

The Fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). I’ve heard it said that the one thing false prophets can’t do is deny their flesh. Putting to death the deeds of the flesh is something we can do only with the Spirit. False prophets don’t have the Spirit, consequently they can’t deny their flesh.

Somewhere in the false prophet’s ministry you’ll see gratification of the flesh. It could be with money as they love to use God’s people to acquire their own wealth. You may see their flesh manifest itself in an inflated ego (pride).  And, yes, one of the most popular, sexual immorality. They don’t just struggle with a particular sin, but use their ministry to feed their flesh. To acquire the money, pander to their pride and to seduce.

The reality may be that you’re not close enough to the false prophet to know whether they are proud or money hungry. So how do you identify a false prophet from afar?  You identify them from their teaching. Know the Bible. That’s what false prophets do, they twist the Word of God. Spend time getting to know the Word better than the one who wants to devour you.  The more time you spend with the Good Shepherd the more easily you will spot a wolf.

Identifying a false prophet is not one of the top five list of subjects we want to hear; but take Jesus’ warning of ravenous wolves seriously and beware!

So Much for “All Paths Lead to God.”

¹³ Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. ¹⁴ Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.”  Matthew 7

One of the most popular religious beliefs today is that all paths lead to God.  Whether Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam and so on, pick what works for you, and you’ll find your way to God. This view fits nicely in our pluralistic society. You don’t have to step on toes or ruffle anyone’s feathers, and you’ll never be called a “fundamentalist.”  The problem with this is that it stands in direct opposition to the teaching of Jesus.

Jesus does not teach many paths, He teaches two:  The first leads to life but it is narrow, difficult and only a few travel it. The other path is wide and well-traveled, but unfortunately it leads to destruction. The first path, the one that leads to life, is Jesus (John 10:9). The other, leading to destruction, is the path of all others not coming through Jesus.

Jesus clears up any ambiguity of His claim to be the sole path to heaven with one statement: “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6).  The single solitary path to heaven is through Jesus.

The reason why? Only one path has a savior. Jesus offers what nobody else can --  payment for sin. Jesus, the perfect sinless Son of God, stood in the place of the guilty sinner and paid the price for the sins of the world. Every other path offers a way to work off sins. There is no way to work off sin. You can’t do five good deeds to pay off one bad deed. How would you even keep track! Thanks be to God that He sent His Son to pay for my sins on the cross!

You have two paths to choose from. Embrace the one path that leads to life – Jesus!