Matthew 13:44-46

Liz Dumain inspires us to go treasure hunting

Liz Dumain

Do you like pirates? Have you seen Pirates Of The Caribbean? I went to Disney a few years ago and loved the Pirates of the Caribbean ride with all that singing and swashbuckling and all that treasure! It all sounds quite romantic; sailing the high seas in search of treasure. I imagine the reality was probably a bit different though; dark, smelly and dangerous maybe?

I came across this quote this week, 'Church is a group of people that have discovered something so very exciting that they cannot do anything but share it with each other'. That's what made me think of pirates, because it sounds to me like church should be a group of people who have discovered treasure, a bit like pirates.

Have you ever wanted to follow a treasure map? Imagine having a map that led you to something so valuable and exciting that it changed your life and could change the lives of anyone who you chose to share it with. Imagine that once you'd discovered the buried treasure for yourself, you got to make copies of the map and send people out on their own journeys to find treasure for themselves. Who wouldn't want to have a go at that?

Matthew 13 talks about treasure. A man finds treasure in the field and he wants it so much that he goes and sells everything he has to buy the field. Another chap sells everything he has to obtain an amazing pearl. This is a human response to finding the things of God; treasure indeed. It is a response that realises that God's love and care; his involvement with us; his promise of hope and his forgiveness for what has been in our lives, gives us a future that is new and full of purpose and opportunity. It is a promise that was sealed when he was so desperate for us to wake up and see all that was possible for us that Jesus died on a cross and then was raised again; a promise sealed by God the Holy Spirit who lives in us every day reassuring, guiding, challenging and sealing the deal. That's real treasure.

Like buried treasure, God's activity and presence is sometimes hidden and must be discovered. We don't hear anything about what the man who wanted the field did to raise the money; the Palestine car boot sale must have been buzzing and eBay would have been on fire with his commitment and sacrifice to get hold of the thing he'd glimpsed in a field! He'd seen it was something that other people had and he wanted it for himself!

There's an accidental finding of treasure by the first man and a searching out in the second. God comes to us in both ways. Sometimes there is an accidental finding where we meet him in the most unexpected moments and other times we need as individuals and church to really go seeking for healing, or service opportunities, or for our own individual growth.

The irony of the whole thing of course is that when we think we are looking for God, actually what we are doing is allowing him to find us; because he wasn't hidden or lost, we were. We were hidden because of our shame, or our silly belief that he wouldn't want us. Lost because we had no idea how much he loves us. Maybe we're not the one seeking God as the treasure, but he is the one seeking us because we are his treasure! When we allow ourselves to be found, we discover that God has already given up everything he had in order to seal the deal with us. It's all about Jesus. God giving everything he could ever have and be, to have us, because we are his treasure and he will never stop searching for us.