We work hard for what is important to us (The hidden treasure Matthew 13:44-46)

We work hard for what is important to us (The hidden treasure Matthew 13:44-46)
I am amazed with how hard people are willing to work for things that are important to them. Children will spend multiple hours a day trying to improve at a sport they love because it is important to them. Grown men will live in the woods scouting, building food plots, setting game cameras, and feeding stations in the hope of drawing a big deer in for hunting season because it is important to them. Individuals will spend hours a day in the gym trying to get their bodies in shape so they can fit into an outfit they wore in high school because it is important to them. Today we begin to look at the parables of the hidden treasure and the valuable pearl, and we see that the individuals in our parables are willing to give up everything to obtain what is important to them. One man went and sold everything that he had to purchase the field that he knew held a treasure and the other individual sold everything he had in order to buy the most beautiful pearl he had ever seen. Jesus said that this mentality is the mentality that we should have when it comes to the Kingdom of Heaven, it is so valuable that we should be willing to give everything up to obtain it.
Had work and dedication to natural things is admirable and even important to be successful in this life but the effort we put forth to obtain natural things should pale in comparison to the effort we put forth for spiritual growth. Look around you and it won’t be hard to see what is most important in your life, because these will be the things that you have worked hardest for. The real question we must ask ourselves is are we is are we working harder for the things of this world that will fade away or are we working harder for the eternal things of God’s kingdom. We will put the extra hours in at the office to get the promotion we want but are we willing to put the extra time in prayer and Bible study to gain a better understanding of the Kingdom of God. We will spend the extra time teaching our kids to hit a curve ball but are we willing to spend the extra time praying over and with them for God’s will to be done in their life. The treasure of heaven is so much more valuable than anything we could pursue on this earth and that was what Jesus was trying to let His listeners know when he told them these two stories. Nothing in our lives should so valuable that we are not willing to forsake it for an opportunity to obtain eternal life in the Kingdom of God.