God's Treasure (repost)

(First posted 7/19/07)


As I meditate more upon God's love in action, which I believe is really the only way we'll ever even begin to walk in it ourselves, a couple more examples that come to mind are based upon two parables.

Steve McVey of Grace Walk Ministries (see his blog), when he was visiting my church a couple of years ago, shed light and opened my eyes to the beauty of God's love demonstrated in the parables of the hidden treasure and the pearl of great price. I'll put it in my own words below.

"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. (Matt 13:44)

"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it. (Matt 13:45-46)

I've always, always, always heard that the treasure in the field and the pearl of great price is JESUS, and that we're to sell all we have so that we can have Him. But hold on a minute. How can we purchase what God gives us freely? And to think about it a little further, isn't there a price that Jesus paid so that God could have us? "For God so loved the world (the treasure, the pearls) that He gave His only begotten Son..."

...our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us... (Titus 2:13b-14a)

For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all... (1 Tim 2:5-6)

Let's be real about this... Did we ever do a thing to seek out or to earn any of this? "There is no one righteous, no not one..." "There is no one who understands, no one who seeks God."

The pearl of great price. The treasure in the field. Isn't Jesus talking about us? And again, the price that was paid - isn't that what Jesus did? Isn't it Jesus who went looking for the lost sheep? All we can really do is to respond to what He has done for us! We cannot treat it as a debt, because He gave all this to us freely. And even our response is by His grace. How we've forgotten that the coming of Jesus wasn't about what we could do for God, but it was ALL about His love for us, and how He considered us so precious that HE did all this for us!

One of my favorite passages that gets to the heart of God's love in action is found in Philippians 2. We're encouraged to love one another, be of one accord, be of one mind, etc, by looking to the example of Christ:

Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Phil 2:5-11)

By all of this we know God's love for us. He demonstrated it fully and perfectly.

When Jesus told the rich young ruler, "sell all you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven," He Himself was in the very process of demonstrating it, by giving up His rights to deity ("selling all He had") and becoming one of us, coming in our likeness, being obedient to the point of death on a cross (giving Himself to us, the "poor")... and ultimately being exalted to the highest place, and receiving the ultimate treasure in heaven...

Us.

How can we give what we don't (know we) have?

Apostle Paul: "I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height — to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God." (Eph 3:14-19)

Apostle John: "In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another." (1 John 4:9-11)

Artist Tony Vincent: "I can't make You love me more; No matter how I try; Your grace alone can justify; That kind of love just mystifies... I can't make You love me more; Can't impress You with my deeds; I can't make You love me less; That kind of love is what I need." (Song: Out of My Hands).

In the process of going through some of my notes-to-self from June, I saw that I had referred myself to a Growing in Grace program, "Rooted and Grounded in Love," in which my friend and cohost Mike Kapler had said the following:

"If I haven't received an abundance of finances... I can't give a lot of money. If I haven't understood, or received, the love that God has for me - His unconditional love - how can I love others unconditionally, if I haven't yet understood what it's like to be loved unconditionally?"

The truth is, we do have the love of God, and we are in the unconditional love and grace of God! It's true, whether we comprehend it or acknowledge it or realize it or not! But... if we don't know it - if we're not rooted and grounded and established in it, and if we don't really know and understand how much God loves us - the width, the length, the depth, the height - of God's love... if we don't know that ourselves, then how can we give it?

If we don't truly know God's love, then Paul's prayer is a good one to pray for ourselves and for others. Forget trying to conform to a certain lifestyle or Christlikeness. How's that even possible if you don't know His love? God, let us know the width, the length, the depth, the height of your love!

It's just so ridiculous

God's Ridiculous Agape Captivating Everyone

(I heard this from Paul Anderson-Walsh, describing his "Grace Commission.")

"Let me be clear... God's love is absurd, it is irrational, it is irresponsible, it is downright stupid if you ask me."




Isn't it though?