The Kingdom of Heaven: Hidden Treasure

The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.—Matthew 13:44

Let’s break this simple parable down. Keep in mind that anytime one sees the kingdom of heaven in Scripture, the kingdom is referring not to physical realm or territory, but rather to reign and dominion. In this case, the kingdom of heaven is likened to a treasure hidden in a field.

The treasure speaks to the preciousness of kingdom of heaven. The wisdom, the knowledge, the power, and the person that is represented by the kingdom of heaven are of incalculable value. This treasure is EVERYTHING! And we will see that the man who found it, felt exactly that way about it.

The fact that it’s hidden is in keeping with the structure of parables themselves. Matthew has just written earlier in his account that Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables. When pressed by his disciples why this was so, he said, “This is why I speak to them in parables:

‘Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand.’ In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: ‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.’”

What is he saying here? It seems to me he is telling his disciples, that the crowds in general have no genuine interest in spiritual things. They are likely present for the sheer spectacle, the promise of a movement that could stand in opposition to the Romans, or any number of other such reasons. Jesus is telling his disciples that he will not casually reveal the mysteries of the Kingdom to those not worthy of it. It is reminiscent of Jesus’ response to the Syrophoenician woman later in chapter 15. The woman’s request for help for her daughter to release her from demon-possession invited this response: “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel…It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to their dogs.” But she was “forcefully laying hold of the kingdom.” She replied, “Yes, Lord but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.” She believed with all her heart, and it was to such a one as this that Jesus was looking to reveal the kingdom.

But what of our man who found the treasure in the field? Well, it says that he hid that treasure again, but that he subsequently went and sold all he had to obtain that field. Here is where many an interpreter reads too concretely and draws wrong conclusions. Is Jesus saying that the kingdom of heaven can be bought? Is he saying that we can obtain the treasure surreptitiously by swindling the “owner” of the field? Not at all. The point he is making here is that anyone who wants the kingdom must be willing to give up EVERYTHING for its sake. The parable says that the man, in his joy, sold ALL that he had. This is the cost of discipleship. In Luke he presents this in such stark terms as “hating” the members of our family, proverbially carrying our cross, and winds up saying, “In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.” When the rich young ruler wants to know what he must do to inherit eternal life, Jesus touches on his most sensitive point. “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” The young man went away sad. He did not recognize the treasure that was staring him right in the face. Our man in the field, on the other hand, had joy. He recognized the treasure for what it was, and he realized that nothing he had compared to it. This was the mindset of the Apostle Paul when he wrote of the kingdom of heaven

“But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ…”

Once you have had a vision of the kingdom of heaven, you will realize that to give up anything for its sake is no loss. It is simply giving up everything you have in order to get the one thing worth having. And in that you can take great joy.