So wars continue today! In the Middle East and pretty well all over the world, things can be pretty tough. The whole world seems to be at war, and it is getting tougher and tougher. Missiles, drones, all intensifying as countries beef up against other countries, and it seems to be getting worse and worse.
So many people are dead and dying - it is horrendous and extremely horrifying.
Before all this started, Jesus was telling parables/stories. He told two particular stories to his disciples, recorded for us in Matthew 13:44-46, in which he described what the kingdom of heaven is like.
No 1 Story: It went like this, "The kingdom of heaven is like a 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."
Nice - He got not only the field but also the hidden treasure
No 2 Story "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it."
These two stories of Jesus that he told to His disciples pretty much tell the same theme. That is, they really try to get through to us just how much value coming to Christ means to us and what the value of God's kingdom is to us if we choose to accept it.
Jesus also, through these two stories, implies a lot, like what we should be prepared to give up to possess God's amazing Kingdom. Not that we may have to give everything up, but unfortunately, many people worldwide have and continue to.
In the stories, both guys gave away all they owned to possess a greater find. Jesus was trying to get through to us the real value of God's eternal Kingdom. In the stories, they gave away earthly possessions to gain even greater rewards.
Then there are wars! They seem to be continuing all over the planet. Just to list a few, which really are very disturbing:- The Myanmar conflict, the civil war in Somalia, the insurgency in Benin, the Sudanese conflict, the Russian/Ukrainian War, the Afghan war, the Venezuelan Conflict, the Syrian Conflict, and so it goes on.
So many people are going through such torturous times. Where do we go from here?
Jesus said in Matthew 24, "You will hear of wars and rumours of wars, but don't panic. Yes, these things must take place, but the end won't follow immediately. Nation will go to war against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in many parts of the world."
When the world was first created, Satan, who was created as a mighty and good angel, had only one desire, and that was to usurp God's glory, and he fell due to his arrogant desire to take the place of God. Read about it in Isaiah 14:12-15.
Satan is very clever in today's world, being very good at deceit, as you can read in John 8:44. He is skillful beyond our imagination at tempting people (believe me, I am probably one of the worst). He is also ruthless and willing to spare no one in his pursuit of glory!
However, Satan is no match for Jesus, who is Lord of all. We will all face Satan's attacks as he tempts, tests, and accuses us all.
Back as far as Adam and Eve, when sin first made its appearance in the created world of our God. Sin took control and still is, thanks to Satan. We all sin, every one of us, we live in sin and die in a sinful world BUT....
Of course, Jesus came to save us from sin. He died to take sin away from us. All we have to do is to accept HIs great love for us and His sacrifice when he took the sin of the whole world on Himself and killed it on Calvary all those years ago. He rose again to show us that all we have to do is to accept his love for us and the very fact that He killed sin on our behalf.
We have to accept His great gift to us and ask him to lead us through this mixed-up and sometimes tumultuous life. You can do that right now if you wish. Life can be tough BUT keeping our faith and trust in God, regardless of what we may be going through, will see us to amazing salvation when our time comes at the end.
When we decide to come to Jesus and ask Him into our lives, we can always take refuge in Him, for by the power of his name, we are successfully able to resist all the hurdles and sin pits Satan sticks in our way.
In both the stories about the pearl and the hidden treasure, the man found in the field, Jesus, really wants us to understand that the Kingdom of God needs to be above everything in our lives. Both guys were willing to give everything they had to get what they wanted.
Unlike the parable and, unfortunately, how some people feel today, we don't have to pay money to follow Christ; we give Him our lives, not money.
In these two parables, Jesus wants to get through to us and to also encourage us that we really need to put our love for our Lord first and foremost in our lives. There is absolutely nothing here on earth or in our lives more valuable than God's kingdom.
God's richest blessings to you. Hope to see you next time.
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