Pearls of Great Prices

TITLE: Pearls of Great Prices
DATE: April 13, 2019
TEXT: Matthew 13:45-46 – ESV- 45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.
​
I have never  had a “pearl of great price,” Goodness, I have never even had a pearl of little or no price. For that reason I have to rely on what Jesus said, and about what the papers print about pearls.

Now you already know what Jesus had to say about pearls In his short, two-verse parable, He tells us of a pearl aficionado who found a pearl of such wondrous, lustrous  beauty that he hocked everything he owned just to be able to buy that gem,
Yes, you know Jesus story, but you may have missed the report about Abraham Reyes, Abraham has a pearl of great price… except for the fact that the pearl of great price cost him nothing…not a penny.

According to the family story, Abraham’s grandfather bought a giant claim form a Filipino fisherman. Inside this giant clam was a giant pearl. And if you’re wondering “how giant”, it’s pretty hard to answer.

CBS news says it’s the size of a baby and Abraham says it’s like a cows head. Me, I’ve seen pictures of it and it’s not particularly beautiful. But it’s one of the biggest pearls in the world and it weighs about 60 pounds.

That means Abraham’s free pearl of great price is insured at a figure somewhere between $40 and $60 million dollars. 

So, we’ve got two stories about two pearls. One pearl cost everything one man had; the second cost nothing. Even so those pearl’s still had a value…a value to the person who was wise enough to appreciate it
Of course the question still arises. On a spiritual level what is so valuable? Jesus says it is the  kingdom of heaven. Saint Paul put it differently when he wrote, in Philippians 3:

Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ 

Understand what those words mean. St. Paul had Roman Citizenship. He counted that rubbish. He had the best of education. Rubbish. He was a respected member of the Pharisees. Rubbish.

When faith was planted in Paul’s heart his world was transformed. It was turned right-side up. Things which once had been important lost their value .Jesus, the One Whom He had been persecuting became His best and dearest Friend.
No, more than a Friend.

Jesus became His Savior and Lord And how can you put a price on the Person Who has washed away your sins, freed you from  hell and opened the doors to heaven… or should we say opened the “pearly gates”

THE PRAYER: Dear Lord there are a lot of pearls which catch our interest and capture our attention. May we have the wisdom to see that which is most valuable: our Savior and the salvation He has won. In Jesus’ Name I pray it. Amen

Today’s devotion was inspired by various articles, amongst which is the one written  by the Newser Editors on March 28, 2019.  Those who wish may check out this link which was, at the time of writing, fully active: http://www.newser.com/story/273176/family-heirloom-may-be-worth-90m.html

The music which introduces and concludes our devotions was written by Guy Baumann. He along three of his brothers perform on the album: The Baumann Brothers which may be ordered here: http://thebaumannbrothers.com/index.html