Jesus always used parables when teaching those who were not already following him about the kingdom of God. A parable is a short example of something already known to explain something unknown.
One such parable Jesus used was about fishing to reveal what will happen at the end of the world. Listen to what he said in Matthew 13:47-50:
47 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net that was cast into the sea, and gathered every kind:
48 which when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away.
49 So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just,
50 And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
Jesus is saying that the kingdom of heaven is like a net which men threw into the sea and caught many kinds of fish. When the net was drawn to shore, fishermen separated the good fish from the bad. The good fish were placed in containers while the bad were thrown away.
Then in verse 49 and 50 Jesus uses this scenario to explain what will happen to people at the end of the world.
Like the fishermen gathered in many fish, God shall gather all the people of the world and judge them! The just shall be separated from the wicked, and the wicked shall be cast into the lake of fire! And there shall be wailing (crying) and gnashing of teeth (the gnawing of the tongue in pain)
As harsh as this parable might sound, Jesus tells it because he loves us so much and does not want us to experience the horrors of hell and the lake of fire which is the consequences of sin!
This is the reason he gave his life for us. Jesus told Nicodemus, a Jewish Rabbi in John 3:16 of God the Father's great love for us, to keep us from the judgement of hell and the lake of fire. Listen to what he said:
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
Jesus died for my sins and yours upon that cross. If you will repent of your sins, just as I have for mine, (tell God you are sorry for your sins and mean it) and ask Jesus to forgive you and change your heart, he will! Then live your life in obedience to Him, and you will spend eternity in Heaven instead of in the lake of fire with the wicked!
Jesus has come into the world just for this purpose, to save us from the consequences of our sins!
For the wages (consequences) of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23 (Parenthesis is mine)
Jesus is God's gift to you! Won't you receive His gift of eternal life which is in Christ Jesus!
Jesus: TheTreasure of Great Price! Matthew 13:44
What is it that you value most in life? Each of us has a particular value system. We have either consciously or unconsciously developed this value system consisting of what is most important to us at the top. And what is the least important at the bottom.
Things or people we place the most value upon are those things we treasure. What's at the top of your list? (Ask yourself this question... and be honest about it!)
Jesus gave a story to explain the value of the kingdom of heaven in Matthew 13:44 which reads,
44 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.
Imagine discovering a treasure of great value hidden in a field, a gold mind perhaps! The owner of the field apparently does not know the treasure is there! What would you do? I don't know about you, but I would do just what this person did, sell everything I own and buy the whole field just to get the treasure out of it!
Jesus is the treasure in the field! When you get Jesus, you also get the kingdom of heaven! When you repent of your sins and ask him to save you, you have purchased a piece of the kingdom of heaven! All you have to pay is your old sinful life in exchange for the new one that he has purchased for you! Its like trading in your old beat up car for a brand new one, with no money down. Wow-- what a deal! (Who wouldn't take that?!)
Jesus says, I am the way the truth and the life! No man comes to the Father but by me. In another place he says I am the door!
So come on into the kingdom, the door is wide open! Your Father is waiting! Make Jesus Lord today!
Things or people we place the most value upon are those things we treasure. What's at the top of your list? (Ask yourself this question... and be honest about it!)
Jesus gave a story to explain the value of the kingdom of heaven in Matthew 13:44 which reads,
44 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.
Imagine discovering a treasure of great value hidden in a field, a gold mind perhaps! The owner of the field apparently does not know the treasure is there! What would you do? I don't know about you, but I would do just what this person did, sell everything I own and buy the whole field just to get the treasure out of it!
Jesus is the treasure in the field! When you get Jesus, you also get the kingdom of heaven! When you repent of your sins and ask him to save you, you have purchased a piece of the kingdom of heaven! All you have to pay is your old sinful life in exchange for the new one that he has purchased for you! Its like trading in your old beat up car for a brand new one, with no money down. Wow-- what a deal! (Who wouldn't take that?!)
Jesus says, I am the way the truth and the life! No man comes to the Father but by me. In another place he says I am the door!
So come on into the kingdom, the door is wide open! Your Father is waiting! Make Jesus Lord today!
Life Consists of More Than the Stuff We Possess! Luke12:15-21
A Jewish man asked Jesus to speak to his brother about sharing an inheritance with him. Jesus replied, "Man, who made me a judge or a divider over you?" Then Jesus told a story of the consequences of greed which in the scriptures is called 'covetousness'. Here is the story Jesus told. How it resembles so many who seek after riches today and not after God. Listen to it as recorded in Luke 12:15-21:
15 And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.
16 And spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a rich man brought forth plentifully:
17 And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits?
18 And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods.
19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years, take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.
20 But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be which thou hast provided?
21 So is he that layeth up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.
Jesus said "A man's life does not consist of the things he possesses". In other words, God measures a person's net worth not based on what he has accumulated in this world's wealth but what we have received of Godly wealth. (Keep reading, I will explain)
Notice that this man had much wealth by man's standard, but was not rich by God's standard. So that brings us to the question: What is God's standard of riches and how is it that standard attained?
I will answer the second part of the question first. How does one attain the riches of God? First of all, God's riches are found in God's kingdom. In order to get His riches, one must first enter His kingdom.
Jesus said in John 14:6 "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." In another place (John 3:3) Jesus said, "Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God". So to get into the kingdom of God, one must be born again through faith in Jesus Christ. Being born into Jesus Christ is synonymous to being born into the kingdom of God!
To be born again, one must repent (or ask God's forgiveness) for sin. Jesus shed his blood for us so that we might have the opportunity to be forgiven when we ask.
Now, how does one acquire riches by God's standard? God sent Jesus Christ his Son, not only to die for our sins, but to show us through his life how to live. Therefore after being born again we are to grow more and more like Jesus, God's Son. In this way we become richer and richer toward God.
The more we are like Jesus in character, the wealthier we are by God's standard!
If we spend our entire life amassing wealth or attempting to, and are not rich toward God our lives count for nothing; and just like the man in the story, our time also will run out. Then God who is our maker will require our souls to give account to Him!
Don't get me wrong, Jesus was not saying that money is not necessary to live here on Earth, but it is not as important as Godly riches which will prepare us for Heaven. The Bible says He knows that we have need of these things (money, clothes, food, homes, education, a better quality of life). Luke 12:30:
Rather than seeking riches, Jesus says, "But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you." (Luke 12:31) In other words, if we seek after God and what is right according to His standard (Jesus Christ), he will provide for our daily needs as a Father provides for his children.
His point is that if we spend our time seeking after money and things, we might attain them but will be spiritually poverty stricken. However, if we will seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness, we will be spiritually rich and He will provide for our earthly needs as well! Believe me, He can provide for us much better than we can. I have experienced His provision time and again!
Repent of your sins and choose to believe in Jesus, and you will become rich in the Kingdom of God!
15 And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.
16 And spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a rich man brought forth plentifully:
17 And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits?
18 And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods.
19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years, take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.
20 But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be which thou hast provided?
21 So is he that layeth up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.
Jesus said "A man's life does not consist of the things he possesses". In other words, God measures a person's net worth not based on what he has accumulated in this world's wealth but what we have received of Godly wealth. (Keep reading, I will explain)
Notice that this man had much wealth by man's standard, but was not rich by God's standard. So that brings us to the question: What is God's standard of riches and how is it that standard attained?
I will answer the second part of the question first. How does one attain the riches of God? First of all, God's riches are found in God's kingdom. In order to get His riches, one must first enter His kingdom.
Jesus said in John 14:6 "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." In another place (John 3:3) Jesus said, "Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God". So to get into the kingdom of God, one must be born again through faith in Jesus Christ. Being born into Jesus Christ is synonymous to being born into the kingdom of God!
To be born again, one must repent (or ask God's forgiveness) for sin. Jesus shed his blood for us so that we might have the opportunity to be forgiven when we ask.
Now, how does one acquire riches by God's standard? God sent Jesus Christ his Son, not only to die for our sins, but to show us through his life how to live. Therefore after being born again we are to grow more and more like Jesus, God's Son. In this way we become richer and richer toward God.
The more we are like Jesus in character, the wealthier we are by God's standard!
If we spend our entire life amassing wealth or attempting to, and are not rich toward God our lives count for nothing; and just like the man in the story, our time also will run out. Then God who is our maker will require our souls to give account to Him!
Don't get me wrong, Jesus was not saying that money is not necessary to live here on Earth, but it is not as important as Godly riches which will prepare us for Heaven. The Bible says He knows that we have need of these things (money, clothes, food, homes, education, a better quality of life). Luke 12:30:
Rather than seeking riches, Jesus says, "But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you." (Luke 12:31) In other words, if we seek after God and what is right according to His standard (Jesus Christ), he will provide for our daily needs as a Father provides for his children.
His point is that if we spend our time seeking after money and things, we might attain them but will be spiritually poverty stricken. However, if we will seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness, we will be spiritually rich and He will provide for our earthly needs as well! Believe me, He can provide for us much better than we can. I have experienced His provision time and again!
Repent of your sins and choose to believe in Jesus, and you will become rich in the Kingdom of God!
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