DAILY DEVOTIONAL – October 5, 2020
“There He Is!”
Prayer: Our loving God and Father, Your love and mercy amazes us. We praise You and thank You for Your selfless sacrifice in Christ that has redeemed us and saved us from sin, death and the devil. Without You we are eternally lost, but You have found us and brought us back to Yourself by grace through faith in Christ our Lord. The words seem so small for such a magnificent salvation – thank you God. We love You. In Jesus name, Amen.
Scripture: Matthew 13:45-46
45 “The kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, 46 who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.”
Devotion – “There He Is!”
I am always humbled by the way my children get such joy and happiness from the simplest of things. Both of my kids could chase bubbles around for hours, screaming at the top of their lungs, cracking up hysterically anytime one of the bubbles pops on their nose.
My son is just about 1.5 years old now, and though he isn’t as enthralled by it as he used to be, he still likes playing hide and seek…or as we call it in our house, “Where did Jesse go?!” He pulls a blanket over his head while laying in your lap, or he hides a fraction of his face behind a lamp stand, waits for you to say, “Where did Jesse go?!” After re-emerging from his super secret hiding spot, we yell out “There he is!” which creates a huge smile and a cackling laugh. My son loves to be found, and I love to find Him.
Jesus tells a series of parables in Scripture about things that are lost and the people who spare no expense to search for and find what they were looking for. The lost sheep, the prodigal son, the lost coin and our example for today’s devotional text, the merchant who sold everything to find the pearl of great value.
We search hardest for the things we care most about, and that are the most valuable to us.
The hope and joy found in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, is that the same is true for God. All of mankind has sinned and rebelled against God. That sin created a separation between the Holy God of Creation and sinful mankind. A gap and separation we could not close on our own. Sin blinded us, and because of sin all of mankind was lost and separated from God. Yet, our God and Creator, whose love and mercy endures forever, so loved the world and the people of His creation that He literally came here to search us out, find us and bring us back to the Kingdom of God.
We have the Kingdom of God, and the Kingdom of Heaven can be found, only because God first sought us out and found us. The point of Jesus’ parable about the merchant who sold all he had to buy the pearl of great price is not to try and motivate us to sell all we have in order to embark on a search for the Kingdom of heaven. The Kingdom has already come to us in Jesus! The merchant in the parable Jesus told is not you or me or any man. The merchant in the parable is Jesus, and the pearl of great value is humanity who in their sin and rebellion against God went astray and was lost. In His amazing grace and love, God left the glory and splendor of Heaven and came here in the flesh not only to search us out and find us, but to give all that He had so that we would be redeemed and saved and brought back to God.
Jesus died literally with nothing. Even the clothes on His back were gambled away by the Roman soldiers. The priceless blood of God’s Son Jesus Christ, was purchased for 30 pieces of silver. God allowed His most precious Son to be bought by the greed of sinful mankind so that Christ would faithfully give up all He had, even His own life, so that you and I and all of lost humanity would be found and restored to our God and Maker at the expense of Christ’s suffering and death.
Let me say again, we search hardest for the things we care most about.
Jesus said in Matthew 6:33, “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” We are invited to seek for God and for His righteousness not because it is hidden, but because God may be found! In Christ God has closed the gap that sin created between man and God.
God bless you my friends, and remember, that God has forgiven yesterday, is with you today and has already taken care of tomorrow. Amen.
