Today's sermon will take two parables instead of one. These two parables are inseparable because they tell us a tale that is one in the same. The two parables reveal two faces of grace that take us to the very same place, the kingdom of God. Matthew 13:44-46.

The Two Parables

The parable in verse 44 is a story of discovered treasure. The ancient land of Israel was a constant battlefield. When a man went to war, the best thing he could do with his valuables would be to bury them. Often the man would not survive the battle. Since he alone knew where the treasure was buried, the buried treasure became the hidden treasure in Jesus' story.

One day a common laborer comes to clear a field for his boss' planting or building. The shovel hits the ground in just the right spot, and hidden treasure is discovered. Knowing that whatever is discovered on land belongs to the land owner, the employee shrewdly puts the treasure back in to the ground, makes a deal with his employer to purchase the land for himself, thus acquiring the treasure.

This parable is not told to debate the morality of a business transaction. This parable tells a simple story. When you unexpectedly find what you've always wanted, you gladly give up everything else to get it.

The parable in verses 45-46 is a story of a discovered pearl. Pearls were a new and valuable commodity in Jesus' day. Many men made it their ambition to discover them. None of them came cheap, but certainly some pearls were worth more than others.

A merchant makes it his business to make a living off of pearls. He wheels and deals, schemes and dreams, and trades for decades to get a collection of pearls. Yet he yearns for the perfect pearl. One day his search comes to an end. There it is, the pearl of great price, the pearl that requires him to give up all other pearls in order to obtain it. Then, the most important transaction of his life is made.

This parable is not told to give advice on investments. This parable tells a simple story. When you finally find what you've always wanted, you gladly give up everything else to get it.

The Two Faces of Grace

These two parables obviously tell a similar tale. When you unexpectedly find what you've always wanted, you gladly give up everything else to get it. And, when you finally find what you've always wanted, you gladly give up everything else to get it.

Notice the difference between the parables, though. One man found his treasure unexpectedly. The other man found his treasure after a long and desperate search. These are the two faces of grace.

Salvation, the key to the kingdom of God, is by grace alone through faith alone in Jesus Christ alone. Neither point of either parable would imply for a moment that salvation can be bought. But the two parables put together show us that the grace that brings salvation can arrive in our lives from two points of view.

Look at the face of the field hand. It shows how the sovereignty of God puts grace into your life. This man was not looking for treasure, he was simply clearing a field. The kingdom of God dropped into his life like an atomic bomb, changing everything. To those who do not and cannot seek the Lord, the Lord reveals himself by unexpected, amazing grace.

Look at the face of the pearl merchant. It shows that it is the responsibility of man to pursue grace until he finds it. This man was looking for that one true pearl. Then the kingdom of God appeared to him like the face of an angel, changing everything. Those who seek the Lord with all their heart will find what they are looking for when the Lord reveals himself by amazing grace.

The Apostle Paul can be put nicely into both parables. On the Damascus Road, he was not looking to follow Jesus, only to kill Jesus' followers. In the blinding light of unexpected, amazing grace, Paul was put into the kingdom of God. Yet this very kingdom is what Paul had pursued all of his life, albeit wrongly through religious rules and regulations. But when Paul finally found the true and living word of God, amazing grace wrote a new story in his life.

The Way Into The One and Only Kingdom of God

The way begins with discovery. Maybe it is shown to you by your parents, a pastor, or perhaps a good friend. Maybe it comes in a flash of light, or maybe it comes as the final answer to the question you have been asking all of your life. But there it is and you can see it. It is a treasure, it is a pearl, it is the Lord Jesus Christ, showing you his salvation, forgiveness, eternal life, the kingdom of God.

Discovery demands decision. Will I keep what I have and give up what I don't, or will I surrender it all to have what I have not? Consider the words of the great missionary martyr Jim Eliot, "He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose." The field hand and the pearl merchant gave up resources that would eventually run out for a prize that would never run dry.

The decision is discipleship, and discipleship is costly. Christ's kingdom is not for mere decision-makers, it is only for true disciples. A disciple repents and lets go of the past possessions of life. A disciple believes convincingly that Jesus is the greatest treasure in this life and the life to come. A disciple gladly and willingly lets go and grabs hold. This is repentance, faith, entrance, and access into the one and only kingdom of God.