The Gospel Your Pastor Never Taught You
Part 4
In Part 3 we looked deeper and analyzed the first four parables Yahoshua preached about the Kingdom of God from Matthew 13. In verse 35 we learn that the secrets hidden in the parables are so that: “35 …it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, ‘I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world.’” The parable secrets about the kingdom of heaven in this chapter tell of hidden truths kept secret from the foundation of the world.
Continuing in Matthew 13, The next parable is found in verse 44:
Parable of the Hidden Treasure (Matthew 13:44)
44 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hides, and for joy thereof goes and sells all that he hath, and buys that field.
Based on the interpretations used in the previous parables, field represented the world and the man represented Yahoshua. The man spend all he had to buy the field and treasure together. From our study of the life and mission of Yahoshua, we can surmise that the price he paid was His blood. Therefore it must be the redemption price for the world. But what was the treasure which he discovered and (He hides) kept it a secret? We can also surmise that the treasure was built into the total package of his mission. We know the redemption price was paid for by His blood. John 3:16-17 tells, For God so love the world that He gave His only son that whosoever believed in Him should not die but have everlasting life. For God sent not his son into the world to condemn the world but that the world (field) through Him might be saved.
To redeem the world came with a price and also a reward to the man who qualified to pay the price. The man (Yahoshua) received the treasure (the reward) when he bought the field. Psalm 2:8 quotes Yahovah saying, “Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession” (Psalm 2:8)
Yahoshua was almost thirty years old when He began His ministry. Before He stepped out in public to take on the mission of being the redeemer of the world, He had the free will to exercise His option of either taking the normal track that a man’s life would take; or be the sacrificial Lamb of Yahovah in exchange for reward Yahovah had to offer him to fulfill the purpose for which He was born, to be the Messiah for Israel and the redeemer of the world. In Hebrews 12:2 we read, “2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
By taking the route of His divine purpose, the treasure included in land deal is as follows: He would become the appointed King over the kingdom of Yahovah on earth. With this position He would be the Messiah, the ruler over Israel, the physical representative of Yahovah, the Commander of the Host of Army of Angels in heaven, He would also be the recipient of the covenant Yahovah made with Abraham, He would receive the nations of the earth as an inheritance, He would be the one who defeats Satan and the kingdom of Satan, and He would receive all power, authority and dominion over Yahovah’s creation.
I believe when Yahoshua weighed the cost for fulfilling his purpose and all the treasure that came with it; then decided to keep it a secret because if Satan understood that the mission included the plan to take back the title deed of the earth Satan had stolen from Adam and Eve, then Satan would not have plotted to kill Yahoshua on the cross. The choice between living the normal righteous life of a Jewish man; versus living His life of purpose caused the scale to tip in favor of choosing to live His divine purpose. While the cost of His purpose driven life of being the sacrificial Lamb of Yahovah, that takes away the sin of the world was a very steep price to pay, it was worth the trade in exchange for the value in the treasure Yahovah offered to Him.
Though this honor was prophesied for the messiah throughout the Old Testament, it was not understood by Israel nor by Satan. Thus, Satan was outwitted because everyone including Satan thought the Messiah would fulfill Isaiah’s complete prophecy when he came. They did not understand that the messiah would fulfill his mission on two parts on separate occasions first as the prophet and redeemer, then secondly as the messiah, judge and King. Also He was the prophet Moses said we must Shema. Yahovah kept the details of His plan secret and divulged it only to Yahoshua, who also understood the covertness of the operation and kept it a secret.
Thus, the treasure hidden in a field is the glory offered by Yahovah to the man from the house of Israel who qualified to be His appointed King to rule over the House of Israel and the kingdoms of this earth; and to receive the nations of the world as his inheritance. This is the most exciting offer because not only did Yahoshua have the desire to please His Father Yahovah and to accept the mission; but in addition, He qualified for the reward offered to Him. He agreed to suffer to please His father and fill His divine purpose. Being the sacrificial Lamb of God to pay for the sin debt of the world to redeem Yahovah’s creation from Satan was a great burden to bear because the pain, suffering, shame, disgrace, humiliation, rejection and death He experienced by the mob in public, was a very high price to pay with His blood for the sins of the world. But it was worth the price for the promised glory (or treasure) offered to him by His Father, Yahovah. In Hebrew 12:2 we read, “2 Looking unto Yahoshua the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
Therefore, The words to understand are: field (world), man (Yahoshua), finding the treasure (understanding the joy and the glory He would receive from Yahovah for fulfilling His purpose), man hiding the discovered treasurer (He kept the secret by telling it as a parable), sells all he has (gave his life as the sacrificial Lamb of Yahovah), buys the field (He paid the redemption price with His life blood for the glory offered to Him). Revelation 5:12 reads, “12 Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing.” This is the treasure that was packaged with the field, which he bought together, with His blood.
Parable of the Merchant Man Seeking Goodly Pearls
45 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: 46 who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.
In this parable, the kingdom of heaven is being compared to the merchant man who is in search of something valuable. His important mission was accomplished when he found what he was searching for. He was so excited that he invested all he had to obtain this rare treasure. The times when both Yahovah and Yahoshua demonstrate a “sold out, all or nothing attitude” was towards the value of a lost sheep. Therefore i believe the Pearl represent the lost sheep or a sinner in need of salvation. As the Good Shepherd, they both take drastic action on behalf of their lost sheep. Therefore the merchant man is either Yahovah or Yahoshua. We read Ezekiel 34:7-11 where Yahovah shows how He will take drastic actions against the shepherds (Jews) He had appointed, who did not care for His flock: “7 Therefore, shepherds, hear a word of Jehovah: 8 I live — an affirmation of the Lord Jehovah, If not, because of My flock being for a prey, Yea, My flock is for food to every beast of the field, Because there is no shepherd, And My shepherds have not sought My flock, And the shepherds do feed themselves, And My flock they have not fed. 9 Therefore, O shepherds, hear a word of Jehovah: 10 Thus said the Lord Jehovah: Lo, I [am] against the shepherds, And have required My flock from their hand, And caused them to cease from feeding the flock, And no more do the shepherds feed themselves, And I have delivered My flock from their mouth, And they are not to them for food. 11 For thus said the Lord Jehovah: Lo, I — even I, have required My flock, And I have sought it out”.
Yahoshua tells us in Luke 19:10 that He came to seek and to save those who are lost. In the parable of the good shepherd, recorded in both Matthew 18:12-14 and Luke 15:3-7 Yahoshua asks, “Which of you men, if you had one hundred sheep, and lost one of them, wouldn’t leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one that was lost, until he found it? When he has found it, he carries it on his shoulders, rejoicing. When he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!’ I tell you that even so there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents, than over ninety-nine righteous people who need no repentance.”
Thus, we see that the merchant man is a seeker who goes all out to find and to redeem what he is searching for. Luke 19:10 tells us that Yahoshua came to seek and to save those who were lost. In Matthew 21:43, Yahoshua told the Jews that the kingdom of God would be taken away from them and given to the gentiles. “43 Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people producing its fruits.” Producing fruits of the kingdom of God are the fruit of righteousness (Mark 7:20-23) and fruit of making disciples as seen in Yahoshua commission to us according to Matthew 28:19-20 to and according to Mark 16:15-16, to go into the entire world and preach the gospel of the kingdom to every nation, teaching them to observe all he commanded us, and whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned.
Consequently, the merchant man represents Yahoshua who has come with a mission to seek and to redeem the sinners in need of salvation. John the Baptist warned the Jews in Matthew 3 that they were not indispensable to Yahovah because He can replace them. We read in Matthew 3:7-9, “But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, “7You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8″Therefore bear fruit in keeping with repentance; 9and do not suppose that you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father’; for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham.”
The Torah was entrusted to the Jews to teach the nations about Yahovah and His laws; but they failed at their purpose. Therefore, the mission of teaching torah was taken from them and given to the Gentiles to be preached to the world according to what what we learned from Yahoshua. This spreading of the gospel of the kingdom is now being spread by using the technology of business and commerce to spread the teach the gospel of the kingdom and make disciples of all nations. Today these tools are the tools of commerce like the radio, television, internet and satellite which is used in commercial marketing strategies to take it to the ends of the earth, even at great expense.
Parable of the Net
47 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of 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.
Yahoshua Interprets of the Parable of the net
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.