Matthew 13:44-58
Q.1. What makes the Kingdom of Heaven hard to find? Why is the Kingdom likened to a treasure and a priceless pearl? Why is its gain worth everything we possess? – (Mt.13:44-46)
The merchant went to great lengths to find fine pearls. We have been promised by God, that if we seek His Kingdom more than anything else, we will find it. There was an element of surprise, as the man found with the hidden treasure. Entering the Kingdom requires us to recognise, believe, and accept this valuable treasure. We also need God to extend His grace, which He loves to do. Once found, the finder recognises the surpassing value of God’s Kingdom and is willing to give all he owns for it (Mt.13:44-46 c.f. Phil.3:7-11). It is of more worth than anything in this life because its blessings continue forever, even beyond the grave.
Q.2. How is the Parable of the Dragnet like the Parable of the Tares? Is Christ’s teaching on the Kingdom of Heaven completely new? What is required to fully explain its value? – (Mt.13:47-52)
Jesus explained in the Parable of the Tares, that there is good seed and there is bad seed. Similarly, the fishermen using their dragnets caught edible and inedible fish. In the parable of the Tares, the Son of Man will send forth His angels to separate all the unregenerate from the righteous (Mt.13:41-43). Similarly – 49 So it will be at the end of the age; the angels will come forth and take out the wicked from among the righteous, 50 and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Mt.13:49-50). Only the Lord can make an accurate and righteous assessment. Did the disciples really understand the meaning of the parable? (Mt.13:51). To help them, Jesus gave a crucial insight – … every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a head of a household, who brings out of his treasure things new and old (Mt.13:52). Here Jesus connected His new principles of the Kingdom with those ‘old’ prophecies that had already been given through the Old Testament prophets. Both are valuable and should not be carelessly discarded. “The NEW is in the OLD concealed – the OLD is in the NEW revealed. The NEW is in the OLD contained – the OLD is in the NEW explained.” Christ’s teaching on the Kingdom of God was new in its clarity, but based on the Old Testament Scriptures, so was not altogether new. The Scribes were experts in the Scriptures and the Law. The disciples were to interpret His teaching of the Kingdom in the light of the Old Testament Scriptures. All the teaching of Jesus fulfilled the Law and the Prophets i.e. the Old Testament Scriptures (c.f. Mt.5:17; Lk.24:44-45).
Q.3. How did the hometown people respond to Jesus? What detracted from His ministry at Nazareth? How did He explain and respond to their negativity and unbelief? – Mt.13:53-58)
Upon returning home to Nazareth, Jesus began teaching in the synagogue which He had frequented from His youth (Mt.13:53-54 c.f. Lk.4:16). The people were blown away by His teaching and the reports of His miracles (Mt.13:54). However, “familiarity breeds contempt” They knew His family, and asked – 55 Is not this the carpenter’s son? Is not His mother called Mary, and His brothers, James and Joseph and Simon and Judas? 56 And are His sisters not all with us? Where then did this man get all these things? (Mt.13:55-56). Nothing in His upbringing and family could explain His excellent greatness – and they took offense at Him (Mt.13:57). Jesus repeated a well-known proverb – A prophet is not without honour except in his hometown and in his own household (Mt.13:57). Their unbelief prevented Jesus from blessing His hometown, as He doubtless wanted to do (Mt.13:58).