The Kingdom of God is like a Merchant looking for Pearls

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.

Matthew 13:45-46

Jesus used many illustrations to help us understand the Kingdom of Heaven. Whenever Jesus used parables to describe something, it was impossible to describe whatever he was talking about in human terms.

The closest we can get to understanding the Kingdom of God is by likening it to the common things we know. In this specific example, Jesus likens the kingdom of heaven to a merchant who is searching for pearls.

The merchant then finds a pearl of great value, goes and sells everything he has and buys it.

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In this article, I will go over the hidden message that you may not have realized about this specific parable.

A Merchant

To understand this parable, let’s start by understanding a merchant. Merchants are after profit. To get their profit, they go looking for treasure.

At any given time, merchants are always on the move. Their hunger for treasure is unquenchable. Jesus uses this example to show us what kind of people will find the kingdom of heaven.

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It is only people who are seeking for a treasure greater than what they have that will find the kingdom of heaven. This is also why Jesus said it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.

Whoever thinks is rich will believe that there is nothing greater to look for. A merchant may have pearls at home but he will leave them to go search for others that are of greater value.

Before a merchant leaves other pearls at home to search for one of greater value, he must first believe that there is a pearl that is much more valuable that what he already has.

The same applies to the kingdom of heaven; you must have faith that the kingdom of heaven is a treasure worth leaving all the treasures you have to look for.

A Pearl of Great Value

We know that pearls are valuable. But the fact that Jesus equates the kingdom of heaven to a pearl of great value shows us that there are other pearls that are not as valuable as the kingdom of heaven.

There are earthly treasures that have great value. Gold and silver is valuable. Many people spend much of their time gathering gold and silver.

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Sure enough, gathering gold and silver has its reward. But then Jesus introduces the kingdom of God as being a pearl of great value.

The kingdom of heaven is revealed to us as being more valuable than the many treasures we know. The kingdom of heaven is a pearl of great value that a merchant goes and sells everything that he has to buy it.

A merchant has obviously come across many valuable treasures. The fact that he sells all the treasures he has gathered just to afford one pearl shows how valuable the pearl is.

Jesus expects us to value the kingdom of heaven highly to the point of giving up all we have to gain it.

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Pearls in the New Jerusalem

Have you ever read what John saw about the New Jerusalem? The New Jerusalem has pearls and you will see why Jesus likened the kingdom of heaven to a pearl of great value.

The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of gold, as pure as transparent glass.

Revelations 21:21

From John’s description of the New Jerusalem, we learn that the gates of the city are made of pearls and that each gate is a pearl.

There are a total of twelve gates which means there are twelve pearls of great value. Gates are entry points. This means that to enter the New Jerusalem, you need to access at least one pearl.

A merchant that found one pearl of great value sold everything he had and bought it. Here we find that there are actually twelve pearls of great value.

Despite there being twelve pearls, the joy of finding one pearl is enough to cause a merchant to sell everything he has to get it. How much more the twelve?

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In short, Jesus is telling us that the least way to access the New Jerusalem is worth more than all the treasure we can have here on earth.

We are therefore expected to be merchants that forsake the pearls we have to find even just one pearl of great value.

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God bless you!