Matthew 13:24-52
Dear RTB’ers,
Today, six more parables, all “kingdom of heaven” parables. I find three major conclusions in these six parables. First, in this world the good and the bad exist together (the wheat and the tares; the net of mixed fish). It is not our business to deal with the bad or judge them; God will deal with them at the final judgment. The second is about the enormously high value of the kingdom of heaven (the hidden treasure; the pearl of great price). We should be willing to give up all that we have to attain to the kingdom of heaven. Note that we should not interpret this as a suggestion that the kingdom of heaven can be “bought” – neither with our wealth nor with our efforts! The third is about the growth of the kingdom (the mustard seed and the leaven). A small beginning can lead to huge growth. We could also take it further and apply it to our own personal lives.
Although we have good lessons in all these parables, one “add-on” verse jumped out at me: And He said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house, who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.” (v. 52) I have mentioned scribes and Pharisees three or four times in the last week. There was only one occasion where my comment was positive, the one where the scribe said that he would follow Jesus anywhere (v. 8:19). I see today’s verse 52 as Jesus suggesting that a number of scribes (and Pharisees?) could end up following Him, and that they had much to offer, both in explaining Old Testament scriptures (possibly in a new light) and in helping people to understand whatever Jesus was teaching, in part His connection to those Old Testament scriptures. To that end, we can point to the apostle Paul, who did that very thing – a well-trained Pharisee who continues to teach us today!
Blessings!
Fred