Matthew 13:44-58 Some Easy-To-Misinterpret Parables

My commentary turns simplistic explanations of Jesus' next parables on their heads.  Many believe that the parable of the hidden treasure and the pearl are meant to tell us the incredible value of discovering Christ, but that's not the case, it says.

"To begin with, Jesus Christ is not a hidden treasure.  He is perhaps the best-known person in history.  In the second place, the sinner cannot find Christ for he is blind and stubborn.  It is the Savior who finds the lost sinner.  And no sinner could ever purchase salvation."  Instead, it explains:  "The treasure is the nation of Israel ... It became a nation hidden, a treasure not being invested to produce dividends for God ... The nation suffered judgment and seeming destruction, but in God's sight it is hidden and will be revealed again in glory."

In much the same way, the parable of the pearl of great price has been misinterpreted.  "The pearl represents the church ... Unlike most gems, the pearl is a unity -- it cannot be carved like a diamond or an emerald.  The church is a unity, even though the professing church on earth is divided.  Like a pearl, the church is a product of suffering.  Christ died for the church, and His suffering on the cross made possible her birth.  A pearl grows gradually, and the church grows gradually as the Spirit convicts and converts sinners ... Christ is forming His church.  He sold all that He had to purchase His church, and nothing Satan can do will cause Him to fail."

Finally, the dragnet parable shows that "the preaching of the gospel in the world does not convert the world.  It represents the saved Gentile nations.  At the end of the age, God will separate the true believers from the fake and the good from the bad."  

Thanks for reminding me of what You'd already shown me, Father.

 

Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford