Hidden Treasures & Holy Secrets

Matthew 13:44-46 - “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure that a man discovered hidden in a field. In his excitement, he hid it again and sold everything he owned to get enough money to buy the field. Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant on the lookout for choice pearls. When he discovered a pearl of great value, he sold everything he owned and bought it!” (NLT)

Devotional Series: The Stories Jesus Told

Not everything in God’s kingdom is for mass consumption. The good news of the gospel is to be shared with all—but in today’s passage, we learn that there is also a level of personal secrecy associated with spiritual things in the Kingdom.

In the first parable, the man who found the hidden treasure didn’t share the discovery with anyone. Instead of leaving it out in the open for others to experience or find, he hid it again. He didn’t tell a group of friends about what he’d found or ask anyone to contribute financially to the field. Rather, he kept it all for himself—despite the great cost to him. He wasn’t even willing to take the risk of speaking to the owner of the field about the treasure. There was no chance that anyone else was going to take this from him!

Similarly, the merchant in the second parable was willing to risk everything for the pearl he found.

I’m quite an independent character. I work well alone. So I have to actively find community—it has to be intentional for me. I also believe, for reasons of accountability, friendship, and just life in general, we should all be rooted in good Christian community.

But today’s passage is a reminder that sometimes the treasures the Lord reveals to us are for us and us alone. They’re not meant to be shared with others. In fact, we are to be “selfish” about them in the holy sense—doing whatever it takes to hold tightly to what He’s shown us.

In these two parables, we see that these personal treasures may come in different ways. We may stumble upon something precious in our regular life rhythms—like in a field—or we may be actively searching for the miraculous, like the merchant, and find it.

The question is: How do we respond?

Questions for reflection: Has the Lord revealed anything special to me How have I responded? Is my immediate response to share it with someone else? Could this be a treasure the Lord wants to keep just between Him and me? Have I prayed for discernment about this treasure?