Sought. Found. Bought. | 📖 Matthew 13:45-46

Welcome to Ontario Community Church, where we are encouraging, equipping, and engaging lives for Christ.

I'm Pastor Patrick Daly, and each week I share sermons that balance the grace and love of Jesus Christ with the truth of the Word of God.

Together, we'll explore Scripture using observation, interpretation, and application.

This helps us discover practical ways to live out our faith every single day.

Let's dive in together into God's Word.

Well, good morning, everyone.

Sorry, my page keeps falling out here.

It's great to be here with all of you as we're continuing our sermon series as we've been going through the parables of Christ.

These parables are so simple, yet they're so deep and they're so complex.

They speak to, really, regardless of age or where you're at in your spiritual walk,

certainly your spiritual walk should be to Jesus Christ,

and knowing Him and your spiritual walk in Christ should happen after the fact.

Come to know the Lord and be on a journey with Jesus Christ.

Today, we're going to be going over another parable,

which is known as the parable of the pearl of great value,

which is right after the parable of the hidden treasure.

But before we do, one of the things that really has,

in researching and preparing for today's sermon,

I kind of found some very interesting facts about pearls.

You know, pearls in many civilizations were considered to be one of the most valuable gemstones out there.

Different than rubies, different than diamonds, different than gold and silver.

However, it's something that is made.

Pearls are not mined.

When you think of all these precious gems and stuff,

you have to go into the earth,

or there's a lot of effort and energy and time that's put into finding rare gems.

But unlike other gems,

they are formed through struggle.

They are formed through a grain of sand that irritates an oyster.

That little imperfection.

And over time, it transforms it into something beautiful.

And I think for a moment,

some of you have heard the analogy,

this idea of the Kintsugi bowl,

where we've talked about a broken bowl or plate.

They get smashed onto the ground.

And how God,

we are like that broken plate.

God takes that which is broken and brings it together

and makes us more valuable than we were broken.

And we can think of this idea of the oyster.

We can think of this idea of pearls.

That we go through struggles in our own life.

We go through a refining process, as it were.

And as time goes on,

we become more smooth,

more purified by the Lord,

by our own experiences that we go through.

When we think about the idea of God being the potter and us being the clay,

we are being molded by the Lord.

We can think right,

right even before we even go into this parable,

about the very idea of how pearls are made.

They are made by a single grain of sand that over time,

it becomes something beautiful.

Much like how we are taken care by the Lord,

and we are refined.

We become more smooth, as it were.

We get changed over time.

And I speak of transformation that happens in our own very lives.

And a pearl's worth is determined by its rarity,

its perfection,

and its process.

Think about that.

We have all these ideas,

and again,

this is before we even go into the parable,

this idea that

pearls getting made over time

is something that is so beautiful

that it's not mindful,

but it's a process that happens over time

in the natural world

by a living organism.

What a beautiful parallel we can think of

when it comes to our Lord and our God

who molds us every single day.

Amen?

So think about that.

Let's pray,

and we're going to read the word together,

and we're going to observe

what does the text say,

going to interpret the lessons,

and apply it to our lives.

Let's pray together.

Dear Lord and Heavenly Father,

we are grateful that

we have this time together,

Father,

we ask that you bless this time.

There's a lot of

spiritual truths that are found

not only in the natural world

of the things that we can observe

in your creation,

but also in things,

in these simple parables

for our own lives.

Father,

I ask that you bless this time

for us being together

as we go through your word,

and may we recognize that

you are one amazing

and great God,

loving us so much,

and like I was talking about,

you refine us,

you mold us,

as it were,

you take that which is broken

and make it whole,

and it's kind of hard to think

that we might irritate you,

but you still mold us nonetheless.

You form us

into who you want us to be.

So once again,

Father,

bless this time together

as we go through this,

this simple parable,

the pearl of great value.

It is in the name of Jesus Christ

that we pray

and we all say together,

amen.

Amen.

You know,

there's a lot of people

out in the world

who seek for things

that are of value.

For many of us,

when we think of just people,

everyday people,

some people search for treasures

that are hidden in the world.

They pursue, you know,

they see things like Indiana Jones

where they are trying to find

hidden treasure

or trying to find different

hidden civilizations,

treasure maps,

and all those things.

There's other people

that seek for knowledge.

They want to have

an understanding

of how the world works

and even think of people

in the scientific community,

understanding organisms

or understanding planets

and star systems

and all these things.

You also have people

that are very focused

on money and success,

achievements, influence even.

We can think of status

and approval

or relationships

and pleasure.

And it's not to say

that all of these things

are bad.

It's when these things

become our own God

that we must be careful

of that.

We think for a moment

and we should think

for a moment

that for a lot

of these pursuits,

if these things

become your God,

there's a sense of emptiness

that comes from it.

I mentioned last week

and I'll mention it again

that there's a lot of people,

they have all the money

in the world.

They might have

all the fame,

all the notoriety,

all the influence

in the world,

but yet they still feel

an emptiness inside,

seeking fulfillment,

seeking to fill that void

or that emptiness.

Maybe you identify

with something like that.

Maybe there's been

a time in your life

where you felt empty

and you were seeking

the things that the world

had to offer,

but you couldn't fill

that void.

And last week

we were talking about

how there's this

hidden treasure

that a man stumbles upon.

And what's so profound

about it is we can see

from that parable

that the greatest treasure

exists in our Lord

Jesus Christ,

who provides all

that we need,

who gives us new life

and spiritual transformation

for us.

And this transformation

changes the very essence

of who we are.

We can think of

how we are to put on

the new self

and how we are to be

transformed by the renewal

of our mind.

And it begs the question

of for you,

maybe personally,

have you been searching

the world for different things

and you're finding emptiness?

Maybe not.

Maybe you already know

the Lord and you're like,

I already know the Lord.

I don't need to search

anything else.

Amen.

Praise be.

But for those of us

that may have felt

that emptiness before,

just know,

as we've talked about

the greatest treasure

being in Jesus Christ,

there is fulfillment,

there is new life,

there is salvation,

there is transformation

that comes from the Lord.

And I don't know about you,

nothing else in this world

can give that.

Just like what the Lord

gives to us.

And so Jesus tells

this parable

about a merchant

who finds one pearl

so valuable

that he sells

everything to obtain it.

Let's turn

to the Gospel of Matthew

Matthew 13 · chapter mention

chapter 13.

It's going to be,

we can go back

to the title one.

Matthew chapter 13

Matthew 13:45–46

verses 45 to 46.

It's just a real short one.

It's on page 974

in the ESV Pew Bible.

Or if you're using

whatever translation

you'd like.

Matthew chapter 13,

Matthew 13 · chapter mention

are we there?

Okay.

So church,

let's read it together.

Again,

the kingdom of heaven

is like a merchant

in search of

fine pearls

who on

finding one pearl

of great value

went

and sold

all that he had

and bought it.

That's got to be

a pretty valuable pearl,

right?

We can see

just on the surface here

that you have someone

that is a merchant,

right?

Someone that is

trying to,

well,

he's trying to make

some money,

right?

That's pretty obvious there.

But

when we look at

this parable,

how it's embedded

with the other

parables,

right?

We have the parable

of the hidden treasure,

the parable of the pearl

of great value,

and the parable

of the net.

They are all

kind of

together

and it helps us

with our understanding.

The parable

of the hidden treasure

then would mean

that it's someone

who

finds the kingdom

kingdom.

We need to see

that there's a difference.

Some stumble

upon truth

and some actively

search for it.

That's one thing

that we can see

with this parallel

here.

Then,

of course,

we need to

understand that,

again,

the parable

of the hidden treasure

was someone

who found

the treasure,

right?

Found it,

discovered it,

they covered it,

sold everything

to obtain it.

Here,

it's a merchant,

a paid gun,

as it were,

to go

and to find pearls.

So he is actively,

or whoever this merchant

is,

is pursuing

that which is valuable.

And so on the next slide

here,

you'll see that

what we see in the text

is the merchant

is a representation

of someone

who is seeking,

a seeker of true worth,

right?

They're not seeking

for just random,

strange things,

they're seeking

for pearls

so that they can

go to the market

and sell those pearls

to obviously make money,

right?

That's a pretty easy thing.

Then,

of course,

the fine pearls

are the things

that are of value.

That's pretty obvious,

right?

You're wanting

to find the real thing.

You don't want

to find plastic pearls,

right?

You want to find

something that's of value.

And then,

of course,

we have the one pearl

then which is

priceless,

surpassing all others.

This is something

that we need

to hang on to,

that this one pearl

was so valuable

that this merchant

was willing to sell

everything for that pearl.

There has to be something

that is special

and something that is

significant about this pearl.

And then,

of course,

selling everything,

right?

Total surrender.

I mean,

for some of us,

we find something

of great value.

It might make us

uncomfortable to,

you know,

even sell a lot of things

or to get rid of a lot

of things to obtain something.

So it's showing in here,

and I'm,

I'm finding that

this merchant found

a pearl that is

of such great value.

Think of sacrifices

you might have had

to make for,

to buy something

or to get something,

right?

There's sacrifices

for things.

It might be

buying a new car

or it might be,

you know,

working to

buy new clothes,

whatever it is.

But to sacrifice

everything

for a pearl

of such great value

is remarkable.

And then,

of course,

buying the pearl,

a decisive

all-in commitment.

That's significant.

So we ask the question then,

all right,

so you have this merchant

that's coming to find

one pearl of great value,

and he,

this merchant,

only obtains

the one pearl.

Let's go to that

next slide.

What can we learn

and interpret from this?

Now,

sometimes it's important

for us to remember

we don't want to

overthink too much

about this

because there's

spiritual truths

from the simplicity

of the parable.

So there's two things

that we can look at this.

Number one

is that God

is the merchant

and we are the pearl

representing how

God sacrificed

everything

through his son,

Jesus Christ,

to purchase,

right,

Jesus paying it all

on the cross

for us.

and we benefit

from this sacrifice.

So that's one way

we can look at it.

The other way

we can look at it

is that in the same way

then,

we should be like

that merchant

pursuing the pearl

of great value.

The implication of that

is that,

well,

there are other pearls

out there,

maybe pearls

that are not

of great value.

Well,

you want to find

the pearl

that is of great value.

You want to find

the pearl

that is of great significance.

And I think of people

out there

who are constantly

searching for truth.

They're trying to find

meaning for their lives

or even people

that are looking

in the things

that will empty

their life,

not the things

that will fulfill

your life.

So,

in this way,

Christ being

the pearl,

God seeks

his people

and like a pearl

that is formed

from an irritant

we are transformed

through Christ's

redemption.

Do you get it?

That's interesting.

It's just like

how scripture says

that Jesus came

to seek

and save the lost

and that when we

think of John 3.16

that God

gave his only

son

that whosoever

believes

shall not perish

but have eternal life.

Even in 1 Corinthians

1 Corinthians 6:20

chapter 6

verse 20

where it mentions

that you were bought

with a price

is another way

we can kind of

see how this

is all connected.

And then,

of course,

for those of you

who love Revelation,

who loves Revelation?

I don't see that

all of you

are raising your hand.

I know,

it's quite a,

yeah,

I get it.

But in Revelation 21

it mentions

that the gates

of heaven

are a single pearl.

Isn't that

beautiful language?

a single pearl

which is representing

the value

of salvation.

So do you see

the connection there?

Pearls

in

the time

of Jesus,

the time

of the Jewish people,

again,

of ancient civilizations,

pearls were

of such great value.

And so to

think for a moment

how the pearl

is parallel

to the idea

of salvation,

to the knowing

of salvation

from Jesus Christ

is remarkable.

We think of the

future description

of Revelation

that's talking about

the gates of heaven

being with a single pearl

is remarkable.

Just like how

this is tied

into how we can

learn

and interpret

this verse,

these two verses.

God

providing salvation

to his people,

providing salvation

to all,

but also

for us

to find

the pearl

of great value

representing

salvation.

It's a very

remarkable thought,

right?

God sought

redeem

and made you

his own.

And it's also

a great reminder

for us

that

God has

paved the way

for us

to be saved

by grace

through faith.

To be bought

with a price,

we need to

receive the gift

of salvation

saying yes

to Jesus Christ,

believing in

his death,

burial,

and resurrection.

And there's

many people

that search

for meaning

in this life,

but nothing

compares,

nothing compares

to what Christ

offers for us.

The merchant,

now this is

interesting,

you might think,

well,

if I was a

merchant,

wouldn't I

grab all the

pearls I

possibly could

grab?

you have to

think that

this one

pearl was

of such

great value

and of such

great significance

that no

other pearl

mattered.

Isn't that

remarkable?

It's kind of

hard for us

to kind of

fathom that,

but I guess

it's the

difference

between,

well,

it just

goes to

show,

focus on

the one

and the

significance

of the

great pearl

compared to

maybe it's

smaller pearls,

maybe it's

just,

whatever it

is,

it doesn't

amount to

the one

great one.

This reminds

us then,

the merchant

wasn't content

with many

pearls,

he sought

the one

that surpassed

all,

regarding the

image,

regarding the

value of

that one

pearl.

And it's

an encouragement

for us that

we are to

seek the

Lord.

We are to

seek first

the kingdom

of God,

and as

many verses

say,

we are to

seek Christ

and we

will find

him.

We should

pursue the

Lord just

like how

this merchant

is pursuing

pearls,

but the

fine pearl.

Are you,

ask yourself

the question

then,

are you

seeking

lesser

pearls?

Do you

realize there's

a much

greater pearl

that's available

for you?

and always

remember,

just as we've

talked about

with this

parable of

the hidden

treasure,

Jesus is

not just

another

treasure,

he is the

greatest

treasure.

So,

what God

provides for

us is not

just another

pearl,

it is the

pearl of

the most

significant

value to

us.

And so,

in this,

how can I

apply and

live this

out in my

life then?

this beautiful

imagery of a

merchant who's

finding this

pearl,

sacrificing

everything,

selling

everything for

it?

Well,

number one

is to

recognize

your worth

in the eyes

of God,

you're made

in the image

of God,

and that

God invites

you to

know him.

God calls

for you.

Are you

going to

respond to

his call?

And we

have to

think that

God's not

going to

force you

to choose

him.

God's going

to give you

the opportunity

though to

choose him,

to receive

that gift.

So,

ask yourself

that question.

To be

sought after

and redeemed

is powerful

language,

just as I

mentioned,

being bought

with a

price,

being redeemed

and being

called by

name,

and recognizing

that Christ

died for

all,

whosoever,

we have to

believe in

him.

That is the

foundation.

The second

thing is a

question.

Are you

searching for

the pearl

of great

value,

right?

Many

pearls may

seem valuable

and we

can think

of what

another

pearl

would

represent.

Is that

the things

of this

world?

Is that

other

things?

We can

debate on

that.

But the

point is

that only

one is

the one

of great

value and

that you

should search

for that.

Seek first

the kingdom

of God

and know

that as

we seek

the Lord,

we will

find him.

That's what

we must do.

The third

thing then is

are you

willing to

go all

in?

Recognizing

that when

you find

something of

great value,

you,

don't

hesitate.

When you

find the

pearl that

is of

greatest

significance

and of

greatest

value,

take that

opportunity.

Believe in

Christ and

let Christ

work in

and through

your life.

Just as I

mentioned in

the very

beginning about

just even how

pearls are

made by the

refining process

that takes

time by an

irritant,

well, in

receiving

salvation,

we grow

in Christ,

or at

least we're

called to

grow in

Christ.

Learn what

it means to

open the

word or

what it

means to

be a

Christian and

certainly to

live it out.

Being a

representative of

Christ, being

an ambassador

for others.

It's what we

say and what

we do, how

we interact

with people

on a day-to-day

basis.

Consider that

for a moment.

Are you

willing to

go all in?

What is

holding you

back from

committing?

That's a

question you

can ask

yourself.

And then

number four

is are you

helping others

to find the

pearl?

If you know

where the

greatest treasure

is, you

got to share

it.

Now I know,

like I

mentioned last

week, if you

find a treasure

chest,

literally,

with gold

coins or

Spanish

doubloons or

whatever it

is, it

probably

wouldn't be

wise to

post it,

right?

But when

we're talking

in the

spiritual sense,

finding the

treasure, the

hidden treasure,

or finding the

great pearl, we

are called to

share that, to

share it with

others.

Shouldn't you

tell others

about the

good news of

the gospel?

Shouldn't you

tell others

about how

Christ is

all that we

need and

that Christ

is enough?

It's just

like how

scripture says

that we are

to go and

make disciples,

baptizing them

in the name

of the Father

and the Son

and the Holy

Spirit.

And also in

Romans chapter

Romans 10 · chapter mention

10, for some

of you that

may know this

verse, how

will they

believe if

they haven't

heard?

That's why

we've got to

tell the world

that Jesus

lives.

We've got to

tell them the

simple gospel.

We've got to

let them know

about the

pearl of

great value.

And so, in

this, do you

know someone

who's searching

for something

more?

Do you know

someone who's

actively seeking

truth?

Or someone

that's searching

for the wrong

thing in the

wrong place?

Maybe that's

someone that

you can talk

to.

I think of

one gentleman

that I

know.

An old

friend of

mine would

always, I'm

not going to

give you a

name, he

would read

all these

books on

world religions

and he was

very, very

smart.

And even

in that, in

all the

knowledge in

the world,

there's still

something missing

in his life.

And I'd pray

for him, I'd

try to show

him about

Christ.

He kept

rejecting it

and I still

pray for him.

I don't know

if he knows

the Lord or

not, but I

certainly continue

to pray for

him that he

will one day.

Just like how

we are to

scatter the

seed, we are

to continue to

share the good

news of the

gospel.

Think of

someone that

might be

actively pursuing

truth or

searching for

meaning in

their life in

the wrong

places.

Are you

searching for

the pearl of

great value?

And if you

have found the

pearl of great

value, be

encouraged to

share it with

others.

Think of one

person that you

know that you

can have a

discussion with.

Don't force it

down their

throat.

It's about

being present.

It's about

being there with

people, exhibiting

the light of

Christ, the

love of Christ,

and the truth

of Christ.

It is dealing

with others

with gracious

speech, just

like how

scripture says

we are to be

salt and

light.

And so what

would it look

like to live

out your faith

by helping

others find

the pearl of

great value?

As we think

of this, as we

close from here,

I want you to

think.

A lot of

these parables

give us a

different layer.

it helps

us in how

we can share

the good news

of the gospel.

Those that

seek treasures,

those that are

searching for

things of

great value,

it helps us

understand not

only our own

faith, but how

we can reach out

to other people.

When I think

of this, I

personally think

of people that

they're just

searching for

meaning in

all the wrong

places.

Well, what a

great opportunity

for you to

reach out to

someone who's

searching.

Maybe that

might be you.

Maybe you've

searched in the

wrong areas and

you feel that

there's something

that's missing in

your life.

Let that be a

call for you to

come to Christ.

Maybe you

might have

received the

pearl and you

feel very distant

because you've

received the

pearl, but yet

there's been

past hurt or

there's been

things that have

happened in

your life.

Well, like I

mentioned how

pearls are

formed, there's

the refining

process that

happens in our

life.

And so in

this, be

called to

know, to

find that

great pearl,

receive it,

right, the

gift of

salvation.

And of

course, if you

have been

hurt or if

you feel

broken, know

that God is

working in

you just like

that irritant

is working in

the oyster.

Be called to

share, to

live out this

faith.

There's such

a call for

us to live

and love like

the Lord.

Let's pray

together.

And Father

God, we

thank you for

this very

interesting, very

unique parable

talking about

the pearl of

great value,

which somehow

is a

representation of

salvation.

Something that

is of such

great value

that in

this parable,

this man

gave up

everything for

it.

Father, we

pray that we

may take this

parable to

heart.

And I pray

for anyone

that hasn't

found the

great pearl

or hasn't

found salvation

in you,

that they

may do so.

God, I

also pray for

those that

may have

felt distant

or may

still be

unsure to

go come

back to the

fold.

I pray for

healing and

restoration and

comfort.

And I also

pray that we

as the church

body may

receive this

gift of

salvation,

grow in

you and be

moved to

go out into

the world and

do good in

your holy

name.

in the same

way, Father,

as you

pursue us

and we

are bought

with a price

of your

son, Jesus

Christ, may

we seek

you in the

same manner.

We thank you

so much for

this piece

of scripture.

Different

language, but

it still points

to you

nonetheless.

We love

you, we

praise you, we

glorify you, and

we honor you.

And we thank

you for your

word, we

thank you for

the truth of

the gospel.

May we take

this to heart,

may we receive

it, and may

it transform

our lives.

It is in the

name of Jesus

Christ that we

pray and we

all say together

amen.

Amen.

Thank you for

listening for this

week's message from

Ontario Community

Church.

I pray that you

are encouraged

and strengthened in

your walk with

Christ.

For more

sermons and

resources, visit

OntarioCommunityChurch.org.

May God bless you

as you live out

his grace and

truth every

single day.

Amen.