I'm So Broke I Can't Pay Attention--God Please Use Me

For the wages of sin is death, but the FREE gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.  --Romans 6:23

Not long ago I was complaining to my son about being overdrawn in one of my accounts.  He found a video online of some stand-up comic (no, I don't remember who it was, and I am too lazy to look it up), who was also complaining of being broke.  Part of his schtick was to complain about the bank's "low balance" charge. "It's like, 'You don't have enough money in the account, so we are going to take some of what you don't have.'  I guess the bank needs it more than I do."  And my favorite quip was about being overdrawn.  "So I have negative ten dollars in my account.  I am worse than broke.  I have less than nothing.  I can't even take something that's offered to me for free.  It's like, 'Free, Take One,' but I say, 'No!!  That free thing is going to cost me ten bucks.' "

I thought of that comedy routine this morning as I was listening to a radio preacher talk about the parable of the hidden treasure and the pearl of great price.  Jesus was teaching the people what the kingdom of heaven is like.

The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field.  When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all that he had and bought the field.  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 13:44-46.

Essentially, Jesus was saying that finding heaven is worth giving up everything you have.  You have to come to Jesus empty, without any distractions.  You can't have anything in your life that is more valuable to you than He is.

The parable He told had two examples.  One is some fellow who just happened upon a treasure.  Here he is, walking through a field that is not his.  He is probably taking a shortcut, somewhere off the beaten path.  He is not actively looking for treasure; he just stumbles upon it.  When he sees what it is, and how valuable it is, he is willing to go sell everything he has to buy the field.  Why?  Is he interested in real estate?  No, I don't think so.  The field is where the treasure is.  If he wants the treasure that much, it must be worth a lot more than the land it is buried in.

The other example is a businessman.  He is a trader, a buyer and seller of goods.  He is actively seeking the Next Big Thing.  When he sees this pearl, he recognizes its value.  He knows its worth.  He is willing to sell everything he has to own this one amazing pearl.  This is no accident.  He is not some untrained person who sees the pearl and doesn't recognize its worth.  There may have been dozens, even hundreds, who saw this pearl and passed on by.  But this man knew its value, so much so that he divested himself of everything to get it.

The real world example is some people are not looking for God.  They are spiritually hungry, but when He appears to them, it is quite a surprise.  Others may be actively seeking.  They, too, are spiritually hungry, but they know what they want and know where to go look for it.  Others may see the treasure, shrug their shoulders, and say, "I'll never be able to afford that."  Others may look at the pearl and think, "I hate pearls.  I'd rather have something else."

God knows who is ready to receive Him.  He knows our minds, and will reveal Himself to us if we seek Him with all our hearts (Jeremiah 29:13).  I'll confess that when I was younger I studied evangelism.  The men I looked up to, the great evangelists, would get hundreds of people to pray the sinner's prayer.  My father, the pastor that he was, measured the success of his church by how many people were baptized each year.  Both those are great things.  Making confessions of faith and being baptized are the first steps in knowing Christ personally.  But we never know how many fall away, how many slip back into sin or are swallowed up by the world.  Remember the parable of the sower? It was the seed that fell on good ground that took root and produced a hundred-fold.  These are the people who know the worth of the treasure they have found, and are willing to give up everything to keep it.

I know several people who made a profession of faith when they were young.  Many who were baptized.  But now they pursue worldly pleasures, and have forgotten God.  They go out drinking and partying every weekend.  They take the boat out on the lake.  They chase women.  This is what they live for.  God knows it is not what they were made for.  We are made to glorify Him, and to have fellowship with Him forever.

I made a profession of faith when I was just seven years old.  I was baptized.  Thankfully, though, over the years I have realized that nothing I own, nothing I can earn, nothing I can create can compare to the love of God through our Savior Jesus Christ.  Sometimes I have been distracted by sinful pleasures, by possessions, by my work or my leisure time.  From time to time God has to remind me that all of these things are standing between me and Him.  In order to get to Him, I have to put away all my toys, put off my work, ignore the worldly pleasures around me.  Only then can I get close to Him, and pursue Him with all my heart.

Yest, the love of God is a free gift.  But in the end, it costs us everything.  It is only when we empty ourselves that we can be used by God in a mighty way.