1 Samuel 10:9-10 9 So it was, when he had turned his back to go from Samuel, that God gave him another heart; and all those signs came to pass that day. 10 When they came there to the hill, there was a group of prophets to meet him; then the Spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied among them.. The prophetic word came to king Saul and changed his heart. As he took steps forward into this calling he encountered a group of prophets that helped pull out of him what God had placed in his heart. We need to surround ourselves with people who will pull us up in regard to our callings and avoid the “wet blanket club,” those that quench the fire of God in us. When Saul was around the prophets he prophesied! Who you surround yourself with will define who you are. Please watch the following video as Pastor Bryan explains this principle of success: Who You Walk With Defines Who You Are

So, what is your answer to the questions I last posted?

In my opinion, from the very first moment this man discovered the treasure, his life was immediately and radically impacted.  You don’t read about him vacillating or hesitating between two opinions…he was possessed and transformed into a person whose life was captivated by value of the treasure he discovered to such an extent that he was willing to “sell out” completely just so he could possess the land that contained the treasure!

Does this immediate and radical transformation describe how your life has been transformed by Jesus?  See, I believe that Jesus is giving some deep insight to the surpassing value of possessing Him as our Ultimate Treasure.  We could have all the benefits of salvation:  freedom from sin, freedom from guilt, freedom from shame, freedom from death, a place in Heaven, etc.  And yet be missing the most valuable treasure of all…Jesus!  We can only enjoy the kingdom of God (possess the entire field) if we have discovered, or better yet uncovered the Treasure of that Kingdom, Jesus!  Would this man have ever been able to see the value of the field if he had not first uncovered the valuable treasure?  There is no way to begin to understand how the kingdom of God really works if we do not first become enamored with the King of that kingdom.

Many people claim to be kingdom people, but true kingdom people are those who fathom the value of Jesus and all that He is to the Father in Heaven.  Please think about these things the next time you pray, “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in this earth as it is in Heaven.”  To pray this prayer means that you understand that value of your relationship with Jesus should cause you to “sell out” in order to possess the kingdom.  Are you willing to sell everything (this is not simply your possessions)?  Are you willing to allow God to change your center of gravity from self to Christ?  Are you willing to step forward with boldness into this radical paradigm shift?

If you have not realized or fathomed the value of Christ please cry out to Him right now and ask Him to save you from the wrong center of gravity!  Cry out with boldness!  Approach the throne of grace with boldness and the audacity that the Living God is hearing your prayers.  Don’t wait in the outer court, come all the way in!  Sell out today!  Remember the whole goal of the Gospel is God, not the benefits of God!

Joel 2:32 (NKJV) — 32 And it shall come to pass That whoever calls on the name of the Lord Shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be deliverance, As the Lord has said, Among the remnant whom the Lord calls.

Hebrews 4:13–16 (NKJV) — 13 And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account. 14 Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

The Kingdom of God is Like…

Use your imagination right now to visualize a first century Hebrew man as he walks alone on what is a normal day for him.  This day he is on his way to get a business deal done in the city.  Eyes fixed forward as he walks a path he has walked before he senses he’s running behind so he decides to take a short cut through a field.  He thinks to himself, “the owner of the field won’t mind me taking this shortcut.”  As he continues, the field is a bit rough and uneven in spots so it is a good thing he brought a  staff with to help keep his balance and fight off any foes that might try to resist him on his journey.  As he walks along his staff strikes something hard “thunk.”  He stops and pokes at it again.  He thinks to himself, “there is something under there and it is not a rock.  He begins to weigh his options, “I am already running behind, should I just ditch this discovery or should I dig it up and see what it is?”  Well, something inside of him says “did it up!”  He drops to his knees and begins to dig it up.

A few minutes later he ‘s uncovered it—a weathered chest, by the looks of it this thing has been there for quite some time!  He begins to sense there is something of value in this chest because it has a lock on it.  From all the wear and tear, the lock looks easy enough to break off, “ah, there!” it falls to the ground.  He opens the lid…gold coins!  Jewelry!  Precious stones of every imaginable color!  He has discovered a treasure more valuable than anything he could have ever imagined!

What does he do next?  What would you do next?  What do think Jesus would say to do next?  Here’s a little clue:  Matthew 13:44 (NKJV) — 44 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

To be continued, Pastor Bryan