Matthew 13:45-46 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.
Recently, a jeweler friend of ours sent us his beautiful interpretation of Jesus' parable of the pearl and we wanted to share it with you.
In Matthew 13, we see that a merchant sold all that he had to purchase a single pearl. But why, of all things, a pearl? As a jeweler, I would question the choice the Lord made -- choosing to leave the Father's side for a pearl instead of what I would think has much greater significance, the much coveted diamond. You may know that the diamond is graded in value according to the 4 C's, Cut, Color, Clarity & Carat-weight. The answer to my pondering was right there! The diamond receives a substantial portion of its value from the way a person cuts it -- the work of man's hand! Interestingly, the only natural gemstone that has more value when it is found than when men finish with it is the PEARL!
In the same way, we can add nothing to the work of Salvation! God has paid the price for us in full -- and a tremendous price it was. The God of glory, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords left all the splendor of Heaven to claim this pearl. And He gained it by paying a price that was far more precious than any of us could pay.
Sometimes we get so busy and we don't take time out consider this incredible work of God in our lives. He has bought us with a price. We are fully paid, fully ransomed, fully redeemed! We are the pearls of great desire! Let's walk in that victory today!
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[worthy_plugins_devotion_single_body]Pregnancy in a woman involves the intimate, meticulous development of a human life in her womb. The Hebrew word for womb is "rechem". The verb, "rachem" (with the same root letters) means to love, to love deeply, to have mercy and to be compassionate. The connection in Hebrew between "womb" and "love" or "compassion" is literally visceral. A mother's love for her baby, so natural, deep, tender and compassionate, beautifully exemplifies our Father’s love for us. He is compassionate and merciful toward his human creatures.
Last night, my wife decided to stay up late to watch the opening night of the Messiah Conference by live stream Internet (a huge gathering of Messianic Jews and Israel loving Christians from all over the world, taking place annually in Harrisburg Pa). Low and behold, who's voice came through the loudspeakers but Riv's, as a dance troupe danced beautifully to her song "Kes Harachamim" (Mercy Seat). How cool!
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