Sell Our For God…With Joy
I was blessed last week to hear Central’s summer series with David Salisbury speaking on “The Hidden Treasure” found in Matthew 13:44:
“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.”
Mr. Salisbury did an excellent job presenting an entire lesson based on just that one verse. I learned why the man covered it up for a time and why he bought the whole field. If you want to know about that, please watch the video and learn for yourself! The point of this post is to take something he said and turn it in a different direction.
In his lesson, Mr. Salisbury talked about the fact that the man sold all he had with joy to gain the treasure which is the kingdom of God. He made the point that the man was not only willing to sell out for God, he was glad to sell out for God.
I’m around teenagers quite a bit because I am raising 2 and, therefore, chaperone lots of youth group events. You hear that phrase “sell out” often but it is usually used in a different context. You sell out for the good of your sport. Or, you get ribbed for “selling out” to make your girlfriend/boyfriend happy. I hope the concept of selling out for God is the easy point for those reading this article. We should all know that our attitude should be one of God being our highest priority.
What I want to consider is the “with joy” portion of this verse. How often do we complain about “sacrifices” we make to be a faithful Christian? How often do we bemoan the fact that we can’t wear what others wear, go where others go, or do what others do? If we are sad about those choices, we need to reconsider if we are truly selling out for God in the first place. If we aren’t doing it with joy, why are we doing it?
What made that treasure worth selling everything he had with joy? He understood the value of the treasure was so far superior to the earthly things he was selling that he was happy to make the swap. Can people tell you are happy to be a Christian? From looking at your life, do they see selling out for God as a trial or blessing that brings you joy?
I recently shared a post on Facebook that made this point well. It talked about why I spilled my coffee when my arm was bumped. It wasn’t because I got bumped, it was because I had coffee in my cup. If I had tea, I would have spilled tea. You see, what attitude fills my heart about my service to God is what others will see. I want to sell out for God with joy!
“Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory…” -1 Peter 1:8
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AUTHOR: Amber Tatum
