Hour Treasure
I have a friend of mine who calls himself a treasure
hunter. He is a metal detector enthusiast. His job requires daily driving and during this he discovers places that look like they hold treasure. Returning to them after work he asks to treasure hunt. What he finds he gives to the owner.
He finds treasure all the time. At his house are rows old
coffee or shortening cans of treasure – small metal toys, door hinges, old
tools, pocket knives, all types of odds and ends. Most of the time people look
at what he’s found and says “keep it.” It’s not treasure to them.
His greatest treasure is an old leather coin purse and a
large copper penny. One day he asked permission to hunt in a yard. He had about
an hour until dark. Hunting for almost the entire hour, he hadn’t found anything.
As he left, the detector went off next
to the gate. There he found the purse with silver coins and a copper penny from
the 1800’s. The property owner was happy and shared the treasure with my friend in
the purse & penny.
Jesus said, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be
glorified.”
It was at this hour some Greeks came to Phillip and
Andrew, “We would like to see Jesus.” They were treasure hunting, they had
heard about this rabbi, Jesus of Nazareth, who was teaching something different
and they wanted to experience him themselves.
Greek culture was built on idea that an unexamined life
is not worth living. The Greek’s came to examine their lives by the teaching of
this new rabbi. They came to experience and know Jesus as deeply as they could.
They heard of miracles, healings, and casting out demons. They heard of a new
teaching, the gospel Jesus taught.
More than that, they symbolized the whole world coming to
Jesus. They were the fulfillment of what was written by Jeremiah, “The world no
longer has to be taught how to know the Lord.”
Because of Jesus, God no longer has to take us by the
hand as he did with the people of the Exodus. We are drawn to Jesus and his hour
came. The hour changes us. The hour lets us freely come to the Lord.
From the least to the greatest we are promised a
relationship with God. Jesus asked in the garden “Can you give me one hour?” Time we are to examine our lives, to know and
experience Jesus. This is where we find treasures. One treasure is the covenant
of the Lord written in our hearts and in this we meet God in our reality.
Another is that the Psalmist sings, the treasure of a clean heart
Jesus offered himself on the cross as a treasure not to
pay a debt to God but to reveal the treasure that is God to the world. Jesus’
hour came. The hour not come to reveal the treasure of humanity to God, but
revealed the treasure that is God to us.
Sadly, the world finds these things; unimportant. So it
ignores them.
And that brings us back to the story of my friend. In the
last hour of the day, he’ll stop at somebody’s yard; many say “yes look.” Most
people don’t want what he finds. My friend puts it in a can and labels it with person
name and the place that it was found; just in case they change their mind.
Jesus tells
that this hour is but tiny seed that will be fruitful. A tiny treasure that
becomes abundant and fruitful by our salvation. A salvation that reveals God:
- God, the father, in his
grace and mercy;
- God the Son, in Jesus who
taught us how to love - each other, strangers, all of God’s creations, and
most importantly how to love God;
- God the Holy Spirit who brings wisdom, brings healing, and reveals our gifts that we plant as seeds.
Are we overlooking the treasure Jesus showed us? Are we
examining our lives finding those treasures? Do we give thanks for the small
treasures that can grow so abundantly? Are we planting seeds; being fruitful in both small and
large things and sharing them?
My friends, the big treasure is yet to be found. It’ll be
there when our Hour comes, when we’re leaving the yard of the earthly life. It’s
the treasure of eternal salvation and Jesus has it, ready to give it to us.
His hour prepares for the treasure of our hour. When our hour comes, Christ Jesus, our
treasure will be there.
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