Wendy Kent
Pebbles, Pearls, and Polished Stones
Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it. Matthew 13:45, 46
In 1848 Charles Beckwith told the Waldensian clergy: “Henceforth, either you are missionaries, or you are nothing. . . . Stand up for something, or be nothing.” But what is a missionary? Can we be missionaries in our home town or do we need to paddle a canoe down the Zambezi River.
Wendy shows us that we do have a mission and its a calling that we need to value like a great treasure. Everywhere we go and everyone we meet would seek after the greatest treasure found, if they only knew that it existed. The kingdom of heaven and eternal life without pain, sadness or death is truly a treasure of unequaled price. Wendy shares with us how she shares the news of this treasure with her friends and strangers in her neighbourhood, and invites us to join her. To our God in heaven we and all our fellow humans are treasures of immense worth and Jesus has paid the highest price for our redemption. All we have to do is accept it.
The parable of the merchantman seeking goodly pearls has a double significance: it applies not only to men as seeking the kingdom of heaven, but to Christ as seeking His lost inheritance. Christ, the heavenly merchantman seeking goodly pearls, saw in lost humanity the pearl of price. In man, defiled and ruined by sin, He saw the possibilities of redemption. Hearts that have been the battleground of the conflict with Satan, and that have been rescued by the power of love, are more precious to the Redeemer than are those who have never fallen. God looked upon humanity, not as vile and worthless; He looked upon it in Christ, saw it as it might become through redeeming love. He collected all the riches of the universe, and laid them down in order to buy the pearl.
E. G White – Christ’s Object Lessons pg 118