The
Parable ~ Jesus said, “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).
Is the common view
of the pearl representing salvation correct?
The
following is an excerpt from a book.
The Pearl Is … ~ We can safely disregard the interpretation of
the pearl as salvation (conversion) for at least four reasons. First, a
consistent theme of Scripture is that salvation is free, not for sale, the
price has been paid in full by Jesus Christ. Second, it is God who seeks the
sinner not the sinner who seeks God. Third, consistency within chapter thirteen
shows that the Son of God who is sowing the seed in the first parable is also
the main person in each of the other parables. Fourth, it is hard to imagine
that Jesus would speak to His own disciples in a parabolic way with regard to
salvation.
There
are rational arguments for interpreting the pearl as the kingdom of heaven or
as the Church. There are scholars in conservative theological circles who favor
the interpretation of the pearl of great price representing the kingdom. Other
conservative scholars interpret the one precious pearl to be the Church.
God’s
People ~ God refers to both Israel and the Church as
His special treasure.
Israel is God’s chosen people—they are
special to God. We read that they are God’s special treasure. Speaking of
Israel He says, “For you are a holy people to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you to be a people
for Himself, a special treasure above all the peoples on the face of the earth”
(Deuteronomy 7:6 NKJV, also see
14:2).
Israel is God’s chosen people, but God has set His people aside for a time and
now has called unto Himself a new chosen people, His Church.
In
reference to the Church we find, “But you are a chosen
generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you
may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His
marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have
obtained mercy” (1 Peter 2:9-10 KJV, see also
Titus 2:14).
In
the Old Testament Israel was God’s special treasure. In the New Testament the
Church is God’s special treasure.
Conclusion ~ The
parable of the pearl provides the following symbolism: the pearl clearly cannot
represent salvation. It does represent either the kingdom of heaven or the
Church and this is the primary emphasis of the parable.
If the parable does not refer to the Church
but to the total kingdom of heaven, we must still recognize that the major
purposes of the kingdom are being carried out in our era by the
Church—fulfilling God’s purposes on earth between the two advents of Christ.
Lessons
from the Parable ~ Since the topic is applicable to our time
period, the time of the Church, the remaining chapters will discuss the one precious pearl with respect to the
Church and the time period in which we are living. There is little inherent in
our study of the pearl as the Church which is not also applicable to the
kingdom of heaven.
Our first step will be to examine seven
ways in which the pearl is a unique gem. In each case we shall marvel at the
appropriateness of the pearl as a symbol for the Church. It is my prayer that
you will thrill to the wonder of God’s Word and that you are a part of the
pearl of great price—the one precious
pearl.
~
from “ONE PRECIOUS PEARL: God’s Design
for His Church, pgs 49-50 (ISBN: 9780741462329)
Learn more about this important book at Amazon,
the Publisher,
or the Author’s
website.
~ Robert
Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE
NOW
