PARABLES 16 - 19 - Four Kingdom of Heaven Parables

FOUR KINGDOM OF HEAVEN PARABLES 16 - 19

PARABLE 16 - HIDDEN TREASURE 

Matthew 13:44 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.

PARABLE 17 – FINE PEARL

Matthew 13:45 – 46 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: 46 Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.

PARABLE 18 – THE FISHING NET

Matthew 13:47 – 50 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind: 48 Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away. 49 So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, 50 And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.

PARABLE 19 – OWNER OF A HOUSE

Matthew 13:52 Then said he unto them, Therefore every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which bringeth forth out of his treasure things new and old.

  

Discussion Questions – Parables 16 – 19

KINGDOM OF HEAVEN PARABLES 16 – 19  

1. What could the topic of Parables 16 and 17 be entitled? 

A good title would be “The Incomparable Value of the Kingdom.” 

2. Was the man who found the treasure behaving unethically by doing what he did? Why or why not? 

People frequently buried their valuables in Jesus’ day. The man in this first parable was perhaps a laborer plowing a field when he discovered a buried treasure, say a bag of gold coins. The Jewish law said that “if a man finds scattered fruit, scattered money...these belong to the finder.” So the man was actually very ethical about his discovery. He could have simply taken the bag when he found it, but he didn’t. Instead, he went through all the trouble of buying the field. 

3. What is the main point of the Hidden Treasure parable (parable 16)? 

The point of the parable is this: a man found something so valuable that he sold everything he had in order to get it. He was so ecstatic about finding the treasure that he was willing to do whatever he needed to acquire it (honestly and legally). 

Is that the way you feel about the kingdom of heaven? 

4. Pearls are mentioned only five times in the Bible. What were they considered? (Matthew 7:6, 1 Timothy 2:9, Revelation 17:4, 18:12, 18:16, 21:21) 

Matthew 7:6 – “Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast you your pearls before the swine, least they trample them under their feet, then turn again and attack you.” 

1 Timothy 2:9 – “In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or god, or pearls, or costly array;”

Revelation 17:4 – “The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was decked with gold, precious stones and pearls…” (Rev 18:12, 18:16 similar) 

Revelation 21:21 – “The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of gold, as pure as transparent glass.” 

So the Bible says three things about pearls: they are holy, valuable, and used in the building of heaven. 

5. In parables 16 and 17, we can learn six principles about the kingdom of heaven. 

a. What is its value? Priceless, incomparable value. Nothing comes close in value. Christ and His Kingdom are a treasure that is rich beyond comparison: it is incorruptible, undefiled, and eternal. 

b. Is it casually or easily seen? The treasure in Matthew 13:44 was hidden; it wasn’t lying on the surface of the ground. The merchant had to search for the pearl. In the same way, the value of salvation is not apparent to most people. The world looks at Christians and doesn't understand why they worship God and why they help others.

c. How is the kingdom seized and made your own? Each of the men in the two parables finds something that he personally finds a way to take what he found and makes his own. That shows us that you can be under the dominion of God (everyone is) but not be a member of His Kingdom. Before a person can personally get what he finds in the Kingdom, he must come to the point where he sees the value of the Kingdom. God has offered something of true value to men, yet it is incredible the extremes people go to acquire things that are worthless in the long run. 

d. How does the kingdom relate to joy? In verse 44, we find that the man’s response to finding the treasure was one of joy. People want to experience joy. You can find true joy by discovering the Kingdom of heaven and the Lord Jesus Christ. 

e. Does everyone enter the kingdom under the same circumstances? There is one big difference between parables 16 and 17: In the parable of the hidden treasure, the man made his find by accident. In the parable of the pearl, the man was searching for pearls when he found the one of great value. One was stumbling, one was seeking, but both found the kingdom. God provides a way for everyone. 

f. How is the kingdom made personal? (Luke 9:57-62, Matt 10:37-39, 16:24) The kingdom is made personal by a transition. There is a transaction made to acquire salvation, but it is not with money or good works. The transaction is this: You give up all you have for all He has. 

Matthew 10:37-39 – “Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.“

6. Parable 18 speaks of a fishing net. What about when he spoke of “fishers of men” (Matthew 4:18-19)? 

The phrase “fishers of men” was spoken by Jesus when He was calling two of His disciples, Simon Peter and Andrew, to follow Him. 

The idea behind fishing is to know the fish you are looking for and attract it so you can make the catch. Just like good fishermen that offer bait to attract their fish, we as “fishers of men” must offer the only effective bait—the gospel of Jesus Christ. To those who are perishing, the message of the cross is foolishness, but to us, it is the power of God (1 Corinthians 1:18). The gospel message has the power to change lives, shine light into darkness, and deliver evil men from hell. There is power in no other message and no other “bait” can catch the fish of God. This was Jesus’ message to Peter and Andrew—follow Me, learn of Me, know and understand My mission and My message. Only then will you be able to be fishers of men.

7. What did the fishermen do with all the fish (Matt 13:48)? How will this be like what the angels do at the end of the age? (Matthew, 13:49, 25:31-32, 34, 41) 

Jesus is simply saying, just as fishermen, sit down after a catch, and separate the fish, they keep the good ones, and throw away the bad, so will it be when the world comes to an end. The angels will come and separate the wicked from among the just. The just will be taken to heaven and the wicked cast into eternal damnation.

8. Jesus already told a similar parable about good and bad people coexisting (parable 12, wheat and tares, Matthew 13:24-30). What’s the difference in the message? 

You might wonder why Jesus taught the parable of the dragnet, which talks about the separation of good and evil, when He already talked about that separation in the parable of the wheat and the tares. One reason He taught it was because the parable of the wheat and the tares emphasizes the coexistence of good and evil, not the separation of good and evil. Another reason Jesus had for teaching the parable of the dragnet was because of His compassion for men. He wanted to warn them about hell. He said, “So you, too, must keep watch! For you do not know the day or hour of my return.” (Matt 25:13). Jesus cautioned people not to take their sins lightly because inevitably they would be held accountable before God. (Hebrews 4:13) 

The Bible tells us time and chance happen to us all. We are to watch and keep ready, for we know not when our time will come. Ecclesiastes 9:12, “For man does not know his time. Just as the fish are taken in an evil net, and the birds are caught in a snare, so are the sons of men snared in an evil time, when it falls suddenly upon them.” 

9. How is the kingdom of heaven like the fishing net in parable 18? 

The Kingdom of heaven is like a net. That net moves through the world unseen. When the net touches the back of a fish, the creature simply swims a little further ahead of it, enjoying what appears to be permanent freedom. Men move about in this world imagining themselves to be free, fulfilling their own desires, with little knowledge that the net of judgment is coming closer and closer. Each time men are touched by the net, they move a little further along. Eventually they will find themselves hitting the part of the net in front of them. They will make a wild dash to escape, yet find themselves totally surrounded by the net. Finally, they will be dragged onto the shore, flailing as they enter death. 

Men may not see God moving in the world, but He is moving. When they are touched by the gospel of Jesus Christ, or become scared by the threat of judgment, they dart away into the freedom they think is ahead of them. But sooner or later, they will find they are still caught in the net that is moving them toward judgment. The Kingdom will ultimately engulf all men, and God will separate them with His angels. 

10. We don’t like to hear about hell. Many preachers these days don’t even mention it. Some Christian radio stations have banned messages about it. Cartoonists mock it. Which prophet or person in the Bible spoke more about hell than anyone else?

A goodly number of well-known pastors and Christians have said that Jesus spoke more about hell than about heaven. But on closer analysis by Dan Wilkinson, those statements are very questionable. Dan found that in the 1,944 verses in the four gospels that contain Jesus’ words, only about 60 of those verses—or about three percent of them—might be construed as either directly or indirectly referring to hell. On the other hand, there are more than three times as many verses in the gospels in which Jesus references heaven, eternal life, or his coming kingdom.

When we look at the Old Testament, we find many prophets speaking about horrible things to come to those who are disobedient. If we are generous and call them all hell, then Jeremiah plus his second book Lamentations would certainly be the winner in speaking of hell. I’m guessing that Isaiah might take second place, but Jesus would certainly be next in line.

11. How would you describe hell? 

Hell is a place of eternal separation from God. Hell was prepared for the devil and his angels (Matthew 25:41); but it is also a place where the fearful, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, whoremongers, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars go; it is the second death (Revelation 21:8). It is a place where both body and soul is destroyed; only God is able to destroy both body and soul in hell (Matthew 10:28). Hell will be horrible for everyone there; Hell will be endless and everlasting. 

12. Jesus asked his disciples if they understood the eight kingdom of heaven parables. Do you? If you understand them, what did Jesus say you are to do? 

Jesus trained the disciples to be laborers in the harvest and warn men about the coming judgment. He says here that the disciples are now like the householder in Parable 19 who dispenses supplies from his storehouse to meet peoples’ needs. If someone needed clothing, food, or care, the householder gave it to him. 

The householder was also wise enough to dispense both old and new things, so that the old things didn’t ultimately become useless. He was a wise steward of everything he possessed. 

The disciples are now householders with a storehouse filled with both old and new things. In other words, they knew the Old Testament and knew about the mysteries of the Kingdom. They could not only teach about the Old Testament and Jewish tradition; they could dispense the new mysteries of the Kingdom. They now knew more than the Jewish scribes. All that the scribes knew was the Old Testament. But the disciples had knowledge of both old and new things in perfect balance. God had called and trained them, and now wanted them to spread their knowledge. Old experiences and new observations, all have their use. 

Today we are to also be a wise householder and proclaim the same message that the disciples were to proclaim: Jesus commanded his disciples to go forth proclaiming the Gospel throughout the whole world. We are to seek the kingdom of heaven and joyfully receive it because unfortunately if you don’t, you are destined to perish in the fires of hell. 

See on blog: Plan of Salvation