Of More Value Than A Peanut?

By Gary L. Cox

Reprinted from the November 1990 Newsletter

Jesus told a parable of the Kingdom of heaven. It went like this:

"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.

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

- Matthew 13:44-46

The parable has two major points that need our attention. First, both treasures were hidden. It was necessary to search for them. Second, when they were found, they were seen as such a great value that everything else had to be abandoned in order to acquire them. That is what the kingdom of God is like, and if you look very closely, that is the history of those who seek the Lord.

Simply put, the greatest treasure available to men is hidden away from the view of the natural man’s eye.

"But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God."

- 1 Corinthians 2:7, 9-10

"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened."

- Matthew 7:7-8

This treasure, Gods secret wisdom, is truly available to all who ask Him in a spirit of true love for Him. However, as indicated in the parable, the great treasures of Gods kingdom are only available on the basis of a complete sell-out of what we currently hold dear and valuable. Nothing short of total surrender is required. Remember that history is full of examples of the truly great men and women of God who were called upon to give their full measure of devotion for the precious treasures entrusted to them. (Read Hebrews 11 and 12 for sampling!)

God finds out how highly we value something by what we give in exchange for it. Those who truly seek His Eternal Treasures will withhold no degree of human comfort or pleasure in order to gain them.

"For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal."

- II Corinthians 4:16-18

Our world culture is rushing toward what may be its last major crisis of values: what is the value of man? Jesus asked how it would profit a man if he gained the whole world and lost his own soul? Just what is of high enough value by which one could exchange his soul?

Jesus describes Eternal Life by which value he measured mans worth:

"These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee: As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him. And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent."

- John 17:1-3

This is life’s hidden treasure. By it, inestimable worth is given to every human life no matter what expression of worth it can outwardly muster in a world which measures value by the attainment of personal satisfaction (Enter family planning!)

The homeschool movement might be a part of a last great revival because, by its nature, it is challenging the educational structures of our day which man looks to as his savior. It is the educational establishment that often feeds the vain notion that personal attainment is man’s highest good. Such a view seeks to verify some tangible degree of quality in a life before it ascribes worth to its continued existence, (Enter abortion on demand and euthanasia!) perhaps the greatest contribution of the home education movement is its testimony to the value of life. By maximizing the importance of the home’s role in nurturing its members, we can express the inherent value of life as ordained by God.

This movement has the significant opportunity of declaring to the world by our actions: the true value of life is worth more than my own temporal potential and existence. (It is a delight to see the growing awareness of the value of children and the increasing size of the family.)

However, this value will only be seen as we clearly place it above every earthly convenience. We must share with the saints of old the loss of all earthly gain in exchange for the exchange for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ. We must do this for ourselves and for our children.

George W. Carver, the famous black scientist, told of his discovery of the of the wonders of the peanut. During his prayer time, he implored God to tell him the purpose of the universe. Being told that was too lofty of a purist for him, he asked what the purpose was for creating man. Again God declined because the subject was too complex for George. So he asked finally, “Lord, why do you make the peanut?” “That’s better!” the Lord said. And with a handful of peanuts and the Creators help, he was able to create many useful products from the peanut. Through this revelation, George single-handedly averted the complete destruction of the Southern agriculture begun by the boll weevil.

If the unimposing goober could be turned into a major billon dollar industry using the Creator’s help to uncover the treasures of worth, how much more can the value of man be uncovered by Him whose image we can bear?

And if the insignificant peanut turned out to be a great resource for the needs of man, how much more of an eternal resource is man himself with whom the Creator desires to dwell forever?

Let us rejoice at our opportunity and be devoted to the tasks of our homes!