Have you ever participated in a treasure hunt? When I was younger, I was fascinated by the idea of searching for (and finding) hidden treasure. I even had a metal detector. Although I never found anything other than a few nickels and dimes, it didn’t matter because they were my nickels and dimes which I had found and they were special to me. Even today I still have those “treasures” in a little box.
Do you know that God also has treasure for us today? He has given us the greatest treasure hunt of all, one that each and every one of us can participate in, and it is not a race where only the first person to find the treasure wins it all, but there is a personal treasure for each and every person – and there is more than enough treasure to go around. Today we will be exploring this grand treasure hunt and see what we find.
So is there really such a thing as treasure which God has hidden for us to find? The answer is yes. We already know that God has created and placed all of the diamonds, sapphires, rubies and other gemstones in their places. He knows where every deposit of gold, silver and oil in the entire world is. And yes God has put all of those things where they are for man to find and use, to bless not only ourselves but others as well; and while it is very good to find those things, the Bible says that there is an even greater treasure hidden for us to search for and find… wisdom.
Now immediately I see some eye-rolls and I hear some sighs of frustration and disappointment. You might think that you have heard this before. You may also think that wisdom is great and all but you need money… right? Well, I do understand your feelings, but I would ask you to see this from a different perspective for a moment: Money will do you no good if you do not have the Godly wisdom to keep it, use it properly and create more of it. You see the wisdom I am speaking of is not the wisdom of the world, but the wisdom of God. I am sure you’ve heard the stories about people who have wasted entire fortunes in a matter of months… lottery winners and even some celebrities who have spent all that they had and are now broke because of nothing more than a lack of Godly wisdom. This is why wisdom is considered by God to be far more valuable than any other kind of riches.
This is what God says in Proverbs 3:13-18:
“Happy is the man that finds wisdom, and the man that gets understanding.
For the merchandise of it is better than the merchandise of silver, and the gain thereof than fine gold.
She is more precious than rubies: and all the things you can desire are not to be compared to her.
Length of days is in her right hand; and in her left hand riches and honor.
Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace.
She is a tree of life to them that lay hold on her: and happy is every one that retains her.”
We can see here that the benefits of wisdom are varied and vast. First we see joy as a benefit. Happy is the man who finds wisdom. A lot of people say that ignorance is bliss, but true joy comes from wisdom; and not mere worldly wisdom, but the very wisdom of God.
We also see in verse 16 that wisdom holds length of days and riches and honor. Now length of days is different than a long life. In the Bible, length of days is the supernatural stretching of time. Have you ever experienced certain days where you seemed to have all the time in the world? You got everything done and it was only noon? And then other days where the time just flew by and you wished you had more of it? It’s more than just where your attention was focused, it’s the supernatural lengthening of days – and God wants you to have it at will. These are just some of the benefits of Godly wisdom. Notice that riches and honor are also there.
Next we see that peace, pleasantness and life are further benefits – all of these things flow from the wisdom of God in us. So you can see how valuable Godly wisdom truly is since all of these things flow from it.
Okay so we now know some of the many blessings which wisdom can bring us, it’s time to explore how we get wisdom and this is where the treasure hunt comes in. Let’s read Proverbs 2:1-7:
“My son, if you will receive my words, and hide my commandments with you;
So that you incline your ear to wisdom, and apply your heart to understanding;
Yes, if you cry after knowledge, and lift up your voice for understanding;
If you seek her as silver, and search for her as for hid treasures;
Then shall you understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God.
For the LORD gives wisdom: out of his mouth comes knowledge and understanding.
He lays up sound wisdom for the righteous: he is a buckler to them that walk uprightly.”
There are a lot of interesting things in these verses. The first point being that we must be wiling to receive the words of God. This may seem obvious, but in truth there are many people who are filled with pride and stubbornness that choose to follow themselves and go their own ways instead of receiving the instruction and guidance of God.
Notice here that when we are willing to receive God’s words, then we incline our ear to wisdom; we listen for it and make sure that we hear it. And when we hear God’s wisdom, we then apply our heart to it. My friends we must be sure to apply our heart – because our heart by default always wants to follow the wrong path, but we must apply our heart to Godly guidance and wisdom.
Following right after willingness and intent comes the biggest killer to pride: to ask God. Lift up your voice for wisdom, cry aloud to God. Recognize that you can’t do it by yourself, that only God can give His wisdom to you.
And next comes the main point of today’s message, after we have purposed it in our hearts and ask, we then can seek and search as for hidden treasure. But where do we search for wisdom? The next two verse tells us where to search and find wisdom… We see that the fear (worship) of the LORD is connected with the knowledge of God and that the LORD gives wisdom out of His mouth. Today we find the words of God in a singular place, and my friends, it’s the Bible.
The scriptures are the very words of God for you today. Already as we have been studying scripture, we have learned wisdom – on wisdom itself! The best part is that God helps us find these treasures of wisdom in scripture by His Holy Spirit!
Think for a moment about how a person searches for hidden treasure. I know that when I was using my metal detector as a child, I would very thoroughly examine every inch of land, making sure that I didn’t move too fast because I didn’t want to miss any thing or get a false reading.
Today when we study the Bible, we should study it thoroughly, examining every detail. Nothing is in the Bible by chance, but all of it is there because the Holy Spirit wanted us to learn from all of it.
We should examine each part, making sure not to move too quickly or we might miss what the Holy Spirit wants us to see and also fail to see His guidance and direction.
So now the question comes, why does God hide these things in the first place? That’s a fair an honest question, so here’s the fair and honest answer straight from scripture, in Proverbs 25:2:
“It is the glory of God to conceal a thing: but the honor of kings is to search out a matter.”
My friends, God has a destiny for us which many of us today fail to realize. One of the titles of God is “The King of kings”. This would indicate that He is the High King over other kings… we are those kings. The Bible states plainly that when we have received Jesus Christ we are made the sons and daughters of God; we have become part of His kingdom and part of His family (Revelation 1:5-6). So when we examine Proverbs 25:2 in the light of the finished work of Jesus Christ, we can see plainly that our honor as kings is to search for (and find) the mysteries and treasures of God. It is both to His glory and our honor because His treasures are not for just anyone. His mysteries are reserved for His children and His kings, as crowns of honor for us to enjoy and have.
You are not just a nobody. In Christ today you are a King, and a Royal Priest in the Kingdom of Heaven. You should behave accordingly and treat your high position with the honor and dignity that it deserves.
Jesus paid everything, so that today you can have everything. God’s treasures are there for you to find and have – start reading the treasure book.