NEWSLETTER - FEBRUARY 2007

VERSE OF THE MONTH:
“Don’t scratch the surface. Come to me and find life, come and be filled with the love of the Father” John 5:39-42 (paraphrase)

IN THIS EDITION:
What are you looking for?
Events

WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FOR?
The parables about the pearl of great price and the hidden treasure follow the very well known parable of the sower (Matthew 13). Many people read this and miss out the section between the parable and its interpretation. In the verses between the story and its meaning are some key things that Jesus wants us to grasp.

Essentially, Jesus is saying that these are stories about the heart, about our hearts!

In the light of this I see the parable of the sower being about the state of our hearts. The soil represents four different conditions of the heart. Our heart can be closed (the path in the story), it can be shallow (the rocky places), it can be divided (choked by the cares of the world) or it can be an open heart.

We can spend a lifetime looking at the state of our heart and being dissatisfied with what we find! However, the truth is that we have been given a new heart. When we found Christ our heart was renewed; it was born again.

As Jesus tells us the stories about the pearl of great price and the hidden treasure he is telling us stories that speak to our heart. There is a treasure we may stumble across or we may search for but, either way, it is the most precious thing we will ever find.

The pearl was not buried in a temple. It was buried in a field – a poor man’s bank. The first Beatitude says “blessed are the poor in spirit…” or put another way “blessed are those who realise their need of Him”. In our poverty of spirit we are desperate to find something which sets us free.

To help us understand these parables we need to look at John 5:39-42. Jesus tells us that performance and duty are not enough. The religious leaders of the day had not found life! They had missed the point. As a result, they did not have the love of the Father in their hearts. Jesus brought life; he came that we may have life and have it in all its fullness. He came to set our hearts free. He came that we could have our hearts filled with the love of the Father.

Jesus did not show us a whole set of principles but he introduced us to a person: His Father and our Father. The kingdom of Heaven is not rules and regulations; it is a Kingdom of love.

In his excellent book, Waking the Dead, John Eldredge says: “Christians have spent their whole lives mastering all sorts of principles, done their duty, carried on the programmes of their church and never known God intimately, heart to heart. The point is not activity – the point is intimacy with God. Teach a man a rule and you help him solve a problem; teach a man to walk with God and you help him solve the rest of his life”

The pearl of great price and the hidden treasure are not a pay packet, a right that is earned. They are our inheritance. The pearl and the treasure are hearts filled with the love of the Father. An open heart is a healed heart. It is one desiring something more than busyness, duty or performance. It is a heart desiring intimacy and relationship.

The point is intimacy.

Don’t try and work out which of the four types of soil represents your heart! Rather, ask the Father to come and fill you with His love – you will then find the pearl of great price and the treasure you seek. As He does, your heart will become more and more open. As you seek Him for who He is and abide in Him (John 15) so there will be fruit - fruit that you could never have dreamt of!

EVENTS
The events page of the website has recently been updated so please have a look for events happening in the UK over the coming months. www.afathertoyou.com/signposts/events.html

In particular I recommend the week long school in Rochdale in June with James and Denise Jordan and Jeff and Sylvia Scaldwell. For more information contact Edward Ahmad or visit the following website for a booking form: www.silverstreet.org.uk It would be worth registering early for this as it is sure to be a popular event and places are limited.

The events page will be updated regularly so bookmark the site and visit it often.

In His love

Mark Gyde