The lesson covered the figurative meanings of “treasure” and “rich” in the Bible. Treasure symbolizes the Word of God – a person who possesses God’s Word becomes like a treasure to God. Being rich refers to having an abundance of God’s Word and truth, contrasted with being rich in worldly/physical wealth. The parable of the talents teaches using one’s understanding of God’s Word faithfully to help others. Jesus promised his disciples who sacrificed to follow him that they would sit on thrones judging the 12 tribes in the renewal of all things. Scriptures caution against the love of money becoming a master over serving God, as the wealthy often struggle with pride and self-sufficiency. “Poor in spirit” means being humble and empty of one’s own thoughts to receive from God’s Spirit. The parable of the hidden treasure illustrates someone joyfully giving up everything to obtain the kingdom of heaven, represented by God’s truth. The main thrust contrasted being rich in God’s spiritual treasures versus being misled by physical wealth or one’s own human understanding apart from God’s Word.

 

Study Guide SCJ Bible Study

Secrets of Heaven: Figurative Treasure and Rich

Selecting the tasks we need to accomplish this week is essential.

We have responsibilities in the world, such as taking care of our family and friends, and fulfilling our job duties.

I hope these aspects of your life are progressing well. Similarly, I trust your spiritual responsibilities are also being attended to effectively.

These include reading your Bible, dedicating time to prayer, studying lessons, and conducting home blessings.

Striving for the right balance between worldly duties and spiritual practices is crucial.

God desires a greater emphasis on Him in your daily routine. Consider our 24-hour day.

Typically, 6 to 8 hours are spent sleeping, which accounts for a third of our day. With 16 hours remaining, commuting can consume an additional 2 to 3 hours, especially for those traveling long distances.

Meal preparation and consumption also take up a portion of your time, followed by around 8 hours of work. After fulfilling all these necessary tasks to sustain our lives, we must consider how much time remains.

Despite our busy schedules, it is possible to dedicate a specific amount of time to God each day.

On Sundays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays, for instance, you might spend 2 hours focused on spiritual activities.

However, it’s important that this dedication to God extends beyond those days, ideally encompassing every day of the week.

In today’s lesson, we will explore the topic of ‘Treasure and Rich’ within the context of ‘Secrets of Heaven’ and its figurative meanings. Before we delve into the definitions, let us consider a significant passage that will frame our understanding of today’s discussion.

The passage is from Exodus 19:5-6, which is fundamental to comprehending the relationship between God and His chosen people and what these individuals signify to Him.

So, what do we see here? God’s proclamation to the people through Moses.

What does God say? ‘If you keep my covenant,’ meaning obey my words, my law.
If you do that, then you will become, out of the entire world, my treasured possession.

One who is ultra-valuable to me, one that I find irreplaceable.

So, when we’re looking at figurative treasure and rich, this is the mindset with which we should understand it.

God is calling a people his treasured possession, those who do what? Those who keep another thing that is critical and treasured to God: the Covenant.

So then, what is the figurative treasure?

And who is someone who is rich?

The figurative treasure is the word.

But just like a rod and light, a person who has the word also becomes like a treasure to God.
|And one who is rich is a person with much word; someone who is rich in what matters.

But remember, there are two kinds of seed, two kinds of trees, two kinds of yeast, two kinds of fire.
So someone can be rich on God’s side.
But someone can also be rich on Satan’s side. We will understand that in this lesson.
Our hope for us today is to be rich in God’s treasure and poor in Satan’s treasure at the time of the second coming.
We want to be extra rich with what God is giving but dirt poor with what Satan is offering.

Figurative Treasure 

Main Reference

We have the messenger in the church of Laodicea. He proclaims, ‘I am rich.’ Yet, what does Jesus say to this individual? ‘You do not realize that you are, in fact, not rich. You are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.’

Jesus then advises him to buy gold refined in the fire. 

What could this mean?

This gold must symbolize something spiritual because a person who is physically poor is aware of their poverty.

A person who is physically naked is conscious of their nakedness, and one who is physically blind is aware of their blindness.

However, this individual does not recognize their state.

Therefore, we must learn from the errors of those who came before us to understand their needs and the means of their redemption.

Let us comprehend the nature of this treasure that they must acquire.

1. Physical Characteristics of Treasure

What comes to mind when you think about treasure?
Gold is a type of treasure.
What are the characteristics of gold? And why is gold valuable?
Consider its qualities, how it is made, and its purity.

How long does it stay pure?
Indefinitely.
Gold is unchanging. It is gold today and will remain gold tomorrow.
Its unreactiveness contributes to its value.
Gold retains its state. This partly explains why God commanded Moses to overlay nearly everything with gold.
The lampstand was to be coated in gold, as well as the censer and the Ark of the Covenant.

Why?
Because gold’s unchanging nature is the source of its value. That is what makes it precious and valuable.

This unchanging quality also contributes to its rarity. Most things change over time, including us and our physical bodies.
When we are young, we move swiftly from one place to another, but as time progresses, we begin to slow down.

We grow slightly weaker and start to wonder, ‘Are these stairs difficult to climb? Indeed, we change; our physical bodies undergo significant changes.

However, elements like gold remain constant, akin to God.

2. Spiritual (True) Meaning of Treasure

The figurative meaning of treasure. What does God find?

A word aptly spoken is like apples of gold, signifying its immense value and preciousness to the recipient.

Such words truly resonate. Similarly, the rebuke from a wise person can be likened to earrings and ornaments of gold.

Though these words may not always be comfortable to hear in the moment, their true worth is often realized much later.

This is reminiscent of the interactions we have with our parents. We tell our children to drink water, go to sleep, wash their teeth, and guide them on how to interact with others. In those moments, they might resist or complain, not wanting to follow the advice.

However, as they grow older, they often come to understand that their parents were imparting wisdom based on experience.

They realize that their parents had indeed been through these experiences before.

The value of the words spoken to us is sometimes only appreciated with time.

Let us not wait to recognize the value of God’s words; let us acknowledge their worth today. Just as words aptly spoken are like apples of gold.

The words of the Lord are lawless.

Like silver refined and purified seven times in furnaces of clay.

The more times something goes through a furnace, the purer it becomes.  Seven times.

So the real material, the thing of value, will withstand the fire, but everything impure will be burned away.

It will not remain.

So God’s Word has nothing impure in it; all impurities have been wiped away. But where do those impurities continue to come from later on?

People’s thoughts. People always contaminate God’s perfect word with their thoughts that do not come from the one God had sent, or that don’t come from the Spirit of God. God’s pure word is flawless.

Like silver purified seven times. So then, what if someone has God’s purified word?

What do they become from God’s perspective?

The book of Lamentations is not a pleasant one, is it?

Its very name indicates its contents. To lament means to express profound sorrow or agony over a terrible or sad event. It’s important to note that this book was composed during the era of the prophets.

During this period, Israel had been decimated by warring Gentile nations such as Assyria and Babylon and subsequently subjected to 70 years of enslavement, as mentioned in Exodus 19:5-6.

This was a consequence of their failure to uphold their covenant with God.

Thus, God, speaking through the prophet Jeremiah, expresses his lament over his people.

The sons of Zion, formerly equated with gold, are now compared to a base material. Once gold, now they are likened to clay.

Yet, the people are still metaphorically compared to gold.

However, to maintain a status akin to gold, one must adhere to the covenant and observe God’s commandments.

Let us now consider those who stand in contrast to this ideal.

Lips that speak knowledge are like a rare jewel, for knowledge and truth are unfortunately rare.

The opposite is much more abundant.

However, we need to ensure that we are among those who can speak the knowledge and truth, not from our own heads and our own ideas, because those things cannot compare to the true knowledge and truth that come from above.

As you commit to Him, the Living Stone, you too will become a living stone.

You will become valuable and shine brightly like stars.

Like living stones, you are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

When you accept and understand the words of the one sent, you become gold.

This echoes the Old Testament prophecy, such as Isaiah 28:16, which speaks of a stone laid in Zion, a precious cornerstone. Those who accepted this stone became precious stones themselves, treasures in their own right.

Consider how God’s chosen people have often been in the minority, outnumbered

Take Noah and his seven family members, or Jacob with his twelve sons entering Egypt, or the few righteous men God called upon to guide His people. At the first coming, there was Jesus and His twelve disciples. They were rare, few in number.

So, how valuable are those who possess the true word?

They are immensely valuable because God can work through them. However, when Satan recognizes this, he attacks them.

Now, think about your position, Harvest Class. As you listen to the open word today and realize that not many around you know this word, consider how valuable you are becoming to God—as someone He can use.

Never underestimate yourself. God doesn’t underestimate you. He does not look down upon you, though the world might.

That’s why you are here. But remember to stay humble. Keep your head humble and be grateful for the grace of hearing His word.

Let’s now read a parable, one that discusses the concept of treasure in a very interesting way.

A parable you’re likely familiar with, but I hope that today you will see it with fresh eyes.

Let’s turn to Matthew 25 and read the Parable of the Talents.

Let’s examine verse 15, where it mentions ‘5 talents of gold.’

This reference is not about talents as in skills or abilities.

We must consider the context of Scripture and not just accept interpretations at face value but confirm them with the Word itself.

If you look at the footnote in your Bible, you might see an explanation of a talent’s worth. It’s quite valuable. Consider that the Old Testament was written in Hebrew and the New Testament in Greek. English can be confusing because a word can have multiple meanings, but originally, ‘talent’ did not mean skills or gifts.  

A ‘talent’ is a measure of money or gold, like dollars. So it’s saying, “To one I give $5, to another $2, and to another $1.” It doesn’t make sense to say, “You should have invested your ability to earn interest.”

What is it actually saying? “I gave you 5 talents of gold, 2 talents, and 1 talent.” What did the master, Jesus, expect upon His return from His long journey? “What did you do with what I gave you?”

One servant produced a profit with 5 talents, another with 2 talents. But the one with 1 talent produced nothing; he buried what he received.

This parable shows what is valuable to God. The one with 5 talents gained bountiful understanding of the Word and evangelized, bringing 5 more people to God—that’s profit! Despite less understanding, the one with 2 talents brought 2 more people. But the one with little understanding did nothing.

Someone who understands the Word well feels compelled to share it. But what about someone struggling to understand? They should ask questions and then get to work.  

Reflecting on God’s command to Noah to “be fruitful and multiply” and Jesus’ command to “make disciples,” we see a parallel. It’s about being fruitful.

If you don’t feel ready to preach directly, consider inviting someone to a seminar where they might hear about Jesus. That way, they might come to understand just like you did.

This parable is not about skills and abilities; it’s about the Word and what a person does with it.

A person who does nothing with the Word will have even that taken away, just like in the parable of the sower where birds take the seed because it didn’t take root.

Let’s aim to be more receptive than the path.

There are two kinds of treasure: God’s treasure and Satan’s treasure.

We know that God’s treasure is His word of truth. But Satan’s treasures are his lies, which, unfortunately, spread faster as lies spread like wildfire.

So then, who were really valuable to God at a time when lies were spreading so quickly?

At the first coming, it was Jesus and His twelve disciples, God’s treasured possession.

They were very valuable to God because, out of an entire nation of people, they were the only ones who had the truth, making them extremely rare.

I want us to look at the way Jesus describes his relationship with his disciples, what these disciples ask of him, and the result. It’s really beautiful what Jesus says about them.

This is beautiful.

The disciples likely felt similarly to how we may feel right now. I’m dedicating much time to this class, over ten hours per week. I’m sacrificing time with family, preparing meals, attending children’s events, enjoying movie nights with friends, and even exercising less.

Some of you are sacrificing greatly to be here. You might ask, “What’s in it for me?”

Jesus’s disciples gave up much. They left everything behind – likely good jobs as fishermen, tax collectors and more – to follow Christ.

They surrendered everything. And what did Jesus promise? At the renewal of all things, you will sit on twelve thrones with me.  

Worth it! Worth it! Let’s picture these thrones. Are you ready?

Remember, the disciples were like living stones.”

Visualize a square. And on that square, draw three circles across the top, three circles on the left side, three circles on the right side, and three circles across the bottom.

These twelve circles represent the twelve foundations, twelve stones, or the twelve gates – the twelve precious gemstones that also represent the twelve disciples and the twelve tribes.

We’ll get into this detail and more as we continue to study.

This is what the holy city, New Jerusalem, is called. So Jesus keeps his promises, doesn’t he? He certainly does.

should start reminding you of what John saw in the spiritual world; it should also remind you a bit of what Moses saw.

Remember how Moses had to build on Earth as he saw in heaven? Even Jesus told us about this in his prayer – the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6:10 says “Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

God’s will on Earth as in heaven.

So let’s be those who become like treasures for God here on Earth – like precious living stones.

Out of the whole world, God finds us to be most valuable and will work through us to make others like treasure too.

Figurative Rich

Physical Characteristics of Rich

The rich are those who have an abundance of treasure.

That’s the main physical characteristic of a rich individual.

In the Bible, there are those who are physically rich and those who are spiritually rich.

We need to learn lessons from both: the physically rich and the spiritually rich.

So, let us understand from those who are physically rich. What lessons does God teach us about physical riches?

Jesus teaches us that money can become a master, just as God seeks to be our master. We cannot serve both. One will always take priority in our lives.

How might God feel when we regularly put things like work, business goals or physical things before spending time in His Word? While there are situations we cannot avoid, if putting other things ahead of God becomes a habit, it shows what our true master is.

God promises that if we seek first His kingdom and righteousness, He will provide what we need – food, shelter, the basics of life.

We do not need to chase after or worry about these things as people without faith do.

Instead, we are to chase after God, trusting that He will provide. Do we believe God will keep this promise? We cannot assume God will bless us if we continually put worldly things first. We must rely on His Word.

1 Timothy 6:10 is often misquoted. It does not say money is the root of all evil, but rather the love of money and obsession with worldly things corrupts people.

This was true even for Judas. We must be careful not to let money rule us.

The rich man Jesus describes could not part from his possessions to gain eternal life.

His priority was what he owned here on earth.

We must examine our own hearts – do we cling more tightly to physical comforts or God’s promises? What matters most in the end? Our life on earth is fleeting. Eternal life requires trusting in God above all else.

Let’s understand what Jesus was saying here. I’ve heard several explanations about this passage as well.
By God’s grace, I’m able to really look at how the context and the open word explains it.

We see here a man who is physically rich—this man has lots of physical wealth in the world. But he’s also a devout believer, as a Jew. He comes to Jesus and asks him, “What should I do for salvation?”

“Great teacher, good teacher.” First, Jesus resets his whole idea of what is good by saying that only God is good.

Then he talks about following the law, right? Do the things you should be doing. “Which ones?” the man asks.

Jesus lists some common laws at that time: Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal. These people were really focused on the things they needed to do in terms of Moses’ law. “I need to do this, I need to do this,” was their thought process, according to the law.

But Jesus then changes the man’s perspective: “Oh, you want to do more? Get rid of the things holding you back and follow me. If you follow me, you basically automatically do all that Moses asked you to do by following my words. Because I am the fulfillment of those words. Those words came to fulfillment through me.”

“So by following me, not only are you keeping the old laws that you’re supposed to keep now since I am the fulfillment of them, but you’ll be doing more.”
What happened to this man? What was he stuck on?
This man was attached to his physical wealth and set in his ways. He was unwilling to change his lifestyle and mindset, so he walked away.

His attachment to material wealth and habits kept him from humbling himself and following Jesus.

It’s hard for rich people to humble themselves because they don’t need anything. And accept a master other than themselves.

What was this man really rich in? He was rich in his own stubborn thoughts.

Of course, he had great physical wealth, but he could not change his mindset to follow what Jesus asked.
This is why Jesus says “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”
He wasn’t talking about a sewing needle. Cities had walls for protection with openings called “needles.” Jesus meant: It’s easier for a camel to squeeze through a needle gate than a rich person to humble themselves.
Camels carried heavy loads. To enter a needle gate, that load must be removed. The camel has to kneel down to fit through the gate.

Likewise, it’s hard for rich people to humble themselves because they feel self-sufficient.
Jesus didn’t mean rich people can’t enter heaven, but that it’s hard for them to humble themselves and accept Jesus.
This applies to spiritual wealth too. You can be rich in God’s word, or rich in your own stubborn thoughts and Satan’s thoughts, where no one can tell you anything because you think you know it all.

That person will struggle to enter the narrow gate to heaven. They must unload their pride like a camel at a needle gate.

Blessed are the poor in spirit.” Have you ever wondered what this means?
Consider everything we’ve learned so far. Possibly humble? Essentially, but poor in whose spirit?

Blessed are the poor in their own spirit, their own thoughts. Why? Because now they are empty enough to receive from the Spirit.
That’s why later it says, “Blessed are the hungry and thirsty.” Someone full of their own thoughts, there’s no room left to receive anything.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, meaning their own thoughts, so that they can receive.

Let’s be rich in God’s side and poor on our own side, definitely poor on Satan’s side.

Because what is the result? Heaven.

Memorization

Let’s Us Discern