As school started up on Monday, I was reminded of a moment two years ago when my then favorite 5-year-old (he’s now 7) started kindergarten. While we were briefly playing before his mom took him to school, he put his bunny—whose formal name is Bunny, a treasured stuffed animal since birth—into his new backpack. I let him know that Bunny, sadly, couldn’t go to school with him. He inquired, “Why, Auntie Jess?” to which I responded, “Well, Bunny is very precious, and we don’t want to lose him. I’m afraid that if you take him to school, he might get lost.” Without hesitation, he removed Bunny from the backpack, commenting, “if he got lost, I would look for Bunny for years, and years, and years.”
This endearing moment made me smile.
It also made me think of Jesus’ parable of the merchant searching for pearls.
Matthew 13:44-46 is one of Jesus’ shorter parables. “Also, the kingdom of heaven is like a man looking for fine pearls. One day he found a very valuable pearl. The man went and sold everything he had to buy that pearl.” (International Children’s Bible)
While I’m hesitant to say Jesus’ parables are simple (indeed, they’re complex!), in many ways, this parable is a simple simile—"the kingdom of heaven is like a man looking for fine pearls…”
This is a “kingdom” parable. Jesus is communicating the extreme value of God’s kingdom—God’s rule, God’s reign, God’s message—via comparison to a “very valuable pearl.” It seems counterproductive for the man to sell everything for a single pearl. Yet, it’s this very paradox that communicates the preciousness of God’s kingdom.
In the first century, pearls were tremendously valuable. So much so, that one pearl could outweigh the value of all of one’s wealth and possessions. Hence, why the man goes pearl hunting, and why he then gives up everything upon discovering the solo pearl.
The takeaway is simple (though living it out is complex!): we must pursue God’s kingdom (the “very valuable pearl”), and when we discover it, sacrifice all to hold onto it.
My favorite 7-year-old inherently understands this takeaway. For him, Bunny* is the “very valuable pearl.” He would search for Bunny far and wide, for a long, long, time until he found it. And he would give up many of his other toys, including his beloved survival equipment, for Bunny, his prized possession.
I hope and pray that one day he will pursue God’s kingdom just has passionately and persistently.
*When my favorite 7-year-old started 1st grade last year, he convinced himself it was time to say goodbye to Bunny “as 1st graders probably shouldn’t have stuffed animals.” However, his resignation waned, and as he starts 2nd grade this year, Bunny is still around (thankfully).