Heart & Soul - - Hidden Treasure

 

2 Corinthians 4:7

Now we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this surpassingly great power is from God and not from us.

*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 2344

Treasure: a storehouse for precious things; a receptacle for valuables

From the Greek word ' thésauros' (pronounced thay-sow-ros'): including (treasured) thoughts stored up in the heart and mind.

THIS TREASURE

    Matthew 13:44

The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and in his joy he went and sold all he had and bought that field.

    Psalm 119:11

Thy Word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against Thee.

    Matthew 13:46

When he found one very precious pearl, he went away and sold all he had and bought it.

    Job 28:28

And He said to man, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.’ ”

    Romans 10:8-9

But what does it say? “The Word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,” that is, the Word of faith we are proclaiming: that if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved."

JARS OF CLAY

     The frailty of mankind is here implied. Yet, in His infinite mercy God chose our hearts to be His temple, His sanctuary, His dwellingplace. We get His Word into our hearts by believing on His Name for our salvation (Romans 10:13). 

    We first recognize our frailness and need for a Savior to save us (Romans 3:10). We see how useless our efforts are to get us out of this sinful nature into a holy nature (Ecclesiastes 7:20; Romans 3:22,23). 

    Many, too many, will claim the Name of the Lord for their own but will not be recognized by Him as His people (Matthew 7:22-23). In their frailty, they recognized Him not. Their jars of clay remained empty of the presence and glory of God. 

SURPASSINGLY GREAT POWER FROM GOD

    What is this surpassingly great power from God that is in these jars of clay which have His Name as their salvation? It is Christ. And Him crucified and resurrected. 

    Romans 1:16, 17

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, first to the Jew, then to the Greek.

    It is God, through the power of His Holy Spirit, who places His method of salvation -- His only begotten Son Jesus Christ -- into our hearts by the faith we declare when we believe on the Name of His Son for our salvation. And I believe. 

    1 Corinthians 1:18, 24

For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. ~ But to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.

    2 Corinthians 12:9

But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is perfected in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest on me.

GRACE SAVES, WISDOM EMPOWERS

    Ephesians 2:8-10

For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not from yourselves; it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance as our way of life.

    Ephesians 3:16-19

I ask that out of the riches of His glory He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. Then you, being rooted and grounded in love, will have power, together with all the saints, to comprehend the length and width and height and depth of the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

    Having God living in us now, we receive His strength when we call on His Name. We call on His Name for our salvation, to hide us in Himself. We call on His Name for our healing, as the Word of Faith tells us that 'by His stripes we are healed'. Our souls are healed of corruption. Our bodies are healed of disease. Our minds are healed and made sound. Our spirits are healed and we are lifted up into Him. 

    We call on His Name for our deliverance for Christ is our Deliverer. We call on His Name for guidance for The LORD is our Shepherd. We call on Him Name for Wisdom for The LORD is our Wisdom. We call on His Name for everything because The LORD is everything to us. 

    There is Power in the Name of The LORD and this power is alive and living in the heart of every believer. Do you believe? 

HIDDEN TREASURE

Jesus Be The Center

My Heart Is Yours

Thy Word

Just As I Am (I Come Broken)

Light Has Come

Awaken My Heart

Secret Place "When Noone Else Is Watching"

Yet Not I But Through Christ In Me

Your Name Is Power

    

Signs & Wonders of Christ's Arrival - - Not All Who Seek Him Find Him

 

Matthew 2:3, 4

3. When King Herod heard this, he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.

4. And when he had assembled all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he asked them where the Christ was to be born. 

He asked not out of good intentions, for his heart was evil. 

In these next few verses, Matthew 2:5-8 and 16-18, we see the result of Herod not finding Jesus. Jesus had only just arrived; it was not His time yet to be found by those whose sole desire was to kill Him.

#Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 5015

Disturbed: agitate, stir up, trouble

From the Greek word 'tarassó' (pronounced tar-as'-so). To put in motion (to agitate back-and-forth, shake to-and-fro); (figuratively) to set in motion what needs to remain still (at ease); to "trouble" ("agitate"), causing inner perplexity (emotional agitation) from getting too stirred up inside ("upset"). 

The result of Herod not finding Jesus where He was said to be was that all boys two years old and younger in Bethlehem and it's surrounding areas were immediately murdered by Herod's men. Sadly, this fulfilled another prophecy from Jeremiah 13:15 "This is what the LORD says: “A voice is heard in Ramah, mourning and great weeping, Rachel weeping for her children, and refusing to be comforted, because they are no more.” (Matthew 2:17, 18) 

Who knows the intentions of the heart better than God? for the heart is what He looks at when He looks in our direction. Are the hearts of men/women in this day and age still looking for Him to worship Him or to seek His destruction? We can only answer for our own hearts. 

Having been unable to take out Jesus at His birth, the devil tries to destroy Him during His ministry, but it wasn't time. When the time did arrive, the devil's plans backfired: for the crucifixion of Christ overcame for once and for all all of the devil's stratagems.  Joy to the world, indeed. Now, through Christ, we too can overcome the enemy of our souls. 

Seek Him with a desire to know Him and He will surely reveal Himself. He does not hide Himself from the people who truly desire to know Him, love Him, adore Him.

Choose wisdom. Follow after it like the gold seekers of times past, for the wisdom of God is a far greater treasure than any earthly treasure that could be gained. 

The reason so many people do not understand the Bible, and why many misinterpret it, is because they do not want to know the God of the Bible. They are looking constantly for ways to deny Him, His existence. Some believe theories instead of facts because facts obstruct their beliefs. But what is a theory? Conjecture, speculation, assumption, ideology, philosophy are but a few words that mean the same thing as theory. ( I looked in the Thesaurus). 

Conjecture is 'what if'. Speculation is 'maybe'. Assumption is assuming something to be so without actual facts to back it up. Ideology is 'the body of belief or doctrine upon which a person or persons builds their life'. The dictionary has several definitions of Philosophy, none of which contradict each other, but the main theme is that Philosophy is the study and basis of rational thought, rational existence and conducting one's life with studious thought on how to behave. 

Theory is not fact. A fact is known entity. A theory is an unknown entity. Not the same. Wisdom of God is a known entity. The wisdom of men changes with the wind: for whichever the wind blows, man in and of himself, allows himself to be bent by the winds of heresies, false doctrines and the false prophets who spew them into the hearing of the hearts that reject Christ as Lord and Savior of their souls. 

Whose voice are you hearing today? Whose steps do you follow in? Who is your king?Where is your heart? I know where my heart is. For the Bible says, "Where your treasure is, there your heart is." (Luke 12:34) And my heart is with Jesus. 

O Come Let Us Adore Him by Elevation Church

 

Signs & Wonders of Christ's Arrival - - Treasured Words

 

Luke 2:19

But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.

*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 4933 & 4820

Treasured: kept close, kept safe, kept in mind, preserved

Pondered: to consider

While the word  'ponder' has many more definitions than this, in the context of this verse, this is what that word means.

Not a hidden treasure like buried gold, but kept near the surface of thought treasure, like beautiful words which delight one's soul and are thought of often. 

TREASURED & PONDERED

What things was Mary treasuring and pondering?

Well, first of all, as soon as Jesus was born, a great and beautiful star appeared in the night sky. There were no angels above the stable to light the way, for they had disappeared back into heaven having completed their task of delivering the birth announcement to the shepherds. 

Secondly, if strangers dressed in their work clothes came to see your newborn baby and began to kneel and worship Him, I would think that their actions and words would bear repeating to one's self after they had left. And I'm sure they talked to the new Mom and Dad about the message they had been given regarding their new baby boy. That kind of excitement is impossible to contain.

When we first see Jesus, we, too are filled with an uncontainable joy and excitement. Our hunger for His presence is satisfied only when we are near Him. And come near Him, we must. He draws us to Himself with cords of Love, a love that is all encompassing. He wants to be with us even more than we want to be with Him. 
Being filled with such joy and wonder causes the love of God in Christ to pour out of us in testimony: Look what the Lord has done! See what a change He has wrought in my heart! As the psalmist wrote, "O give thanks unto the Lord! for He is good, for His mercy endures forever!" (Psalm 118:29) This I know, for He extended His mercy to me. 

THE WORD HID

His Word is hid in my heart, too. I treasure His Word. I ponder, I meditate on, His Word. Psalm 119:11 "Thy Word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against Thee." I hear great and mighty things of what the Lord has done and my soul is flooded with an awestruck wonder at His power and lovingkindness towards us, towards me. 

THE WORD INSCRIBED

The Word in Matthew 6:21, says, "For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." The Word is my treasure. Therefore, the Word is in my heart. Not because I put it there through Scripture memorization, but because God through the power of His Holy Spirit, acting on my faith in His Word, inscribed His Word on my heart. It really is joy unspeakable you know. 

1 Peter 1:8, 9

8. Though you have not seen Him, you love Him; and though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and rejoice with an inexpressible and glorious joy,

9. now that you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

Even in the midst of our trials, our sorrows, our pain, our whatever it is we are going through situations, we can have this joy, too. Only we can prevent this joy from being in us. Those who reject Christ as Lord and Savior, reject joy. They reject His peace, His love, His flawless design for their lives. The happiness they know in this life is brief and fleeting. But joy in the Lord is permanent in a believer's heart. 

Do you know this joy? Do you want to?

Joy Unspeakable  

Joy by 4 King & Country (try to watch on full screen or theater mode) 

Joy To The World by Phil Wickham

Matthew 6:33 "Seek you first the KINGDOM of GOD..................."

We need a plan, a map, before we do anything or go anywhere for anything else in our lives, so we will probably need a plan before we go looking for this Kingdom of God, too. Think of it like geo-caching. Something precious is buried somewhere and you and I have to find it in order to own it and possibly share it. It all depends on what we find. Whenever we begin a search of any type, we need to always begin with the 6 basic questions: Who, What, When, Where, Why and How.

1. What is the Kingdom of God?

2. Where is the Kingdom of God?

3. Who are the inhabitants of the Kingdom of God?

4. Why do I want to go to the Kingdom of God?

5. How do get to the Kingdom of God?

6. When will I know I am in the Kingdom of God?