Hidden Treasures

I'm going to go to Matthew 13, read one verse of scripture. But before I do, last Sunday I introduced something that's been on my heart for a while. We've been working towards it and that is something called life groups. I want to circle back to it for just a minute. This is project we've been trying to take the word of God and make it live past Sunday. And we have got a system put together through a pilot test group that we did last fall. And coming up in March, we're going to be introducing the ability for you to be involved in life groups if you choose to. And the reason you should do that is to give you an opportunity for you to be a part about something that I feel like is going to propel our church forward in the topic of disciplehip. There are three groups of people I'm looking for today. First group is a group of leaders, people who are willing to help facilitate discussion. You don't need to be a biblical scholar to do this. You don't have to have all the answers. You just need to be a willing guide. Be able to have a conversation and create space for growth. The second group I'm looking for are host. You may say, "I don't want to lead." That's okay.

But you got a couch, you got a living room, you got an opportunity there to invite people into your place. and God has gifted you in creating a good space and you're willing to do that. The third type of group is someone who just says, "I don't want to do either one of those things, but I would love to be a part. I want to be a participant." If that's you, we got space for you as well. Here's the easy part, and we've talked about this a couple times, is if you look between your seats, there's a QR code. If you want to scan that, if you're interested in leading, hosting, or just being a part of these life groups, you can scan that code. And also, if you are interested in maybe having a one-on-one personal Bible study, those things are powerful. I hope you know that God has something special for you. Your life is not an accident. And hopefully by the end of this message today, you're going to realize that. But if you're interested in doing that, or if you are currently teaching a home Bible study to someone, maybe we don't know about that. We're trying our best to track these things. Again, if you'll scan that QR code, it's going to pull up a list of things that you can tap on there.

I would love for you to consider and be prayerful about being a part of life groups that are going to come up in March. Again, I'm not going to tell you have to do this. It's just putting it out there to tell you that what we've experienced so far from our pilot test groups was life-changing stuff. A feeling of connectedness that they had not felt before. An opportunity to do life together. To be the most connected generation that has ever lived. We battle the most loneliness that has ever been recorded in human history. What I know is the enemy loves to keep us busy, keep us distracted, but I want to be intentional about being together in the word of God. So, if that interests you, if you'll scan that QR code, there's an opportunity there for you to be a part of these things. Matthew 13:44, if you've read Matthew 13 before, and to give you a little background about what's going on, these are mostly redlettered words, which means these are the words of Jesus. And Jesus is in the middle of talking to people around him and he's telling stories or parables would be a more accurate title for what's going on. These parables were so powerful because they were meant for you to identify with some person or some part of the parable.

In other words, they were allegorical. You were to find your place in the story as he told. And there's many parables being being told by Jesus in Matthew 13, but we run across one in verse number 44. The whole parable is in one verse. He says this, reading from the English Standard Version. The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure. Everybody say treasure. >> Treasure. >> A treasure hidden in a field which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy, everybody say joy. >> He goes and sells all that he has and buys the field. Treasure. Joy. When we read a passage like this, we see a glimpse into what Jesus is describing as the kingdom of heaven. If you were with me a few months ago, I spent some time on Wednesday nights talking about these stories about how he was describing life that you and I were intended to live. These words, these redletter words, if we look close at this verse and slow down for just a minute, read them. The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field. Now, what I know about this is we are given some details and some details we are not given. There are some facts that are left out of this story. I feel like it's important for us to at least think about.

We do not know where this particular field was. Maybe this man lived beside it. Maybe it was along the path that he took to work or to school every day. we don't know. We don't know when he passed by it. What we know is that the man found a treasure in the field. I want to know when I think about this and if you've been around here any amount of time at all and heard me teach or preach, you know that my brain's always asking questions. I was wondering how did he get into the field to start with? If it wasn't his field, we know it wasn't because he goes and buys it. And then what was it that he was looking for? Did he just happen to walk across the treasure or was he doing some digging? I don't know. These are questions that go through my mind. There was something that transpired that was there in this story. Something happened. It says, "Which a man found and then he covered it up." I find that interesting language as well, at least in my mind. we don't know what he first uncovered and we know that he covered it back up. I don't know if he left it where it was originally at or if he moved it to a new location.

I'm not giving these details. All know is Jesus is telling us that a man found something of such great value that he was willing to stop everything else he was doing and this became the focus of his life. This what he found this treasure that he found in the field became the entire focus of his life. Then it says in his joy. Joy. I like that word joy because joy is not the same as happiness. Happiness is an emotion that you follow after. And if you do, it's a fool's air and you're never going to you're never going to find happiness. If you're going to search after something, you should search after joy because you can still be joyful when things are going wrong in your life. And this says in his joy, HE'S SO EXCITED that he has found a treasure. And he seems to be of the mindset that no one else wants this field that's just grown over. It's neglected. It's worthless. For whatever reason, nobody else seen what he's seen. No one else found what he found. And he decides, "Hey, I've got to have it. This has become the focus of my life." More than likely, this was just a field that everybody else passed by and didn't see the value that was there. Maybe, just maybe, it was the neighborhood I saw.

Maybe it's like that one house in your neighborhood that you wish wasn't in your neighborhood. Or maybe that house is yours. We all have that one neighbor, don't we? When you go in and tell people like, "Well, I'm sorry about that." We feel like we have to apologize for our neighbor. Like, I know they haven't mowed since the 2013s. You know, I was tempted to buy a goat and just throw it in the yard. There was a time back in the late two 20 See, how do you say this? How do you say 2008 like when you say the late 2000s before you get to 2010, right? What would that be? There's a term there. Whatever you're all saying, I'll agree with you. That sounds good to me. It was around eight or nine, somewhere in there. We had a bit of a recession. You guys remember that? And the house beside us, the people that were living there, the bank foreclosed on it. and the bank didn't care about that house. They let the yard get crazy. So much so that they have an 8ft fence around the background. The grass was taller than the 8ft fence. It was kind of an eyesore to me. When I think about this field, I think about it was probably like that. It was probably something that was easily overlooked.

Something that you could have passed by and not thought much about it. It was maybe overgrown with weeds and thorns or maybe had some rocks in it. Maybe it lane dormant. Maybe it was uncultivated, untouched. Maybe there was an old refrigerator out there. You know, just something that people didn't think much about. It was easily, this is maybe the point I'm trying to make the best. It was easily dismissed as worthless. But this man found a treasure in it. He couldn't have been the first man to walk by it, but there was something that drew his attention. Something there caused him to go into the field. And in the field he found something valuable. It's like nobody cared about it, but he found a treasure. And it was in this state he decided, I'm going to buy. He goes and sells all that he has and buys the field. I wonder what his wife had to say about this. I'm a married man. I can imagine strolling home and say, "Babe, I bought a field today." Probably wouldn't have went over well. She probably would have said, "Why didn't you call? Which field did you buy?" Oh, you know the overgrown one we pass by all the time. I bought that field. The one that has the high weeds, the things you can see over the fence.

The one that has the refrigerator sitting out there. The one that has all the rocks. The one that's become the trash heap. The one that has all the broke down trees. I wonder what his children said when he began to describe what he had done. Go with me for just a minute. Let your imagination just kind of loose. You understand that he doesn't want the field. What he was after is the treasure that was hidden in the field. Now listen to pastor today. Let me unpack this. There are a few ways that you can interpret this verse. Okay? There's there's some ways that you can go about it. Now the first is the treasure in the field is like you and I discovering the treasure of salvation that you're willing to give up everything for salvation. I think that's a good way to view it. Don't you? The salvation is worth everything that it would cost you. >> Right. He paid the price, right? And he's inviting you. Salvation is free to give. But it does he does say if you're going to come after me, you need to take up your cross and follow me. There's there is a price to pay after you acknowledge that it's for you. Again, you don't earn your way into heaven. You couldn't do that. You and I neither one.

So, there's one way we can look at this treasures like you and I discover salvation. We also know that Jesus points that the kingdom of heaven and the other nine parables there in Matthew 13. we can see without doubt that he's referring to how salvation comes to us. we need to find it. We need to dedicate our lives to living it. But another way of interpreting this is the treasure is the church or God's elect and the field is the world and Jesus Christ himself gave up everything to purchase the entire world. You can look at it that way. You can evaluate that story through that lens. Ladies and gentlemen, both of these are true about this parable. But I want to focus on what I feel like is a third more important approach to this parable. I want to look at it and I want you to think with me. I want to talk about your life being the field. And Jesus is the man who found your life and is willing to buy all of you to purchase your past, your present, and your future. He was willing to buy the whole field because in you there is treasure that he wants to dig up and bring to the light and to put on display. I feel it's important today to remind someone that God bought all of you when he redeemed you.

He didn't just purchase the best parts. >> He purchased flawed material. >> He purchased broken humanity. He purchased something that should have been the ASIS section of the store. That's where you and I were. We were the ASIS section. But he purchased us all. He redeemed us. When I was reading this parable, it says the field. It doesn't say it was a garden. It doesn't say it was paradise. It says it was a field. I can't imagine it was much to look at because it did not say that there was a line of people also trying to buy it. It doesn't give us a narrative that he had to compete for it. We can't draw that conclusion from reading the information that we got. I'm sure it was overgrown. Someone had more than likely put some trash and some stuff out there. It wasn't prime real estate, if you know what I mean. Yet, this man was willing to buy it to sell all that he had to purchase the field because of what he knew was in the field. Could it be that you and I were worth the ultimate sacrifice? Our past, our present, and our future. I think it might sound better this way. He bought your whole life so that he might save your soul. He purchased every part of you. Some of you think he only loves the good stuff about you, but I'm telling you, he purchased it all.

>> Some of you try to disqualify that you're beyond God's love, and I'm here to tell you that's a lie. That's a lie from the enemy. You were never beyond God's love. >> He looked at you and said, "You know what? You're worth dying for. >> You may not think you're anything. Somebody else may have told you're worthless and you're nothing and you're ignorant. You're unlearned. You're stupid. You're all for nothing." But I'm here to tell you, he doesn't look at those labels. >> He didn't spin you over to see if there's an expiration date. >> He didn't pop the cap and smell and if you smelled okay. Aren't you thankful for that? >> But our God said, "You know what? I see that there's something there. >> Maybe you don't even know what it is. Maybe everybody else has passed you by. Everybody else says you're nothing. You're never going to amount to anything. Somebody else may have labeled you. But he didn't look at you that way. He said there's some treasure there. There's something OF VALUE. I KNOW WHAT I PUT INSIDE YOU. I KNOW WHEN I was creating you and making you AND FORMING YOU, I WAS PLACING SOME GOOD STUFF INSIDE OF YOU AND MAYBE EVERYBODY ELSE WILL PASS YOU BY, BUT YOU'RE A PRICE WORTH PAYING. THAT'S OUR GOD. Are you thankful for him?

He did this because you were made in his image and his likeness. I'm going to spend a minute here. There's some things down in you that he desires to dig out and shape and mold into the very thing he intended you to be in the beginning. That treasure is dug out and exposed for all to see. When he purchased you, he purchased your sins and your failures and your flaws and your faults and your anger and your greed and your pride and your coveting, your bitterness, your unforgiveness, your scars, your pain, your memory. He purchased it all. He didn't say that you had to get good to come to him. That you have to qualify yourself. You're qualified if you're breathing. IF YOU WERE BORN, YOU'RE QUALIFIED FOR HIS LOVE. HIS REDEMPTION PRICE WAS PAID for you. YOU DON'T HAVE TO FEEL LIKE YOU'RE WORTHY OF IT. YOU ARE WORTHY OF IT ACCORDING TO HIM. NOT BY ME OR WHAT ANYBODY ELSE SAYS, BUT BY HIS own admission. You are his child and he loves you. He paid for you completely just as you were. no clauses and no improvements. Jesus knows the treasure that's hidden in you. He has seen it there when he breathed into you the breath of life. There are good things that have been laying dormant and laten in your soul.

And God knew it was there because he put it there from the beginning. But he doesn't want it to stay there. He redeemed you for a reason. You were created for a purpose. There are things there that he wants to pull out to use for his kingdom purpose and his kingdom glory. There are things that can never be discovered until you have been filled with his spirit. That's why it's important to be spiritfilled. As I've said last Sunday, and I'm going to piggyback off this message, you should never live for God just to get out of hell. >> That's a wrong mindset. There's so much more to living for God than just escaping hell. That's part of the plan. I'm thankful that I have the ability to spend eternity with him if I'll follow after him with my whole heart. If I receive what he did, if I'll let him fill me with his spirit. But that's when life starts beginning is when you get filled with his spirit. Why? because it begins to activate those treasures inside of you. That's why you must be born again. You must be born again. You must This isn't something you just feel. This isn't just a one-time experience, BUT THIS IS THAT SPIRIT activating those treasures THAT HE PLACED INSIDE OF YOU to realize that you were created FOR SOMETHING GREAT.

THAT YOU HAVE A KINGDOM purpose and a kingdom PLAN THAT THE KING PUT INSIDE YOU. YOU HAVE VALUE. YOU HAVE MEANING. YOU HAVE THINGS THAT GOD WANTS TO DO THROUGH YOU FOR HIS KINGDOM. CAN YOU IMAGINE A GOD WHO SAYS, "I'M WILLING TO PAY A PRICE FOR WHAT EVERYBODY ELSE SAYS IS JUNK BECAUSE I KNOW THERE'S SOMETHING GREAT INSIDE OF THEM. THE KING PUT A TREASURE in you. We've all made mistakes. We've all made failures. We've all messed up. There's not a perfect one of us in the room. None of us are. We all have long list of failures and faults. We could get out. We could try to compare notes, but it's not about trying to outbat each other. I wish we'd wake up and realize that he purchased it all. Regardless of what you think, he's seen value. He sees purpose. He has a plan. I'm so thankful he has a plan. Not just does he have a plan for salvation, but that he has a plan for my life. The great God of all who spoke everything into existence has a plan for me. Little old me and so does he for you. He has a plan for your life as well. Not to spend it any WAY YOU WANT. BUT THERE IS purpose and intent inside of you. You have the ability to do things for the kingdom that I could never do.

>> Do you know that you do? He put them in there when he was forming you and making you things that belong just to you. You uniquely created just like your fingerprints and your eyes and your voice. They're to 100% you. Nobody else has those things. There's a purpose for the kingdom in you that nobody else has. >> It's yours. That's why he bought the field. That's why he pushed all the chips in and says, "No, I'm willing to take it. I don't care what they think ABOUT IT. I KNOW WHAT'S IN THE FIELD." AND FOR THE JOY, FOR THE JOY, FOR THE JOY, HE WENT ALL IN ON YOU. It should be no surprise that there are angelic cleaning crews working on you, hauling off trash and planting beautiful things in your life, fresh sod and hardwood trees and beautiful gardens because that's what God does. How does it happen? Because there is enough treasure in your field, in your life to pay for every ounce of transformation that needs to happen inside of you. There are hidden treasures in your spirit. There are hidden treasures down inside you that God has seen that nobody else sees. Your family stumbles through your field and says it's worthless. Your co-workers have never stumbled across it. People have told you your whole life you're stupid and worthless and not good for anything.

You're never going to mount anything. You're just a loser. You're just a wannabe. You're just like your dad. You're just like your mom. you're a smith. And the Smiths are always like this. Nothing against Scott Christie. You're a Johnson. The Johnson's are always so and so and so and so. There's always labels that everything's done to get pushed on. Label this, label that. You got to be careful because you'll find yourself identifying with those labels that tries to push on you. You're a failure. You're a misfit. You're an addict. You're all these things. You're an emotional wreck. Look at you. Look at you. The world wants to push you down. But there's a God who walked by your field one day and said, "You know what? There's a treasure here. >> There's something special here. There's something that's worth digging out of the ground. There's something worth selling it all. There's something worth purchasing and buying. It doesn't matter what anybody else said. People tell you all that for years that you're worthless and you're nothing. But I'm here to tell you there's a God that doesn't view you that way. You tell them the master bought me. He stopped by my field and he's seen treasure that was buried there and he's bringing it out. He's redeemed me and purchased me and changed me and filled me.

Hebrews 12:2 says, "For the joy that was set before him." Look at that verse. They're going to put it up there. Hebrews 12:2. Look at that. For the joy. Nobody looks at a cross and says, "You know what? This is going to be joyful." you can't read about the crucifixion and come away with the word joy. That's not what you see. But he did. who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross. Despised the shame. He put it. Why? Because there was treasure in the field. He knew what he was getting. Everybody else dismissed it as nothing. It's a lost cause. Why would you want that old rundown field? Why would you want that piece of property? That property is good for nothing. It's okay. I'll buy it anyway. He wasn't willing to listen to what the crowd was saying and what the world was telling him. He was saying, "You know what? I'm pushing all in. I'm going all in. I'm going to give my best." He gave his best for you and I, not knowing whether or not you and I would even receive it or even acknowledge him. He was still willing to go in. Why? Because he knew there's treasure in you. There's treasure inside of you. There's something worth cultivating and bringing out. Now, here's what I want to say to you.

And I and I mean this in the Holy Ghost. I say it with what I hope's the right spirit. You need to stop complaining about your field. Well, if I didn't have this tendency and if I didn't inherit, you know, this from my mom or this from my dad and if I didn't have these overgrown patch over here, and if I didn't have this junk that was over here in the side, if I stop complaining about your field, cuz the master says it's worth buying. You need to start living like you're a child of the king. >> Stop living up to your expectations. >> Stop living up to what the world says you are. >> Stop fulfilling all those prophecies that everybody else says about you. Instead, get in the book and find out what he thinks about you. You're going to find out here you're a pearl of great price. >> You're a treasure hidden in a field. That you are his child. Regardless of what other label anybody else tries to put on you, the truth is you belong to him. He paid a high price for you. You have already been purchased. You are not your own. You've been BOUGHT BY THE PRECIOUS BLOOD OF JESUS CHRIST. THAT'S WHO YOU ARE. IF YOU WANT TO LIVE UP TO SOME STANDARD, LIVE UP TO THE STANDARD THAT GOD SEES IN YOU.

YOU are his. YOU HAVE GREAT VALUE INSIDE OF YOUR LIFE. QUIT COMPLAINING ABOUT YOUR FIELD. >> There's buried stuff in there. Your family doesn't know. The devil doesn't know. If you could just see what Jesus sees in your field. If you could just get the revelation that he died for you because you're worth it. He died for you because you're worth it. Look at your neighbor right now with intent and purpose and say, "You're worth it. You're worth it." Look, some of you have a hard time with that. Look, some of you have I rebuke shame in Jesus name from this room. >> Shame be gone. You have no place in this room. >> You need to feel the weight of the value you have in our God's eyes. You are precious in his sight. Do you understand that word? >> That when he looks at you, he doesn't see the failures. He doesn't see the mistakes. He doesn't see the labels. He doesn't see the brokenness. He doesn't see the bad thing. He doesn't see what he sees is value. >> VALUABLE ENOUGH THAT HE DIED for you. That he was willing to endure a cross for you and he considered it joyful. That he was getting A GOOD DEAL. That he thinks you're a good deal. >> It's beyond what I can get my mind around.

If I could get you to stop walking around your fence line of your field and stop evaluating all that's wrong, stop measuring your life by the mistakes of days gone by the trash and the rubbish laying on the ground. If I could get you over in the Holy Ghost where God can show you the gifts and the callings and the power of his spirit and what he can do through a redeemed soul, how he can change the world around you through you, through you. It doesn't have to be some bigname preacher or somebody that has a pedigree OR A CERTAIN LAST NAME. NO, NO, NO. YOU HAVE THE NAME APPLIED TO YOUR LIFE, KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS. THERE IS NO HIGHER NAME THAT CAN BE APPLIED TO YOU. START LIVING THE LIFE GOD WANTS YOU to live. I wish you could feel my heart and my passion today. I'm so tired of people living less than who they really are. Stop living that way. He gave his best. What if you try giving your best? See, here's what I know. The devil fights you so hard because he's seen a small glimpse of what might happen if you were to realize your full potential. If you were to understand your full value and worth to know the impact of the kingdom that you can make.

That's why he fights you. He doesn't want you to embrace this. He doesn't want you to realize that he can't stop you. Did you hear me? He cannot stop you from being all God wants you to be if you will surrender over and embrace the treasure that's in you. The enemy can't. He's scared to death. He's afraid of you. So, he's going to remind you of everything that you've done wrong. I've said this story before. It's kind of humorous, but I feel like it drives home. I was about 12 years old in junior high. Hard years, right? Those are the ugly duckling years of life. You know, sixth, seventh, and eighth grade. Everybody in sixth, seventh, and eighth grade is you're just in a weird phase. Things are changing. Hormones are raging. Some people have deep voices and are tall. Some people have some squeaky voices and they're small. Things are being activated in your body. Like all of a sudden you start having weird smells. Hair starts growing everywhere. Things are going on. It's just a weird ugly duckling. You are molting feathers. It's just you're turning from this to that. It's just weird. So you look for every advantage you can get because you just realize that it's just a struggle in that phase of life. Anybody remember junior high?

Yeah, it was tough, right? It was tough. And man, they are hard. You guys are hard. Those of you in junior high, you guys are hard. Y'all can be some of the meanest human beings ever. Y'all need Jesus. Mom, my dad, my mom has always been frugal McDougall. Now, when I was young, we didn't have a lot. I didn't know any better. It's just how I grew up. but junior high, my dad's businesses started taking off. We started getting a little bit better money and had be able to afford. I say we weren't rich. We had better things. But my mom still like to drive these old cars. And my dad bought my mom this Chevy Impala powder blue. And the mirror was broke off of the passenger door. There just a wire hanging out of it. It was a huge car. Massive. Like we can move your house in the trunk of this car. huge car and I it had white wall tires and hubcaps like it just like in junior high you were so image conscious that it's insane we're just so stupid frontal lobe isn't even close to being developed right and so many things that we think are important and like I remember being so embarrassed riding that car I mean just like sink down low like mom just let me out a block away I walk I'm good I would rather be someone who has known that their parents didn't even have a like I got to walk.

We're on hard times. But then my dad bought my mom a Cadillac. It was buttercream yellow. Not the color of cool, but you know what? It was a Cadillac and it was a big upgrade from the Impala. It had gold keys. You remember when cars still had to have keys? Like two keys. There was a door key and an ignition key. Like there was no thing to unlock the door. You had to use a key to do it. And some of y'all are like, "What in what world is that?" It was right after the wagon. It's like a wagon. And then we got that Wes. My head was so big because I was rolling up in a Cadillac. It didn't mean anything. Nothing about me had changed. But man, I felt like I was big stuff. You know what's way better than that is being the child of a king. >> You are the child of a king. Why don't you start acting like it? >> Why would you act less than? Why would you act less than what you really are? Do you understand the value that you have that our God has given you? Why would you let the enemy paint you in any other light? Everything changes when you realize you're not measured by the value that the world says you are, but by the deposit of heavenly riches that he placed inside of you.

Do you have treasure in you? I'm preaching today to tell you that Jesus Christ has placed hidden treasures in your field of your life. And it's time for you to realize the value of the gifts and the callings that God has placed upon your life. I want to set you free from all this negative way of thinking. Well, Pastor Kevin, if you only knew, you know, I'm sure you got a sad story. I'm sure you could get up here and get the microphone and tell us about all the dumb things you did. But here's the reality. I want you to just do this. Can you just do this without hurting your neck? Some of us are north of 50. Now, I want you to just do this. All right. Well, can you just like look this way, everybody? Just just look. Just look to your left. Now, now look around. Now, look to your right as far as you can. Now, did y'all see people all around you? Hey, every one of us has made a mistake. Every one of us have has made a failure. Is there anybody in here that's never made a mistake? Raise your hand. >> Never. Never. Never made a mistake. Yeah. Yeah. I know. Cuz you guys got to repent, y'all. Right down here. Cuz you just made a mistake by raising your hand.

Welcome to the club. No, we all have. We've all have failed miserably, bad. Every one of us have. But we don't have to be stuck in that because I'm not qualified by my mistakes. I'm qualified by the treasure inside of me. God wants to turn you loose and liberate you so that you leave here today knowing the kind of power that can flow through you. Ephesians 3:20 says, "Now unto him who's able to do exceedingly abundantly above all we ask or think according to the power that workketh in us." 1 John 4:4. Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them because greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world. You have all you need with him. I have a burden today. If it's true that I saw treasure in my field, then there must be treasure in fields I walk past every day. Listen to me. we celebrate the fact that Jesus doesn't give up on us and he doesn't. I'm so thankful that he relentlessly pursues us. There's no way that you read this and come away with any other conclusion that he loves you. This is the greatest love story ever written from Genesis 1 all the way to Revelations 21. It's the love story of a God who is passionately pursuing us.

But here's the deal. Listen to me. Listen to my heart. And I'm getting ready. I've only got like maybe five minutes. I'm going to close this down because God wants to do something today. We celebrate that Jesus didn't give up on us, but sometimes we give up on people far too quickly. >> We drive by fields every day. We work beside them. We sit across from them. We live next door to them. And because all we see is weeds and habits and attitudes and brokenness and we assume that there's nothing buried there worth investing. But the same God who looked past your trash looks past their trash, too. The same Jesus who stopped at your field is stopping at their fields. The problem is that God hasn't placed treasure in them. The problem is we've stopped looking. Treasure is there. We're just discounting what God has already purchased. Some people that you've written off are actually fields hiding future pastors and prayer warriors and missionaries and worshippers and soul winners. We dismiss them. So, in our part about living audaciously and being audaciously the church that I called you to be last week, as I'm talking to us about understanding how valuable you are for the kingdom of God, I want you to know this truth. You've never laid eyes on anybody in your entire life.

Everybody that you've seen, everybody that you've come in contact with is someone that God loves just as much as he loves you. and he has placed treasure in them. And I want to know if there are any treasure hunters in the room today. Anybody willing to go out and say, "God, will you put somebody in my path today that I can see the value?" Maybe the world's dismissed them and said they're nothing, but God, I know that you put treasure in their field. God, will you let me? Will you let me? Could it be Can I just stretch your mind for just a minute? Could the treasure that he buried in you be the very thing he wants to use to bring treasure out in somebody else's life? >> See, that's what happens when you got to get outside your comfort zone of I'm just trying to escape hell. There's so much more to living to God than just escaping hell. >> When you really activate the treasure that's there, when you really come and embrace what God has gifted you with. Yes, that treasure is a gift. You're not going to get caught up in your failures and your hang-ups. We all made mistakes. But the value that he placed inside of you, more often than not, he will use to reach another field.

To reach another field that I have purpose beyond just my own personal salvation. Thank God for that. He loved me enough that he purchased my field long ago. But it wasn't just for me only. But the vast majority of the time, the very treasure that was placed inside of you, he wants to dig out. And that treasure will lead to other treasures being discovered in the next field down the road and the one across the street and the one across your assembly line and the one sitting across the aisle from you at school. But you don't get it if you don't realize that's what it's for. The treasure isn't meant for you to polish up and set on a shelf and say, "Look at my salvation. Look, look what God did for me. Yeah, thank him for it. But I promise you, there's so much more intent and purpose behind that than just self consumption. God is not just calling us to recognize his treasure. He's calling us to invest what he placed. See, what I love about him. Are you guys okay? I'm about to wrap up. I told you I only need five more minutes. So, give me five more minutes from right now. It's my birthday. Give me a break. >> See, he helps you find it. He also helps you cultivate it.

He'll also help you put it to work. You don't have to go by yourself. You don't have to do it alone. He'll lock arm in- arm with you. And one of the beautiful things I love about the word of God is it shows us that I'm not just his child. I'm not just highly valued, but he calls me to be an ambassador. That I get to be an official representative of the kingdom. But some of you are not living up to what he's called you to be. And I'm here to tell you, not to scold you, not to shame you. I hope you haven't misunderstood my passion up here today. that I'm upset or mad at you. I'm not. I'm here to encourage you. There's so much more waiting for you. That when we do get to heaven one day, and oh, what a day that's going to be. And Lord, you can come quickly. I love you guys. And I want you to get married on Friday, but he can come today. But when we get there, you know what I love about reading about heaven? It's not so much about the streets of gold and gates of pearl and the walls of jasper. That's kind of cool. But let's be honest, after a while that's gonna it becomes commonplace, right? I mean, when's the last time you walked outside and looked at the asphalt and said, "This is amazing.

It's just common place, right? You're thankful that it's there. If you don't believe me, just go down to Georgia and drive on those roads and you'll thank God for T Dot." But it says I get to take with me everybody else that I help bring to God. >> To understand the true value of the treasure is to understand it's not about gold. It's not about bank accounts. It's not about degrees. Those things are fine. I mean, have a degree. have some gold. Have some, you know, I'm happy for you. But look, you're not going to carry that to heaven with you. But what you can carry to heaven with you is every soul that you brought in contact with him. Why? Because that's what true heaven treasure is. That's what the treasure is. So when are we going to get to the point that we understand what's really valuable and what's not to where we can understand center point? Let me speak to the church. if I'm your pastor, let me speak to you to understand the real value is in every person who comes through that door. >> You know what? I should be having to apologize to our guests to say, "I'm sorry they bombarded you, but you're very valuable to this church. >> That's good. >> I'm sorry." I love it if I'm up there apologizing saying, "I'm sorry they've overrun you because we're so excited because treasure just walked in the door." >> Yeah.

I'm going to tell you right now, if you knew somebody was marching gold bars in out here, y'all be lined up to see it, wouldn't you? You would. Don't you lie in the house of God. You'd want to touch it. You'd want to hold it. Something more valuable than gold walks through those doors every service. Why are we not more intentional about seeking the treasure? I want to know if anybody's willing to be a treasure hunter in 2026. Willing to be audaciously the church to recognize that God has this something important to do. It's time center point to stop walking past fields and start asking God, "Show me what you see in them." What if that was our intent that every time I seen somebody, I asked God, "God, don't let me see with my own eyes." Because we're really quick to make judgment calls, right? >> Yeah. We're really quick to make a determination. What if we said, "God, with every person that I see, help me see the treasure that you put in them." >> What would it be like? And no, no, again, can I five minutes from now? What if every time we walked up to somebody, we said to them because the Lord spoke to us? You know what I see? I see a church planter in you. You know what God just told me?

He's calling you as a missionary. That you are going to be the person who's the reason why your family says living for God. It's you. >> they wrote you off and they discounted you and they said you were worthless, but you're going to be the one who makes it. You're going to make a generational change. >> Regardless of what your family name brings it, God's gonna do something to what if we started doing that. What if we started realizing that you have value that is there? Don't listen to what the naysayers say. God purchased you. >> What if we were that kind of church? How would that make a difference for eternity? All because we're willing to say, "God, help me see in them what you put in them." I feel the Holy Ghost strong right now. We really need to re-evaluate what we're doing for the kingdom of God. I'm really am ending, okay? I really am. I'm not comfortable anymore just coming into his presence and being content because I can feel him. But I've been praying some pretty bold prayers for the last several months. God, wreck me. God, wreck me. Help me not be comfortable and complacent when I know there's so many people who still don't know that they have great value in your eyes. I'm trying to wake us up center point in this new year to say, can we audaciously be the church?

>> Can we refocus on what the true priority is? It's not on stuff or degrees or accolades. Those things are fine and well, and they will come, but that can't be the focus. The focus should always be the treasure that's in the field. And for the joy, for the joy of what was there, he sold IT ALL. OH, CAN we go all in? Center point. What could we do for our community if we truly came in every day asking God, "Send somebody my way. Send one person my way that I can see what you put in them that I would be bold enough to say, do you know God? Can I tell you what he's done for me? Can I tell you how he changed my life?" and just see in 2026 what God would do not to grow the numbers of this church but to change lives for eternity. Will you stand with me? The treasure of your soul was worth the price. He purchased you all. all the junk, all the trash, all the labels, all the mistakes, all the failures. He endured the cross because he knew you were worth the price he paid. I'm wonder close your eyes if you're comfortable. We're going to enter into a time of prayer. I wonder if you would embrace the treasure that's in you.

Got two parts to this. Just please, if you don't mind, keep your eyes closed if you're okay with it. Listen to me. For some of you have undervalued yourself because of your failures and your mistakes and what has happened and what has been done to you. I want you to know you are valuable to God. I wonder today if in this moment you would just be bold enough to step out and come down to this altar and let us pray with you so that you could fully embrace the treasure that God planted in you. It's okay right now. If you feel it, move. Don't wait on anybody else. Just be bold. Faith enough to say, "God, I know you put good things in me and I'm tired of living less than what I'm really supposed to be." That's the first. But the second, this one's really convicting to me. I wonder if there's anybody that needs to say, "God, I am sorry that I've been focused on all the wrong things. God, help me see. Help me see all of the hidden treasure around me, in my life, in my co-workers, in my family, in the students that I'll go to school with, in my neighbor across the street. Is there anybody that needs to say, "God, please open my eyes up.

I don't want to be content anymore by just feeling your presence, God. I'm ready to do kingdom work, hidden treasure. It's prayer time, church. It's prayer time. I invite you to come. I need some ministering women and men to come down. Help us pray with those that have come.