Deep down under the sea something wonderful happened. A tiny speck of sand was stuck inside the oyster’s shell. Oysters don’t do much thinking, but this one used its God-given instinct and covered that speck of sand with a layer of its own nacre so it would not hurt its tender flesh. Now that speck of sand became a tiny pearl, very, very beautiful and unseen by anyone but God.
The oyster grew and the pearl also became larger as the oyster covered it with more layers of nacre. It became a pure, glistening, white gem, a secret treasure, which no one but God had ever seen. In fact, you would never know it was there if I had not told you.
Jesus told us about that secret pearl, because He has a secret too. Wait till you hear the rest of the story.
There was a pearl diver up on top of the waves in a boat. He took a deep breath and went down under and came up again with the oyster in his hand, using the last bit of breath in his lungs. Is there a pearl inside? A really good one? he wondered. Open it and see the gem!
Not long after, a merchantman came along in search of perfect pearls. Ah, there’s one! But it was very, very costly! The buyer knew at once that he could not afford such a gem. The only way he could pay for it was to sell everything he had. Would he do that? Sell everything? This would make him very poor and leave him with nothing, not even a bed to sleep on. Did he want the pearl that badly? If he were an ordinary shopper, he would just walk away, but this merchant was a reminder to us of Je-sus. He wanted us so much that He was willing to come down from the throne of God, down to having nothing-not even a place to lay His head. Nobody could go any lower than death on a cross. Did He really want us that much? Were we that valuable to Him?
Jesus knew all about us when nobody else did, and we were beautiful in His sight. He saw us grow in size, but our sins tarnished any beauty. Some gems have to be polished, but not pearls. They are beautiful just as they are. Jesus loves all of His children, wherever they are, and He doesn’t miss one. There are more of us every day, as each one is saved and cleansed by His precious blood. We are all like one very valuable pearl in His sight, and He wanted us so much He was willing to give up everything-even His life - to purchase us. What amazing love!
Do you remember that He rose from the dead the third day, and He is now living in heaven? If your sins have been cleansed in His precious blood, you are part of that very costly pearl that He paid so much for. He promises that heaven will be your home someday too.
Think About God’s Word!
1. What did the merchantman do to buy the pearl?