Be obsessed with the right things (The hidden treasure Matthew 13:44-46)

Be obsessed with the right things (The hidden treasure Matthew 13:44-46)
We live in a world where individuals tend to become obsessed with things. People become obsessed with their favorite tv shows, their hobbies, their kid’s hobbies, athletes, music artists, political causes, politicians, their favorite coffee brand, their favorite designer and so on and so on. Our natural tendencies are to be drawn towards things that interest us and for us to focus on these things intently because they have our heart. The things that mean the most to us are the things that we give most of our time and attention to. In the parables of the hidden treasure and the fine pearl we see that these two individuals had obsessions that drove them to focus all their time and attention on certain items. They so cherished owning what their hearts desired that they were willing to give up everything else to ensure that they would obtain them. They both literally gave all their time, money and effort to obtain what they had become obsessed with.
In the two stories that Jesus spoke, He wanted everyone to know that it is only ok to be obsessed with the things of the Kingdom of God. He started the parable by saying that the kingdom of heaven was like the treasure and the pearl, meaning that it should be so important to us that we get rid of everything else to obtain it. The problem with our society is that most become obsessed with things that are not of God’s kingdom and these things end up slowing us down in our pursuit of heaven. People are willing to spend hours trying to make sure that their child can hit a curve ball or do the perfect toe touch, but they are not willing to spend hours in prayer or bible study. You better believe that they would never miss their favorite TV show or a meeting of their club, but they can always think of an excuse to miss church. Our obsessions with the things of this world have severely interfered with our relationship with God because we act like the creator of time needs to compete for our time. Our obsession needs to be with God and the things of His kingdom not for the things of this world, this is what Jesus was trying to get the crowd He was speaking to, to understand and this is what we need to embrace as disciples.