“The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes as sells all that he has and buys that field.”
Matthew 13:44
Will the investments you make in this life lead to shame? In the mid to late 90s, what many have regarded as the world’s first internet sensation took consumers by storm. They were called Beanie Babies. Prized for more than their mere collectible value, these stuffed animals actually comprised parts of some peoples’ investment portfolios. While I am not sure what the market is for these lovable dolls today, I think it’s safe to say that mortgaging your home to go all-in on a Beanie Baby investment wouldn’t turn out well. This is the kind of investment that would likely lead to shame and humiliation.
None of us wants the things on which we stake our lives to end up shaming us in the end. Most of us want to be vindicated as wise managers of our lives and resources. Paul faced shame in this life for the investments he made. Subjected to the deep shame Roman culture held for prisoners, Paul remarked in his letter to the Philippians,
“Yes, and I will rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not at all be ashamed, but that with full courage now as always with Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death.” – Philippians 1:18b-20.
Paul understood that enduring the shame this world associates with Christ is worth it if you are headed for an eternity free from shame. He knew his life investment into Christ was not the kind that would lead to disappointment. For him, “to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Phil. 1:21).
It’s this kind of changed scorecard that comes with new life in Christ that enables us to make investments into things that are eternally valuable but popularly scorned. I would imagine that the man in the Parable of the Hidden Treasure, above, would have been ridiculed for selling all his possessions to buy a common field. I can hear their voices now:
“What’s the ROI on that tract, pal?”
“That plot is worth the roof over your family’s head?”
"You just sold your oxen and plow; you can't even profit off that field!"
Yet the man bought the field because his eyes were opened to the immeasurable worth of what was hidden inside the field. In the end, his investment made sense. And so it goes with Christ. We may experience financial disadvantage, public scorn, or private ridicule for investing in the Gospel. But for those who have been made to see Jesus’ surpassing worth, we know that we also will “not at all be ashamed.”