Have you ever encountered a person or a situation that completely changed our life? Maybe one day you were walking down the street and caught the glance of a girl and it really was love at first site. You forget about the sandwich you were out to buy and head straight to the girl of your dreams. You were not anticipating this life changing moment but all of a sudden the sandwich doesn’t matter any more.  Or you can flip the scene. Maybe you went on a road trip with a some buddies to Philadelphia because a ‘certain someone’ you were interesting in getting to know better was going to. Why you are walking the streets of Philadelphia you encounter a corner dive bar that sells the best sandwich you have ever had–an authentic philly cheesesteak. All of a sudden your infatuation with this girl morphs into a love affair with this sandwich. You have made the decision: I’m moving to Philly!

Sometimes we meet someone, discover a talent, hear a song, taste a sandwich and this everyday unplanned event dramatically changes the course of our destiny. If a sandwich can change your life plan how much more ought the Good News of Christ? In Matthew 13, Jesus has been telling stories about the Kingdom of Heaven. After discussing with his disciples the meaning of his parable about the wheat and the weeds he changes pace and offers up a priority check for those following him:

“Anyone who is willing to hear should listen and understand! The Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure that a man discovered hidden in a field. In his excitement, he hid it again and sold everything he owned to get enough money to buy the field–and to get the treasure, too!”                    -Matthew 13:43b-44

This guy wasn’t expecting to stumble across a treasure. He literally tripped over it while passing by.  This treasure is so great though that this man is willing to completely reorient his life, sell his possessions, and buy this land so that he can have a real claim to this treasure. Often times we encounter the Gospel and it wakes us up from a spiritual stupor. We didn’t expect these smelling salts but once we are awake Christ calls us to a dramatic overhaul of our priorities. Question is: Has the priority of Christ (the salvation of the world) dramatically affected your life? Would you count his saving grace and work on your behalf a real treasure, a treasure worth your whole life? This is the life that Christ calls us to. When we encounter the Kingdom of God in Christ Jesus our life should have a marked difference.