Hidden Treasures

The apostle Paul wrote in Colossians chapter 2:
2 My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

If you have bought a suit from a Goodwill store in Moline, Illinois, the daughter of the man who donated it would like to talk with you.   There is $13,000 stuffed in its pockets!!

An 80-year-old man mistakenly donated a suit with the stash to charity, and discovered it about a week after he made the donation - you see, he's caring for his wife who has cancer, and that amount of money represents his life savings, and he needs it now to care for her.   Goodwill has searched the store and a warehouse, but it might have been sold.  The man's daughter is offering a $1000 reward for the person who may have bought it.

So, here you have a man who possessed a treasure and forgot he had put it in his suit coat - and probably we've all done something like that.   And, you have someone possibly who has 13 grand in a suit in his closet.    This reminds me of hidden treasures that we have been given in Christ - treasures of salvation through Him, access to God's love and peace, His wisdom, and His protection, for example.  

Some of us may, like James chapter 1 says, forget we have these treasures:
23 Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror 24 and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25 But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it--he will be blessed in what he does.

And, I would imagine there are some that possess these treasures because we have accepted Christ, but don't really walk in them.    Either way, God is calling us to look intently into His Word and draw close to Him, to seek His face, to enjoy fellowship with Him - so that we will know more of what we have in Christ and won't forget those treasures He has given to us.