By Judy Lee Jenkins
One day I was listening to Christian radio and I heard a marvelous sermon on the significance of the pearl. It is a beautiful gem that is made naturally without the aid of man but by the lowly little oyster in the sea. The oyster is not a beautiful creature to look at on the outside but inside he creates a most beautiful and magnificent gem. And of all things he creates it out of an irritant like sand that gets into his shell. Instead of expelling the irritant he expels a substance which covers the irritant and in time makes this beautiful gem. The longer the gem stays inside the oyster, the more beautiful and valuable it becomes. It takes a while for the gem to be formed by the covering that the oyster gives it. The sad part is that the oyster has to die in order for man to obtain this gem and cut it out of the oyster.
The speaker then used this as an illustration that God gave us. They oysters demonstrates several things. When we get irritated, would we think of turning our irritations into something good and beautiful as the oyster does? Most of the time we would just complain and be frustrated but not the oyster. The best illustration however, is the one on God’s redemption for us. We are the irritants to God because of our sin, but God like the oyster does not expel us because of his wondrous love!!. Instead he covers us with his son (removes the sin) and turns us into beautiful pearls by conforming us to the image of his dear son. The longer we are molded by God, the more valuable and beautiful we become to work in HIS kingdom. However, in order for us to become pearls to HIM, Jesus had to die to remove our sin.
Unlike the diamond, the pearl is perfect in itself. The diamond becomes valuable with the aid of man in the way it is cut. The pearl however, is a complete and finished work of art made by the oyster. Nothing man can do will add to the value of the pearl. The oyster completed everything it needed to have for value and beauty without any thing added Likewise man cannot add any value to Jesus finished and complete work on the cross. The oyster did all the work for the pearl and likewise God achieved this work for us. He asked us only to receive this gift. When we do, he changes us into something beautiful like the pearl.
Jesus told the parable of THE PEARL OF GREAT PRICE. He said that the Kingdom of Heaven is like the merchant who sold everything he had to obtain this one beautiful valuable pearl. How wonderful it is that God speaks to us in pictures about eternal life. It is indeed the PEARL OF GREAT PRICE paid for by Jesus who claimed it for us when he died on the cross for us. It is up to us whether we will accept this gift Jesus gave to us (eternal life) when he claimed this pearl.(our redemption) After listening to this sermon, I will never think of the pearl in the same way again. I realize now the true meaning behind how it is formed. I was elated after hearing this sermon!! Thinking on these things I wrote the following song:
THE LOWLY LITTLE OYSTER AT THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA,
IS A PICTURE OF OUR REDEMPTION GOD SHOWS YOU AND ME.
WHEN AN IRRITANT SEEPS IN HIS SHELL LIKE SAND DOES IN OUR SHOE,
THE OYSTER DOESN’T EXPEL IT LIKE WE WOULD TRY TO DO.
INSTEAD HE EXPELS A SUBSTANCE WHICH AROUND THE IRRITANT SWIRLS,
AND WITH THE OYSTER’S COVERING THE IRRITANT BECOMES A PEARL!!
WITHOUT THE LIFE OF THE OYSTER, THE PEARL WOULD NEVER FORM,
INTO A PRECIOUS GEM, OR A LADY’S NECK TO ADORN.
THE PEARL HAS BEAUTY IN ITSELF NOT TOUCHED BY HUMAN HANDS,
GENTLY MOLDED FROM THE OYSTER WITH EVERY GRAIN OF SAND.
BUT THE OYSTER HAS TO DIE TO GIVE HIS GIFT WITHIN,
AS JESUS HAD TO DIE FOR HIS GIFT TO US, OUR REDEMPTION OF SIN.
ARE WE NOT ALL IRRITANTS TO OUR HOLY GOD ABOVE?
AND YET HE DOES NOT EXPEL US BECAUSE OF HIS MOST WONDROUS LOVE!!
INSTEAD HE COVERS US WITH JESUS TO REMOVE ALL GUILT AND SIN,
SO AT THE GATES OF PEARLS (heavenly gates) GOD SAYS, BECAUSE YOU RECEIVED MY SON, YOU MAY ENTER IN.
CHORUS
GOD TURNS IRRITANTS INTO PEARLS,
LIKE THE SIN IN YOU AND ME,
THEN CONFORMS US TO THE IMAGE OF HIS DEAR SON,
HIS GLORY ONE DAY WE WILL SEE.
JESUS TOLD THE STORY OF THE PEARL OF GREAT PRICE
THE MERCHANT SOLD ALL HE HAD FOR IT WITHOUT THINKING TWICE,
IF WE COULD POSSESS SUCH A PEARL, HOW MUCH WOULD WE GIVE,
WOULD WE BE WILLING TO PAY THE PRICE FOR IT THAT JESUS DID?
JESUS LEFT HIS THRONE ABOVE TO CLAIM THIS PEARL OF GREAT PRICE,
AND HE PAID FOR IT IN FULL WITH HIS LOVING SACRIFICE,
THOUGH THIS GIFT IS FREE TO US, IT CAME AT A GREAT COST,
IT COST JESUS EVERYTHING, HIS VERY LIFE, WHEN HE DIED ON THE CROSS
INTERLUDE
OUR GIFT OF REDEMPTION
IS THE PEARL OF GREAT PRICE,
THOUGH THIS GIFT IS FREE TO US,
JESUS PAID FOR IT WITH HIS LIFE.
CHORUS
GOD TURNS IRRITANTS INTO PEARLS,
LIKE THE SIN IN YOU AND ME,
THEN CONFORMS US TO THE IMAGE OF HIS DEAR SON,
HIS GLORY ONE DAY WE WILL SEE.
ARE WE NOT ALL IRRITANTS TO OUR HOLY GOD ABOVE?
BUT HE DOES NOT EXPEL US BECAUSE OF HIS WONDROUS LOVE,
HE COVERS US WITH JESUS TO REMOVE ALL GUILT AND SIN,SO AT THE GATES OF PEARLS GOD SAYS, BECAUSE YOU RECEIVED MY SON, YOU MAY ENTER IN!!
OUR GIFT OF REDEMPTION
IS THE PEARL OF GREAT PRICE,
THOUGH THIS GIFT IS FREE TO US,
JESUS PAID FOR IT WITH HIS LIFE!!
ENDING
HE LOVED US SO MUCH HE WAS WILLING TO PAY THE PRICE,
SO JESUS PAID WITH HIS LIFE!!
SPEAK–THANK YOU JESUS FOR YOU UNSPEAKABLE GIFT, OUR PEARL OF GREAT PRICE!! (Eternal life)
My thoughts are reiterated by this christian Jeweler:
The PEARL
As a jeweler by trade I’m always interested in the gemstones listed in the scriptures. As I was meditating on ‘Matt 13’ and the parable of the ‘pearl of great price’ I began to think of our Lord. Why did He come to claim a pearl? Why not a diamond?
‘Matt 13:45’ “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls.” ‘Matt 13:46’ “When he found one pearl of great price, went and sold all he had and bought it.”
In the parable of the merchant, we see that he sold all he had and bought the single pearl. It speaks to us of the tremendous price the Lord paid for our redemption. The God of glory, the King of Kings & Lord of Lords left the splendor of Heaven to claim a pearl, and gained the pearl through paying the price that was far more than any here could pay.
As a jeweler I would question the choice the Lord made choosing to leave the Father’s side for a pearl instead of what we would think of as having greater significance, the girl’s best friend, the much coveted diamond. You probably know that the diamond is graded in ‘value’ according to the 4 C’s: Cut, Color, Clarity & Carat-weight. The answer to my pondering was right there! The diamond receives a substantial portion of it’s value from the way a person cuts it. The work of man’s hand! The only natural gemstone that has more value when it is found than when men finish with it is the PEARL. Like the pearl, men can add nothing to the value of out salvation, through Jesus Christ.
Eph 2:8 For by grace are we saved through faith; and that not of yourselves — it is the gift of God — ‘Eph 2:9’ Not of works, lest anyone should boast.
The pearl is formed when a foreign object somehow enters the inside of the oyster, and instead of ejecting the object or irritant out, as most humans would try to do, the object is covered by the oyster with layer upon layer of a substance secreted from it’s own body. The object that came into the life of the oyster as an irritant, instead of being cast out is turned into something lovely within the oyster. “We are all an irritant (through our sin) to God, but he accepts us, in spite of our sin. He covers our sin and brings us into His Holy kingdom.
Think about other details of the pearl. The longer the pearl stays in the oyster the more valuable it becomes. Isn’t that the character of our God? When He found us we were nothing more than an irritation to Him, but by God’s grace, we can be of some value to His Kingdom! God is using our time now to conform us into a beautiful image of His dear Son. The pearl is formed in a Living Object! No dead rock is the pearl, it comes from life. The very life of the oyster is given to the pearl. What a blessed God that He gives us this chance. In Him we enjoy eternal life, and much more! Our God has communicated with us in pictures so we comprehend the richness of His Love. The Pearl to me is just one more analogy of how God can take an irritant (sin) and turn it into something beautiful — if we let Him.
The true value of the pearl is not seen from the outside. To the world around it the pearl is just another barnacle covered nasty looking shell. Oh, friends the Lord looks upon the heart. Are you doing the same, to others? Only the Lord sees us as complete in Him. If the world knew what we will look like when our Bridegroom comes for us, they would surely want to come!
To see the true beauty of the pearl the oyster must die. The oyster is ripped open with a knife in the side, before the true treasure is revealed. The analogy in the Pearl here is like Christ’s death, so that all who trust in Him will be able to see and be with Him in His beautiful Kingdom, for eternity. It’s His desire that all should accept Christ as their personal savior, so that they too shall receive their salvation, and live with Him for eternity. Thanks be to God for this wonderful gift. Have you accepted Christ as your Savior?
The PEARL also reminds me:
- God desires to fellowship with us — irritants (sin) and all.
- God has communicated with us through the scriptures, using all sorts of metaphors — the beautiful pearl is one more.
- All of God’s creation: every bird, pretty flower, panoramic mountain vista, and even oysters, were given by God to show us things concerning Himself. God’s final Word to us is His dear Son, and all that is written of Him; which we should read about regularly in our Bibles — the book of Pearls.
- God can turn irritants (sin) into pearls — if you let Him.
Addendum — John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
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