A Pearl of Great Value
SERMON PREACHED JULY 26, 2026, THE NINTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST MATTHEW 13:31-33, 44-52
From the Gospel: On finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.
Have you heard of Tulip Mania? My brother and I were going to collaborate on a novel about it, but then he died so that dream has gone unfulfilled. In the 1600s tulips were introduced to the Netherlands, then experiencing a Golden Age of wealth, driven by its superior merchant marine and the trade it supported.
In 1670, the Dutch merchant marine totaled 568,000 tons of shipping—about half the European total. Pillars of this position were the dominance of the Amsterdam Entrepôt in European trade, and that of the Dutch East and West India Companies in intercontinental trade. Dutch society had possibly the highest standard of living in Europe (and probably in the world) by the middle of the 17th century. Affluence brokered a Golden Age in culture typified by the artist Rembrandt van Rijn.
During this time, the tulip – yes, the flower – was introduced to Holland, from Persia and the Ottoman Empire. This breathtakingly beautiful, exotic flower, especially the two-toned variety, captivated Dutch society. People paid incomprehensibly vast amounts for tulip bulbs. At the height of this economic bubble – which took off in 1634 and collapsed in 1637 – a single tulip bulb was sold for an amount equivalent to the cost of an elegant waterside mansion. Tulip mania is held to be historically the first economic speculative bubble.
In the gospel reading this morning, one of Jesus’ metaphors for the priceless Kingdom of God is a pearl of great value. Unlike the tulip bulb, this pearl holds its value. It does not collapse. The only thing is, the Kingdom of God is not for sale, and in any case it is of incalculable value. But the desire to enter the Kingdom can be so great, that a person would be willing to abandon everything in order to pass through the gate into that divine place.
Let’s consider the Kingdom of God. According to Jesus’ metaphors, the Kingdom is of magnificent value – the pearl. It can be found in the smallest measure, yet it expands to provide shelter and feed people – the mustard seed and yeast. These small things will grow into the whole Kingdom, in Jesus’ good time when he comes again.
God does a lot with small things. Think of it. Abraham and Sarah were old. It had ceased to be with Sarah the way of women – meaning she was past menopause – and Abraham said he was so old that he was as good as dead. Yet God created for this couple a son, Isaac, whose son Jacob was to be the father of nations – the twelve tribes of Israel. God promised Abraham that his people would have land to live in, and that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Through them all nations would be blessed. This great history began with one elderly couple.
Moses was an enslaved Israelite baby boy slated to be killed according to Pharoah’s law. Yet he was rescued and brought into Pharoah’s house. As an adult, a sheep herder, God called Moses to lead the Israelites out of slavery, and during their formative time in the desert. He was blessed by God for face-to-face conversation, and to receive the commandments that sealed the Mosaic covenant. Moses led the Israelites within sight of the promised land. This mighty history began with a baby at risk.
A shepherd boy, David, was anointed King of Israel. So insignificant was he that his father didn’t even bring him forward when the prophet Samuel asked to see all his sons. But when Samuel saw young David, God let him know that this one should be the next king.
Jesus was born into the world as a helpless infant, to an ordinary young woman and her older husband. At birth, he was a visitor in a town that had no place to shelter the young family except a stable. Our St. Francis was no doubt delighted to know that Jesus’ birth home was with animals.
To build his ministry, Jesus sought out working class men – fishermen and others. The only exception to this was Matthew, a well-to-do tax collector – but Matthew as an outcast among the Jews for his role as an agent of the occupying power.
Mustard seed, yeast, two impossible births, two babies at risk, a shepherd boy, working class people, an outcast – these are the building blocks of God’s Kingdom. Each one is a pearl with great value.
And I add to this list St. Francis. A small building block of God’s Kingdom. We are ordinary in the way that the world assesses. Not very many people, carrying out God’s will. Loving as God loves, growing in faith, serving with joy. We are not a collection of doctors and lawyers or of tycoons, but of people working hard to support their families. We are a collection of people retired or still active in professions such as teaching, forest management, science, bookkeeping, animal care, business. Ordinary folks. Good folks.
Despite its size, St. Francis makes a difference in our community, through Episcopal Church Women and the Hunger Ministry. St. Francis cares for our trees and gardens and is hospitable to the wild creatures who live here. St. Francis embraces each member as a friend, keeping up with each other’s joys and sorrows, filling needs quietly with love.
St. Francis is like the other mustard seeds that God calls and builds up to fulfill the Kingdom of God. God is working here. God is here. And God treasures St. Francis as a pearl of great value, worth everything.
THANKS BE TO GOD. Amen.