YouTube: Own Your Path
“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.” (Matthew 13:44)
One of the most important components of Jesus’ teachings was his understanding of the kingdom of God, or the kingdom of heaven. Through parables like this, it becomes clear he wasn’t describing the traditional image of heaven with pearly gates and streets of gold. In Luke, he points out that the kingdom is within. This requires a whole new way of thinking.
My quest for an understanding of this kingdom began in the “field” of mainstream Christianity. Who owns this field? A two-thousand-year-old religious institution. How do I purchase this field? I become willing to sell or let go of all preconceived ideas. If I don’t take ownership of my quest for truth, I will always be the trespasser.
The treasure I found is in the teaching of Jesus that points to the kingdom of God as an inner experience. The owners of the field say this kingdom is a coming event and that Jesus will return and usher it in. The more I take ownership of this field, however, the more I see this is not what he taught.
Each one of us is an expression of God. Our path to understanding this relationship of oneness with God is a very personal quest. No one else has worked it out for us. Yes, there are those who have written about this path and given us valuable insights. Ultimately, however, our relationship with God is ours and ours alone. Jesus said the gate that leads to this path is narrow, that few find it. The reason this is true is because few are willing to sell their indoctrinated possessions and purchase the field.
I have had the experience of standing on a beach and seeing the ocean stretch out before me. It occurred to me that this was my ocean. This is my place on the beach that allows me to have this experience. The same is true with God. I’m standing on a beach with the wholeness of God in my possession. My relationship with God is mine and mine alone. I have every right to walk this path on my own terms.
J Douglas Bottorff 