Looking for diamonds - Bishop Jose R. Hernandez

Looking for diamonds

I was reading a magazine the other day and discovered an article that I found quite interesting. The article was about a state park here in the U.S. called “Crater of Diamonds State Park". It turns out that this place was a diamond mine some time ago. But over time the amount of precious stones excavated became so small that it was no longer good business to keep the mine open. The mine then became a state park and was opened to the public. Now, for an admission price, you can dig for diamonds in what was once the mine and you get to keep whatever you find. I did a little research about this and found that this park is visited by people from all over the country and abroad. The park is visited by many people, who go in search of precious stones, and there are some who find diamonds, but most return home having found only common stones. Why am I telling you all of this?

The reason I have told you about this magazine article is because on a daily basis all of us make decisions, or take determination that will influence our life for either good or bad. Unfortunately, there are many who rarely make or take the most important decision or determination that as believers we should take. What decision or determination am I speaking about? The most important decision or determination that a believer must make is to know God better. Now the question is: how can we know God better? We can know God better by studying and meditating on His Word daily, but this is not something that happens in the life of many. The reality of all is that most of God’s people open their Bible only when they come to church; this on average is once or twice a week. One reason why this happens is because many say and think that God’s Word is too difficult to understand, in other words they think that God’s Word is full of common stones, common stones being all of those things that at times we fail to understand. But the truth of it all is that God’s Word is not full of common stones as many think; God’s Word is full of diamonds. God’s Word is full of treasures that sustain, inspire, and help us persevere; it demonstrates God’s love and reveals His will for us. Now the question that remains is: how can we mine diamonds from God’s Word? This will be our topic for today; today we will examine three steps that we should take if we really want to mine diamonds from God’s Word. Let’s now turn to the scriptures that will reveal the steps to follow.

Proverbs 2:1-5 – My son, if you receive my words, And treasure my commands within you, ²So that you incline your ear to wisdom, And apply your heart to understanding; ³Yes, if you cry out for discernment, And lift up your voice for understanding, ⁴If you seek her as silver, And search for her as for hidden treasures; ⁵Then you will understand the fear of the LORD, And find the knowledge of God.

To achieve a better understanding of the message that God has for us today, we will need to know some brief details about the book of Proverbs and its author. I say this because although all of us have a general knowledge of this book and its author, very few have good knowledge or a good understanding of the great significance of this book in the Bible. However, its purpose and meaning is something that is clearly stated in Proverbs 1:2-4 when we read: “…To know wisdom and instruction, To perceive the words of understanding, ³To receive the instruction of wisdom, Justice, judgment, and equity; ⁴To give prudence to the simple, To the young man knowledge and discretion…” As we can see, this is an important book because it is full of powerful messages of wisdom. This book contains powerful tips of how we should act on certain occasions, and how we should behave when we truly seek to please God.

The book of Proverbs is a book of wisdom because most of the book was written by Solomon. And as we all know, Solomon was the wisest man who ever lived. Note at how this is something that is well illustrated in 1 Kings 4:29 when we read: “…And God gave Solomon wisdom and exceedingly great understanding, and largeness of heart like the sand on the seashore…” With this here we see that Solomon was the wisest man that ever lived, and he left us a legacy of wisdom written in three volumes which are: Proverbs, Ecclesiastes and Song of Songs. But have you ever asked yourself: what is a proverb? Proverbs are a series of short statements, concise, which involve a moral truth. So we can confidently say that the book of Proverbs is a collection of wise statements. In other words, Proverbs is a collection of concise statements that are commonly received, and that in most cases contain doctrine or morals. Keeping these brief details in mind, let’s now continue with our study for today and discover the steps that we must follow if we want to mine diamonds from God’s Word.

The first step is found here when we read: “…My son, if you receive my words, And treasure my commands within you…” I would say that out of the three steps that we will be exploring today, this is the most important of all. I say this because although everyone here hears the messages that the Word of God reveals, very few are willing to accept them; that is to say, we do not receive or take possession of God’s Word. This is something that happens quite frequently because a good percentage of believers think that their relationship with God is just fine. Most of us are convinced that the paths that we have taken, or are about to take please God, and thus we do things without consulting with Him or paying attention to the warnings that His Word reveals. In other words, we make our decisions or determinations based on our own wisdom and opinion. And that's exactly why in Proverbs 21:2 we find a good warning that calls us to reflect when we read: “…Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, But the LORD weighs the hearts…” What am I trying to say with all of this?

What I am saying with all of this is that the first step that we must take to find diamonds in God’s Word is to take possession of it. In other words, make the Word of God ours. How can we accomplish this? The reality is that there is only one way to accomplish this; the only way to make God’s Word our own is to persevere in holiness. That's why we can never forget what we find in Hebrews 12:14 when we read: “…Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord…” If we do not persevere in holiness, we will never receive anything from God. Why? Because as I have said on numerous occasions, God is holy and He does not dwell or participate in sin. So tell the person sitting next to you: treasure God’s Word. If we want to find diamonds in God’s Word, then we have to treasure what God reveals to us, and pay attention to what we hear; this leads us to the second step.

The second step to follow so that we can always find diamonds in God’s Word is found here when we read: “…So that you incline your ear to wisdom, And apply your heart to understanding...” As all of us can clearly see, we have been called to be attentive to wisdom. In other words we need to heed what we hear; we cannot be just hearers of the Word, we must be doers of it. When we fail to do this, we will quickly find ourselves far from His truth. If we do not listen to and heed God's Word, then we will be as the Lord describes in Isaiah 29:13 when we read: “…Inasmuch as these people draw near with their mouths And honor Me with their lips, But have removed their hearts far from Me, And their fear toward Me is taught by the commandment of men…” What am I trying to say with all of this?

What I am saying with all of this is that in order to always extract diamonds from God’s Word, which is His wisdom, what we have to do is to allow His Word to mold our heart and our thoughts according to His will, and not according to ours. How can we accomplish this? This is something that can only be achieved by seeking God's wisdom. What is God’s wisdom? God's wisdom is a deeper understanding of His Word and His will for us. How can we obtain God’s wisdom? There is only one way to get God’s wisdom, and I can tell you that this is not something that is only available to a select few; but rather, it is available for everyone. The way that anyone can obtain God’s wisdom is by meditating in His Word, and by praying. As I said last week a person who does not pray can’t be called a believer. Tell the person sitting next to you: pay attention. God wants to pour wisdom in your life, but for this to happen you have to seek it and more importantly, you have to live it; this leads us to the third step.

The second step to follow so that we can always find diamonds in God’s Word is found here when we read: “…Yes, if you cry out for discernment, And lift up your voice for understanding, ⁴If you seek her as silver, And search for her as for hidden treasures…” As all of us can see, here God’s Word calls us to cry out and ask for discernment. In other words, it calls us to seek the answer to our concerns or questions through prayer. I'm sure that if I said that there was a great treasure buried in the backyard of this church, and that whoever dug it up could keep it, all of us would go outside ready to dig. Everyone here would go outside and work quite hard in an attempt to find the treasure for themselves; all of us would work quite hard because we know that a great treasure would supply all our material needs. A great treasure would solve all our problems, as well as the problems of those that we love. Isn’t so? But the reality of it all is that the most important need that we have is not material; our most important need is spiritual. And the only way that we can supply our spiritual need is through prayer. What am I trying to say with all of this?

What I am saying is that as human beings, we are weak. This weakness is what leads many to not pray; this weakness is what leads many to stop attending church; this weakness is what leads many to not praise and worship; this weakness is what leads many to not to act and behave in the manner that God demands and expects of us. This weakness is what causes many to dig up just common stones instead of diamonds from God’s Word. Our weakness is what prevents us from finding the treasure that exists in the Word of God. And that's why in Matthew 26:41 the Lord tells us: “…Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” These were the words that our Lord spoke to the disciples before being handed over to die on the cross, but they are words that speak to us with the same metal that it spoke to them at that time. The Lord asked them to stay awake, and to pray so that they would not give in to the temptation that would soon reach them, because He knew that by their own strength they would never be able to resist it. The same holds true for us today; the truth of the matter is that temptation will reach us all, and that we will never be able to resist by our own strength. And that's exactly why we have to cry out, in other words, pray for our Father strengthen us. Tell the person sitting next to you: cry out to God.

In conclusion; today we have explored three steps that will help us mine the treasures that exist in the Word of God. What will be the final result when we take these three steps? The final result is as we find here when we read: “…Then you will understand the fear of the LORD, And find the knowledge of God…” In order to achieve a better understanding of God's purpose in our life, we must first take possession of the Word and make it ours. This is something that can only happen when we persevere in holiness. To find God’s wisdom, what we must do is to allow His Word to mold our heart and thoughts, all according to His will and not ours. In order to always dig up diamonds from God’s Word, we have to recognize the fact that we are imperfect beings; we are weak and it is only through His strength that we will be victorious. Now allow me now to give away some diamonds.

Have distanced yourself from God? Then listen up to what the Lord tells you: “…Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the LORD, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon…” (Isaiah 55:7).

Do you not understand why you are going through certain situations in your life? Then listen up to what the Lord tells you: “…For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope…” (Jeremiah 29:11).

Do you think that you can’t understand the Word of God? Then listen up to what the Lord tells you: “…Thus says the LORD who made it, the LORD who formed it to establish it (the LORD is His name): ³‘Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know…” (Jeremiah 33:2-3).

Are you tired and exhausted of fighting? Then listen up to what the Lord tells you: “…Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest...” (Matthew 11:28).

You can’t seem to find peace in this chaotic world? Then listen up to what the Lord tells you: “…Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; ⁷and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus…” (Philippians 4:6-7).

Are you sad and heartbroken? Then listen up to what the Lord tells you: “…Blessed are those who mourn, For they shall be comforted…” (Matthew 5:4).

These are but just a few of the diamonds that exists in God’s Word. The fact is that we could continue making a quite extensive list of the diamonds that exist in His Word, but I think that with only the few that I have mentioned we can all conclude that God’s Word is the greatest treasure in the universe. It is the greatest treasure in the universe because it not only supplies our physical needs, it also strengthens us so that we can persevere and achieve victory. Now the questions that remain are: what have you found in God’s Word? Have you mined diamonds or only common stones?