The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. Matthew 13:44
“It is only when he discovers buried treasure that his perspective changes.
Suddenly his possessions look cheap and paltry. A joy is rising in him and an excitement that makes his sweat and tremble. There may have been regret about a cherished piece of furniture or a family heirloom. But it is only momentary. The choice he faces lies between his worthless bits and pieces and the field with buried treasure.
There is nothing noble about his sacrifice. There would, on the other hand, be something incredibly stupid about not making it. Anyone but a fool would do exactly as the man did. Everyone will envy him for his good fortune and commend him not on his spiritual character, but on his common sense.
What I have called “his miserable bits and pieces” are the things of this life to which we naturally cling—money, property, cars, prestige or a good job…If we were to grasp the glories he has for us we would realize how silly we are to cling to such rubbish.”
John White in The Cost of Commitment (Downers Grove: IVP Classics, 2006) 38-39.