“Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” For what heart treasure would you put away everything else? This decision everyone must make.
Decision and Commitment
“Everything” is all-inclusive. It goes beyond turning your back on possessions or accomplishments. You will be dedicating and sacrificing your heart. Heart treasure requires commitment and sacrifice.
Jacob, brother of Nephi, explained,
But wo unto the rich, who are rich as to the things of the world [if] their hearts are upon their treasures . . . their treasure is their god. And behold, their treasure shall perish with them also. (2 Nephi 9:30)
Is it wrong to have worldly riches? No, many of God’s chosen, righteous people are blessed with riches, with which they serve Him and His other children. The difference is where the heart is. Heart treasure is a blessing intended to serve God and bless others.
Memorable Parables
Jesus spoke of the greatest of all treasures, His kingdom, which is worth sacrificing every earthly treasure, changing every aspect of a person’s life.
Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.
Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it. (Matthew 13:44-45)
In both examples, the individual recognized the value of the treasure and sacrificed everything he had to obtain it. No hesitation is shown. The field-finder did not own the field, so he sold everything and bought it. The merchant also sold everything and paid the price for the pearl. Their hearts were on the treasure of the Kingdom of Heaven, which they knew was of greater value than anything else could be, and they sacrificed everything else—with joy.
Values and treasures took on a vital dimension when Jesus was challenged over his choice of Matthew as an Apostle and His tendency to spend time with those who the local religious “leaders” did not consider of worth. They did not recognize the value of these treasures, so He told them with a parable they could easily understand—if they wanted to.
What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?
And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing.
And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbors, saying unto them. Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost. (Luke 15:4-7)
In case they had missed—or ignored—the connection, He made it for them. “Likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.”
Apostle Dieter F. Uchtdorf suggested a meaning that could go beyond the traditional one.
Is it possible that Jesus’s purpose, first and foremost, was to teach about the work of the Good Shepherd?
Is it possible that He was testifying of God’s love for His wayward children?
Is it possible that the Savior’s message was that God is fully aware of those who are lost—and that He will find them, that He will reach out to them, and that He will rescue them?
Sheep Searchers
The Lord invites those who understand the value of each of His beloved lambs to join Him in sheep searching. Challenges and difficulties are part of mortal experience. Some sheep are obviously in dangerous territory, but many who are struggling or just a bit unsteady in some areas could use a little aid or compassion to help them see where deserts begin or forests thicken.
Bishop Gérald Caussé is such a searcher. When he was called as president of a stake in his native France, he had “some very ambitious goals” he hoped to accomplish. When he was released after six years, not one had been realized. But as he looked out over his stake members on the day he was released, he was “overwhelmed by a profound sense of gratitude and accomplishment.” Hundreds were in the congregation, and he could remember a spiritual experience connected with each one of them.
He had witnessed the baptism of some, signed the first temple recommend for others, set apart or released many from their missions, ministered to some going through “trials and adversity in their lives.” He concluded, “I felt intense brotherly love for each of them. I had found pure joy in serving them and rejoiced in their increased loyalty to and faith in the Savior.”
Another sheep searcher is Brother Alan T. Phillips, who noted how many at-risk sheep are out there and why. “Life is challenging. Many people feel overwhelmed, alone, isolated, or exhausted. When things are difficult, we may feel that we have wandered or fallen behind.”
Brother Phillips told searchers what they can do to help. “Knowing that we are all children of God and members of His eternal family will restore a sense of belonging and purpose.” He quoted President M. Russell Ballard:
There is one important identity we all share now and forever . . . That is that [we] are and have always been a son or daughter of God . . . Understanding this truth—really understanding it and embracing it—is life-changing.
When we see or suspect that someone is at risk, sharing this identity is something we can do.
We mustn’t forget the important lamb-savers in our primaries. In Russia, Sister Susan Porter watched a sister kneel with two children and “testify” that “even if they were the only ones living on earth, Jesus would have suffered and died just for them.” If only all children could have a trusted adult give them this assurance as the Spirit confirmed the words.
And we must always remember that in his final instructions to Peter, Jesus reminded him three times: “feed my lambs,” “feed my sheep” “feed my sheep.” And watch for those who might have stepped behind a bush, slid behind a slow-moving group, or failed to emerge in the morning.
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