Have you heard how tribesmen in Africa catch monkeys?
They put peanuts in a narrow-necked jar, then bury the jar up to its mouth. As a monkey smells the peanuts, he’ll wander over, put his hand in the jar, and grab hold of a peanut.
As long as the monkey hangs on, he’s stuck. The narrow opening of the jar keeps his clenched fist inside. If he’d open his hand and let go, he’d be free!
There’s a connection here to Matthew 5:3, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
So many are searching for the Kingdom of Heaven—particularly its blessings. But the way to find it defies conventional wisdom.
Unlike the monkey who loses himself by clinging to a peanut, the one who finds his place in God’s Kingdom does so by letting go of all other things and clinging to the Lord Jesus.
As Christ proclaimed, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it” (Matthew 16:24–25).
“Seek and ye shall find” is the way to the Kingdom of Heaven—just be sure you’re searching for more than peanuts!