Pearls and the People of God
Of all the gems, minerals, and precious metals of the world, nothing compares with the iridescent glow of Akoya pearls. With no cutting, chipping, or polishing needed to bring out their natural beauty, these perfectly shaped spheres are incredibly valuable. Thomas Edison once described cultured pearls as an apparent “biological impossibility.”
Pearls embody an important part of Japanese history and culture. Revered as the “Pearl King,” Kōkichi Mikimoto (1858–1954) almost single-handedly created the cultured pearl industry, at one point producing 75% of the world’s pearls. His pearls supplied the high-end jewelry market with necklaces and earrings, bringing great fame. His flagship store and namesake Mikimoto is in Ginza, just a short jog from where I live. Soon after his discovery, others copied his techniques, and freshwater Biwa pearls farmed in Lake Biwa became nearly synonymous with freshwater pearls worldwide.
Pearls have an important place both in Japan and the Bible. Let’s consider this beautiful creation and the rich metaphors that have been created around it.
Beauty from brokenness
The birth of pearls is truly a miraculous event, as I learned from the museum and staff at Mikimoto Pearl Island in Toba, Mie Prefecture. Pearls form from brokenness. When something—a piece of sand, shell, bacteria, or parasite—damages cells in the mantle, the oyster responds by coating it with protective layers. In cultured pearls, this irritant is surgically inserted into the weakest, most fragile area of the oyster along with a small piece of mantle from another oyster that must be sacrificed in the process. Over two years, thousands of fine layers of nacre, made of organic and inorganic elements, create a shiny translucent ball lighter and stronger than concrete.
Damaged oysters create these objects of great beauty and worth. It’s fascinating, then, that pearls—formed from brokenness and suffering—symbolize the perfection of the kingdom of heaven, for no one can enter its celestial city without first walking through its “pearly gates” (Rev. 21:21).
Pearls and the heavenly city
What if God created oysters to perpetually re-enact the gospel story? What if all pearls point to Jesus, the true oyster sacrificed that we may be changed from objects of wrath into objects of mercy (Romans 9:22–24)? Jesus was cut so that we may be washed in his blood and coated with layer after layer of God’s grace. The suffering of the Lamb created a gateway for us to enter the kingdom of heaven, which cannot be entered without accepting the message of brokenness. Through the metaphor in pearls, we can see God’s people displayed and glorified in weakness while covered in the beauty of God living eternally in heaven.
There are other pointers to the gospel surrounding the heavenly city. Consider the foundations decorated with 12 gemstones. When dug from the ground, they are nothing but plain dull rocks. Only through careful cutting, grinding, and polishing in the hands of an artist can these precious stones sparkle with gloriously rich colors. God delights in his handiwork by crafting beautiful gems out of broken pieces.
Like the 12 gates and 12 gemstones, the people of God can be considered to be represented by the number 12 in the measurements of the walls of heaven. The angel “measured the city with the rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia in length, and as wide and high as it is long. The angle measured the wall using human measurement, and it was 144 cubits thick” (Rev. 21:16–17).
We, the people of God, are represented in the gates, foundations, and walls of heaven. We are the Holy City, the bride of Christ, eternally pointing to and displaying the glory of God through the gospel of Christ. “’Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.’ And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. It shown with the glory of God” (Rev. 21:9–11).
Through the pearly gates and the city of heaven, we see a final product of the gospel powerfully at work in our lives and a small glimpse of our beauty and worth in the eyes of God.
Pearls point us to Christ
“The kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it” (Matt. 13:45–46). Dare we imagine that we could be the pearl of great price? Is it possible that Christ gave up everything he had to purchase us? Can we imagine that pain and suffering ultimately point to the building blocks of heaven itself? “With your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation” (Rev. 5:9).
The pearls of heaven were purchased by the very own blood of the Merchant. The crowning beauty of heaven can be found in the Lamb who was slain, on the glorious throne of God. Rainbow light envelops this throne, bending and breaking the white light into all the colors of the rainbow (Rev. 4:3). The iridescence of the pearls also creates a rainbow effect, and is yet one more reflection of the Lamb’s broken beauty!
The more we recognize our own brokenness and the mercy God graciously surrounds us with, the more richly we can worship Christ and engage those who are broken and suffering in this world. Pearls not only give a picture of how this world will one day be redeemed into a thing of great beauty, but how we are more cherished in the eyes of God than we could possibly hope or imagine.
The original version of this article was published in the Summer 2019 edition of Japan Harvest.
GET INVOLVED
One Day in Thailand with Ty Nash (VIDEO)
Join us as MTW missionary Ty Nash leads us through one day in Thailand and get a peek into his daily life.
SEE MORETearful Sowing, Joyful Reaping
Life on the mission field is hard. Missionaries often find themselves “sowing in tears.” But God promises a joyful reward to the steadfast.
SEE MOREJoin the Club: MTW’s EFL Ministry in Bulgaria Builds Bridges to the Local Church
What began as a way for one missionary to meet people has turned into one of the main outreach arms of MTW’s Sofia church plant.
SEE MOREPray for MTW missionaries in Thailand as they seek to plant a parish-style church in the Prawet district of Bangkok.
Pray for missionaries on the field who are suffering hardship as they sow in tears. Pray that they would find hope and remember the promise of joyful reaping.
Pray for the English Club ministry in Sofia, Bulgaria, and the Bible study that has sprung out of it. Pray that God will use this ministry to draw many to Himself.
Pray for God to call people in their retirement years to serve with MTW in some capacity, and for wisdom in their decision-making.
Pray for the 15 Ukrainian churches planted with support from MTW, as many pastors and congregations still face very-real dangers amidst the war with Russia.
Pray for the Navajo Church, that God would strengthen churches and raise up and equip new Indigenous leaders.
Pray for missionaries at each distinct stage of ministry: discerning a call, itineration, transition to the field, service on the field, home ministry assignment, and transition home at the end of service.
Pray that men and women of all ages, giftings, and talents would consider how God could use them on the mission field.
Pray for the fulfillment of the Great Commission, for Christian revival, for current MTW missionaries, and for more laborers for the harvest.
Pray that U.S. churches would understand and heed the biblical mandate for global missions.
SUBSCRIBE TO STORIES & MORE
Good news in your inbox, once per week.
1600 North Brown Rd
Lawrenceville, GA 30043
United States
1-678-823-0004
[email protected]
Donor Advised Fund Portal
Circle Portal