Crossroads Research
Review
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
From
The Desk Of: Eddie
Griffin
Priceless
[Go ye therefore into the world and preach the gospel
to every creature… Be instant in season and out of season… Reprove, rebuke,
with all long-suffering and doctrine.]
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
The American Express commercial: Some things are Priceless
Consider the scripture:
Mark 8:36 For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? 37 Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? 38 Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.
What shall a man give in exchange for his soul? The soul is priceless, not cheap.
I remember a man who once told me that he would give anything to make a hit record. He would sell his soul to the devil. I thought he was joking, but my mouth spoke faster than my thoughts. Words without wisdom, I asked, “What makes you think that you have not sold out for less?”
Most people do, indeed, sell their souls for less than they think. Consider the words of an overconfident man who taught he held tomorrow in his own hand:
Luke 12:15 And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth. 16 And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: 17 And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? 18 And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. 20 But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? 21 So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.
The audacity of speaking to his own soul, as if he were God, he thinks that he has enough time left in life to build bigger barns and lay back on his lees. Not so, says the scriptures. He never got a chance to do what he wanted to do. There is a day of account, when man’s soul is weighed in the balance.
The best advice is this. Instead of American-Express, consider:
Matthew 13:44 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. 45 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: 46 Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it. 47 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind: 48 Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away. 49 So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, 50 And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. 51 Jesus saith unto them, Have ye understood all these things? They say unto him, Yea, Lord.
It is so sad that everything inside The Net is not good. There was a good young man who went away dejected because he was not good enough to pass through the eye of a needle.
Luke 18:20
Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false
witness, Honour thy father and thy mother. 21 And he said, All these have I kept from my youth up.
22 Now when Jesus
heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest
thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor,
and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come,
follow me. 23 And when he heard this, he was very sorrowful: for he was very rich. 24 And when Jesus saw that he was
very sorrowful, he said, How hardly shall they that
have riches enter into the
***
Eddie Griffin is a bible teacher at the Everman Church of Christ, Fort Worth,
Contact: 817-721-7439
Email: [email protected]