My Musings – Whether it is how we spend our time, invest our treasure or use our talent, we consider very carefully whether or not it is worth it. Are there other “things” that would be a better way to spend our time, provide a greater return on our investment or be a more productive use of our talent? Time, we can never get back. Treasures can be subject to loss instead of gain. Talent can go unappreciated.
Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:24–26, NIV 1984).
To follow Christ, we must deny ourselves. Taking up our “cross” is a powerful image of just how much the “cost” can be. And afterall, there just might be other ways we’d rather spend “our” time, invest “our” treasure and use “our” talent that we think might profit us more. But this profit is temporal. Do we really want to forfeit our soul for temporal gain?
My Advice – We should have Paul’s perspective. Whatever we consider profit, if it is not for the Kingdom, is actually loss (Paul goes on to call it rubbish). And whatever we do for the Kingdom can never be lost. It will last forever. Exchanging the temporal, even if it is “all things” or even the “whole world” for the eternal sounds pretty profitable to me.
Today’s musing was inspired by Pastor Kevin Rutledge’s sermon on November 3, 2019. Check it out at https://www.fbcsycamore.com/sermons. If you live in or are visiting the area, come and join us Sundays at 10:30 a.m. We’d love to be partners in the Gospel with you.
The Brew Is A Musing 
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