Have You Exchanged Your Glory?
More than likely, if you are a follower of Christ, you know the story that Jesus told of the man who discovered a treasure in a field. The man hid it again in the field. Then he sold everything he had and bought the field so he could have the treasure.
The kingdom of heaven is valuable, isn’t it? Based on what Jesus is saying, it is supremely valuable. So valuable that you will give everything else up to have it. Nothing else compares to it.
The question we have to ask ourselves is this: Is Christ our supreme treasure?
That is the heart of much of what Jesus talks about in the Gospels.
A man wants to follow him. He tells the man to sell everything and follow him.
The bottom line is Christ is so valuable that nothing else compares to Him.
Israel faced a similar decision. Moses was up on the mountain getting the Law. He was up there for forty days. The Israelites got antsy. They hadn’t heard from God or Moses in a while. So, what did they do? They told Aaron to make them a golden calf. They began to worship it. They declared that it was the god who had led them out of Egypt.
Here is how Psalm 106 describes the scene: Thus they exchanged their glory for the image of an ox that eats grass.
Do you see what they did? They did the exact opposite of the story Jesus told and what He demanded of the rich young man.
Jesus says give everything up for me.
Israel gave up their glory, GOD, for something else.
How about you and me?
Do we give up everything for Christ? Or do we give up Christ for everything else?
I would like to be really super spiritual and say, “I give up everything for Christ” but that would be a bold-faced lie. Least at times. There have been times I have given up for him, but for the most part, I have given Him up for other things. Sad, I know. But truthful. Praying for His grace to change that.
Bill, I think we would all like to be super spiritual, but we have to be honest….we’re an awfully like Israel.