Sold Out

I want to tell you a story about two guys. These guys were from different backgrounds and were completely different people but their lives were about to change.

1st Guy.
The first guy was pretty broke. He lived with his family, his wife and four kids and was the sole income earner. He was in and out of jobs because he had no specific skills or training. He always was having grandiose ideas and get rich quick schemes, many of which he tried out and unfortunately, but not surprisingly failed and made his family poorer. But he was well meaning, he did these things for his family, but the lack of money was really worrying his wife and making things tough at home. His wife just wanted him to get a stable job and keep the money coming in to support the family. Was that too much to ask?

His wife was delighted when he got his new job. It wasn’t great pay but it would do. It kept the bills payed. He was working as a labourer for a landscaping company and his wife was so proud. He had a good honest job, something he could be proud of and keep the family fed with. He was wrapped as well. He knew that this was a stable permanent job that could support his family. He told his wife that there would be no more get rich quick schemes, he was just going to wok hard and earn an honest and decent living. She was happy to hear this news. The family was able to start paying off their credit cards and put a little more on the mortgage for their modest little house.

His job was going great. He was working a full 40 hour week, sometimes with a bit of overtime. He was getting on well with the rest of the workers and his boss loved him. He was such a hard worker and he loved his job. Everyday he would wake up with a smile on his face and go to work whistling. He would kiss his wife goodbye and come home to a happy family. They weren’t rich but they were getting on top of things and were happy. He and his wife had never been closer and they were even planning a family holiday together.

One day he came to work and they had been given a new job. They were to be working on this huge property. In was pretty much a mansion. The owner had it on the market to sell, and thought he would get the garden and surrounding land looking great to increase the price. The man loved going here every day. It overlooked the beach and for lunch every day the owner of the house but on a huge spread for them. His job had just got even better.

One day when he was digging, his shovel ran into something hard. “Just a rock” he thought. So he bent down to pick it up. But it wasn’t a rock. He dug further and it took the shape of a box. His heart pounded as thoughts ran through his head. Maybe it’s a body, maybe its money, maybe its treasure. He bent down to open it, making sure no-one was around. His heart was beating at a million miles an hour. Slowly he opened the box and inside… Gold, literal gold and jewels. He had to try to wake himself up. This couldn’t be real he thought. Treasure chests are only in movies and stories. But as he looked closer, he realised that treasure is what it was.

He quickly buried it again and clocked out early. Quickly running to the bank, he organised to sell his house and get a huge loan. He wanted to buy that property where the treasure was. There was nothing illegal with this, the country he lived in had a law to say if you find something, you can keep it, even if it’s on someone else’s property. So he sold everything he had that was worth money.

The sales of his house and car and the loan all went through really quick. It was time to face his wife. He told her the whole story. Needless to say the wife was distraught; he had promised her no more get rich quick schemes. But he knew that this time it was different. It was worth it. He sold everything he had and brought this property and got the treasure.

2nd Guy.
The second guy was quite different than the first guy. He wasn’t poor but extremely wealthy. He was a millionaire. He had his own jet, numerous houses and holiday houses, speed boats, yachts, farms, house keepers and a dozen cars. In other words anything he wanted he could have. On top of this he had no debts. He was free of paying anything back. He was also married and had one child. Both his wife and his kid were used to this lifestyle and absolutely loved it. He made his living from the stock market. With tens of millions invested able to be withdrawn whenever he wanted. He bought local and domestic shares, foreign and bought and sold foreign currencies. He had shares in Microsoft and companies like that, all blue chips. He was set for life.

He travelled a lot because of different international trade boards he was on and worked for them for free I might add. As he met other people he always received tips for buying and selling. He always got information on the new companies opening and how worthwhile it would be to invest in them. Sometimes the tips were good, other times bad. But the bad ones and the losses hardly even made a dint in his millions. He was quite sensible and never took any stupid risks. He always made sure he had plenty in other places if the new company was to fall through.

One day, and some say this was a midlife crisis, the man decided that he would do all he could to find the perfect company, the one that would just increase his money even more. Some called it greed, others stupidity, others a waste of time, but he had his heart set on it and from that moment forward all of his energy and time was put into researching and discovering that super money maker. What a thrill, what excitement, what an adrenalin rush he thought. It was risky, but exciting.

After much searching and much wise council, he came across what he knew was ideal. This guy knew good shares, this guy knew a good company when he saw one. It wasn’t a rash, uneducated decision; he knew what he was doing. This man, on the basis of the potential he saw in these shares, sold all of his shares in his other companies, all of his houses and property except his smallest and all of his cars except his newest, everything. And put all the money into this company. He knew, regardless of how he looked, regardless of what other people said, he would make an even greater fortune.

Message.
2 different guys but similar stories. Huge risk, but both of them were so sure it would pay off. They just sold everything, stepped out and made a huge decision. They would have looked like fools to everyone else but that didn’t stop them. I guess you are wondering what this has to do with the Bible. Well I want to direct you to a Bible passage now, to show you where I got these stories from. Have a look at Matthew 13:44-46.

44"The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.
45"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.

This is where I got the stories from. I just changed them a bit to make them more modern. And Jesus says the Kingdom of God is like these stories. These parables tell us something about God’s Kingdom, about a relationship with Jesus Christ. Some people like the guy ploughing the field, and the guy in my first story, come across it by accident. Just going on with their daily lives when BANG… all of a sudden the Kingdom of God breaks into their lives, into their existence and shakes the very foundations on which they stand. Others, like the merchant and the stock market guy in my story, will search high and low, trying different religions and faiths until they are satisfied. Then, finally, they come across Jesus, and His words and actions speak with authority and peace, with the power to change their lives and their worlds.

But more than this, these parables and stories tell us that the men gave up everything to take hold of the thing they had found. It may have been risky, it may have brought mocking and people may have seen them as fools but they sold everything they had to buy what they knew would be worth it. And Jesus, challenging his 12 disciples, those who had already given up a considerable amount to follow Him, says “the kingdom of heaven is worth everything. What are you still holding on to?”

Jesus quite often told his disciples that to follow Him they must give up everything else. He told them this because He knew that times would come when the evil one would set traps and pull them away. Jesus knew that if they gave everything else up nothing could tempt them to go back to their old life. But many people, even the disciples hearing these words, ignored this warning. And when you don’t leave everything to follow Jesus, everyone has their price. What’s your price?

For Judas it was money, telling the Jewish leaders the whereabouts of Jesus for 30 silver coins. For Peter it was his life. Three times he denied knowing Jesus because he feared they would arrest him too. For one young lady in Russia, it was her looks. The authorities had arrested her and in order to get her to turn away from Jesus they showed her pictures of the injuries they had inflicted on the faces of others Christians, and seeing this, she renounced Jesus and they let her go.

What’s your price?

But after Jesus’ resurrection Peter was forgiven for denying Jesus and when he and John were before the Jewish rulers they were asked not to preach in the name of Jesus again. But in Acts 4:20 they said we cannot help speaking about what we have seen or heard. Paul once a Christian killer says in Philippians 1:21, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” These are people who have forgotten about all else, sold out for Jesus and entered the Kingdom. Millions of women in China and India and other parts of the world lose husbands, jobs, families, respect and even their life because of their faith in Jesus.

Is that the cry of your heart?

Youth ministers. Jesus Christ stands before you today and asks you a question. Have you given up all for the Kingdom of God? Have you sold out for Jesus? People, Jesus asks you “what are you still holding on to.” Is it money, jobs, family, a relationship, sin, pride, your past, your future plans. Jesus says that the Kingdom of God is worth so much, we must give away everything to receive it. Just quietly for a moment I want you to think what you are holding back from God and give it over to Him in prayer. Say God I am sorry for holding this back from you, from this day I am completely sold out for you. Take all of me.

Jesus said “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.” This week live your life as if you had sold whatever that is away, it is no longer there, you have traded it for something much better. The Kingdom of God… salvation.

Article Source: http://youth-ministry-resources.com

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