Pastor Barry's  "Chapter & Verse"  Day 103

April 13;      Luke 9:25;       53/260(IV);      ‘One Thing Matters’

Luke 9:25 For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost?

What an incredibly sobering verse this is.  Jesus was teaching His disciples and He made this statement.  There are many things to say about this verse.  First, Jesus is not saying you should not have anything.  The Bible teaches that it is the will of the Lord that you prosper financially.  We, not the unsaved are the children of God and of course He wants us to have nice things.  The priority of those nice things is the question.  If ‘stuff’ takes all of your time, leaving no time for the things of the Lord, you have been deceived.  Knowing Jesus intimately and purposing in your heart to continue His ministry, is so much more valuable than any temporary, monetary gain.  Second, the devil loves to give you things the world covets.  He has no interest in money, cars, houses, fame, etc.  If he can use these things to minimize your time with the Lord you are one less Christian he has to be concerned about doing the work of the ministry.  Third, the Bible tells us to taste and see that the Lord is good (Psalm 34:8).  Preoccupied with gaining the world prevents you from using your time to help others come to know Jesus.  The devil knows that once we lead someone to Jesus, pray for someone’s healing or comfort someone with the love of the Lord, we will begin to value what the world offers less and less.  Nothing can compare to doing the Lord’s work.  That has always been His desire for us.  As our priorities line up with His, He will see to it that we will lack no good thing and we will be blessed as we bless others with Jesus.