01/15/20 What Good Is It?

READING: Genesis 21-23 Psalm 107; Mark 8

It’s a simple question, but it’s one I might just now be growing to understand. Jesus asked the question, and He asked it of the crowds and His disciples, “For what does it benefit someone to gain the whole world and yet lose his life?” (Mark 8:36). He had already taught them that they must deny themselves and take up their cross to follow Him—and He called them to give up themselves for His sake. After all, He asked, “What good is it if you gain all the world offers but lose your soul in the process?”

The older I get, the more I realize the truth of this question. I learn almost every day that all the stuff the world might provide truly is unsatisfying—fleeting at best. It can’t give you peace in your heart, and it can’t help you sleep at night. Nor can it forgive your sins or alleviate the fear of death that so easily haunts. If you get it all but still live in fear, anxiety, and unforgiveness, what good is it? All that stuff is nothing less than a false god that cannot give life.

On the other hand, Jesus is the Messiah, the Redeemer, the Truth, and the Life. He alone has the words of eternal life (John 6:68). He alone is worth giving up the world for. 

PRAYER: “Lord, help me not to live for the world today. Incline my heart to You.” 

TOMORROW’S READING: Genesis 24-25; Psalm 4; Mark 9

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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