The Great Exchange
Mark 8:31-38
Mark 8:31-38
31 He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law,and that he must be killed and after three days rise again.
32 He spoke plainly about this, and Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.
33 But when Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, he rebuked Peter. "Get behind me, Satan!" he said. "You do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men."
34 Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.
35 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it.
36 What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?
37 Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?
38 If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels."
(NIV)
DRIPPING SPRINGS -- Carrie Crain’s soul is for sale on eBay and the starting bid is $1,000.
"Whoever bids on my soul, they need to take it seriously," she said. "I hope I transfer all my good, positive energy to them, and they will do great things. That’s what I hope … transfer my creativity to them," she said.
That creativity is what got 33-year-old Crain to this point. She’s working on a screenplay about a woman who sells her soul on eBay, too.
"I decided to really get into the heroine’s mind. I had to do it," Crain said.
Crain calls it research, but her husband, Garry, calls it a little nuts.
"I don’t know if she wrote a murder we’d get the gun out and shoot somebody, which of course would never happen," he said.
Garry is used to his wife’s originality and he’ll help her with the technical stuff.
"Transferring title may be difficult," he said.
Crain has that and plenty of other difficult questions to answer, like will she get a new soul? Is there a warranty? And what’s her return policy? Those inquiries sit in her e-mail box.
Despite the talk, no one has yet put down a bid.
"Maybe they’re waiting until the last minute," Crain said.
The truth is, you can sell just about anything on eBay, but you can’t sell your own soul — at least not anymore. A while back, one man’s soul was up for sale and a woman from Iowa had bid $400 before eBay realized what was going on and stopped the auction. While you can no longer sell your soul on eBay — it’s in violation of their policy and you can’t sell body parts either — you can use the Internet to sell your soul to someone willing to buy it. A 24 year old sold his for $3,800 to a New Zealand pizza place appropriately named after the place of torment.
If you Google “sell your soul”, that search will yield nearly 12 million internet sites which address how to sell your soul.
Ever since God breathed into the first man the breath of life and man became a living soul, man’s soul has been up for bids.
While you may say that you would never sell your soul, every person has abundant opportunity to do so, even if you cannot sell it on ebay!
How do we sell our souls?
Souls are not sold intact. Souls are sold piecemeal.
Little by little our souls are given away to the lowest bidder.
Eternity is sold by the moment.
A moment spent gazing at a scene not meant for eyes purchased by precious blood. A moment spent in relishing the thought not mean for the sanctified mind. A moment spent in compromise and something in the soul dies.
Every split second we choose to deny the Lord instead of ourselves, we exchange our soul for the candy-coated sin.
Mark 8:34-35
34 Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.
35 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it.
(NIV)
How to remove the
“For Sale”
sign from your soul:
1) Deny Yourself
The word “deny” means to forget one’s self, to lose sight of yourself and your interests in favor of something better. Like a mother choosing her baby’s needs over her own.
2) Take Up Your Cross
To take up your cross means to die.
3) Follow Jesus
Take the same road He takes. Walk with Him. “Follow” is a present tense imperative meaning Begin Now to follow Jesus and continue doing it, moment by moment.
Do you want to stand out? Then step down. Be a servant. If you puff yourself up, you’ll get the wind knocked out of you. But if you’re content to simply be yourself (that is, who God made you to be), your life will count for plenty." - Matthew 23:11-12 (The Message)
Can you imagine what it was like for the church in Smyrna as they watched their beloved and aged pastor burn at the stake? Polycarp was his name. He was a disciple of Jesus’ disciple, the Apostle John. One could tell it immediately because he possessed the same tenderness and compassion as his mentor.
Polycarp was Bishop of the church at Smyrna (present day Turkey). Persecution broke out in Smyrna and many Christians were fed to the wild beasts in the arena. The godless and bloodthirsty crowd called for the carcass of the leader – Polycarp.
The authorities sent a search party to find him. He had been taken into hiding for some Christians but the Romans tortured two young believers until they finally disclosed his location. When the authorities arrival was announced there was still time to whisk Polycarp away but he refused to go saying, “God’s will be done.”
In one of the most touching instances of Christian grace imaginable Polycarp welcomed his captors as if they were friends. He talked with them and insisted they eat a meal. Ha made only one request before being taken away – he asked for one hour to pray. The Roman soldiers listened to his prayer. Their hearts melted and they gave him 2 hours to pray. They had second thoughts as well and were overheard asking each other why they were sent to arrest him?
Other authorities also experienced a warmed heart when Polycarp arrived. The Proconsul tried to find a way to release him too. “Curse God and I will let you go!” he pleaded.
Polycarp’s reply was: “For eighty-six years I have served him. He has never done me wrong. How then can I blaspheme my King was has saved me?”
The Proconsul again looked for a way out. “Just do this, old man, just swear by the spirit of the emperor and that will be sufficient.’
Polycarp’s reply was: “If you imagine for a moment that I would do that, then I think you pretend that you don’t know who I am. Hear it plainly. I am a Christian.”
More entreaties by the Proconsul
Polycarp stood firm.
The proconsul threatened with the wild beasts.
Polycarp’s reply was: “Bring them forth. I would change my mind if it meant going from worst to best, but not to change from right to wrong.”
The Proconsul threatened, “I will burn you alive!”
Polycarp’s reply was: “You threaten with fire that burns for an hour and is over but the judgment on the ungodly is forever.”
The fires engulfed him. The witnesses noticed his faith and joy. He was finished off with a dagger. He was buried for the cause of Christ on February 22, 155 A.D.
It was as much a day of victory as it was a day of tragedy.
Polycarp illustrated the power of knowing Jesus intimately. Intimately enough to follow Him into the flames. As Jesus said, “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?”
