Whoever Takes the Son Gets It All
Years ago, a very wealthy man shared a passion for art collecting with his devoted young son.
Together they travelled the world, adding only the finest art treasures to their collection.
They soon collected priceless works by Picasso, Van Gogh, Monet and many others soon.
The widowed father looked on with satisfaction as his only son became an experienced art collector.
The son’s trained eye and sharp business mind caused his father great pride - as they dealt with art collectors around the world.
In 1914 as winter approached, the nation was soon engulfed in war and the young man was called up to serve his country.
After a few short months, his father received the telegram that he had been dreading.
His beloved son had been killed in action.
The old man faced the upcoming Christmas holidays with anguish and sadness.
The joy of the Christmas season - that he and his son had so looked forward to - was gone.
On Christmas morning, there was a knock at the door.
As the old man opened the door, he was greeted by a young soldier with a large package in his hand on leave from the Western front.
He introduced himself to the man by saying,
"I was a friend of your son. I was the one he was
rescuing when he died. May I come in for a few
moments? I have something to show you."
And as the two began to talk, the soldier told the old man how his son often talked about his father and his love of art.
"I’m an artist," the soldier said, "and I would like to give you this."
As the old man unwrapped the package, he saw that it was a portrait of his son.
Though the world would never consider it the work of a genius, the painting showed the face of the old man’s son in detail.
Overcome with emotion, the father hung the portrait of his son over the fireplace, moving aside millions of dollars worth of art to make space for it
The old man then sat in his chair and spent Christmas gazing at the gift he had been given.
The painting of his son soon became his most prized possession, far eclipsing any of the pieces of art , that museums around the world were clamouring for.
Ten years later, the old man died and the art world waited with anticipation for the upcoming auction.
According to the old man’s Will, all the art works had to be auctioned on Christmas Day - the day on which he had received his greatest gift – the portrait of his son.
The day soon arrived and art collectors from around the world gathered to bid on some of the world’s most spectacular paintings.
The auction however began with a painting that was not on anyone’s list.
It was the painting of the father’s son by the young soldier.
The auctioneer asked for an opening bid, but the room was silent.
“Who will open the bidding with £100?” No one spoke.
Finally someone said, “Who cares about that
painting. It’s just a picture of his son. Let’s move on to the good stuff.”
The auctioneer responded, “No, we have to sell this one first. Now, who will bid for the son?”
Finally, a neighbour of the old man offered £50. “That’s all I have. I knew the boy, so I’d like to have it.”
The auctioneer said, “Going once, going twice…gone.” The gavel fell.
Cheers filled the room and someone exclaimed, “Now we can bid on the real treasures!”
The auctioneer looked at the room filled with people and then announced that the auction was over.
Everyone was stunned.
Someone spoke up and said, “What do you mean, it’s over? We didn’t come here for a painting of the old man’s son. There are millions of dollars worth of art still in here! What’s going on?”
The auctioneer replied, “It’s very simple. According to the old man’s will, whoever received the painting of his son…would get all of the rest.”
And that too is the Christian message.
He or she who receives God’s one and only Son – Jesus gets all that God has to offer us.
St John said this about Jesus and his mission.
12Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. (Jn 1:12-13)
Being a Christian isn’t about “being good” and conforming to human standards - nice as those things are.
The world, in which we live - demands conformity.
It demands that we live and think and act just like everybody else.
God in contrasts calls us simply TO RECEIVE his Son – and concomitantly to follow Him.
Those - who have the courage to resist conforming - may face great opposition in their lives.
They may well be ostracised.
Henry David Thoreau, the great American poet once said:
“If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music that he hears, however measured and far away”.
The question I’d like to leave you with this morning is this.
“Do you hear the beat of that different drummer?”
For if you do, it may well be the voice of God inside of us, calling us to repentance and a life following Christ.
For we are called - as St. Paul said - not to be conformed to this world, but to be transformed by the renewing of our minds, so that we may discern what is the will of God.
God knew exactly what he was doing when he sent Jesus to this earth, as we remember at Christmas.
The Cross wasn’t a “horrible misjudgement”
Rather the reason Jesus came into this world was to bring us back into a relationship with God.
The motivation was as John Stott puts it in his book The Cross – the HOLY LOVE OF GOD.
God himself judges us for our sin and finds us guilty.
God, in Jesus, steps down from the judgement throne and pays the penalty on our behalf.
We are called to receive him – and to follow Him – following Him being our cost.
Because of the Father’s love…whoever receives the Son -gets ALL God has to offer.
I’d like to leave you with a question.
Have you received God’s Son into your life.?
If not, it is not too late.
