A young man was arguing with an insurance agent. “What is the profit of this insurance for me? Others will be benefited if I die.” The idea of insurance is to give benefits for the survivors of a person. In fact, it does not help the person who is paying a premium. However, those who follow Lord Jesus Christ, and willing to lose their life, are benefitted. “For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?” (Mark 8:35-36) There are many things in the world that need consistent life-long pursuit yet do not satisfy an individual.
1) Beauty: There are people who wish to be beautiful or handsome. They use all kinds of beauty products, eat specific food. Yet one day they must abandon their body and give account to God. Queen Cleopatra is believed to have taken bath daily in donkey’s milk and apply powdered excrement of crocodiles to have wrinkle free smooth skin.
2) Health and fitness: There are others who wish to have their body fit to do all kinds of work: dancing, skiing, sports and games.
3) Wealth: There are not a few who pursue after wealth. The more they gain wealth, the desire to gain more proportionally increases. So, they try to earn more and die during heaps of cash.
4) Knowledge: Some are in pursuit of knowledge. Some do so in a general sense, there are others who become experts in certain fields. All knowledge and wisdom cannot give life meaning or purpose. A scientist could drown in a lake, as his boat capsizes, without the skill of swimming.
Philip James Elliot (October 8, 1927 – January 8, 1956) who went as a missionary to serve the Huaorani people in Ecuador was killed along with four others. He said: He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.
Am I in pursuit of the Kingdom of God?