He Lost His Treasure!
Good News –March 2017 – Grace & Truth Magazine
He Lost His Treasure!
Beneath the gleaming sun a passenger ship slipped smoothly through the tranquil sea. Very near to the railing a passenger amused himself by repeatedly tossing an object into the air and catching it – an object that sparkled with an extraordinary brilliance as the sun’s rays touched it. The man’s attention was riveted on this shining object each time he tossed it into the air. Another passenger who watched approached him and asked:
“What is this that you toss into the air and catch so carelessly?
“It’s a diamond. Here, look at it.”
“Is it worth much?”
“Yes, it is extremely valuable. Look at its color and size. Actually, everything I own in the world I have invested in this diamond. I’m headed to a new country in search of a fortune. I sold everything I owned and invested the money in this diamond in order to carry it easily.”
“If it is as valuable as you say, doesn’t it seem risky to toss it into the air so near the railing?” asked the other passenger.
“No, there’s no risk. I’ve been doing this for half an hour.”
“But there could come the moment when you toss it for the final time,” said the other.
The man smiled and continued tossing and catching it. Once more he tossed it – the extremely precious stone sparkled dazzlingly as the sun’s rays embraced it – but this time it fell just out of his reach. The man reached out his hand as far as he was able over the railing, but he could not grasp it. A small plop on the surface of the water momentarily marked the spot where it fell. The diamond’s owner, after a stunned moment, cried out in anguish, “I’ve lost it! I’ve lost it! I’ve lost it! I’ve lost everything I had in this world!”
You might say that no one is so foolish, that this story cannot be real. But yes, it is real – and it is quite possible that it is your own story. The sea is time, and the destiny toward which you travel is eternity. The boat in which you travel is this life. The diamond is your soul with which you are carelessly playing. Permit me to repeat the story like this:
“Friend, what is that you have in your hand with which you are playing so carelessly?”
“It’s my soul.”
“Is it worth much?”
“More than everything else.”
“Don’t you think you are running a huge risk of losing your soul?”
“Oh, no!” you say, and you continue to toss your soul up over the ocean of time. But the moment will come when you can no longer catch it. No matter how hard you try, it will be impossible to rescue it. Your soul will have been submerged in the depths of desperation and you will exclaim: “I’m lost! I’m lost! I’m lost!”
Such will be your cry one day, perhaps very soon, unless you put your soul in a secure place: in the care of the Son of God.
“What profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?” (Mt. 16:26 NKJV).
Why not surrender your soul to the Lord Jesus Christ right now? We can tell you how.
“Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31).
Jesus said, “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand” (Jn. 10:28).
Adapted from Spanish tract #106, available from Grace & Truth.