By: Julia Bjorklund
A wealthy man loved to collect rare works of art. He had everything in his collection, from Picasso to Raphael. One day a package arrived from his son, who was in the army overseas. When he opened it, he discovered a self portrait of the son. The man loved it so much, because he couldn't see his son and now there was a piece of him with him. The father loved it so much that he hung the portrait over his mantle. Every time visitors came to his home he took them to see the portrait of his son before he showed them any of the other great works he had collected. A few years passed and his son was killed in battle. The painting of the son now became all the more important because it reminded the father of his son, and he could look at the painting everyday and remember his son. A few years later the man died too. Since he had no heir, all his paintings were to be sold at auction. Collectors came from all around; it isn't often that such a great collection becomes available. As the auction opened the first painting on the platform was the painting of the son. The auctioneer pounded his gavel. "We will start the bidding with this picture of the son. Who will bid for this picture?" There was silence. After a few moments, a voice in the back of the room shouted, "We want to see the famous paintings. Skip this one." But the auctioneer persisted. "Will somebody bid for this painting. Who will start the bidding? $100, $200?" Another voice angrily. "We didn't come to see this painting. We came to see the Van Gogh's, the Rembrandts. Get on with the real bids!" But still the auctioneer continued. "The son! The son! Who'll take the son?" Finally, a voice came from the very back of the room. It was the longtime gardener of the man and his son, who had realized how much this painting meant to the man. "I'll give $10 for the painting." Being a poor man, it was all he could afford. The crowd was becoming angry. They didn't want the picture of the son. The auctioneer pounded the gavel. "Going once, twice, SOLD for $10!" The auctioneer put down his gavel and said, "The auction is over." The crowd angrily wondered about the rest of the paintings. The auctioneer explained, "The man who owned all of this art said in his will that only this painting should be sold, and whoever bought this one would inherit the entire collection."
Over 2000 years ago, God sent Jesus to die on the cross. As John 3:16 says, "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life." God's message then is the same as it js now, "Who will take the Son?" When we accept Jesus as our savior and let him into our heart, we take Him. Just as the man who took the painting of the son inherited the entire collection, in the same way we as children of God will inherit the kingdom of heaven.
Prayer: Dear God, please help us to take Jesus into our hearts. Be with us as we go about the rest of the day. In Jesus' name, Amen.
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