Key Verse
“I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed,” Revelation 3:18a
Text — Revelation 3:17-19
Message
On the sandy Town Road walked a merchant. On his shoulder hangs a bulky bag which he held close to his body like something precious. He raised his voice to the hearing of all that could hear, “I sell gold: pure gold at a good price!” “They are new from the ship of the Respected Merchant that knows his gold”, he added.
These words caught the interest of the Town’s rich Blacksmith. He asked to buy it. The Merchant offered to sell at a much more attractive price if the Blacksmith would buy all at once. As he arranged the gold of various shapes and sizes on the Blacksmith’s table, he continued to advertise their qualities, but the Blacksmith replied, “The fire shall tell”. Before the Merchant could look further and to his shock, the Blacksmith had packed all the gold into his fireplace. The fire removed all their shining look, till all that was left were blackened pieces of iron. “Oh, my gold! What a loss!” cried the merchant. He hurried away in shame towards the Coast as he lamented further, “Oh my loss for the mere metals I purchased at the price of pure gold!”
The merchant had bought fake gold without knowing it. The Blacksmith’s fire was the one that revealed the truth about the quality of the merchant’s fake gold. Religion without Christ and His righteousness is like fake gold. It is certainly empty of the purity that can save on the Day of Judgment. How is your relationship with Jesus? Is it genuine or are you fake? The Bible counsels that you come to Jesus now so He can clothe you with His garment of righteousness.
Further Reading
1 Corinthians 3:13-15
Prayer for today
Help me o Lord, help me to put my trust in Christ alone.