The Choice

There was a lesson I learned yesterday from reading Mark 5:1-20.
Here's how the story goes:

One day, Jesus was sailing in a boat with His disciples. Arriving on the other side of the lake, He was met by a demon-possessed man dwelling in the graveyard.
The man was so infamous for his violent behavior, everyone in the village was afraid of him. But Jesus commanded the evil spirits to come out of him, and they did.
The demons went out from the man and went into a large herd of pigs. Instantly, they ran down the steep bank and were drown in the lake.
The men tending the pigs hurriedly ran into the village to tell:

1. What Jesus had done to heal the demon-possessed man.
2. What happened to the pigs after they got demon-possessed.

So, all the villagers went out to the site, and found:

1. The man was already dressed, sitting by the feet of Jesus, and in his right mind.
2. The pigs were really drown in the lake just as reported, two-thousands of them.

Their response?
They begged Jesus to immediately leave their region!
His act of miracle just caused them to lose a great deal of fortune!

Well, doesn't the above story quite typically represent our generation?
We don't mind accepting salvation as long as we don't need to pay for it.

Alright, Folks, here's the news:
To receive the new life, we need to let go of our old lives!

Salvation is offered for free.
True: there's no amount of gold or treasures in this world that we can give the Lord in exchange for eternity.
But there is something He demands that exceeds the value of money by far.
He desires our soul: one thing that is far more precious than any earthly treasures.

Once we accept God's all-precious redemption, He expects us to give up our former lives and follow Him in full devotion.
There is no way we can achieve eternal life without severing our ties to the vanity of the transient one.

The problem with the villagers in the above story is that they clung too desperately to the material world, their eyes were blinded to see the everlasting mercy of God.

One lost soul was saved from the Devil's clutch.
To God, it was invaluable beyond all matters.
To men, who would care if the man lived or perished?

Once again, they followed human standards, not God's.
And we know what humans are: mortal, vain, imperfect, and transient creatures.

For us, the story serves as a reminder.
Two roads diverge before us: either we choose to live by God's way, or the way of the perishing world.
Truly, we can't decide to travel on both.

May we learn to choose wisely.
Amen.