What is worth your soul?

Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?"

Matthew 16:24-26


To follow Jesus, you forsake your own identity and with tremendous joy, put on Christ. Nobody will ever find life without this first change in what makes up and characterizes who that person is. The phrase "get a life" has a different meaning for us as Christians. The phrase should be prefaced with "follow Jesus" or "Take up your cross".

Jesus is the only place where we will find life because it is the only place we will find value for our soul. Giving your soul to anything but Jesus is a foolish thing to do. Using physical imagery (I may be approaching blasphemy as the worth of Jesus is much greater than the idea of any worldly wealth), it's like trading Mercedes for a cheap cup of coffee. It's not a fair trade. A car is worth a lot and it can take you places. A top of the line car demonstrates some sort of success and significance. A cup of coffee (to some) may taste pleasant and it gives a good feeling, but in five minutes the cup goes cold and 20 min later the rush of caffeine wears off and causes a crash. After you consume it, there is nothing left to show, and you traded something of great value for something that left you with nothing.

Nothing is worth the exchange of a human soul. If God was willing to send His own Son and buy our souls with His blood, we can see the value and significance of our souls. Giving your soul to something of the world (money, work, houses, cars, fame, power, land, kingdoms), is trading something of great worth for a cup of coffee, and Satan wins another sucker.