The Man Gets a Name

"The Man: Be more content good
neighbors, and go along with me.”
OBSTINATE: What! And leave our friends and our comforts
behind us!
CHRISTIAN: Yes (now claiming the pilgrim name of
Christian), because all of that which you cling to, and should
forsake, is not even close to being worthy to be compared with a
little of that which I am seeking to enjoy.  If you will go along with
me and persevere, you shall obtain as I myself; for where I go
there is more than enough to spare. So come away with me and prove
my words." John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress


The man is now going by the name, Christian. He has been trying to convince two gentlemen from his former town, City of Destruction, to follow him on his journey. Their names are Obstinate and Pliable.


At first glace, Christian uses what we may call the prosperity gospel to lure his two acquaintances, but a closer observation would reveal something entirely different. The two men are clinging to this world and all that it has to offer, including its wealth. What Christian is offering them is so much more than what the world has to offer in comparison.


So often we forget that our aim isn't to gather up the most toys here. Many people don't know why they are here. The first question in the Westminster Shorter Catacysim makes it clear. It is, "What is the chief end and duty of man? Answer, Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever. 


Are aim should not be what we can get, but what we can give.We are to glorify God. "Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal." Matthew 6:20 The next verse tells another lesson. "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." Matthew 6:21


Where is your heart? According to verse 21, your heart is wherever your treasure is. Therefore, when I say, "Where is your heart?" I'm asking, what are the investments in your life, motives, attitudes, and thought patterns. 


Do not chase after what you can get today. "I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us," Romans 8:18 or as Bob Jones Sr said, "Don't sacrifice the permanent on the altar of the immediate."