Buy Truth
Years ago, many people were very dependent upon horses for transportation and farm work. Horses were expensive, and so the buyer needed to make sure the new horse was in good health. If the horse was sick, the success of the farm could be in jeopardy.
Prospective horse buyers would examine the animal's teeth. The condition of the teeth was a reliable way to determine the age and overall health of the horse. This examination helped protect the buyer from buying a bad horse.
Instead of taking the time to examine something, we could choose to go fishing, spend time with friends, or watch TV. Choosing to examine something costs us the pleasure of doing something else.
Proverbs 23:23 instructs us to "Buy truth and do not sell it...."
One way to "buy" truth is to "spend" time seeking truth and examining something before we believe it.
Buying the truth has nothing to do with spending money. Poor people can buy as much truth as rich people. Buying truth has to do with the effort required to find and acquire the truth.
1 Thessalonians 5:21 instructs us to, "Examine everything and hold fast to that which is good."
Examination takes work, time, and mental energy. In essence, this is how we buy truth or pay for the truth. No monetary cost, but a cost nonetheless.
What's Her True Value?
CNN reports on a "rare" find at a US yard sale:
A rare Chinese bowl bought for about $3 from a yard sale in the U.S. sold for $2.2 million at an auction in New York on Tuesday.
The bowl, found in New York state, "was bought for a few dollars from a tag sale near the consignor's home in the summer of 2007," said Cecilia Leung of Sotheby's. "At the time, the purchaser had no idea that they had happened upon a 1,000-year-old treasure."
The previous owner displayed the bowl in their living room for several years before they became curious about its origins and had it assessed, Leung said. Sotheby's pre-sale estimates valued the bowl, which measures just five inches in diameter, at between $200,000 to $300,000.
The 'Ding' bowl is an example of Northern Song Dynasty pottery and described by Sotheby's as "remarkable and exceptionally beautiful."
The only other known bowl of the same size, form and almost identical decoration has been in the collection of the British Museum in London for over 60 years, according to Sotheby's.
The bowl was purchased by London dealer, Giuseppe Eskenazi, for $2,225,000, after a prolonged battle between four bidders.
It is sadly common for people to undervalue something that is, in all actuality, quite valuable. Take women, for example. Like beautiful treasures, we are each one a unique masterpiece. Yet few cultures have recognized the true value of God's feminine marvels.
We see it on television shows, commercials, magazine racks and the internet – women displayed as lovely trinkets, valued only for their outer beauty, with no understanding of their intrinsic value. Sadly, many women even begin to believe the stereotypical hype themselves, and are left to struggle with body image, self-image, even soul image.
Yet God's treasures, cloaked in feminine flesh, are not mere trinkets to be picked up by some casual “shopper” rummaging through the many cheap options thrown on the table of life for a quick sale. The world might see her as some “garage sale” item, but God sees her as a treasure worthy of honor and display.
Proverbs 31:10-11 reads, “Who can find a virtuous woman? For her price is far above rubies. The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of spoil.”
Authenticity Is Expensive
From zirconia to "fools" gold, our world is full of imitations. The fake is created because we want something without being willing to pay the real cost. We want the prestige, the influence, the respect that comes with the real thing, but we want it illegitimately.
There are even fake children of God and false preachers! Men and women who want the respect of the real thing, but don't want to pay the real cost.
"But what does it matter?" asks the Apostle Paul. "The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice" (Philippians 1:18).
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