For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world and is himself destroyed or lost? (Luke 9:25)

Gaining Nothing From Everything

The American Dream is to have it all, enjoy it all, and die with the most toys. Life is filled with the gusto of dreams. Nothing in the American Dream is new under the sun. Men have spent their lives since the days of Adam to be the most successful and accomplished people on the planet. Greed and avarice have driven the hearts of humankind to gain all that can be achieved, possess all that a man can gather in a lifetime, and enjoy every possible fleshly enjoyment known to man.

Nations have gone to war against nations for land, wealth, power, and position. Despots rise to power, thinking they can gain the whole world. Financial giants become the movers and shakers of the world, amassing great fortunes to live lavish lifestyles. Empires are built on the desires of the flesh. Sexual immorality has always been the unsatisfied thirst of a world craving to enjoy all the pleasures of fleshly desire. And then a common fate arrives at the doorsteps of all those who have tried to gain the whole world. They die. Everybody dies, and the empires fall, fortunes are lost, and sexual desires are empty.

The true failure of man is his continual ignorance of the purpose of life. History is complete with examples upon examples of nations that tried to rule the world. Where are the great Egyptian dynasties that ruled for so many years? The Assyrians, led by Ashurbanipal, were a powerful nation stretching from Cyprus to Iran, including Egypt. Ashurbanipal called himself “king of the world,” although he ruled a fraction of the world. Babylon became a great nation under Nebuchadnezzar. Persia was ruled by Cyrus the Great. Alexander the Great destroyed the Persians before the Roman Empire conquered Greece and ruled over two million square miles. Where is the feared German Third Reich, Imperial Japan, the country known as the U.S.S.R today?

John D. Rockefeller was one of the richest men in the United States. Today, the wealthiest people are worth hundreds of billions of dollars. The adult online porn industry is estimated at $977 million. Men and women spend millions of dollars every year to satisfy their sexual desires, drugs, alcohol, and pleasures. It’s not any better for the common man who drives himself daily to have a big house, multiple cars and boats, huge retirement plans to spend, and all the pleasures of a corrupt world.

The question remains: what does it profit when a man gains all these things in life – and dies? What then? Jesus said that most people who die will be lost in a world of complete darkness and horror, screaming for relief. There will be none. They have forfeited their lives for the pleasures of a life that is short-lived with eternal consequences. Everyone plans for retirement, but few plan for eternity. All those in the darkness of eternal suffering have the same answer to what it profits a man if he gains the whole world: nothing. There is no profit in gaining everything in life and losing one’s soul. They wish they had made better choices and sought the will of God in their lives, but it is too late.

Jesus came to show men the true path to life is life in eternity, not here. No one gains anything by possessing things here. Death separates everyone from their possessions and pleasures. The soul lives on without the trappings of the world. What does it profit a man if he gains the love of God and loses his life? Eternal peace, security, and joy. He does not live for the things of this life but for the grace of God that will give him eternal life. What is important to you will determine where you spend eternity. You decide. Gain the world and lose your soul. Accept the love of God and save your soul. P. S. You only get one life to make that choice.