Today I am reading Hosea 12 (from the Message) which talks about the tribe of Ephraim and how well they felt they have pulled off "success" and keep their personal sin covered up.
(v8) look, I’m rich! I’ve made it big! And look how well I’ve covered my tracks: not a hint of fraud, not a sign of sin!
This is a pattern that repeats itself generaltionally among us humans. It is in this verse that you see that telling phrase - sold his soul to get ahead.
(12) Are you going to repeat the life of your ancestor Jacob? He ran off guilty to Aram, Then sold his soul to get ahead, and made it big through treacherty and deceit.
I wonder about that. At what cost do we get ahead? What do we sell of ourselves? How good do we feel if we can keep the surface looking good inspite of what is really going on underneath?
As always God has something to say about the matter. (9) But not so fast! I’m God, your God!
God lays out two important truths:
The first should be obvious. Whatever seed we plant will come up to harvest. (14) now he has to pay for his life-destroying ways.
The other truth is less obvious but so vital to grasp. Often the path you take is life is not the real you and most certainly not the person you have the potential to be. God has something else in mind. The passage says your real identity is formed through God-sent prophets, who led you out of Egypt and served as faithful pastors.
This really is the role God has given me to play. My job is to be a faithful pastor that helps you form your real identity. So what kind of person does God want you to be? Is getting ahead more important to you? Stop selling your soul because in the end it will not pay off.
October 25th, 2007 at 9:11 am
If you get a chance try to listen to the song Lose My Soul by Toby Mac featuring Kirk Franklin. Awesome song that pretty much follows the lines of what you’re writing about here. It might not be your favorite music style, but it’s a pretty good song.