What good is it for someone to gain the whole world,
yet forfeit their soul?
—Mark 8:36
When he died in 1885, William Henry Vanderbilt had a fortune of more than $200 million ($6.5 billion in today’s money). Shortly before his death, he lamented, “I have received no more gratification or enjoyment from my wealth than my neighbor on the next block who is worth only half a million (more than $16 million in today’s money). Only half a million? Wealth is relative, right?
Jesus didn’t mince words: “What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?” (Mk 8:36–37).
A penetrating question!
Jim Elliot wrote: “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.”
There is no $ sign in front of your soul’s value.