Buy the Truth
“Buy the truth, and sell it not;
Also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding.”
Most people believe that there is only one copy of the Declaration of Independence, which is lovingly stored in the Smithsonian Museum, but America’s founding fathers were smarter than that and made sure to make multiple copies just in case the original was destroyed or misplaced in someone’s attic. Of the 500 copies they made though, only 24 survive today and are extremely hard to find. One day in 1989, over 200 years since the Declaration was authored, Donald Scheer bought a generic and torn painting at a flea market for $4 because he liked the frame that came along with it. Upon removing the worthless painting from the frame, he discovered a folded-up piece of paper that was stuck between the canvas and the frame. When he unfolded it, Scheer realized he was holding one of the finest and crispest original copies of the Declaration known to exist. Upon having it appraised, he was told that it was indeed real and shortly after, the pristine document sold at auction for a cool $2.42 million.
In Proverbs 23, we find a verse that challenges us to buy the truth. Well, I don’t know about you, but if the Lord tells us to buy something then it means there is a price that must be paid. He continues in verse 23 by telling us to also consider buying wisdom, instruction, and understanding. These qualities are not found in a Walmart or Target, they are only found in their truest form in the Word of God. It also means that you will have to exchange something you have in order to get it. How much are you willing to exchange in order to gain truth? What lengths will you go to in order to acquire truth? What do you currently value that you would be willing to exchange for the priceless treasure that is truth. The answer to that question will also reveal to you and others how valuable you believe the truth to be. If you are not willing to exchange time to “seek for her as silver” than truth is not very valuable to you. If you are not willing to sacrifice your plans in exchange for truth than your plans are more valuable to you than God’s truth is. Proverbs 23:23 says to buy these precious qualities and then not to sell them away. Have you allowed something else in your life to become more valuable than the truth you once held to? Have you sacrificed and sold truth in exchange for a friendship, or a music choice, or a philosophy of life that is not at all valuable but you wanted it more than truth? Have you replaced the pursuit of truth with the endless scrolling of social media? Then you have sold truth for a cheap price. Teen, today you need to take a moment and consider whether you are buying or selling truth and at what price?