Who'll Take The Son?
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A wealthy man and his son loved to collect rare works
of art. They had everything in their collection, from Picasso to
Raphael.They would often sit together and admire the great works of art.
When the Viet Nam conflict broke out, the son went to war. He was
very courageous and died in battle while rescuing another soldier.
The father was notified and grieved deeply for his only son. About
a month later, just before Christmas, there was a knock at the door.
A young man stood at the door with a large package in his hands.
He said,"Sir, you don't know me, but I am the soldier for whom your son
gave his life. He saved many lives that day, and he was carrying me to
safety when a bullet struck him in the heart and he died instantly. He
often talked about you, and your love for art. The young man held out
his package. "I know this isn't much. I'm not really a great artist, but
I think your son would have wanted you to have this."
The father opened the package. It was a portrait of his son,
painted by the young man.
He stared in awe at the way the soldier had captured the
personality of his son in the painting. The father was so drawn to the
eyes
that his own eyes welled up with tears. He thanked the young man
and offered to pay him for the picture. "Oh, no sir, I could never repay
what your son did for me. It's a gift."
The father hung the portrait over his mantle. Every time visitors
came to his home he took them to see the portrait of his son before he
showed them any of the other great works he had collected.
The man died a few months later. There was to be a great auction
of his paintings. Many influential people gathered, excited over seeing
the great paintings and having an opportunity to purchase one for their
collection.
On the platform sat the painting of the son. The auctioneer
pounded his gavel. "We will start the bidding with this picture of the
son.
Who will bid for this picture?" There was silence. Then a voice in
the back of the room shouted. "We want to see the famous paintings.Skip
this one."
But the auctioneer persisted. "Will someone bid for this painting?
Who will start the bidding? $100, $200?" Another voice shouted
angrily."We didn't come to see this painting.. We came to see the Van
Goghs, the Rembrandts. Get on with the real bids!"
But still the auctioneer continued.
"The son! The son! Who'll take the son?" Finally, a voice came
from the very back of the room. It was the longtime gardener of the man
and his son. "I'll give $10 for the painting." Being a poor man, it was
all he could afford.
"We have $10, who will bid $20?"
"Give it to him for $10.
Let's see the masters." "$10 is the bid, won't someone bid $20?"
The crowd was becoming angry. They didn't want the picture of the son.
They wanted the more worthy investments for their collections.
The auctioneer pounded the gavel. "Going
once,
twice,
SOLD
for
$10!"
A man sitting on the second row shouted. "Now let's get on with
the collection!"
The auctioneer laid down his gavel. "I'm sorry, the auction is
over."
"What about the paintings?" "I am sorry. When I was called to
conduct this auction, I was told of a
secret stipulation in the will. I was not allowed to reveal that
stipulation until this time. Only the painting of the son would be
auctioned.
whoever bought that painting would inherit the entire estate,
including the paintings. The man who
took the son gets every thing!"
God gave his son 2,000 years ago to die on a cruel cross. Much
like the auctioneer, His message today is, "The son, the son, who'll
take the son?"
Because you see, whoever takes the Son gets
everything.
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