Selling to Devil for Best Price

In 1950, the famous author Ernest Hemingway shocked Christian America by the following statement. Hemingway said, Only suckers worry about saving their souls. Who the hell should care about saving his soul when it is man's duty to lose it intelligently? The way you would sell a position you were defending as expansively as possible, trying to make it the most expensive position that was ever sold.

It isn't hard to die. What Hemingway was saying was that being a Christian was only for suckers, and that a person would be better off selling their soul to the world and the devil for the best price you could get for it, like a stock position that sold for the highest price. In life, Hemingway found out that the devil was a deceptive taskmaster, for the author was a hopeless alcoholic.

And Hemingway found out that loving the world is like a cruel mistress, for he ended up disillusioned with the world, ending his own life by putting a shotgun to his head. When Hemingway's soul was chased out of this world, it was dragged down to a burning hell. Hemingway found out too late that he was the sucker for selling his soul to the world and the devil.

The Word of God clearly states, Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. Men sell their souls cheaply today.

They throw something of great value carelessly away, like Esau sold his birthright to his brother for a mess of pottage, something as cheap as soup and bread. Men place little emphasis on eternity, as they position themselves to grab as much of this world as they can. They bind to the devil's lie that it is the one who has the most toys at the end of life who is declared the winner.

So they squander their life in a mad pursuit of money and pleasure, sell out more cheaply than they need to, and some sell really cheaply. They sell out to their career, to a sport, or to a hobby that takes up all their time. Others may get a better price by seeking fame, popularity, and prestige, and others seek power and position.

So they sell their soul at the best price they can get for it, because they don't believe in a living God in a place called hell. Hemingway made it sound like it was a noble thing to lose one's soul intelligently for the best possible price, but what he discovered was that the devil is a liar, and the world is a harlot, and those who chase the world chase the wind. If any man loved the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

What are you pursuing, friend? Jesus plainly said, For whosoever will save his life shall lose it, and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. For what is man profited if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul? The reality is, friends, only suckers don't worry about saving their souls.