All that Is Gold Does Not Glitter

I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire. (Rev. 3:18)

Like many children, my first encounter with pyrite or fool’s gold left me breathless with awe. The sparkling rock in the tourist gift shop completely bedazzled me and—what luck!—it cost so little that even an eight-year-old could afford it. Of course, I didn’t know that the reason pyrite was cheap was that it was so common.

In contrast, the first time I saw real gold in its natural state, I was horribly disappointed. It wasn’t shiny at all! To my untrained eye, it looked like a small animal had suffered intense diarrhea after gorging itself on processed mustard. I didn’t know that the unique and highly desirable qualities of genuine gold emerge only after it has been refined and freed from its impurities.

The Christians in Laodicea had been fooled by the sparkle of materialism. They clung to their little bit of pyrite, believing they held something of great value. But as J. R. R. Tolkien observed, “All that is gold does not glitter.” They overlooked the true gold of heaven to embrace the worthless though glittery things of this world.

Christ offered the Laodicean church a chance to experience a rich relationship with him, thoroughly refined and beautifully pure. However, they would have to “buy” it. They would have to let go of what they thought they wanted so that they could receive what was truly priceless.

Choose a rich relationship with Christ over empty worldly comforts.

Laura Hurd is an ordained minister in The Wesleyan Church and holds a master’s degree from Wesley Seminary. She pastors with her husband, Jason, in rural Nebraska.