By: Denny

A saying goes that when selling something it’s only worth what someone is willing to pay for it. There is a TV show called Storage Wars, and it features storage units that are full of stuff abandoned by the owner. After a period of time if the storage fee isn’t paid the lock is cut and the contents are auctioned to the highest bidder. It isn’t scripted and features the same people on each episode. They aren’t actors but are real men and women with legitimate secondhand stores seeking more stuff to sell. After the lock is cut and the door is opened, the rule is that each bidder has a few minutes to examine the contents visually as is without entering or touching anything. They will then decide whether they want to bid on the unit or pass it by. Those who bid hope to discover some hidden valuable items to offset their bid and make a profit. Of course, by today’s TV standards, so much of what is called entertainment involves making cutting personal remarks and there is plenty of that between the bidders. It sometimes gets heated and insulting and you wonder if a fistfight may follow. Even if they don’t want the unit, they often run up the bid out of spite making the other person pay more, which sometimes backfires on themselves.  After all the units have been auctioned the winning bidder will return with a truck, trailer, or a van to sort and empty the contents of the unit they bought. The film crew is there as the buyer picks and sorts the items while verbally estimating their value in terms of resale. The stuff that is worthless junk is thrown into a pile and the valuable items loaded up. I find it sad that everything in the unit was purchased new at some point and had value to someone. Discovering the unknown is what makes the show interesting. If they find something they don’t know what it is or its value, they will take it to an expert for appraisal. I recall one show where the unit was bought for less than $1,000, and they found a diamond ring that was appraised at $50,000. Often, they end up paying too much for a unit of junk and lose money. There are a few sayings that come to my mind at this point: “You can’t judge a book by it’s cover” “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder” “One man’s junk is another man’s treasure” “Let the buyer beware”.

My great grandfather played the fiddle and it got passed down to me. It was found in my grandfather’s closet after he died by my father. It was in rough shape, in pieces, and not much hope of it being played again. I took it to an instrument repair shop and asked them to do what they could to make it playable. They re-glued the top, reattached the neck, fitted a new bridge, added strings and re-haired the bow. I have basic skills in reading sheet music from when I played the clarinet in elementary school, so I bought a beginner’s book on playing the fiddle. At first it sounded like two cats fighting, but I was determined and would often practice several hours a day. That was over forty years ago. I never made it to Nashville and hit the big time (LOL). I mostly played for my own enjoyment. Today that fiddle and three others I acquired hang on my living room wall. It’s been years since I played any of them. They are positioned two on one side and two on the other and in between is a framed picture of the lyrics to the song The Touch of the Master’s Hand. It tells of an old battered violin that was up for bidding and the auctioneer was about to sell it for three dollars. Suddenly an old gray-haired man steps forward from the back of the crowd. He takes the violin, tightens the loose strings and bow, and begins to play out a pure sweet melody. Afterwards the auctioneer cries out, “Now what’ll you bid me for the old violin? $1,000, $2,000, now who’ll make it three?” When asked by the crowd what changed it’s worth the auctioneer replied, “It was the touch of the master’s hand.”

Whether you believe it or not there is a bidding war for your soul between God and Satan. However, God sets the rules. Picture for a moment that you are the stuff in an unclaimed storage unit, abandoned and locked away in darkness. The sin of Adam and Eve, being deceived by the devil, put you and all mankind there, shut the door and locked it. God demanded payment so He decides to auction off the storage unit. There is only one catch, it can’t be bought with silver, gold, or any other type of money. It can’t be bought by good works or religious sacrifices either. It must be purchased with pure, holy, and sinless blood from a man. The auction begins with all the angels and demons watching on intently. The devil mocks defiantly claiming all the stuff in the unit belongs to him. Then Jesus steps forward from the crowd. He alone is the only one qualified to bid being God’s son in the form of man and without sin. He proclaims, “I’m willing to pay the price and give my blood, and I don’t need to inspect the contents inside because all of it is valuable in my eyes.” God accepts His bid and instantly the lock on the door is shattered and it opens. You step out into the light and Jesus is standing there with His hand extended saying, “Come follow me.” Satan in a fit of rage shouts, “No, you belong to me!” Now you must decide who you belong to and who you will follow.

Jesus knew that the only way to redeem mankind from our sin was for Him to die and give His blood. The Bible says that for the joy that was set before Him, He endured the cross. The cross was the most torturous and painful form of death the Romans had. Yet, Jesus looked beyond the suffering knowing what His death was about to accomplish. As He proclaimed, “It is finished”, He gave up His spirit. Immediately the huge thick curtain in the temple blocking the most holy place where nobody but the high priest could enter was split down the middle signifying full access and reconciliation to God. Three days later Jesus came out of that tomb which couldn’t hold Him. Even though Jesus freed us from the penalty of sin, we all as individuals must choose to appropriate that forgiveness and grace He offers through faith, believing, and accepting Him as Savior. He doesn’t care what your past is because His love is unconditional. Maybe you feel like the battered old violin about to be auctioned off cheap to a thankless crowd, but give your life to Him and experience The Touch of the Master’s Hand.

P.S. – This writing motivated me to take my great grandfather’s fiddle off the wall, tune it up, and see if I could still play it. My neck got sore from holding it under my chin and my fingers were a little stiff. I stuck with it and within minutes the songs I knew from memory came back and it was like I hadn’t stopped playing for years. And, so it is with praying and reading God’s word, the Bible. How long has it been for you?