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Who'll  Take  the  Son?

 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.

--author unknown--  

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