No, this isn’t a post about what is often termed the “Prosperity Gospel” by the TV preachers who think they need a new jet. The title comes from the half-human, half-Vulcan character, Mr. Spock, of Star Trek fame. The phrase, “Live long and prosper” was offered by Mr. Spock and other Vulcans to express good wishes and long life, rather than simply using the rather-mundane-by-comparison, “Good-bye” or “See you later”.
While Mr. Spock didn’t necessarily intend the word “prosper”
as a prayer for material gain for those departing, the word DOES conjure images
of monetary increase for most of us.
With that in mind, I present this short financial exercise for our
enlightenment:
Suppose you deposit $10,000 in a bank account earning 4%
compounding interest (don’t you wish!) at age 20. You leave the account untouched, allowing the
interest to accumulate. At age 30, you
would have earned $4,918 in interest,
plus your original deposit. But what if
you leave it for another 10 years? From
age 30 to 40, you’d add another $7,336
in interest. Another decade, from 40 to
50 adds an additional $10, 945. Wow. One
more 10-year term, from age 50 to 60 increases your total by $16,327, meaning the value of your
original $10,000 deposit is now worth $49,526.
What I hope you take away from the illustration is that the
interest earned on the original investment increases dramatically over
time. You would have earned more than 3x
the interest in the 4th decade than in the first. That’s the power of compounding interest.
So, what if we apply the same principle to our lives as Followers
of Jesus? Let’s say you give your life
to Christ at age 20 and commit to following Him. You serve faithfully, accomplishing what you
can for a decade. Then another. And another. And finally, a fourth decade of service. While you may believe you become increasingly
LESS valuable to the kingdom as you age, I’d like to submit that your knowledge
of the Word and your walk with Christ is like compounding interest. Every year you serve Christ has the potential
to yield an ever-increasing benefit to the Kingdom! Because of your faithfulness, you become
potentially more valuable for kingdom causes.
Can I support that idea in Scripture? Let’s look at this familiar passage and
perhaps see it with new eyes:
3 He told
many stories in the form of parables, such as this one:
“Listen!
A farmer went out to plant some seeds. 4 As he
scattered them across his field, some seeds fell on a footpath, and the birds
came and ate them. 5 Other seeds fell on shallow
soil with underlying rock. The seeds sprouted quickly because the soil was
shallow. 6 But the plants soon wilted under the hot
sun, and since they didn’t have deep roots, they died. 7 Other
seeds fell among thorns that grew up and choked out the tender plants. 8 Still
other seeds fell on fertile soil, and they
produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had
been planted! 9 Anyone with ears to hear should
listen and understand.” Matthew 13:3-9
There you have the often-preached “Parable of the Sower”. We learn later in the chapter that the seed
is the Word of God, and we’re reminded that not every seed will fall on fertile,
prepared soil. But when the seed DOES
bear fruit, there can be a significant difference in crop yield – some 30x,
some 60x, and some even 100x. Did you
ever wonder what makes the difference?
Have you ever been encouraged by your pastor to be a 100x believer?
Remember the illustration about compounding interest? Remember that the longer the investment
remains, the greater the return. Isn’t
it possible that the key to understanding
the different yields in the Parable is based on LONGEVITY? When we come to a saving knowledge of Christ’s
sacrifice for us and yield our lives to Him, we begin to earn “interest”. The longer we serve our Savior, the greater
the return on our account. So it pays
(for the Kingdom) to have you serve well, serve faithfully, and serve as long
as you can!
I know Spock didn’t have anything spiritual in mind when he
spoke the title’s words in the TV show and subsequent movies. But I do.
Live long and prosper. Because God wants you to for His glory and His Kingdom.
Jacob
