The Devil’s Favorite Adages (Part 3)

#3. Don’t Put All Your Eggs In One Basket

This is an adage that rings true in many aspects of life.  For example, in the financial world, a counselor would encourage you to “diversify” your investments, because if you were to put all of your proverbial “eggs” in a single basket and that basket happened to break, you would loose everything.

This adage also happens to be one of the devil’s favorites.  He advises many people to diversify their lives into many different hands.  God’s “basket” is just one of the many choices.  There is also the doctor’s basket, the lawyer’s basket, the psychologist’s basket, the basket of education, the basket of relationships, the basket of religion and the basket of occupation.  The Devil doesn’t mind if we go to church on Sunday morning so long as we don’t put too many eggs in God’s basket.  We have become very good at compartmentalizing our lives so that if it turns out that God is a myth, well we wouldn’t be much worse off anyways.

But my friends this is not what God requires.  Christianity is all or nothing.  Jesus said, “Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.” You’ll never meet someone who has experienced crucifixion because no one ever lived to tell the story.  When a man picks up a cross, at the same moment he lays his whole life down.  Crucifixion demands everything…even the breath in your lungs.  This is what Jesus was saying; if you want to follow me you’ll have to put all your eggs in my basket and give me your whole life.

When Jesus called Peter and Andrew to follow him the Bible says that “They immediately left their nets and followed Him.” (Mat 4:20)  Fishing was their profession, their livelihood, and their source of financial security.  I think that most of us would have put those nets in storage just in case the whole ‘following Jesus’ thing didn’t work out.  But when Jesus came to Peter and Andrew he essentially said, “boys…if you want to follow me, you have to put all your eggs in my basket”, and they did.

It has become proverbial that in the face of danger a hen will gather her chicks under her wings and protect them with her very life.  Often after a terrible fire someone will find the body of a hen burnt to a crisp; charred and singed, but hear noise coming from it’s body.  When they move the carcass they will discover a bunch of little chicks safe and alive underneath.

The Bible tells us that Jesus wept over Israel saying, “Jerusalem, Jerusalem…many times I yearned to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were unwilling!”  Jerusalem had been offered a safe haven, a strong tower, a fortress of protection under the wings of her Messiah, but she refused to put their eggs in His basket preferring to trust in other things that all eventually failed her.

Science is constantly being revised as new discoveries are made.  One day you will be encouraged to take a particular supplement or eat a certain food and the next day you will be warned to avoid said substances.  Doctors are sued for malpractice everyday and they bury their mistakes.  Psychologists have abnormally high suicide rates.  Banks plead for government bailouts while Kingdoms collapse and disappear overnight.  Yet somehow so many people feel more comfortable putting their lives in these baskets than in the one basket that is tried and true.  It has never failed, broken or spilled.  Generations of men and women throughout the ages of history have boldly attested to God’s utter faithfulness and reliability.  The Lord says, in Isaiah 28:16, “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a tested stone, A costly cornerstone for the foundation, firmly placed. He who believes in it will not be disturbed.”  God’s “basket” is Jesus and His wings are spread for you.  He says, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” (Mat 11:28)

If you want peace of mind, ignore the old adage and put all of your eggs into ONE basket…God’s basket.