What is the most valuable commodity in the universe? There are as many opinions as there are people. Perhaps the best way to judge the value of something for a given person is to consider what they do. This is a far more reliable indicator than what they say. Each of us has resources. Some of us have a lot. Some of us have very little. But, for all of us, the universe of what we want is much bigger than the universe of what we have in terms of resources. This is a simple truth that every child learns before kindergarten. In spite of what the influencers tell us……..we cannot “have it all”.
And so we prioritize. Some things we pursue. Other things we let go. For each of us, at the top of the pyramid of our desires, there is one thing that we would trade everything else for. For each of us, that thing is the most valuable commodity in the universe. For each of us, that thing is our primary appetite.
A brief and incomplete list of candidates:
Career
Money
Prestige
Power
A big house
A nice car
Land
A rare collectible
Sex
Recreational drugs/alcohol…….addiction
Thrills
If you sort through the people that you have encountered, you can probably name someone who is pursuing something on this list. In my life, I have spent time pursuing several of these things……..not all of them……..but some.
Because of our limited resources and the reality of prioritization, there are things that we neglect in order to pursue our primary appetite. In my life, I went through a phase that I think of as my “empire building phase.” During this phase, I doggedly pursued some of the things at the top of the list. In the process, I didn’t take care of my family as well as I should have. From where I stand today at age 73, I can see that my primary appetite was misplaced. The “most valuable thing” was not on my list…….not even on my radar. I succeeded in my career. But, my family paid a price…….and so did I.
I am now convinced that the most valuable commodity in the universe……the thing that I failed to pursue for years………is love.
This should come as no surprise. Each of us is created in the image of God. Love is God’s defining characteristic. The need to love and be loved is written on our hearts. It was put there by our creator. Any time that we give some other appetite priority over love, we do harm. We harm others. We harm ourselves.
It is no accident that the core commands of the Bible and of Christianity deal with love:
Love God
Love everyone else
Even within the category of love, we must prioritize.
First….love God
Then……love everyone else
It is not hard to find, among Christians, someone who has given other ideas…….other commands……..priority over love.
But, the appetites of others are not my primary concern. I will deal with those appetites after I have perfected love in my life.
And I have a long way to go.
“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
Jesus summarizing Christianity in Mathew 22: 37-40, ESV
“What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor: that is the whole Torah; the rest is commentary; go and learn it”
Hillel, the elder