Return on Investment (ROI) is a metric used to understand the profitability of an investment. ROI compares how much you paid for an investment to how much you earned to evaluate its efficiency.
Jesus gave very weighty answers to His disciples there on the Mount of Olives, directly opposite the temple to the east across the Kidron Valley. In speaking of the buildings of the temple, Jesus told them “Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down.” The disciples then asked, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” At that point, Jesus proceeded to answer, in what is called the Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24-25, Mark 13, and Luke 21:5-36). All the investment of time and money in these buildings went up in smoke in A.D. 70. Beyond this event, the tribulation is coming when there will be “wars and rumors of wars . . . famines, pestilence, and earthquakes in various places.”
Jesus uses the parable of the fig tree in discussing the timing of all these events. “Now learn this parable from the fig tree: When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near–at the doors! . . . Heaven and earth will pass away ” (Matt. 24:32-33,35a). Now, that is a big deal! All investments in heaven and earth will be lost. Or will they? As we are here on this earth, we can invest in something that will never be destroyed. Jesus concluded this parable by stating emphatically, “but My words will by no means pass away.” (Matt 24:35, Mark 13:31, and Luke 21:33 are exactly the same) What an investment!
Other Scriptures carry a similar message. Here are two others:
— “Forever, O LORD, Your word is settled in heaven.” (Psalm 119:89)
— “So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:11)
Today, while preparing this lesson, I got a text from a friend of mine in Minnesota who gives out lettered Bible verses from our church bulletins as he delivers oxygen to customers at their homes. He uses these verses as a starting point to give out the Gospel. An 80 year old customer just recently accepted Christ as a result of the John 14:6 print! He is excited to give a Bridge tract to his girlfriend and explain the Gospel to her. (This is a great time to remind us all to place our unused bulletins in the box in the foyer so they can be trimmed and packaged to give out to others.)
James and Linda Potter can tell you the wonderful ROI in giving out Gideon Bibles. Dakota and Laura Lynch of Scripture Memory Fellowship can give similar testimony as they help folks memorize and meditate on God’s Word. Our time reading, studying, memorizing, meditating, and giving out God’s Word is NEVER in vain. Let’s be encouraged to invest time, effort, and money into God’s Word!