The Inca Indians occupy large areas of land. Some of their land holdings are very suitable for growing wheat, corn and potatoes, while others are mountainous and suitable for grazing. Most own cattle, sheep and particularly goats; others pasture numbers of llamas, donkeys and mules.
The Government is the owner of the Inca's territory and imposes a tax upon each family to be paid yearly. This tax is obligatory. At the close of the year each head of the family must present himself before the Chief of the Tribe, called in their language a "Casique," to pay this yearly tax. The Casique is responsible to the Government for this money received, which is quite a large sum when all is collected. As the Indians usually pay in "billetes" or bills of small denominations, you can imagine the size of this amount. The Chief, therefore, has this amount carried by the Under-Chiefs to the nearest bank to be changed into bills of larger denominations. These then are delivered to the Chief of the Tribe, who orders such to be tightly bound into a bundle and duly dispatched to the Governor's office. He, in turn, remits this payment to what would be called in this country the Internal Revenue Service.
The missionary recounts the following story regarding the delivery on one occasion of this bundle of money, sent by the tribe he was working among with the Gospel. The Chief was saved, but no one knew whether or not the Under-Chief was saved.
The Chief carefully counted the money and made it up into a big bundle which he strapped to the Under-Chief's shoulders. The delivery of this money is always made at the close of each year when all the rivers are usually in flood. As there are very few bridges to cross the turbulent waters, the Under-Chief must carry "the treasure" on his back and wait for a suitable opportunity to wade across the river.
He arrived at a dangerous river of that region, not far from where the missionary lived. The water was bank to bank, so the Under-Chief had to wait a long time for the river to go down. That year it was more turbulent than usual and kept overflowing its banks. Because it was important to deliver the treasure at a certain time, the Under-Chief thought he would make an attempt to cross. At last he entered the river at a place he thought he could make it without wetting the bundle tied to his back. But alas, before he was able to get across, the floods came down stronger than ever. It was too deep and too strong for him to keep his balance. Those murky waters closed over him, and he was drowned and swept away.
News reached the Indians that their Under-Chief had been drowned. What a calamity! Search was made for his body, but what about the treasure? All was lost! The Chief notified the Governor of their loss, assuring him they would do what they could to replace it.
One day a man noticed the naked body of an Indian miles down the river on the bank among the rocks and timber. It was the Under-Chief. The raging torrent had beaten his body against the rocks and his clothes were torn off his back, but upon examining the body more carefully, the man noticed that in his left hand was a bundle which his hand was still firmly clasping. In death he had closed his hand on the bundle and the treasure was preserved!
The Chief came and intervened. He had the money dried and delivered to the Governor as quickly as possible. He arranged for his Under-Chief to have a suitable funeral and burial. Those who knew Christ as their Savior hoped that during the struggle with the waters he had accepted Christ as his Savior.
The Lord has entrusted "a treasure" to us. Are we keeping it? In 1 Sam. 31 God tells us "the Word of the Lord was precious in those days." The apostle Paul writes to Timothy, saying, "O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust" (1 Tim. 6:2020O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called: (1 Timothy 6:20)).
In Rev. 3:8,108I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name. (Revelation 3:8)
10Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth. (Revelation 3:10) & 11, the Lord gives a wonderful promise to those who keep His Word: "Thou hast a little strength, and hast kept My Word, and hast not denied My Name.... because thou hast kept the Word of My patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth. Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown."