Stunned, an expert from the fine art company called Agnews, based in London, held the sketch in his hands. He recognized the distinct signature. The paper felt like the quality of paper used in the early sixteenth century. The quality of craftsmanship was superb. Could it be that he was holding a 500-year-old masterpiece in his hands?
The man who had asked him to come to his home and look at the sketch had purchased it along with some other art prints two years before at an estate sale. He paid $30 for a stack of them. At the time he thought it was a quality reproduction of an original piece of art. Then a couple of years after he had bought it, something about the sketch bothered him so much he decided to get it checked out by an expert.
The art expert later said of the moment he saw it, “It was either the greatest forgery I have ever seen — or a masterpiece.”
They had the piece of art checked out by other art experts. They all agreed the sketch was an original piece of art from the early sixteenth century by the renowned Renaissance artist, Albrecht Dürer. These experts also estimated the value of the sketch as upwards of $50 million dollars.
The subject of the sketch was the virgin Mary holding the baby Jesus while sitting in a grassy field.
The sketch bought for $30 was a genuine masterpiece worth a fortune. This meant the man who bought it would pass from very modest means to becoming extraordinarily wealthy.
True Rags to Riches
Wouldn’t it be great if everybody at least once in their lives could make a “Rags to Riches” discovery? Well, the good news is that by God’s grace they can!
Each one of us can make a discovery that has the power to utterly transform our lives from poverty to riches. This discovery has to do with the subject of the Albrecht Dürer sketch. In the sketch the virgin Mary is holding the baby Jesus.
The Bible gives an account of the miraculous birth of Jesus. It says that an angel appeared to Mary when she was engaged to Joseph and said, “Behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call His name JESUS” (Luke 1:3131And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. (Luke 1:31)).
Mary in a remarkable act of faith answered, “Be it unto me according to thy word” (Luke 1:3838And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her. (Luke 1:38)). Nine months later she gave birth to a baby boy. The baby grew up and was obedient to His parents in everything. The family lived in obscurity in the hill country of Judea. He grew up learning the skills of a carpenter in Joseph’s shop. He never went to a university. At the age of 30, He began a public ministry.
He went up and down the countryside of Israel preaching the kingdom of God. Great crowds hung on every word He said. His words had the power to ignite the love of God in His hearers’ hearts. He healed the sick, lame and deaf, and He even raised the dead. Then after 3½ years of public ministry, He was betrayed, condemned unjustly and crucified.
Before His crucifixion, He clearly foretold the suffering He was to experience. He was slain on a cross, and His dead body was laid in a grave. But death, which has an absolute hold over the rest of mankind, couldn’t hold Him. Three days later, by the power of God, He arose from the grave.
The baby that once sat on His mother’s lap had grown up, died and then miraculously come back to life. He showed Himself alive to His disciples for 40 days before ascending into heaven. What’s more, He promised in the future to return and judge the world in righteousness.
This in a nutshell is the life of the Lord Jesus. It’s the story of God the Son coming to the world in human flesh to redeem mankind. It is the story of God’s supernatural intervention so that all can come to know and adore Him.
God wants to have the truth of the gospel presented to every man and woman. Those who hear Him, believe and repent undergo a rags-to-riches transformation. They pass from the poverty of living in sin’s darkness and condemnation to forgiveness, pardon, acceptance and life. “Ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that ye through His poverty might be rich” (2 Corinthians 8:99For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich. (2 Corinthians 8:9)).
It is absolutely necessary for sinners to be justified — declared right in the eyes of a holy God — in order to make it into heaven. “Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this Man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: and by Him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses” (Acts 13:38-3938Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: 39And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses. (Acts 13:38‑39)).
Without faith in Christ, men and women are living in a state of condemnation by God, and if they die in this state, they will pass into an eternity of abject suffering and misery in hell.
The expert was stunned when he picked up the sketch and saw what looked like an original Albrecht Dürer piece of art, and the man who had bought the art for $30 was even more astounded when he found out he could sell it for the fabulous sum of $50,000,000. How much more should each one of us be astonished at the great love God has for us in that He gave His Son to die for our sins?
Fifty million dollars is a lot of money, but it will be worth as much as the dust on the soles of your shoes when God judges the hearts of men. Only faith in the Lord Jesus delivers us from the death and condemnation our sins deserve. It truly has the power to make us rich for eternity!
The story of Christ coming into the world and giving His life on the cross for sinners is a masterpiece worthy of our God who is infinite in love, wisdom and power. It is such a masterpiece that all should bow down and worship God because of it.
It is no forgery or invention of men. What a mistake people make when they think so. Little do they realize they have treasure at their fingertips. In this life all they have to do is to repent and believe in Christ to gain the incredible gift of eternal life. After death, there’s no chance they will ever be given that opportunity again.
The gospel is God’s plan of salvation for lost sinners. Won’t you believe it and come to know God’s love? “I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ; for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believe[s]” (Romans 1:1616For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. (Romans 1:16)). It’s the greatest discovery any person could ever make in his or her lifetime.
Two-Thousand-Year-Old Wine tells more of how good God really is.