Vaults of Gold

I enjoyed a tour of the Bank of England this week. Although its boffins and officials currently have their minds excercised attempting to control our current outbreak of high inflation, the institution still allows visitors to inspect a small portion of the site. Part of its job is to store our national gold reserves, at least those which spendthrift governments did not decide to sell off. One of these gold bars is on public display, securely fastened while allowing a single hand to slide beneath it and feel its shiny, smooth surface. 

There are another 400,000 of these gold bars stored in the vaults, held on behalf of Her Majesty's Treasury, and 30 other central banks around the world. This is 5,134 tonnes' worth, and represents around 3% of the world’s mined gold, with an approximate value of £200 billion. This is a sight for sore eyes!

I cannot afford a new gold sovereign, much less an entire bar of this beautiful, yellow metal. Yet according to Peter (1:1:7), I already have something of far greater value:

…your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honour, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ (NKJV).

Today, Christian faith is reckoned cheap or worthless, but soon, its true value will be universally recognised. The day is coming when these gold molecules will melt in the fire of Christ’s coming, and faith in Him will be the only commodity all people will wish they had bought, and in which they had fully invested, while it was so still freely available.