selling your soul – La Vista Church of Christ

I’m worried about selling my soul

Jeffrey Hamilton — Sat, 04 Jul 2020 20:20:52 +0000

Question:

I have a question for you. Over the past couple of weeks I have these thoughts that keep coming into my mind about selling my soul. I would never do that because I love Jesus and I want to live through him. Yesterday, I had these thoughts and said "Nobody will never sell their soul". I don't know if I sold the souls of everybody in the world or not. I prayed many times since then and said I never meant to say what I said. I have been worried sick about this, and I just want to know if I sold everybody's soul or if I am just overreacting.

I have seen some people say you can't sell your soul so I thought that since I can't sell my own soul how could I sell somebody else's. But I keep on having these thoughts that I did, and I am just really worried about it. Am I overreacting or not?

Thank you.

Answer:

Upon what passage did you come to the conclusion that a person can sell his soul? My guess is that you don't know of one. You just heard other people talking about something like this and just assumed it was true. From there you imagined that it would be possible for one person to sell another person's soul and you concluded that it could be done simply by you thinking it or saying it. Take the emotions out of it and tell me if you believe this is logical thinking.

There is a biblical idea of "selling yourself" to do evil. In speaking of King Ahab, we read, "So Ahab said to Elijah, 'Have you found me, O my enemy?' And he answered, 'I have found you, because you have sold yourself to do evil in the sight of the LORD'" (I Kings 21:20). In order to gain Naboth's vineyard, Ahab was willing to give away his honor and dignity as king solely to possess a piece of property. The king's duty was to uphold the law, but he broke the law and thus sinned against Naboth, his fellow countrymen, and the Lord God. He paid for his sin with his honor and dignity. Ahab has been known throughout history as one of the most corrupt kings Israel ever had.

A person doesn't sell himself to do evil by stating something. He does it when he gives up his righteousness in order to sin. That is why the Bible depicts sin as a form of slavery. "Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one's slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?" (Romans 6:16).

But notice that each person sells himself to sin. You can't sell another person into sin. Everyone is responsible for his own sins. "The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not bear the guilt of the father, nor the father bear the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself" (Ezekiel 18:20).

You are letting your emotions and your imaginations run wild. You are not considering what God actually said. Instead, you are putting your own thoughts above God. It is past time to humble yourself and listen to the truth.

Question:

Could you explain to me what Mark 8:36-37 says? "What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?" (Mark 8:36). This is the only passage that I could find, and when I looked up about if you can sell your soul. This is what I found that the people who say that you can use.

Thank you for answering my questions.

Answer:

"And He summoned the crowd with His disciples, and said to them, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul? For what will a man give in exchange for his soul?" (Mark 8:34-37).

The topic at hand is a person's devotion to God and the priority that must be placed on following God. If some one desires to follow Jesus, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Jesus. Even a person’s own life must take second place after Jesus and the teaching of the Gospel. If a person values his mortal life above Jesus, he might be able to preserve it for a while, but he will lose his eternal life.

And of what value is it to have great wealth, even to the point of owning the whole world, if eternal life is forfeited (lost) as a result? The statement is in figurative terms. After all, what person has ever owned the entire world? Thus, we realize that Jesus is using hyperbole -- making a point by stating things in the extreme. Thus, Jesus' point is that your soul is not a barterable item. The entire world is not equal to the value of your soul.

So many people chase after material things and the pleasures of this world and give no thought to what they are doing to their ability to gain eternal life. Thus, like Ahab, they sold themselves to do sin (I Kings 21:20). This passage does not say you "sell yourself" by stating something. It does not teach what you are claiming.

Can I be saved after selling my soul?

Jeffrey Hamilton — Sat, 07 Feb 2015 20:45:00 +0000

Question:

I read the article about selling your soul. It makes me feel better but I am concerned still. As a child, I was saved. But I signed a contract in blood denouncing Christ forever almost a year ago. I was a dedicated Satanist. I was angry at God for my parents' behavior (alcoholism and promiscuity). But since then I've gone to church with a friend and am part of a youth group. Am I really still saved? Is it too late for me? Am I going to hell?

Answer:

Truth is defined by God, not by people, and definitely not by Satan. "Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth" (John 17:17). So where does God say that people cannot change? I know of no such statement. Instead, I find:

"But if a wicked man turns from all his sins which he has committed, keeps all My statutes, and does what is lawful and right, he shall surely live; he shall not die. None of the transgressions which he has committed shall be remembered against him; because of the righteousness which he has done, he shall live. "Do I have any pleasure at all that the wicked should die?" says the Lord GOD, "and not that he should turn from his ways and live?" But when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and does according to all the abominations that the wicked man does, shall he live? All the righteousness which he has done shall not be remembered; because of the unfaithfulness of which he is guilty and the sin which he has committed, because of them he shall die" (Ezekiel 18:21-24).

Bad people can become good. Good people can become bad. When God judges a person, He looks at who that person is and not at who he was.

Your "contract" was worthless. It held no meaning and had no value. It was an imaginary piece of nonsense meant to convince foolish people to not even try to change.

I do find your reasoning for chasing after Satanism interestingly odd. You were mad that your parents violated God's laws, so in retribution, you decided to become a worse sinner? And you blamed God for this? Wasn't it God who defined what your parents were doing as wrong?

Now, in regards to salvation, I can't answer that because I don't know if you have been following God's teachings on the matter or not. I do know that most places don't teach the full truth about salvation for a variety of reasons. However, these articles should explain the matter and give you passages to go read, so you can see for yourself what is needed:

Question:

As far as my parents are concerned, everything was fine for a long time and then it all went bad so quickly. My father threatened to kill my mom and take me away. I often asked: "How could you let this happen?" I hated my parents and the Lord. I know it doesn't make much sense. It didn't really make sense to me either.

Answer:

I understand. When your world is turned upside down, it is hard to know where to stand. I wanted to point out how far you've come. You know can look back and see that you weren't thinking correctly back then. You blamed God for sins that He is actively trying to rescue people from committing. Now you know the real problem is Satan and how he lured your parents away from the Creator who loved them.

Response:

Thank you so much, Mr. Hamilton. It means a lot that you pointed that out. Thank you for the clarity. This makes me so happy and hopeful.

I can’t get the idea of “selling my soul to the devil” out of my head

Jeffrey Hamilton — Sun, 23 Sep 2012 18:25:00 +0000

Question:

I am not a Christian, but I was just reading for curiosity about selling your soul to the devil. I came across your website in which someone mentioned thinking about 'selling their soul to get a video tutorial working' and they thought they sold their soul. I already have religious OCD, and now I can't get the thought of 'selling my soul to the devil' out of my head.

I cannot tell this to anyone because I'm too embarrassed. I see anything insignificant, not worth even thinking about, which I could do anyway, and I think, "I would sell my soul to the devil for that." And then get scared and continue my sentence with, "never ever."

Can you please tell me what to do? I really don't want to do anything of the sort. Please help me! Thanks.

Answer:

It sounds like you focused on the question and never really looked at the answer. When the Bible talks about "selling yourself" it is not talking about making a bargain with the devil as you take it. It means a person who gives himself over to sin. Satan may make it look as if we must sin to get what we desire, but it is we who volunteer to sin.

The problem is that all people sin, "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). That is why God had to rescue us from sin; we easily get ourselves tangled into sin, but we can't extract ourselves. Therefore, the problem isn't unique to you. It is a global problem -- but one that was given a global solution -- and one that you have not yet taken advantage of. See: What Must I Do to Be Saved? for more information.

Response:

Jeffrey,

Thank you so much. You really freed me from unnecessary worry. I'm very grateful!

Can you sell your soul?

Jeffrey Hamilton — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 01:37:00 +0000

Question:

I was on my computer about a while ago trying to load a video tutorial. However, it wasn't working well and I was getting irritated. I then thought to myself "God get this working...even Satan get this working. I would sell my soul to get this working."

Upon having that thought, I immediately got really scared. I shut my eyes and told myself, "The devil is not the way. He only leads to pain, death, and damnation." I tried to shake the thought off, but I was scared to death I had sold my soul, and that when I die I can only go to hell. For days after I kept asking myself why I had that thought, but couldn't seem to come to an answer, and I went into a deep depression.

I talked about this with my mom, brother, my pastor, a co-worker, and even a Christian counselor, and they all say I have nothing to worry about. The counselor (who is also a pastor) basically told me what I did was wrong, but it was basically I lapsed in thought and judgment, and that I shouldn't worry because God forgives all sins and that it isn't possible to sell your soul to the devil. After talking with him I felt better. I confessed my sin to God for having a really bad thought and that I was sorry, but then I read something in the Bible that made me afraid all over again.

Then Jesus said to His disciples. "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his own soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?" (Matthew 16:24-26).

After reading this I feel that this shows your soul can be sold, and I am afraid I can't be forgiven. I don't mean to question God's power, I just look at it like this. Please pardon the analogy. Every person has a soul just like every car has an engine. When the engine has something is broken (a sin on one's soul) the engine gets fixed by a mechanic (a person confesses their sins to God). However, if there is no engine in the car there is nothing to be fixed.

I know this is a lot to take in, but I just want to stop being afraid. I feel terrible for thinking such an awful thought. So I would like to know what your take is on that Bible passage, and if I can be forgiven for what I have done. If I did sell my soul, I am more than willing to confess and ask for forgiveness. I am just confused and scared about this whole situation.

Answer:

The Bible doesn't speak of selling your soul to the devil in a direct fashion. However, in speaking of King Ahab, we read, "So Ahab said to Elijah, "Have you found me, O my enemy?" And he answered, "I have found you, because you have sold yourself to do evil in the sight of the LORD"" (I Kings 21:20). In order to gain Naboth's vineyard, Ahab was willing to give away his honor and dignity as king solely to possess a piece of property. The king's duty was to uphold the law, but he broke the law and thus sinned against Naboth, his fellow countrymen, and the Lord God.

Ahab did not sell himself all at once. In a sense, he mortgaged his soul bit by bit. When Ahab was made king, he continued the sins of Jeroboam by promoting the idol worship that Jeroboam created (I Kings 16:30-33). Next, he married a non-Israelite who worshiped the idols Baal and Asheroth. He even established temples for these idols, and worship there himself. It is not that Ahab totally abandoned God, but God became just one of many gods that Ahab worshiped. "But there was no one like Ahab who sold himself to do wickedness in the sight of the LORD, because Jezebel his wife stirred him up. And he behaved very abominably in following idols, according to all that the Amorites had done, whom the LORD had cast out before the children of Israel" (I Kings 21:25-26).

In a sense, each time you sin you sell yourself to the devil. In other words, in exchange for the momentary pleasure of sin you are willing to place yourself into slavery to serve the desires of Satan. "Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one's slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?" (Romans 6:16). Each time you sin, you put chains on. "His own iniquities entrap the wicked man, and he is caught in the cords of his sin" (Proverbs 5:22). It is slavery where you voluntarily sell yourself to the slave master. "For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin" (Romans 7:14). Worse, when it comes time to "collect" what we have bought, we discover that all we truly have purchased is death. "For the wages of sin is death" (Romans 6:26).

This is why God speaks of salvation as an act of redemption. Redemption is to buy something back that had been previously sold. "And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one's work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear; knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot" (I Peter 1:17-19). God is willing to buy us back, not because of any obligation on His part, but simply because He loves us and wants to do so. To take advantage of that offer to purchase us back, God only asks us to do a few simple things which demonstrate our willingness to serve Him. "But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. I speak in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves of uncleanness, and of lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves of righteousness for holiness" (Romans 6:17-19). See the article "The Living Redeemer" for greater details on this topic.

The biggest mistake you are making is assuming that anything you say or think is permanent. Even Ahab could have left his sins behind and returned to God, but he was so far into sin that he didn't care. He wanted what he thought Satan was offering, never realizing it wasn't worth the purchase price. That is what Jesus was saying. "For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?" (Matthew 16:26). If you gained the whole world, you could not buy your soul back with it because you are more valuable than that. "None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him -- for the redemption of their souls is costly" (Psalms 49:7-8). That is why God gave the highest price for you. "Knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot" (I Peter 1:18-19).

And you think you can give yourself away, beyond the redemption price of Jesus' blood, by a single, foolish, sinful thought?

Selling Yourself

Jeffrey Hamilton — Sun, 28 Nov 2010 23:25:00 +0000

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2005/07/SellingYourself.mp3

Text: I Kings 21:1-26

I. Have you heard the old phrase that someone had sold his soul to the Devil?

A. Unfortunately, it is not just some mythological idea. It has some biblical basis.

B. Elijah, in I Kings 21:20, accuses Ahab of selling himself when he took possession of Naboth’s vineyard.

1. Notice though that Ahab did not murder the man. He did not even order the man’s death.

2. However, he allowed his wife to “take care of the problem.”

3. When he learned how the problem was solved, he did accepted possession of the land anyway.

C. Ahab sold away his honor and his dignity as king just to own a piece of property. He gravely sinned against Naboth, his country, and God by not upholding the law.

II. Ahab did not reach this miserable state all at once. You could say Ahab mortgaged his soul and made payments bit by bit throughout his life.

A. I Kings 16:30-33

1. When Ahab was made king, he continued the sins of Jeroboam.

a. Jeroboam did not want the Israelites going to Jerusalem to worship. Jerusalem was a part of the Southern Kingdom, not his kingdom.

b. Jeroboam established two centers of idol worship within his kingdom and used ex-priests of God to operate them.

2. But this was nothing to Ahab’s next payment on his soul, he married a non-Israelite who worshiped the idols Baal and Asheroth.

a. He even established temples for these idols, and worship there himself.

b. It is not that Ahab totally abandoned God, but God became just one of many gods that Ahab worshiped.

3. We don’t realize the danger of mixed religious marriages.

a. It is true, that some marriages work out in the end, but most cause a child of God to leave the faith.

b. Abraham would not let Isaac marry the unbelievers in his area.

c. During the times of the Judges - Ps 106:33-39

d. Solomon strayed because of his idolatrous wives - I Kings 11:1-8

e. The wisest man was brought down by those whom he married - Neh 13:23-27

4. Paul warns about committing ourselves to non-believers - II Cor 6:14-7:1

a. Some say, that Paul is not talking about marriage here, but they are wrong.

b. Paul is talking more than just marriages here.

c. Anytime we commit ourselves in a relationship that causes us to compromise our values, there is a danger for the Christian, whether it is a business relationship or a marriage covenant.

5. It happens so often. Why do we think we are immune?

B. Therefore, Ahab sold himself, making another payment with his soul, by doing the evil his wife incited him to do - I Kings 21:25-26

C. Finally, Ahab went so far as to allow a murder to happen in his name, just for a place to plant his vegetables!

III. People don’t realize the power of sin

A. Too many treat sin like a cookie – I’ll only eat just this one.

B. Sin is progressive. It starts small and builds up.

C. Sin is a fetter that will not let you go

1. Pr 5:22 - Our sins hold us in bondage

2. Rom 7:14 - Our yielding to sin, sells us into slavery

3. John 8:34 - We become slaves of sin.

D. Far too many people don’t care. They push the envelope to see how much they can get away with.

1. Isa 50:1 - When we insist, God gives us up and sells us to our sins

2. Rom 1:22-32 - As society decades, God allows us to move farther and farther into sin.

E. What is unfortunate is that Satan gets a bargain when we sell ourselves to sin.

1. Isa 52:1-3 - Unlike the prostitute, most sinners do not profit from the sale. Sure they gain a moments pleasure, but then it is gone.

IV. But God in His mercy wants to buy us back – and He will do it at no cost

A. Isa 50:2 - We sold ourselves into slavery, but God is willing to purchase us back.

B. It didn’t cost us anything, but it doesn’t mean the price was cheap.

C. God payed the redemption price with the life of His own Son - Eph 1:7-8

D. Can you understand the value that God places on the souls of you and me? - I Peter 1:18-19

E. We become the possession of God - Tit 2:14

V. We have sold ourselves into sin, but God has loved us so much that He has paid a price beyond imagining for our souls. Will you not leave your sins behind and be washed in the precious blood of the Lamb?

If you sell yourself to the devil, is this an unforgivable sin?

Jeffrey Hamilton — Fri, 14 Jul 2006 22:22:15 +0000

Question:

I had a question after reading some of your site. You say it is possible to sell your soul to the devil. So is that an example of a sin that is unforgivable by God? And even if it is forgivable does the devil now own your soul anyway so you are still going to hell? So that person would not even be judged, or the judgment wouldn't matter?

Answer:

There is a distinct difference between unforgiven sin and an unforgivable sin. An unforgiven sin could, in theory, be forgiven but the person needing forgiveness has not taken any action to change his ways and ask God for forgiveness. This is what John spoke about in I John 5:16-17. See the article "A Sin Leading to Death" for more details. An unforgivable sin cannot be forgiven -- not because God is unable to forgive but because the nature of the sin is such that it indicates the person is never going to repent and ask for forgiveness. This is what Jesus spoke of in Matthew 12:31-32.

Everyone will be judged, no matter what sins they have sold themselves to commit. "Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad" (II Corinthians 5:9-10). There is no exception to this rule. Each one of us will see on Judgment Day that God's sentence for or against us is given with absolute fairness and justice.

Question:

Thanks for the great answer. So selling your soul to the devil isn't actually saying it and receiving something, but by not accepting Jesus?

Answer:

Selling your soul is purchasing what the Devil is offering -- sin. Even people who have accepted Jesus can at some later point resell themselves to Satan. "For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame" (Hebrews 6:4-6). This is one of those cases where a person becomes unforgivable because he has rejected the redemption of Christ.

Question:

How do you know if you have done this unforgivable act?

Answer:

You would know because such a person won't go back. Jesus said, "Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it" (Matthew 7:13-14). There is only one way to be saved, but that hasn't stopped a number of people from trying to find their own way into heaven, which will never work. "Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12).

Question:

So if you go back are you forgiven?

Personally, I've believed in God my whole life, although I haven't gone to church too often recently. Although there was a period when I didn't believe 100% that Jesus was the literal son of God, I always sort of did. I am 26 years old and recently have been thinking my life was empty and have become a true believer again, and I have been trying to learn a lot more about the Bible. Is this a situation where it is impossible to go back?

Answer:

It is not impossible for you to return. You see that you need to go back. A person who rejects Christ doesn't see any need to return. He is positive he is fine just as he is.

But I wonder if you have gotten as far as you think you did, both before and now. You mention that you believe in Jesus, but your description of yourself is a half-hearted belief. "But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him" (Hebrews 11:6). Many people are able to accept that God exists, that He is, but fewer really, truly believe that God is going to judge their lives and reward those who are diligently faithful. I say this because their actions don't match their words.

James discusses this at length. "What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, "Depart in peace, be warmed and filled," but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, "You have faith, and I have works." Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe--and tremble! But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness." And he was called the friend of God. You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only. Likewise, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way? For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also" (James 2:14-26). Mere words are not faith. Faith is demonstrated in how a person lives their life.

This is why Jesus said, "If you love Me, keep My commandments" (John 14:15). Unfortunately, people claim to love God and to love Jesus, but they will only do so on their own terms. They don't bother finding out what God wants but instead, will assume that whatever they choose to do God will accept.

For example, when you decided to accept Jesus, did you really make any changes in your life? We all sin (Romans 3:23), so I'm sure you have been involved in things that you know God doesn't approve. Did you stop before? Are you making corrections now? Or are you excusing your behavior and staying the course because you hope that your belief in Jesus is going to make everything all right? "I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish" (Luke 13:3).