Ten cities for ten pounds (or ten minas). Ten units of currency worth about three- or four-months wages in those days. What a reward! What a tremendous benefit for him – vastly, vastly greater than the original investment. When you invest that bit of understanding and awareness you have; when you come to understand the way of salvation, the way of pardon and forgiveness; when you invest that, you find Christ, not because of any goodness of yours. You are only investing the knowledge that he gives you and the message that he gives you. It's all Christ and what he's done on Calvary that earns salvation for us.
It would be wrong to say that the ten cities stand for anything in particular, but just as the ten cities are the reward for the ten pounds, there are at least ten things that you receive from Christ when you invest this knowledge. First of all you get forgiveness for all your sin. All your sin and guilt is blotted out and God will not hold it against you because you are Christ's and you trust in him.
Secondly you have a new nature. The old nature is dealt a mortal blow and pushed into the background, and you have a new nature given you. It is a new wholesome nature. No longer are you dominated by pride, there's a new humility put into you with this new nature. No longer are you sometimes just taken over by lies, big ones, small ones, dishonesty. There's a new integrity put into you. If you are violent, you are giving a predominantly gentle nature.
With the new nature comes spiritual life. It surges into you. Previously your soul was like a dead organ, lifeless, but now spiritual life is put into it. Now you can love God and feel it and you can pray to him.
The faculty of prayer is awakened. You have got spiritual life in you. You function on another level entirely, and it's so remarkable.
You have got a new mind put into you and you can understand spiritual things and you're much more discerning. You understand your Bible and the ways of God and a whole new world of knowledge opens to you and you see things so differently.
You also have an eternal destiny, and you are on the certain road to eternal life, to heaven.
Then you have got power and holiness. You are not sinless, but you have got a new power over sin that you never had before.
You get a new purpose with instrumentality. You can serve the Lord and you find God uses you to lead other poor lost sinners to Jesus Christ, to receive new life and vigour.
You have new deep friendships with those who like you are on the road to heaven, and who share the same understanding of Gods purposes.
You have Christ, and you have security to your last day, and should you fall and sin and grieve the Lord and grieve yourself, you are not lost, because even if he has to discipline you firmly, he will bring you back and keep you on the road. Once he has made you his own, he keeps you all the end to life to the end of life journey.