How can I have a treasure in heaven? S31e85 mt6:19

Finally! A Podcast about money! We'll invest 6 minutes to think about how our treasure (money) serves as a marker for what we treasure with our heart.

We'll find that to have a heavenly heart, one best start by having a heavenly hand. That is, if you want a treasure in heaven when you get there, demonstrate such a desire now by what you do with your finances here. 

The answer is YES, I can have treasures in heaven. Like subscribe after you watch. 

https://youtu.be/be8ZOcCD5XQ

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Morning, my brothers and sisters. So, how can I have treasure in heaven? So finally, you may say a podcast about money. Where your treasure and how did it get there? We'll ask answer that today from Matthew chapter six, verse 19. Start there. Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth where moth, rust, and thieves break in and steal. But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Let me skip to verse 24. No one can serve two masters. He will either hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money. So this passage starts out by saying, put your treasure in the place where you'd like your heart to be. So you if you want your heart to move intentionally towards something, then treasure can serve as that aim point, aim point. So of note, though we might think that the heart leads the treasure, at least in this example, it's it's backwards. For where your treasure is first, there your heart will be second. It will follow it. So this passage seems to ask for a directed intent of the wallet to help and lead the target, which is a directable heart. So if you want a heavenly heart, then have a heavenly hand first. And if you want treasure in heaven when you get there, demonstrate such a desire now by what you do with your finances. So show me what your heart is like by first showing me your giving. Specifically, if you wish for treasures to be laid up on account for you in heaven, then you can direct them there now. So they were there will be untouchable by moth or rust or thieves. And this layup mean word means kept safe, gathered and saved and preserved and sheltered there. So do you wish to be sheltered in heaven? If so, it will be likely be demonstrated by your financial life. So let's use the church or giving to a church as an example. Now, this this passage does not make a plea for the concerns of the church financially. That's done elsewhere in Scripture. The entire concern of this passage is not the financial solvency of what you may be giving to. The entire concern of this is the welfare of your heart and soul. So this passage desire, its endpoint is that you would lay you would have laid up for you in heaven a treasure. So what is it? It's a treasure laid up, gathered, kept safe there. And where is it? It's in heaven. Where you can't see it now, but you will be able to see it then. And who's it for? It's for yourself. And then why is it there? Because you directed your treasure there. Why were you not yet there? That is, you acted in faith. You set your spiritual mind's eye correctly and trusted the current and eternal provision of the Lord. Now, practically, it's measured in dollars and cents. And it's real giving, it's real generosity, it's uh a marker of your personal spiritual health. It's one of the major uh hurdles of Christian maturity, and it's a marker of the spiritual health of a congregation at times as well. So let's say that you've had good teaching on this topic, uh, you've had a good family heritage by example, and you are surrounded by generous, kingdom-minded people. It is still hard. Maybe you haven't had good teaching, and maybe this is countercultural to our to like much of Christianity, and maybe you've had a non-believing or a non-generous family example uh growing up, and maybe you're not in a generous body or uh Christ currently, or worse, uh no body at all, then this teaching is going to be very, very, very hard. Remember, no one can serve two masters, for either he will either hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money. So for today, in conclusion, choose this day whom you will serve. Who will you be devoted to, money or the Lord? It cannot be both. In fact, one must receive devotion and the other, kind of by definition, um uh will receive despising. That is, let's say you're devoted to money. You will and you must despise the Lord. So if you're holding fast to one, rolled up with it, identify with it, and resist being separated from it, it's basically what what are you clinging to for life, for dear life? What are you holding on to like that? What do you desperately have a grip on? If it's the Lord, then you see that your grip on the moth eating, rust destroying, thief stealing treasure is relatively light by comparison. But if it's money, and money is what you're choosing to cling to for dear life, let's say you're a billionaire. What does that billion buy you in the next life? Nothing or worse than nothing, less than nothing. So worse, did you serve money while you were here, or did you serve the Lord? It reminds me of the situation where a very, very rich man died. And his accountant was asked by a curious bystander, well, how much did he leave? And the accountant, confused, answered, Well, he left everything. Unless, however, this rich man had read Matthew chapter 6, unless he'd laid up treasures in heaven in heaven. Then they could be available for a rich or poor alike. So they are laid aside now for then. So choose who you will serve. Show me now who you serve by your wallet. If your heart is not there yet, know this you have a directable heart. And you can start today directing your treasure towards the Lord, and your heart will follow. So if you want a heavenly heart, then have a heavenly hand first. Thanks for listening.