RSS Feed |
|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
The Gospel Truth
Your heart determines where your treasure is - heaven or earth. Your heart serves as a magnet for treasure. If you have a heavenly heart, it will draw to it heavenly things. If you have an earthly heart, it will draw to it earthly things. In the first century, earthly treasure was stored up in one of three ways: in garments, in grain or in gold. Most people only had enough for their "daily bread," while a few took the time to allow their greed to exceed their need. These money men stored up treasures to meet any expense. But their hoarding was at the expense of devotion to God and decency towards other people. Jesus said "don't." Moths will get to the stored garments. Other insects will get the grain, if fire and rain don't get it first. Rust will get your other stuff. And even if you store up gold, some wanton thief or wasteful government program is going to get that, too. Do Jesus' words ring true today? In America today there is a professional athlete who has a thousand suits in his closet. In Africa today a dictator sits on stores of food from relief agencies while his people starve. In churches today there are members sitting on big bank accounts while budgets for ministries and missions go unmet. Are these hearts bent on heaven or earth? Jesus wants us to work hard, for hard work honors God. He does not mind when we save enough to be smart, for rainy days and retirement do come. But here's the kicker according to Jesus: give the rest away. A giving heart reveals a heavenly heart. Furthermore, what you give away today is what you can take with you tomorrow. So get your heart in heavenly gear, Jesus says, then go where your eyes lead you. Your eye determines how you will pursue your treasure - in heavenly or earthly pursuits. The eyes are the headlights of the mind and the mind follows the heart. So Jesus says it is critical that our eyes be "clear" and not "bad." "Clear" literally means good, sincere, without hypocrisy. "Bad" would mean, well, bad, insincere, hypocritical. Your eyes, the direction of your life, the time you spend pursuing what you pursue, reveals a soul that soaks in either the light of heaven or the darkness of destruction. All of our treasure troves are different. All of our talents are not the same. But there is one thing every member of the human race, Christian and non- Christian, has in common. We all have the same amount of time in a day, a week, a year, as long as God gives us life. To answer the question, "Am I pleasing God with my life?" is to ask "How am I spending my time." Your time will be spent wherever your eyes take you. At the end of the day, where have you been? Jesus said "don't" waste your time because you won't want to face him if you do. You won't get fitted for your coffin and think, "I wish I had spent more time at the office," or, "I wish I had bought and saved one more stock," or, "I'm glad I skipped all those Sunday worship services." A true Christian is possessed of a giving heart and the greatest thing they give is time - time for God, for Christian pursuits, for family and friends and strangers who need the love of Christ. Such faithful hearts and good eyes require one more thing: a surrendered will. Your will determines where you will be eternally - enjoyment in heaven or destroyed with the earth. We all serve a "master" - one, not two, though the choices appear to be three. You must choose. So choose wisely. Almost no one will outright choose hell. What most people do decide for, however, is earth. In the Aramaic language of Jesus' day, it was called "mammon." People lined up for it then, and now. A modern translation might be "materialism." It is the value of stuff over the spiritual. Is there a better choice? That's what "The Sermon on the Mount," this particular section is all about. Jesus doesn't care very much about your stuff. He cares about you. He wants us not to care so much about our stuff, but about him and other people. Jesus cares so much that he sacrificed his very life to save your life. By the way, after he laid down his life, he took it up again. Jesus proved you can take it with you. God is sovereign but you are responsible to choose heaven over hell, and heaven over earth, or materialism. You have a will and you will do what your will tells you to do. You will serve God or you will serve "mammon," and there is no real choice in between. The gospel of Jesus Christ gives a new heart with new eyes on life and a new will that does the will of God. So what will you do?
I like Old Testament Joshua's answer, "I will serve the Lord." This is a great commitment that comes with great cost. It will cost you your heart, your eyes, your will, your time, your talents, your treasure, your very life. But what you get right on earth you gain in heaven. So you see, you can take it with you.
|
for larger version       |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
