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19 Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. ~ Matthew 6:19-21
Today, we continue our study of the Sermon on the Mount. In this teaching, the Lord Jesus Christ rearranged the thinking of His hearers regarding their understanding of the Law of Moses. As we know, the Law of Moses was sanctification teaching, meaning it was teaching designed to get the culture of God into the souls of people. But, through the years it had been distorted by the religious teachers of Israel. These supposed spiritual leaders dropped the ball when they were not careful to include their hearts in the equation. Instead, they put themselves up as the arbiters of truth, essentially taking God's role from Him. This resulted in religion which always shackles us and carries us away from God.
In v.19 of today's passage we read, "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal."
In our last study, we heard the words of the Lord Jesus on the topic of fasting. He finished that thought with the idea of being rewarded by the Father in heaven. In today's passage, He built upon that concept drawing our attention to "treasure." The rewards of which He previously spoke are where our true treasures are to be found. But, what we amass here on earth is temporary and will not pass into eternity. It is only when we invest in the eternal does this change. Being wealthy is not sinful. The Bible never says, "Money is the root of all evil." No, it says, "The love of money is the root of all evil." Greed is the culprit.
Now, in that day, wealth was often measured by one’s ability to accumulate and store goods, such as grain and precious metals. The concept of storing treasures was not only a practical concern but also a reflection of one’s status and security. Treasure could also refer to spiritual wealth, such as wisdom and righteousness, which are more enduring than material wealth. Here, the Lord Jesus informed us to not keep to ourselves the blessings that God has chosen to give us. God rarely blesses us with only us in mind. He knows that if our lives are all about receiving, we will become so fearful of losing what we have that we will become unloving. But, if we recognize that it is better to give than to receive, we will know the type of life that He died for us to have while here on earth. The life the Lord offers us with Him at the helm of our decision making is a life free from worry and anxiety.
When we live our lives under God's grace rather than the Law of Moses, we will recognize that God has given us all things with the ultimate goal that His kingdom might advance in this world. When we hoard things we will be preoccupied upon concentrating on our kingdom. This is what causes us anxiety and the solution is to loosen our grip on those blessings that God has given us and be free to be a blessing to others. As with a tube of toothpaste the tighter we squeeze the less we will have. Investing in eternity will render much greater blessings than those of the temporal space and time of this fleeting world. We must live accordingly. Living to be a blessing redirects our hearts from seeking the blessing for ourselves to being more selfless. The stress of learning to be defined by the Lord is far less restricting than that of the flesh for the flesh is never satisfied.
In v.20 of today's passage we read, "But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal."
The only way to accomplish that which will endure into eternity is through faith in the God of the Bible. When we trust Him, we will believe that what He has said is true. Thus we will be defined by Him when we obey Him. And, we will not be perfect at this, even though God calls us to perfection. Think about it, would He be God if He called us to less than perfection? Nothing earthly can be taken to heaven. Faith is a vulnerable disposition, and faith alone in the God of the Bible is the only thing that bridges the gap between the earthly and the heavenly. Here, the Lord Jesus restated the same words as the previous verse but changed them for emphasis. When the two verses are set side by side, the contrast is clear. When we live by faith and we invest in eternity, the Lord assures us that it will matter into eternity.
In v.21 of today's passage we read, "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."
We all have our loyalties, the things that are most valuable to us. As a result, we all live for something or somebody. To the degree to which we love something or someone will be the degree that they will define us. We know something or someone is defining us when we take inventory and discover what or who we obey. When the Lord Jesus was asked to summarize the greatest command, He quoted the Old Testament when He said, "Love God with all our heart, soul and strength." Down deep in our hearts a tug of war is raging. The tugs are created by the temptations that cry out for our hearts allegiance. The realm we invest in most defines us most.
There is nothing wrong with possessing wealth or protecting that wealth for the future. In fact, in Proverbs 13:22 we read, "A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children, but the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous." We cannot save up for our children’s children if we do not possess wealth to some degree. The real issue is: Are we masters over our wealth, or is our wealth master over us? We must be wise concerning earning and saving, but also let our heart be directed to the Lord above all else. This is what reveals where our hearts are regarding the possessions we have in this world. Money can be a wonderful servant or it can be a terrible master!
