King Jesus Says – Store Your Treasures in Heaven

Some people think that when God gave the law to Moses for the children of Israel that those laws were difficult to live up to.

There were a number of laws – over 600 – and what they covered was fairly comprehensive. They were not focused on solely external activities. These laws were to set the nation apart as ones distinct among the nations of the earth, ones that reflected the heart of the one who delivered them from slavery to establish them as a nation of their own.

It should come as no surprise, then, that when Jesus entered the scene to teach His followers about the Kingdom that He should outline certain aspects of living that would mark out His followers as distinct.

A key area in which they would be marked out as distinct is in the area of money and material possessions. It will not take you long to discover that for many money makes the world go around. People’s attitude to money is a reflection on what they value in life. For some the approach to money is nothing less than wholesale worship. Money, they agree, does not buy you love, but it certainly allows you a better chance in life. So the pursuit of wealth or at least financial stability becomes infectious and somewhat all consuming.

The materials around you accumulate in response to an underlying suggestion that to purchase and consume is what we’re here for. Entire days and seasons are dedicated to the consumption of goods via the expenditure of millions and billions in currency. Status in life is measured by how much you earn.

People are criticised for earning too much while others complain because they don’t earn enough and however much they get is never enough. Overworked and underpaid is the constant refrain from people reflecting a desire to earn ‘just a little more’ which will never be enough however much they content themselves by thinking just a little more will do. Once they have a substantial amount, the concern becomes how to best protect both it and the replenishing of it. Hours and days wittered away on the next investment, on the status of the account on what should be purchased next or given away.

Then there’s the debt problem. To keep up with the neighbours and those who are making it in the world the pressure is on and so outgoings are greater than the incoming. Living within your means, being content with what you have and operating on a balanced budget are as alien to the personal welfare as it is on the national economy scales. Racking up debts that never seem to be repaid enslaves people for decades.

No wonder finances is such a concern. No wonder money becomes the object of yearning, desire and worship for so many, even if they never express it blatantly.

In the middle of a similar setting where money and material wealth appeared to be the sign of being blessed, Jesus instructs his followers to check where there treasures are.

Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where 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.

Matthew 6:19-21

Jesus is not offering investment advice. He is laying out the conditions on which Kingdom living operates. This is not the kind of advice, however, that would be gleefully received by those who heard Him.

Later on in His ministry, Jesus would come across someone who was attracted to this heavenly Kingdom. This guy asked what did he need to do to gain eternal life and Jesus referred to the basis of the law that Moses outlined. When the man heard this, he thought he was sound because as far as he was concerned he’d kept these since he had sense. Jesus exposed the flaw in this thinking with a follow-up instruction founded on the heart of all that the law expressed.

Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

Matthew 19:21-22

To be clear, this is Jesus’ instruction to this particular individual. It is not a Kingdom command for all who seek to follow the king. However, that very disclaimer also exposes the heart of concern that some might have hearing what Jesus says. And if it does cause the beads of sweat to fall down the brow wondering if Jesus could ever be referring to you or me, then what does that say about our relationship to money? What does that say about our relationship to possessions? What does it say about our relationship to the King and His Kingdom?

As Jesus was outlining the teaching about treasures, He made it explicit that our approach to money expresses our approach to who has mastery over us. If we serve God, we will consider money for what it is and where it belongs on the list of priorities. That is money is not the number one most important thing in life. In fact such should be our devotion to God that in comparison it could even appear as though we despise any hold money would want to take on us. That would be peculiar in a world that hold money, wealth and possessions so dearly. Indeed such an honouring of God and devotion to His Kingdom would clearly make us distinct in this world.

This is not to say we would be foolish with money and resources. It is not to say that we would shrug our shoulders when it comes to responsibilities that includes working and earning for the work that we do. It’s not to say that we would have a care-free approach to money.

It is to say that our approach to money would let it be subordinate to our love for God. It would be another way in which we express that love. Grateful to God for giving us the means by which we can generate income. Grateful to God for the opportunity to share and invest in the lives of others. Grateful to God for providing our needs and desirous for God to provide for the needs of others.

When we live in gratitude to God for who He is and how He expresses Himself to us, we can develop that devotion to Him to gives clarity and wisdom on how we deal with money. So that if we lose it we don’t lose our treasure and if we gain it, we treat it like it belongs to God anyway for Him to use however will please Him most.

That’s not an easy stance to take when the culture around you subtly or blatantly suggests that you ought to take a more concerned approach to what to do with money and how to approach your material status. It’s not an easy stance to uphold when you’re supposed to have the latest technological advances at your fingertips and should aspire to be at least financially comfortable.

Godly wisdom may indeed provide insights on how to balance your budget and manage your finances. That’s all, however, under the auspices of a love for God first and foremost.

It’s that love that leads to understanding what storing up treasures in heaven means. It’s that love that sees what God values and acts on it in righteous ways. It’s that love that helps to see the needs of people spiritually as what matters even more than attending to felt needs of the flesh. It’s that love and devotion that will be on board with everything the King commands, however unorthodox and counter-cultural (as well as seemingly counter-intuitive) it appears.

It’s also that love that puts concerns of the world in its context, but that’s another command.

In the meanwhile, the challenge remains for us. Will we make excuses to earn as much as we can to can as much as we earn n a bid to think that this is the path to success? Will we subscribe to the mantra that it’s money that makes the world go around? Will our treasures ever be concerned for the earthly allure and values be determined more by the stock market or what the latest sale is at the local store than the Creator of the universe?

Or will we hear, obey and teach others to observe what King Jesus says?

(Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash)

For His Name’s Sake

Shalom

C. L. J. Dryden