Treasures in Heaven

Opening

What does it mean to treasure something?

It means to keep carefully (a valuable or valued item) or value something highly.

For me, I treasure my technology. Whenever I get a new iPhone, I treat it as careful as I did my little baby girl when she was born!

I make sure and buy a nice case for it so it will be protected, I put a screen protector on there so the screen will stay safe, and I am very careful not to drop it.

The same goes with my laptop. I just got a new one a few months ago, and I bought this case that I put it in every time it goes into my backpack to make sure it doesn’t get damaged.

What things do you treasure?

Take a moment and think about the things that you treasure most.

We treasure many different things here on earth. From our favorite toys, to our favorite stuffed animals, to our favorite movies, maybe even money that we have, etc.

Usually we treasure our things, or our possessions.

Jesus has something to say about our possessions:

Text

Matthew 6:19–21 (CSB)

19 “Don’t store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal.

20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves don’t break in and steal.

21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

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So Jesus tells us not to store up treasures on earth for ourselves.

Now, is it wrong for us to have things that we treasure? No, not at all!

However, when we store up our treasures and make all of our lives about the stuff we have, that’s when it becomes wrong.

Jesus wants to show us how the things we have, although they’re good, they’re temporary, and they can be destroyed and one day will.

“where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal.

Instead of storing up treasures here on earth, Jesus tells us instead to store up treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves don’t break in and steal!

You might ask: how do I store up treasures in heaven? What does that mean?

Well, it starts by treasuring the right things.

First and foremost, we should treasure Jesus himself! He is our ultimate treasure.

Sometimes we look at the things around us and treasure them more than Jesus. We tend to love the gifts instead of the one who gives us the gifts.

If we are followers of Him, we should be quick to notice this and stop that, because apart from Jesus, we have nothing.

Because, one day when we all pass away, we won’t be taking our stuff with us to Heaven.

We won’t have a big moving truck with all of our favorite stuff in it that gets carried up to Heaven to be with us.

But, what we will have is Jesus, and He will be the greatest lasting treasure we will ever have.

We also store up treasures in heaven when we live for Jesus and do what He tells us to do.

Did you know that when we get to heaven one day, we will be rewarded based on the things we’ve done?

Even the little ways that we follow Jesus, even the simple things we do, He notices it and will reward us. Look at what Jesus himself says:

Matthew 10:42 (CSB)

42 And whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is a disciple,, truly I tell you, he will never lose his reward.”

So when you love Jesus, when you treasure Him, when you live for Him, when you obey His commands, when you love others as He has loved you, you are storing up treasure for yourself in heaven.

And remember, the treasure in heaven will never go away. It can’t be destroyed. It lasts forever!

Lastly, notice what Jesus says about the things we treasure and our hearts:

21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

What we treasure reveals what’s inside of our hearts.

If our treasure is on earth and we only live for it, then it reveals our heart is far from God and does not treasure Him like we should.

But, if our treasure is in heaven, if we are treasuring Jesus and living for Him, it reveals our heart is in the right place, and that we love Jesus more than the things of this world.

Main Idea

The main idea for today is this:

Treasure Jesus above all else.

When we treasure Jesus above all else, we will then live for Him, we will enjoy the things that He has for us, and our treasure in heaven awaits us, and that ultimate treasure is getting to be with Jesus forever.