Heavenly Treasures: Living for Eternal Wealth
Notes
Transcript
“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.
And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.
Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.
And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done.
So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.
So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.
Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.
And to Adam he said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life;
thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field.
By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”
For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.
For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God.
For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope
that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.
For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.
Treasures on Earth are Destined for Destruction
Treasures on Earth are Destined for Destruction
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal,
Money and possessions will lose all value.
Money and possessions will lose all value.
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal,
Putting faith in temporary treasures.
Putting faith in temporary treasures.
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal,
Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you.
Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten.
Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days.
Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.
You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter.
You have condemned and murdered the righteous person. He does not resist you.
Treasures in Heaven will last for Eternity
Treasures in Heaven will last for Eternity
“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 the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard.
After agreeing with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard.
And going out about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the marketplace,
and to them he said, ‘You go into the vineyard too, and whatever is right I will give you.’
So they went. Going out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour, he did the same.
And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing. And he said to them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’
They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’
And when evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last, up to the first.’
And when those hired about the eleventh hour came, each of them received a denarius.
Now when those hired first came, they thought they would receive more, but each of them also received a denarius.
And on receiving it they grumbled at the master of the house,
saying, ‘These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.’
But he replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius?
Take what belongs to you and go. I choose to give to this last worker as I give to you.
Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?’
So the last will be first, and the first last.”
The generous giving of our God.
The generous giving of our God.
but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.
Salvation is the ultimate treasure.
Salvation is the ultimate treasure.
but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.
Our heart reveals what we treasure
Our heart reveals what we treasure
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
We treasure what we love
We treasure what we love
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
“What does it mean, then, to allow Jesus to be Lord of our lives? What does it mean that anything is the lord of our life? Just this: Whatever controls us is lord. The person who seeks acceptance is controlled by the people he or she wants to please. We do not control ourselves. We are controlled by the lord of our life. If Jesus is our Lord, then he is the one who controls, he has the ultimate power.” —Rebecca Pippert, Out of the Saltshaker
And behold, a man came up to him, saying, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?”
And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments.”
He said to him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not bear false witness,
Honor your father and mother, and, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
The young man said to him, “All these I have kept. What do I still lack?”
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.
We are called to love Christ above all else
We are called to love Christ above all else
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.
Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
Christians embrace that no amount of money or possessions can give us rest thus we cling to Jesus alone as our great treasure.
Christians embrace that no amount of money or possessions can give us rest thus we cling to Jesus alone as our great treasure.