Store Up Treasure in Heaven
Matthew 6:19-24
Let’s turn to Matthew 6. If you need a Bible, go ahead and raise your hand and we will bring one to you. Matthew 6 is on page 811 in the Bibles we are passing out.
Here’s a $20 bill. There’s all kinds of ways we think this $20 can bring happiness – 20 songs on iTunes, lunch at In ‘n Out, it can go towards Giants tickets, it can buy you a third of a tank of gas – all kinds of ways we think this $20 can bring you happiness. But what’s sad is – all that happiness is short-lived. It won’t last.
But Jesus says there’s something I can do with this $20 that will bring me a happiness that lasts forever – without ever fading away – a happiness that will last forever.
Interested? Let’s look at what He says in Matthew 6:19-24 –
19 Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal,
20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.
21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
22 The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light,
23 but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!
24 No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.
Let’s start with v.19 – “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth.” So what does it mean to lay up treasures on earth? Notice v.21 – where your treasure is – there your heart will be also. Treasure has to do with heart-satisfaction. So laying up treasure on earth means using money to satisfy my heart with earthly things.
For example – we crave excitement. So this afternoon when you are bored you might decide to buy an iPhone app -- to satisfy your longing for excitement. Or – we crave security – and so we save and save and save – to satisfy our longing for security. Or – we crave happiness -- and so when you are innocently walking through the mall, you see some shoes you’ve just got to have – and buy them to satisfy your longing for happiness.
So when we use our money to satisfy our hearts with earthly things – we are laying up treasures on earth. But Jesus says – “do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth.” And this might shock you – because that’s what everyone does with their money. Maybe that’s what you’ve always done with your money. Maybe you can’t imagine doing anything else with your money.
So let’s ask Jesus – why not? Why not lay up treasures on earth? And to answer that – read v.19 again --
19 Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal,
Jesus says the reason we should not lay up for ourselves treasures on earth is because earthly treasures will be eaten by moths or destroyed by rust or stolen by thieves.
Now you might be thinking – “What if my earthly treasure is mothproof, rustproof, and robber-proof?” It doesn’t make any difference. Think about it.
All earthly joys will fade over time. When I got my new Volkswagen surf van – and drove it to UC Santa Barbara for the first time -- I was excited and thrilled. But a month later the thrill was gone. Why? Because earthly treasures fade over time.
And – all earthly joys will disappear in time. The moment will come when you die and enter eternity. And at that moment – what happens to the joy you had in that iPhone app? Or that savings account? Or those shoes? At that moment all those joys will be gone. Gone. Vanished.
So if the joys of all earthly treasures fade over time – and disappear in time -- how good are they at satisfying our hearts? Not very good.
But now this might make you wonder -- what should I do with my money? If I am not going to use my money to satisfy my heart with earthly things – what should I do with it? Jesus tells us in vv.20-21 --
20 but [rather] lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.
21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Notice. There’s nothing wrong with laying up treasure for ourselves. Jesus wants us to lay up for ourselves treasure. The problem is that we lay up for ourselves treasure in things on earth that won’t satisfy because they don’t last. So instead – Jesus calls us to lay up for ourselves treasure in heaven that will satisfy because it will last.
So let’s get really tangible. Here’s $20. There’s two ways I can use this money. I can use it to lay up treasures on earth which won’t last – or I can use it to lay up treasures in heaven which will last.
So what is this treasure in heaven? This $20 can gain me treasure in heaven. So what is treasure in heaven? To answer that – look at Rev 21:1-4. We might think the treasure in heaven is streets of gold or mansions or crowns. Not so. The treasure in heaven is God – seeing God – knowing God – beholding God.
That’s what we see in Rev 21:1-4 --
1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.
2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.
4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away."
The treasure in heaven is God. The infinite value of the universe is God – God as He is revealed in Jesus Christ. You were created in such a way that your greatest joy is found in beholding God in the person of Jesus. Seeing Him, knowing Him, worshiping Him – is infinitely more satisfying than houses or cars or anything else.
So what Jesus is saying is that I can use this $20 to gain earthly joys which will fade and one day vanish. Or – I can use this $20 to gain joy in God which will never fade and never vanish – which will increase forever and last forever.
But how? How do we lay up treasures in heaven? To answer that I looked at other places where Jesus talks about storing up treasure in heaven -- to see if He goes into more detail.
I found a helpful passage in Luke 12:33 --
Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys.
So how do we provide ourselves with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail? By giving money to the needy. That’s what Jesus says.
If I give this money to CityTeam – I will have more joy in God forever.
If I give this money to someone in my home group who can’t pay her utilities – I will have more joy in God forever.
If I give this money to bring the Gospel to the U-people in Central Asia – I will have more joy in God forever.
We lay up treasure in heaven by giving to the needy. There’s needy people in our church – in your neighborhood – in San Jose -- in north Morocco – in central Asia. That can include giving to support missionaries – giving to support this church – giving to other ministries. So we lay up treasure in heaven by giving money to the needy.
But is that the only way to lay up treasure in heaven? I don’t think so. Jesus says – do not ever lay up treasure on earth – we should never do that. But that can’t mean we only use our money to give to the needy. Even Jesus, in John 4, sent his disciples into town to buy lunch.
So there’s a way to buy food that is laying up treasure in heaven. What if I buy food so I will have energy to fulfill God’s calling – to work hard at my job and love my wife and raise my kids and advance the Gospel? And what if when I eat I let its pleasure increase my pleasure in God who gives us tastebuds and guacamole? And what if the whole time I am longing to give away more money so I will have even more joy in God – so I pass on buying something expensive? Then I’m laying up treasure in heaven.
But buying food could be laying up treasure on earth – if I’m seeking my joy in food more than in God – and that joy in food drowns out the needs of the poor and the unreached.
So all our money should be spent on laying up treasure in heaven – and that means we give lots of money away.
Now at this point you might wonder – what about tithing? Aren’t we just supposed to give 10% to the church – and then the rest is ours to use as we wish? But that’s not how Jesus talks. Jesus does affirm the Scribes and Pharisees for giving 10%. But he also affirms Zaccheus for giving 50%. And he affirms the poor widow for giving 100%.
Jesus’ focus is not on percentages. His focus is on our hearts and says –what is the focus of your spending – treasure on earth or treasure in heaven?
Now I know – this raises all kinds of questions. How much should I save and how fancy a restaurant should I go to and what kind of car should I buy? But Jesus doesn’t give us any formulas. He focuses on our hearts and asks – what is the focus of your spending? That’s the crucial issue.
And that’s the point of the next section – where Jesus answers -- why is this question so important? That’s the point of vv.22-24. The focus of our spending should be to fulfill God’s call and give away as much as we can so we will have even more joy in God. Why is this so important?
First, because seeking treasure in heaven will fill you with light but seeking treasure on earth will fill you with darkness. That’s the point of vv.22-23.
22 The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light,
23 but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!
If you want the joy of God’s light shining in you -- you need a healthy eye that’s seeking heart-satisfaction in God, not in houses or cars or food.
Second, because you can’t serve both God and money. That’s the point of v.24 --
24 No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.
You can’t seek your treasure both in heaven AND here on earth. It’s got to be one or the other. Because God is God – God IS the Treasure – and He won’t share His glory with another.
So how can I grow in this? I’m sure this raises lots of questions – way more than we can get into here. So let me point you to the discipleship resources on our website under the category of money – where we list books and articles.
But let me give you the most crucial step – the one step that’s most often neglected – in order to obey what Jesus teaches about money.
That step is – nurture your pleasure in knowing God, worshiping God, glorifying God. Everything else flows from this.
Like I said earlier – you were created in such a way that your highest joy is found in knowing God – not in food or cars or savings accounts. But in our sinfulness we don’t feel that. Which is why joy in God has to be nurtured.
So every day – turn to Jesus as you are – with your love of money and cars and clothes. Come to Him as you are. Confess the true state of your heart. Ask Him for forgive you. Because His death paid for your sins – He will completely forgive you.
And ask Him to change you. Ask Him to free you so you feel pleasure in Him.
And then pray over God’s Word until you feel the Holy Spirit changing your heart – filling you with the joy of knowing God.
When that happens – you will be so satisfied with God that you will not crave food or cars or clothes. You will crave God. And – because you crave God you will want to do all you can to lay up yourself treasure in heaven. So the most crucial step is – nurture pleasure in knowing God, worshiping God, glorifying God.