Removing the Buttons Part Eight - Storing Treasures
My daughter is a little pack rat.
She is three years old and loves nothing more than to "play mama," meaning she likes to pretend to be a mother to her baby dolls. She feeds them, changes their clothes, puts them down for naps, and does other things she thinks all good mamas do. But she also wants anything that might "help" her play mama, such as an empty orange juice container, old coupons, or any variety of other things I would normally throw away. She'll take an old M&M container and pretend to give her babies "snacks." It's precious.
But she's got this collection of, well, TRASH under her bed. Though he uses it for her babies, her assortment of things that help her be a "mama" looks like a pile of junk. But they are her treasures, and I indulge her for now because she's three years old.
Jesus speaks to our storing of treasures, too:
"DO NOT STORE UP for yourselves treasures on earth...but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven...For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also," (Matthew 6:19-20, various spots, all caps mine, NIV).
The notes in my Study Bible add this information: the phrase "Do not store up" could also be translated "Stop storing up," (Zondervan NIV Study Bible, copyright 2002).
So Jesus could be saying, "Stop storing up for yourselves treasures on earth."
Which should make us ask ourselves, Am I storing up treasures on earth?
Tricky question. Because it depends on how you define "treasure." When I was in elementary school, I collected unicorns: figurines, stickers, posters, stuffed animals. You name it, I wanted it. I would lay in bed and just look at them. They were my treasure.
But Jesus isn't talking about that kind of treasure.
Remember, the Sermon on the Mount is overwhelmingly about analyzing your own heart to see if you truly love and follow Christ. So this storing of treasures isn't about a collection but about something that reflects your heart:
What do you treasure most? What is piling up in your soul? What is filling the storeroom of your heart?
You've got some memories in there that you pull out from time to time. You've got some relationships, some love, some heartache. It's shaping who you are, how you respond, and what you believe. It's revealed in what you say, what you do, and how you treat people.
So Jesus' instruction is to make sure we are intentionally storing up those things that will be with us forever. In eternity. With Him.
So as you sort through the piles of things in your heart, what are the most precious to you?
That guy?
That accolade?
That identity?
People and things and experiences are always going to be part of your life, your memories, and your heart.
But what are you intentionally storing up? That's what Jesus is talking about.
When you start your day, are you looking for experiences that will go with you to heaven? Are you seeking to glorify God, love others, serve, help, share, and give? Are you intentionally pursuing relationships and participating in activities that will draw you and others closer to God?
It's perhaps the most in-exact science you'll ever pursue. You won't get it right every day. This eternity-seeking pursuit will be confusing and exhausting and frustrating at times.
But when you seek to fill your heart with eternal treasures, you really are living the Jesus-focused life.
And when you do, God, in return, gives us eternal blessings (Psalm 21:6, NLT), not just in eternity, but even right now.
We can KNOW what eternal blessings are even as we walk in these temporary bodies.
Those blessings come from storing eternal treasures.
What did you store up yesterday?
What have you stored today?
What will you store tomorrow?
I'd love to hear. Really.
And when you store up those eternal treasures, praise Him when you get those eternal blessings. He loves to lavish His love on us!
So after eight instructions from the Sermon on the Mount, we need a recap:
1. Be weird.
2. Forgive.
3. Bounce.
4. Speak Truth.
5. Don't slap back.
6. Agape.
7. Be righteous secretly.
8. Fill your heart with eternity.
Four more, I think. What a blessing to learn these truths with you!
Leslie
(If you've missed any of the first seven from the series, scroll down!!!)
She is three years old and loves nothing more than to "play mama," meaning she likes to pretend to be a mother to her baby dolls. She feeds them, changes their clothes, puts them down for naps, and does other things she thinks all good mamas do. But she also wants anything that might "help" her play mama, such as an empty orange juice container, old coupons, or any variety of other things I would normally throw away. She'll take an old M&M container and pretend to give her babies "snacks." It's precious.
But she's got this collection of, well, TRASH under her bed. Though he uses it for her babies, her assortment of things that help her be a "mama" looks like a pile of junk. But they are her treasures, and I indulge her for now because she's three years old.
Jesus speaks to our storing of treasures, too:
"DO NOT STORE UP for yourselves treasures on earth...but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven...For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also," (Matthew 6:19-20, various spots, all caps mine, NIV).
The notes in my Study Bible add this information: the phrase "Do not store up" could also be translated "Stop storing up," (Zondervan NIV Study Bible, copyright 2002).
So Jesus could be saying, "Stop storing up for yourselves treasures on earth."
Which should make us ask ourselves, Am I storing up treasures on earth?
Tricky question. Because it depends on how you define "treasure." When I was in elementary school, I collected unicorns: figurines, stickers, posters, stuffed animals. You name it, I wanted it. I would lay in bed and just look at them. They were my treasure.
But Jesus isn't talking about that kind of treasure.
Remember, the Sermon on the Mount is overwhelmingly about analyzing your own heart to see if you truly love and follow Christ. So this storing of treasures isn't about a collection but about something that reflects your heart:
What do you treasure most? What is piling up in your soul? What is filling the storeroom of your heart?
You've got some memories in there that you pull out from time to time. You've got some relationships, some love, some heartache. It's shaping who you are, how you respond, and what you believe. It's revealed in what you say, what you do, and how you treat people.
So Jesus' instruction is to make sure we are intentionally storing up those things that will be with us forever. In eternity. With Him.
So as you sort through the piles of things in your heart, what are the most precious to you?
That guy?
That accolade?
That identity?
People and things and experiences are always going to be part of your life, your memories, and your heart.
But what are you intentionally storing up? That's what Jesus is talking about.
When you start your day, are you looking for experiences that will go with you to heaven? Are you seeking to glorify God, love others, serve, help, share, and give? Are you intentionally pursuing relationships and participating in activities that will draw you and others closer to God?
It's perhaps the most in-exact science you'll ever pursue. You won't get it right every day. This eternity-seeking pursuit will be confusing and exhausting and frustrating at times.
But when you seek to fill your heart with eternal treasures, you really are living the Jesus-focused life.
And when you do, God, in return, gives us eternal blessings (Psalm 21:6, NLT), not just in eternity, but even right now.
We can KNOW what eternal blessings are even as we walk in these temporary bodies.
Those blessings come from storing eternal treasures.
What did you store up yesterday?
What have you stored today?
What will you store tomorrow?
I'd love to hear. Really.
And when you store up those eternal treasures, praise Him when you get those eternal blessings. He loves to lavish His love on us!
So after eight instructions from the Sermon on the Mount, we need a recap:
1. Be weird.
2. Forgive.
3. Bounce.
4. Speak Truth.
5. Don't slap back.
6. Agape.
7. Be righteous secretly.
8. Fill your heart with eternity.
Four more, I think. What a blessing to learn these truths with you!
Leslie
(If you've missed any of the first seven from the series, scroll down!!!)
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