Laying Up Treasures in Heaven

[Christsfreeservant]

“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 ESV)​

Here in America today we are expecting a huge storm on the east coast, where I live. They are predicting winds as high as 50 mph in some locations, massive rain and flooding, power outages, and the possibility of tornadoes. When these types of things take place, wherever they take place, or when, they have the potential of destroying much in the way of people’s homes and properties and possessions. So there is always a possibility that some of us could face some loss of property and possessions and human lives.

So, this is one of the reasons that we are not to lay up for ourselves treasures on earth, not that having possessions or property is wrong, for we all need a place to live and food to eat and clothing to wear, but that these things are not to be our treasures, the things that we cling to and live for, and that we give our hearts, minds, and souls to. We have to be of the mindset that the Lord gives and the Lord takes away, so blessed be the name of the Lord. We have to be willing to leave it all behind us.

For the things of this earth cannot be more important to us than our relationships with our Lord and our testimonies for him and us loving the people of this earth and us sharing with them the truth of the gospel. When the things of this world overtake our lives and we forget the reason that Jesus died for us on the cross, and the reason he saved us from our sins, and so we begin to make things our gods, instead of God being our only God, then we have forsaken our Lord and the purpose he has for us.

So, sometimes God does send storms as a way of rearranging our priorities. And I am not making any predictions here at all. I am just stating the obvious and what the Scriptures teach, that God does send trials and tribulations into our lives to discipline us, sometimes to chastise us, and so that we will rearrange our priorities to make him first place in our lives and not the treasures of this world. And in America so many professing Christians are so worldly and need to turn their hearts back to Jesus.

And I am not saying that only certain people need this rearranging of priorities. Perhaps we all do to some extent, because when things are comfortable and going well it is easy for any of us to slip back into worldly mindsets and to get comfortable with having things, and then for us to not make our Lord and his word and his calling on our lives top priority. But when things are taken away from us and we have less, that can often lead us to look to God and to rely on him more, so less can be a good thing.

So, the things of this world are not to be our gods. Our hearts are not to be given over to them, especially at the neglect of our relationships with the Lord Jesus and his calling on each of our lives. But we are to be those who are laying up for ourselves treasures in heaven. And this has to do with our walks of faith and obedience to our Lord in holy living. And this has to do with us doing the will of the Lord in sharing his gospel with the people of the world and with us encouraging the body of Christ in holy living, too.

For what is stored up in our hearts is what is going to come out in the things that we do and say. It will come out in what we make our priorities. It will be obvious in our attitudes and in what we value the most, and in our actions. And it will be evident in how we spend our time and in what we spend our time on the most. And it will be clear in the kinds of things that we post on the internet and on social media and in the things that we like to watch and listen to the most. And it will impact how we treat other people, too.

But what is most concerning here is that we must realize that if the treasure stored up in our hearts is worldly and sinful and selfish and self-centered, and if it is mostly about what we want out of life, and what pleases us, and thus it is not God-centered, and he does not have top priority in our lives, then we will lose a whole lot more than just homes and possessions, but we will lose our lives for eternity, too, because we made the things of this world our gods instead of making God our only God.

So, the encouragement here is that we all need to examine our lives and how we are living them and look closely at what has our hearts and minds and passions and desires and time the most. And then we need to make the necessary adjustments to where our Lord is truly our top priority, and to where our lives are now surrendered to him, to do his will, and to where his priorities now become our priorities, and the things of this world are no longer the leading influences in our lives.

And then we need to walk with the Lord day by day, dying daily to sin, denying self, and following him in obedience wherever he leads us to go and to do. His desires must now become our desires, and his will must become our will, which is to do his will in daily practice. For this is what it means if he is truly Lord of our lives. And Jesus died on that cross so that we will die to sin daily and walk with him daily in holiness and righteousness and no longer in sin. So surrender your lives today to the will of God for your lives.

[Matthew 7:21-23; Luke 9:23-26; Romans 2:6-8; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Corinthians 5:15; Galatians 5:16-21; Galatians 6:7-8; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Hebrews 10:23-31; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10]

Have Thine Own Way, Lord

Words by Adelaide A. Pollard, 1907
Music by George C. Stebbins, 1907

Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!
Thou art the potter, I am the clay.
Mold me and make me after Thy will,
While I am waiting, yielded and still.

Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!
Search me and try me, Master, today!
Whiter than snow, Lord, wash me just now,
As in Thy presence humbly I bow.

Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!
Wounded and weary, help me I pray!
Power, all power, surely is Thine!
Touch me and heal me, Savior divine!

Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!
Hold o'er my being absolute sway.
Fill with Thy Spirit till all shall see
Christ only, always, living in me!

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As the Deer

By Martin J. Nystrom
Based off Psalm 42:1

As the deer panteth for the water
So my soul longeth after You
You alone are my heart's desire
And I long to worship You

You alone are my strength, my shield
To You alone may my spirit yield
You alone are my heart's desire
And I long to worship You

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