Storing Up Treasures

"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and were thieves break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves treasure in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also"  (Matthew 6:19-21).   


Now that the crazy Christmas consumer season is over, I think it's safe to do this blog post.  I certainly didn't want to rain on someone's "joy of giving" parade.  We Christians know we are suppose to lay up treasures in Heaven as good stewards of the money and resources entrusted to us by our Heavenly Father.  If you're like me, the concept of laying up treasures in Heaven might seem rather nebulous.  Sure, we give to our church and a few other select charities, but do we understand that our gifts to the eternal purposes of God  are transformed into eternal rewards for obedience and faithfulness?  Jesus taught us that "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" (Matthew 6:24).  

I appreciate what Randy Alcorn has to say about these verses:  

"There is truth in the old maxim 'You can't take it with you.'  But when Jesus tells us to store up treasures in Heaven, he adds a new corollary.  Essentially he is saying, 'You can't take it with you, but you can send it on ahead.'  Material things on this fallen Earth just won't stand the test of time.  Even if they escape moths and vermin and thieves, they cannot escape the coming fire of God that will consume the material world (2 Peter 3:7).  Christ's primary argument against amassing material wealth isn't that it's morally wrong.  It's that in light of the short time we spend here and the eternity we will spend in Heaven, storing up treasure here instead of there is simply a poor investment. 

Every day is one day closer to the day we will die.  Therefore, those who store up treasures on Earth spend every day moving away from their treasures; they have reason to despair.  Those who store up treasures in Heaven spend every day moving toward their treasures; they have every reason to rejoice."  (taken from We Shall See God, p. 136)