Every baby born into the world comes into the world with its little fists clenched tightly, as if grasping and clutching what is theirs. We should live life like that, yet many people never open their grasp until they face death.
The problem with our lives is that we are stubbornly addicted to things we believe are valuable. What do we truly treasure? Having the wrong treasures can cause much confusion, fear, insecurity, and make our lives feel as though they are being tossed to and fro. Our lives would be so much more stable, firm, solemn, and meaningful if we had the right treasures.
In the Sermon on the Mount, God talks about how we handle our money and treasures. Some think this is the “Sermon on the Amount,” and when we talk about amounts, we run into difficulty. We may think, “God wants my money,” and refuse to loosen our grasp. We might hold on even tighter, giving up anything but money. If we think like that, God will say, like He did to Peter, “Your money will perish with you.”
This message is not about what money God wants from you, but what God wants to bless you with. Whenever we dare to believe what God says about money and live by it, we will experience true deliverance and blessing. This is one of those topics where the truth will never be experienced simply by me preaching to you. The sermon is only a small part. When you put the truth about God and your money into practice, you will be inviting the supernatural to invade your ordinary life. When that happens, your life will never be the same.
Sermon on the Amount – Structure
- Verse 19 gives us the negative command: Do not lay up treasures on earth.
- Verse 20 gives us the positive command: Lay up treasures in heaven.
- Verses 21-24 give us two reasons for this.
Money is an important part of our lives, and it is critically important for us to understand Jesus’ teaching concerning money and how to handle it in a way that pleases God. We are not to “lay up treasures on the earth,” but what exactly do those words imply? First, let’s look at what they do not forbid:
- He is not forbidding the purchase of needed material possessions.
- He is not forbidding the private ownership of property.
- He is not forbidding saving money for the future.
- He is not forbidding investing for a greater return.
- He is not forbidding owning insurance.
So, what then is Jesus forbidding? The key lies in the little phrase “for yourselves.” Jesus is forbidding the selfish, self-centered accumulation of goods for ease and luxury as the main purpose of life. Selfish enjoyment should not be the goal of our lives.
There are two things we must avoid. First, we should reject extravagant living; a worldly lifestyle like that of the rich and famous who parade their wealth in public. Second, we should not live as if this world is the only one. Instead, we should always live in light of the fact that another world is coming, a world in which we will live forever and where our status will be largely determined by the way we have laid up treasure in heaven.
He gives two reasons for this. One is that everything in this world will fade, decay, and perish. By its very nature, every treasure will be destroyed, whether by moths or rust, or if you hold on to it, someone else may take it. This applies not only to those ancient times but also to today, where sickness can be a “moth,” inflation, recession, and devaluation can be “rust,” and the thief of death can take everything away from us. All worldly treasures are unstable and are subject to moths, rust, and thieves.
The wealth of this world—even the huge family fortunes we all admire and envy—is inherently unstable. The list of the top 10 richest people is constantly changing. The Forbes Four Hundred list shows how fortunes soon change over two or three generations as wealth spreads thinly among more heirs who spend rather than save or earn like their ancestors. As Proverbs 23:5 says, “Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone. For they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle.”
The lesson is clear: wealth is hard to get, and even harder to keep. It’s here today and gone tomorrow, a point that the Forbes Four Hundred list proves.
Let us learn the words of our Lord well: When you set your life to store up the wealth of this world, you are setting your life after that which cannot last; it is insecure and unstable. You are living for something that moths, rust, and thieves can take from you. You may indeed amass a fortune, but you won’t be able to keep it, or your descendants will waste it, or the government will find a way to take it away. What you have may last for a few years, or for a generation or two, but eventually, the money you worked so hard for will slip from your hands.
This is why Jesus said that His followers are not to concentrate their efforts on building massive fortunes in this world—because the wealth of this world is inherently insecure. That is Jesus’ negative command. Verse 20 gives us the positive command.
The Followers of Jesus Are to Store Up Treasures in Heaven
This is because Heaven is the only place where our wealth will be secure. Verse 20 is a replay of verse 19 with only two changes: “But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.” The difference is simple: “on earth” versus “in heaven.” The issue isn’t whether we will store up wealth, as that’s a given. Every person in their life stores up for either earth or heaven. The only question is where we will do our banking.
Imagine two banks, one of which gives the best returns and security. Naturally, we would want to move our balance there. Jesus is saying that we ought to put our money in the “State Bank of Heaven” (SBH). No moth, no rust, and no robber can touch it. There’s no inflation, recession, sickness, or even death. The interest rate is unbelievably high. You could keep a hundred rupees, and it would grow to millions every second. It’s not subject to any market risks; the returns are definite and unbelievable.
But what does that mean? You won’t find a branch of this bank in your town, nor will you receive a passbook or find any ATMs. But this eternal, infallible verse is the bank’s advertisement; it is the agreement, the promise, and the passbook. The Lord is saying He has opened a savings account for each of us in the SBH, and we need to invest there. But how can we, living on Earth, practically obey this and make a deposit for dividends to be paid in Heaven?
The answer is simple: you store up treasures in the SBH by investing your money in things that will last for eternity—things that are lasting.
What Are Eternal Things?
Only two things last forever; everything else vanishes. Cars, homes, clothes, jobs, salaries, companies, things, vacations, and buildings all pass away. They wear out, rust, or break. You eventually lose your job; you cannot do business one day. Your salary runs out, your bank account goes dry, and your investments pass away. Nothing that is material lasts forever. As 1 John 2:17 states, “The world is passing away.”
The two things that will last for eternity are:
- The Word of God: As 1 Peter 1:24-25 says, “All flesh is like grass, and all its glory is like the flower of grass; the grass withers, and its flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever.” Jesus also said, “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words will last forever” (Matthew 24:35).
- The Souls of People: As the saying goes, “If a man earns the whole world and loses his soul, what benefit is there?” Every person’s soul will last forever.
Since only the Word of God and the souls of people will last forever, that is where we ought to be putting our money, efforts, and time. The ultimate investment you can make is to invest your life in getting the Word of God to people! That’s an investment that will last forever.
You can do this in multiple ways, such as by investing in the eternal Word of God and souls. This is what you do when you give tithes and offerings on Sunday. The amount you invest here versus how much you spend on your worldly ease and luxury will show whether your treasures are on Earth or in Heaven. You’re not just supporting a church’s expenses. When you do it with the right motive, you’re giving so that the Word of God can be preached to eternal souls in the church and through gospel meetings. This is an eternal investment in the SBH, where every rupee you give adds eternal interest for you, laying up treasures in Heaven.
When you give for the building fund, you’re not just investing in a big building. Instead, you’re helping take the Word of God to more souls. You’re taking risks by not settling for a small, comfortable church. A larger building allows more souls to come in and hear the Word of God. The more you invest here, the more the church can do. Maybe in the future, if we invest more and more and God blesses us, we can support a full-time pastor, raise some missionaries to take the gospel to souls, build a pastor, and plant more churches, and give to evangelistic ministries. When you help poor and helpless people in the name of Christ with a gospel motive to share His love, you are investing in Heaven.
When your life comes to an end, what will matter? Not how much you earned and spent, how many things you bought, or how luxurious you lived, as all those things are subject to moths, rust, and thieves. The only thing that will give you eternal returns is how much you supported the spreading of God’s eternal Word and the saving of eternal souls. When you do that, you are doing what Jesus commanded: putting your money into things that will last forever.
Here at GRBC, we’ve been investing in people for 10 years with whatever little we have. Our goal is to reach people with the Word of God, and you have all supported this. Can you see what your investment has produced? We started with just two people, and now so many souls are hearing the pure Word of God. We have heard so many of your testimonies about how God marvelously spoke and changed your lives. How terrible your lives and souls could have been without the Word of God. How much your families could have been destroyed without this investment. What changes God has brought into our lives through this ministry. We must thank everyone who has invested in this ministry, as they will get eternal rewards for it. This is the profit we get to share for our investment.
Just imagine how many rewards await you in Heaven for your investments you have already made. For some of you who give faithfully to your maximum, even though you are poor, the Lord will say, “I know your poverty, but you are very rich in My sight.” Don’t ever look at your offering and think it is just going toward cleaning the church, a building fund, juice, or stationery. These are simply a means to an end. We give in order to touch lives for Jesus Christ and the gospel, so that many souls may be saved.
Where You Put Your Money is All-Important
Verse 21 gives us the punchline. It explains why where you store your treasures is so important. The first reason for not laying up treasures on Earth is the common observation that all things in this world fade, decay, and perish.
There is another, more profound reason. This one has to do with the relationship between treasure and a person as a whole. It’s a very serious reason why we should not lay up treasure on Earth. We cannot separate our treasure from who we are. Our character is determined by what we treasure.
Have you ever wondered why you cannot set your heart on reading God’s Word or seeking spiritual things? Why don’t your emotions flow toward Heaven, God, and Christ? Why is your heart so “dead”? Why does your mind never think about the Word of God and Heaven? Why is it so worldly-minded? Why is it so difficult to obey God in all things? What is the secret hindrance in your life?
The problem is that your treasure is in the wrong place. Our treasure affects our entire being. We have a heart where all our desires and emotions come from, a mind where our thoughts, perceptions, and revelations come from, and a will by which we obey or disobey. As humans, we have these three faculties that control us. Our heart holds our emotions and what we love and hate. Our mind helps us judge what is valuable and what is useless. Based on what we feel and think, our will acts. Every day, our actions are a result of our mind’s judgment and our heart’s emotions. Jesus shows us this relationship between our treasure and our heart, mind, and will in a wonderful way.
We cannot separate our treasure from our relationship with God. If we could, it wouldn’t be such a serious issue. But our Lord wants to show us that it is so important that whatever you may say or sing in church—whether you call yourself a Christian, a kingdom child, or one of the elect going to Heaven—wherever your treasure is, your mind, heart, and will will be on that treasure. It will possess your heart, mind, and will. Your thoughts, emotions, and actions will gravitate toward your treasure.
First, He starts with the heart. Verse 21 says, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Whether it is a heavenly treasure or a worldly one, this is an inevitable, natural rule that no one can change. It is as sure as a sunflower turning toward the sun. Treasure is like a magnet; it will irresistibly pull the heart. Wherever your treasure is, your heart will be drawn toward it in the same direction. It will irresistibly attract it.
So, whatever your treasure is—whether it’s money, children, beauty, fashion, home goods, worldly things, or entertainment—that is where you invest all your time, energy, and money. You may be sitting in church, praying, and saying to God that He is valuable and your treasure is in Heaven, but it’s all hypocrisy if your heart is on your earthly treasure. It’s inevitable. Our Lord is simply stating a fact.
If you understand the relationship between your heart and your treasure, you’ll realize that when your treasure is on Earth, you cannot be heavenly-minded. You cannot have love or desire for heavenly things; you cannot obey God’s commands. If you realize this relationship, you will see how foolish it is to lay up treasures on an unstable, insecure Earth and not in Heaven. If you are a child of God with treasure in Heaven, your longing will be to know God and live for Him, to have fellowship with Him, and to live, move, and work in light of eternity and live your life for God. It can be seen in your life; your heart, like iron drawn to a magnet, will be drawn to God’s things. But the moment you set up an earthly treasure, whatever it is, your heart will be on it, not on God. If you have a heart set on an earthly treasure, you have an earthly heart that cannot fellowship with God. Therefore, giving, prayer, fasting, and coming to church all become a dry duty, a burden, and no blessing or grace can be experienced. You will want to finish and go back to your treasure on Earth because “where your treasure is, there your heart will be.”
You and I were made to have an eternal treasure, not an earthly, perishable one. We were made in God’s image to have God as our treasure. We were made for eternity, not for the world, and not to be held in the clutches of lust, covetousness, and worldly things.
Ask yourself: “Why is it always the Lord’s cow that dies?” Why are you investing so poorly in eternal things? When you get down to deciding whether to choose for yourself or for Him, who is it usually for? That’s the real issue. Where is your heart? Wherever you put your investment is where you will put your heart. If all you possess and all your efforts, time, and life’s sacrifices are on the things of this world—your accounts, savings, and whatever else—that is where your heart is going to be. But if your life is invested in God’s causes, that is where your heart will be.
For example, we know a lot of people, and many people come across our lives. But have you invested in them? We have a special interest in people we invest in. I forget most of the people I’ve met, but the ones I’ve invested in, I never forget and think of them many times. When I go for a pastoral visit, it is difficult to find time, but I take the time and spend it with them. For one week, I keep thinking about them and praying for their needs. I keep thinking a lot about those people and praying for them. Where my treasure is, my heart tends to be. Where my affections are is going to be determined by where I invest. Wherever my heart is, is going to be where my treasure is because I have to attach myself to my investment. Where is my heart?
This is the trouble with having unconverted people in the church or people who are not heavenly-minded. Sometimes, preachers preach a lot about tithing and drive fund schemes and pledge cards to make people give money to God’s church. According to this verse, your giving is an expression of your heart. When your heart is right, your giving will be right, too, so it’s not an issue for me to preach on giving. If the heart is right, the treasure comes along after the heart.
Let me show you an illustration of this. In Nehemiah chapter 8, Nehemiah was God’s man to rebuild the fallen walls of Jerusalem after the Babylonian captivity. He came back and set out with the people to rebuild the wall, which they did in 52 days. They had a wonderful time, and when the wall was completed, a great event took place: a revival. Earlier, the walls were broken, and the needs of the temple were not being met. The priests had no salary, and no one could maintain the temple. The temple was in a horrible condition, no one cared for its needs, and the people were worried about their own needs.
The revival was initiated in chapter 8, verse 1, when Ezra brought the Book of the Law of Moses. Verse 5 of Nehemiah 8 says, “And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people (for he was above all the people); and when he opened it, all the people stood up. And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God. And all the people answered, ‘Amen, Amen!’ lifting their hands; and bowed their heads, and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.” Verse 8 continues, “They read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading.”
Now, they read the Law of God, and it generated a heart response. If you go to chapter 9, you find that four things came out of the reading of the Law:
- Conviction of sin: They realized they had not given God first place in their lives and had gone after idols. All curses came upon them—lust, inter-marriage, confusion, and captivity. They began to confess their sin.
- Desire for obedience: This was followed by a desire for obedience.
- Praise: Then came praise.
- Covenant or a promise: And a covenant or a promise.
This is what a revival produces. If your life is confused, fearful, and filled with sin, with no prophecy or God’s presence, the four steps are: a conviction of your sin, an examination of your empty life, a confession of your sins, a desire for obedience, and then making a covenant with God to obey Him and be His servant. In the sight of all their spiritual leaders, they wanted to make a covenant, a vow to God, a promise as a result of their hearts being revived through the reading of the Word. In other words, they made a decision to start walking in a new direction, a moment in time in which their direction was altered dramatically.
What was their covenant? Most wonderfully and amazingly, you’ll notice in Nehemiah 10:32, “Also we made ordinances for ourselves, to charge ourselves yearly with the third part of a shekel for the service of the house of our God.” The first thing they wanted to affirm, other than general obedience to the Law of God, was that they would pay that third of a shekel temple tax required of them. In other words, they would give to support the functioning of the house of God.
The point is this: when the heart is made right, the initial response is right giving. Their hearts were changed, and God became their treasure, which was seen in their response. Furthermore, if you look at verse 35, “They would bring the first fruits of the ground, the first fruits of all the fruit of all trees, year by year, to the house of the Lord: The first born of our sons, our cattle, as it is written in the law, the firstlings of our herds and our flocks, to bring to the house of our God, unto the priests who minister in the house of our God.”
What did they do when revival came? Their initial act of obedience was financial. They took care of the responsibilities God had given them. Beyond that, they gave freely of the first fruits of everything they possessed. What I’m saying is, when the heart is right, the treasure is poured toward God.
We see this throughout history. Whenever God’s people’s treasure is God, they pour toward God and His house. In Exodus 35:21, when Moses was building the tabernacle, it says, “And everyone who was willing, and whose heart moved him came and brought an offering to the Lord.” Moses had to stop them because they had brought enough. In 1 Chronicles 29:1-2, 6-9, David wanted to build the temple, and the need was great. In verse 9, it says, “For they had given freely with their whole heart to the Lord.”
If the heart is right, then everything is right. That’s why Jesus preaches this sermon the way He does. If the heart is right, it won’t be proud; it will cower as a beggar in spirit, mourning in meekness. If the heart is right, it won’t be attached to the world; it will be salt and light. If the heart is right, it won’t just say, “We don’t kill,” but it won’t even be angry with a brother. It won’t just say, “We don’t commit adultery,” but it won’t even commit adultery in its heart. If the heart is right, we will not approach religion hypocritically and superficially. We will not give our alms before others and will not pray in the middle of the street to be seen. If the heart is right, we will not lay up treasures for ourselves on Earth like the Pharisees did, who were greedy and covetous. Instead, we will deal with the commodities that God has graciously given us by investing them in His eternal kingdom. This is a very vital thing.
So, the first reason is very important. If you don’t have desires toward God and don’t love Him with all your heart, if your heart feels dead, and if the Bible, prayer, and church are not interesting to you but just a duty, and if giving to the church is a big burden, it’s because God is not your treasure. Something else is. Wherever your treasure is, there your heart will be.
The Problem With the Mind
In the next verse, He deals with the problem of the mind. Why is our mind so confused and diverted? Why is it so difficult to bring it to the Word of God, prayer, and godly things, and to think of souls, Heaven, and eternity? Why is there no steadiness? Why shouldn’t I lay up treasure on Earth but in Heaven? Because my spiritual enlightenment depends on it.
A simple example is our body. Light comes in through our eyes. If my eyes are healthy, I can see everything clearly. If my eyes are not clear and I have a cataract, I will see double vision. If the only instrument of light is perverted, then my whole body and its activities will be in darkness.
What you perceive as valuable in your mind’s eye is what you will give your time, energy, and life to. We were made to be thinking beings and to do everything after thinking and judging what is valuable. As the mind becomes enlightened, our heart and will work.
If your eye is single and your mind is fixed on a heavenly treasure, you will reach a point in your life where you repeatedly see the emptiness of the world and sin. You’ll realize there is nothing in this world apart from God. You’ll realize that true freedom is found in being a bondslave to Christ. You will decide with a single, determined focus: “Lord, no more tossing here and there. I am done with the world and sin. I am dead to them. Lord, I am your slave. You are my master. I will do what you tell me. No more living for myself, the world, or sin. Wherever and whatever situation I am in, I am yours, and I will live for your glory and your will.” When your mind is fixed on that, the one priority in your life is God’s glory. Then you will see everything in its proper light. Otherwise, you’ll have a confused, unclear, and tossing mind about life and what to do in the future. It’s like a blind person groping in the darkness.
A single-minded, fixed, and determined state is a blessed state. God wants us to have our minds fixed, single-mindedly, and totally devoted to the kingdom of God so that our treasure is there, our heart is there, our love is there, our passion is there, our burden is there, our investment is there, and our all is there. We are to have that single-mindedness. Only then will our perception of things and our actions be right, and our lives will be right. He illustrates this with the eye, which becomes an illustration of the mind. The eye is like the lamp of the body. When we can see with our eyes, we perceive everything through them. We don’t see a dog and say it’s an elephant. For people with proper sight, their body is filled with the light that comes in from the world, by which they perceive things. But if your eye is dark and there’s no light coming in, you perceive nothing. That’s the way it is with the mind. If your mind and heart are toward God, it lights your entire spiritual being. If your heart and mind are toward material things, toward the treasure of the world, your spiritual perception becomes blind, and you do not see spiritually as you ought.
For example, if someone says, “We have to adjust to this world. Everything is okay in this sinful world. I know you’re a Christian, but if you do this little fraud, you’ll get a promotion and so much money. Just forget your religion for a moment.” If your mind is set on earthly things to any degree, because your eye is dark and your mind is dark, you will make a wrong judgment and do the fraud, not thinking with the proper perspective.
Another example is having money and either using it for luxury, selfish happiness, and wasting it on selfish satisfaction or using it for God’s kingdom, investing it in souls and the Word of God, and being more blessed. If your eye is dark, confused, and blurred, not fixed on God as your treasure, but on treasure on Earth, you will have no heavenly joy in your heart, no enlightenment, and no pleasure. You will be seeking that in the world, and then you will see no point in giving to God’s kingdom. You will have no joy and strength to give sacrificially and be blessed. Instead, you’ll waste money on worldly things, thinking they will give you the fulfillment that only God can provide, and you’ll end up empty. Our mind’s choices determine our actions, and that determines whether we are blessed or cursed by God. Because the mind is dark and the treasure is set on Earth, it’s not fixed on Heaven. So many wrong judgments in life are made in the world for money, popularity, pleasure, reputation, and money-related things. This happens because you make a wrong judgment. If your treasure is here, your mind will be dark. You won’t realize what you are doing, you’ll think wrongly about everything, and you’ll lose God’s blessing. You won’t even know you’re living wrongly.
If the mind that needs to give you light is darkened because your treasure is on Earth, how great is that darkness? This is what Paul talks about in Romans when he says, “God gives people up to a depraved mind to do those things.”
he Treasure of the Heart
What a terrible thing it is to have a heart possessed by the fleeting things of this world and a mind that can no longer make proper judgments about right and wrong in the sight of eternity! What is God’s will? What will bring true blessing? A person blinded by earthly treasures cannot perceive these things. They will do everything against God, being cursed without even realizing what is wrong with their life, all because their treasure is on earth.
This is a tremendous principle. The Bible uses a physical illustration, saying the eye is like a window. If the window is clean and clear, light floods the body. If the window is blacked out, no light can enter. This is a spiritual metaphor.
I want you to see something fascinating about the word “single” used here. The word literally comes from the root of haplous, meaning “clear” and “generous.” If your mind is clear, your spirit will be generous toward God, and your entire spiritual life will be flooded with spiritual understanding. Isn’t that a great truth?
If your treasure is on earth, you will have no generous spirit and will not be able to perceive the value of spiritual things. You will not invest in what you see no value in. You will receive no spiritual light from God’s face, and you will not perceive His presence. Your prayers and Bible reading will feel very dry and empty.
Romans 12:2 says, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.” This means you should not allow the world to mold you with its worldly ways. You cannot have one foot in the world and one in the kingdom, but by renewing your mind, you will be able to perceive. If your treasure is on earth, you cannot perceive life in its glorious and beautiful state, understanding the good, perfect, desirable, and acceptable will of God.
There are people who go to church for years and never seem to change. They don’t experience transformation, they never grow, they never seem to love the Word, they never witness to others, and they never seem to be fruitful. They just stay the same. When I see someone like that, I often wonder if it’s because they are so focused on the earth—so earthbound and so oriented toward treasures here—that darkness closes their eyes. Though they may think they are wise, they have become eternal fools without knowing it and have no spiritual perception at all.
To put it another way, until you prioritize heavenly treasures, you will never be able to realize spiritual realities. This is exactly what Luke 16:11 means: “If you are not faithful with worldly wealth, who will entrust you with true riches?”
What our Lord is saying is that this issue of handling money is bigger than we think; it may be blinding our spiritual perception.
Verse 23 says, “If your eye is evil, your whole body is full of darkness.” Here, you are introduced to the “evil eye,” a phrase you may have heard. The evil eye is a Jewish colloquialism that means “grudgingly” or “stingily.” For example, Deuteronomy 15:9 talks about having an evil eye toward a slave when the Jubilee Year is approaching and they are to be set free. It means you are ungenerous and begrudge them that freedom. Proverbs 23:6 says, “Eat not the bread of him who has an evil eye.”
He says you have two treasuries: in heaven or on earth. Wherever you put your treasure, that is where your heart and mind will be. If your mind is set on heavenly treasure, you will have a generous spirit toward the kingdom of God. This generous spirit will give you a “seeing eye” that floods your spiritual life with perception. However, if your treasure is on earth, you will see nothing because the blinds of your greed and covetousness will come down. And if that’s the case, the end of verse 23 says, “If the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!” It’s an exclamation from our Lord, highlighting how complete the darkness is for one who should see spiritually but instead pulls the blinds down through their own greed.
The call, then, is to an exclusive, heavenly-minded devotion to God and an undivided storing of treasure in heaven.
Let me simplify the whole thing with one statement: how you handle your money is the key to your spiritual perception. That is the message of verses 22 and 23.
The reason you should not store treasure on earth but in heaven is not only the common observation that things here fade, decay, and perish, but also the direct relationship it has with your heart and mind. What holds your treasure will have your heart, what has your heart will have your mind and judgment, and then it will affect your will. Your will determines all your actions in life.
No one can serve two masters. You cannot be a slave to two masters. You might think, “Oh, I work for two people,” but if the two masters’ plans and purposes are opposite, you will hate one and love the other, or cling to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon.
Mammon is a term for money and earthly treasure. Two masters stand before you: one is God, and one is mammon. God says, “Store up treasure in heaven.” Mammon says, “Store up treasure on earth.” We cannot obey both because their commands are opposed. God says, “Be content, do not be anxious.” Mammon says, “Be anxious and get as much as possible.” God says, “Be concerned about what you cannot see—eternity, heaven, your soul.” Mammon says, “Love what you can see and touch—the things of the world.” Their demands are opposite.
Where your treasure is, there your heart will be. Whatever possesses the heart will have the mind, and whatever has the mind will have the will. Whatever has my will is my master. I am its slave, whether it is God or worldly things. There is no neutral ground.
Our Lord’s command is not to store up treasures here on earth, but in heaven. He gives us reasons: not only the common observation that all things here are temporal and decay, but also the incorruptible nature of heavenly treasure.
You cannot serve two masters. You may pretend to serve God. But every time the demands of mammon conflict with the demands of God, you will show your true master. You might come to church, pray, and read the Bible without conflict. But when there is a need for gospel ministry or for the church, and you have plans to spend on luxury or unnecessary things, that’s where the conflict comes. That’s when you will show whom you truly serve.
The word “serve” here is from the root douleuo, from which we get doulos, the word for “bond slave.” You cannot be a slave to two masters because slavery, by definition, means single ownership and full-time, undivided service. To be a bond slave, to be the property of a master, was to be constantly, totally, entirely, and 100% devoted to obedience to that one master. It would be utterly impossible to express that to two different masters.
God can only be served with entire and exclusive devotion. He can only be served with single-mindedness, and if you try to split it with money, you will end up hating one or the other.
This single-mindedness means you have to choose your master. What a blessed state to be in—no confusion, no argument, no tossing in anything. Just one mind. Bishop J.C. Ryle said a very important statement: “Singleness of purpose is the greatest secret of spiritual prosperity.” It is that absolute focus that makes you spiritually rich.
Caleb, in the book of Joshua, put it this way: “I wholly followed the LORD my God.” David put it this way in Psalm 16: “I have set the LORD always before me.”
Where is the safest place to put your treasure, then? Well, it’s where you will have the clearest spiritual sight and where you will be able to serve the right Master. John Calvin said, “Where riches hold the dominion of the heart, God has lost His authority.”
Mammon says, “Heap up, heap up!” God says, “Give, give,” so the church can grow and the gospel can be taken to the ends of the earth. It is not about how much you give, but where your heart is. Are we storing treasures on earth?
Every one of us is basically bowing to either mammon or God. Where are you storing treasures? What has your heart, mind, and will? When you have free time, does your heart move toward the world or toward God? What governs you? Where do you spend your time and energy?
If your eye is single, your judgment of everything will be right. If your eye is evil, your thoughts about everything—your position, life, and values—will be wrong. Because a darkened eye leads to a life full of darkness and confusion. It is so important in our lives to set up our treasures in heaven early on. We as parents need to teach this to our children. How can we make right decisions without this foundation?
Where your treasure is, there your heart will be. Whatever possesses the heart will have the mind, and whatever has the mind will have the will. Whatever has my will is my master. I am his slave, whether it is God or things. There is no neutral ground. A person whose heart, mind, and will are in heaven will surely go to heaven.
What does it mean to store up treasures in heaven? As we have seen, it means investing our lives in eternal things: the Word of God and the souls of people. The Jews understood what Jesus meant by storing up treasures in heaven. The Rabbis told a famous story about a certain King Monobaz. When he became king, he inherited incredible riches from his forefathers. But during his reign, he gave all his fortune to the poor, the needy, the suffering, and the afflicted. His brothers sent word to him, saying, “Your fathers gathered treasure and added to what their fathers had, but you have dispersed that treasure.”
He said to them, “My fathers gathered treasures for below; I have gathered treasures for above. They stored treasures in a place over which the hand of man can rule; I have stored treasures in a place over which the hand of man cannot rule. My fathers collected treasures that bear no interest; I have gathered treasures which eternally bear interest. My fathers gathered treasures of money; I have gathered treasures in souls. My fathers gathered treasures in this world, and I have gathered treasures in the world to come.” This was a familiar story told by the rabbis, so they understood the concept to which our Lord spoke: Invest in His kingdom.
The early church had this commitment. They were not interested in piling up their own wealth. You find, for example, in Acts chapter 2 that on the day of Pentecost, thousands of pilgrims had gathered in Jerusalem. History tells us they would move in and live in the homes of people who resided in the city, which would swell with population as there weren’t enough inns to care for everyone. Many of these people became believers on that great day of Pentecost when Peter preached, and three thousand were redeemed, with many thousands more in the chapters that follow. They were there and they were believers and didn’t want to leave because they were in the church, and there was excitement and joy. So the believers had to absorb them. I’m sure many were poor and without resources, so the early church had to give to them to meet their needs. They were busy selling what they possessed for the spread of God’s Word and the salvation of souls.
What made them do that? They saw the great opportunity to invest in the kingdom of God where moths, rust, and thieves cannot touch. It was an opportunity to be rich toward God by saving souls. That has always been the way with the church. Even during the Decian persecution in Rome, when Roman authorities broke into a certain church, they thought they could loot its treasures. The Roman prefect in charge stepped up to a saint named Laurentius and said, “Show me your treasures at once.” Laurentius pointed to a group of changed sinners, widows, and orphans who happened to be eating a meal and said, “There are the treasures of the church.” We have invested all we have in them. That is treasure in heaven.
My friends, remember that what we keep, we lose, and what we invest with God, we gain eternally. This is how God’s Word spread and souls were saved; the church grew. It happened because believers were not worldly or greedy but sacrificially and generously invested in eternal things. You will never see a church growing when its members are worldly, greedy, spending lavishly on worldly things, and stingy toward God, never investing in the kingdom. Their money will perish with them.
But it is a historical fact that when God’s people generously invest in His kingdom, God amazingly blesses them financially. It is a historical fact that the most godly nations have always been the richest nations. This is also true on an individual level. There are so many promises in God’s Word that He will financially bless His people, and He keeps them. When we learn how to handle wealth and are not greedy and selfish, and when God sees that we will not let money spoil our lives but will use it for His kingdom as good stewards, I believe He will bless us richly. We must prove faithful in little for Him to bless us with more. Again, it is for His sovereign purpose.
Let me show you the principle in Proverbs chapter 3, verse 9: “Honor the LORD with your substance, and with the first fruits of all your increase.” Honor the Lord with everything you have, and give Him the first part. You don’t want to give Him what’s left over. As a result, verse 10 says, “So shall your barns be filled with plenty, and your presses shall burst out with new wine.” You will never be able to invest with God without getting a dividend; you’ll get all the investment back and more. Proverbs chapter 11, verse 24 says, “There is he that scattereth, and yet increaseth.”
Isn’t that interesting? Paul said in 2 Corinthians 9, “Sow sparingly, reap sparingly; sow bountifully, reap bountifully.”
Look at Luke chapter 6, verse 38. This is the word of the Lord Himself: “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.”
In 1 Timothy chapter 6, verse 17, the call of God for our lives regarding our luxuries and wealth is that we distribute and share rather than hoarding and stockpiling. Verse 19 says that as a result, we are “laying up treasure for themselves” which is the very same verb thesaurizo. In other words, we then expose ourselves to the full potentiality of all that eternal life can mean. The more I send ahead into glory, the greater the glory will be when I get there. The greater the investment, the greater the reward.
Luke 16, verse 9 says, “And I say to you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous money, that when it is gone, they may receive you into everlasting habitations.” Do you know what that means? It means to invest your money in the souls of people who will someday greet you in thanksgiving when you step on the shore of heaven. What a fabulous thought, what an incredible anticipation! With your money, the church grows, souls are saved, and they will be in heaven, eternally grateful friends because of your investment.
He says, “Make friends with your money who will receive you into an everlasting habitation.” What a promise! Homer sang, “How many are the souls, how many are the chained that I have freed?” How many people in whose lives I have invested will be standing there to greet me when I enter into His presence? What are you going to do with your treasure? Whatever you keep here, you lose; whatever you send ahead by investment in the lives and souls of those around you, you gain forever. What a glorious promise.
Listen to Proverbs 19:17, which says, “He that has pity on the poor lendeth to the LORD.” This has been a great motivation for me, especially at this time. I was a bit discouraged about a few things concerning the needs of the building and other matters. I’m not saying this for pride, but you know that in the last ten years of my ministry, I have not taken a single rupee. What motivates me is that I have given up so much time, taken a lower salary, not sought promotion, and made sacrifices in my family for the full-time job of preaching these messages. Now, while buying land, I spent a considerable amount of money, even pledging jewelry, which is still not redeemed. Then I took out a large loan, and because of it, no bank will give me another loan. My entire financial balance is gone. I can’t plan or buy anything like investing in tax-saving instruments, so I’m paying more tax. I’m stuck in many ways, unable to loan or invest, and not able to spend like before. Now, there is still a great need for the building, and it motivates me to invest more in the kingdom.
Men in my future, my relatives in the village, may ask, “You earn so much—more than all of us. They bought two or three houses and lands. What have you bought? What have you earned? How many lands and sites do you own?” One day, I might be able to show them the church building and the saved souls and say, “Here is my wealth. No moth, rust, or thief can take it away.”
May God help us to store up treasure in heaven. Let us thank Him for such a privilege, that we should know the fullness of eternal glory as dividends of our investment. We must apply this in our lives.
Jesus’ Investment Advice
“If you want to invest your money, find the investment that will give you the most security and the best rate of return over the longest period of time.”
The Rich Man Who Went to Heaven
The story is told of a certain rich man who died and went to heaven. As he went through the Gates of Pearl, Saint Peter came to personally welcome him, saying, “Welcome, my friend, to heaven. It is my responsibility to show you where you will be living.” That suited the rich man just fine because as he looked around, he saw mansions stretching out in every direction—not just any mansions, but the most beautiful buildings he had ever seen. Some appeared to be constructed of gold, silver, and precious gems. Some were stately colonial mansions, while others had a European flair. Each one was unlike all the others, and all were breathtakingly beautiful.
As Saint Peter and the rich man began to walk along the streets of gold, they came to a particularly ornate mansion. As they paused to gaze at it, the rich man asked, “Whose mansion is that?” Saint Peter replied, “That’s for your servant. He was a godly man who loved the Lord Jesus and served Him all his life. This is his reward.”
They continued to stroll past other mansions until they stopped before a second one, very unlike the first, but larger and made almost entirely of emeralds and rubies. The rich man thought to himself, “This one must be mine.” So he asked Saint Peter, “Whose is this?” Back came the answer, “That’s the mansion for your maid. On that little salary you paid her, she raised six children and supported missionaries around the world.”
At last, they turned a corner and seemed to pass into a new section. The houses were not as nice. As they walked across a small hill, the rich man was surprised to see a tiny house—not more than twelve by sixteen feet—made of tar paper and what appeared to be used sheet metal. The front door was cut from a refrigerator box. The whole thing was held together with bailing wire and twine. After pausing for a moment, the rich man asked, “And whose is that?”
“Why, it’s yours,” said Saint Peter.
When the rich man protested that he deserved something much nicer, Saint Peter bowed his head and told him sadly, “We did the best we could with what you sent ahead.”
What are you sending ahead to heaven? What will you find when you pass through the Jordan River on your way to the Celestial City? What investments are you making today that will make a difference in eternity?
Grace Reformed Baptist Church, Bangalore 