Monday 22 June 2020

Treasure in Heaven

Scripture: Mark 10 v 19 - 21:  "Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother.  
20 And he answered and said unto Him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth. 
21 Then Jesus beholding him, loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in Heaven: and come, take up thy cross and follow Me."


In the above verses Jesus is ministering to a rich man who is seeking the path to eternal life.  In this case He saw that this man was bound by his wealth rather than using it to bring people nearer to God.  The 'poor' are those who have not yet been saved.

The rich man had kept the commandments God gave to Moses, i.e. the Law, all his life, but he had no surety in His heart of eternal life.  The Law saves nobody; just being a good person does not qualify you for Heaven.  You must be born again as Jesus commanded in John 3 v 3.  Only then can we perceive the Kingdom of God and the treasures it has.

In the Old Testament book of Malachi, God says people rob Him in tithes and offerings.  If they would give their tithe of 10 percent of their earnings, He would rebuke the Devourer for them. The Devourer would destroy their crops, or their business, or their family, unless God protected them. The tithes go into the storehouse, from which you receive spiritual knowledge."

Our God responds directly to the way we obey Him or treat our fellow men.  Luke 6 v 38: "Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again."

We must first give and the Lord will multiply back to us all these blessings.  But if we withhold and make excuses, when we hope for blessings we will be disappointed.  In Mark 11 God says clearly, forgive those who have wronged you and in like manner I will forgive you.  

In Matthew 18 Jesus  says if we do not forgive from the heart our Father will hand us over to the tormentors.  That's a bad place to be where God allows demons of fear, loss, worry, doubt, sickness to torment us.  We cannot see our heavenly treasures while under stress and strain. 

In the New Testament, in Acts 4, the new Christians gave everything they had to the Apostles to further the gospel.  Everything we give to the Lord out of our heart, increases our treasure in Heaven, as well as receiving a hundred fold return here on Earth.  Jesus says where your treasure is, that's where your heart will be.  He wants us to be heavenly minded, because that is in direct opposition to the corrupt, greedy world run by Satan.

The prosperity and wealth of Christians is not measured by the world's standards, which are based in lust for the biggest, best, most expensive, most stylish luxuries.  It is rather based in complete satisfaction with whatever you have.  It is not in your ability to keep up with, or exceed, the Jones's; but to enjoy whatever God has blessed you with, without the need to compete for worldly acclaim.

Jesus always knows what you have need of, and will never let you down.  He says I will supply all your needs, and He follows through.  Trust Him with everything and He will repay that trust in ways we could not imagine.

If you want the best of both worlds, you need to follow Jesus with all your heart no matter who objects, or what barriers try to block you.  It only matters that you overcome them all and follow the Lord's plan for your life.  Then you will have treasure in Heaven to draw upon forever.

Prayer:  Heavenly Father, it is hard for people to comprehend Your power and ability.  I cannot doubt it as You have done so many miracles for me.  I pray that this message strikes a chord in those who want treasure in Heaven, and joy on Earth. In Jesus' name. Amen.