Luke 12:32-34 (NIV) 32"Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. 33Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. 34For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Where is your treasure? Jesus said it needs to be in heaven. Treasure in heaven may sound rather ethereal and nebulous, but Jesus assures us that having treasure in heaven has very specific results on our life here and now.
Jesus talks about having treasure in heaven so we will not be anxious about what we shall eat, or what we shall put on, for God knows we need these things. He asks us to put our treasure in heaven so we will be released from worry over money and the things we own.
Can you imagine not worrying over money, not being anxious or bothered? It does sound heavenly, does it not? This is what Jesus wants for our life. When we have our treasure in heaven, our money does not let us down. Our money accomplishes for us what it is meant to accomplish for us. Our money gives life and vitality.
Jesus talks about treasure in heaven as part of life in the kingdom of God. “Fear not, little flock for it is God’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom...” Treasure in heaven is treasure in the kingdom of God. And the Kingdom of God is the rule of God that came in Jesus. To have treasure in heaven means that we accept God’s rule over our money and our possessions.
We give our money and possessions to God in two steps. The first step is one of faith, to believe that God is the owner of all that we have. The second step is one of action, to say God is the ruler of all that we have. Our heart follows our money. And when Jesus says, sell your possessions and give to the poor, He wants us to give a response to and a sign of God’s rule in our life. He wants our giving to come from God’s rule and not simply from our sense of responsibility.
From a sermon preached by Henry Dobbs Pope November 15, 1998
© Rhonda Hinkle Mitchell Broyles
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