
You Can’t Take It with You but You Can Send It Ahead
Monday, March 8th, 2010
Jesus makes an interesting statement in the Sermon on the Mount. He says, 19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:19-21).
Notice that he says we are not to primarily seek earthly treasure but heavenly ones. We know that there is nothing we can do to “earn” salvation. It is a gift based on faith (Ephesians 2, et al). We also know that our earthly possessions are momentary at best (2 Peter 3:10). Jesus says that we can place lasting treasures in heaven. What an interesting possibility!
Jesus also told a rich young ruler, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me” (Matthew 19:21). It seems there are ways that we can “provide for our eternal futures” now.
The scriptures show us numerous ways to do this. It is essentially walking in the ways of God (Deuteronomy 13:5). As he told the rich young ruler, we can care for the poor; we can visit the sick (Genesis 18:1); we can clothe the naked (Genesis 3:21); we can bury the dead (Deuteronomy 34:6); and others. It all boils down to what Jesus cited as the first and second great commandments – to love God completely and our neighbors as ourselves (Matthew 22:37-40).
With this in mind, where should we spend the bulk of our time and energies? I heard a speaker recently talk of the enormous amount of wasted time in front of what my dad used to call “the idiot box” (TV). Consider these statistics. We have generally sixteen waking hours per day. That totals 5840 hours per year. If we watch two hours of TV per night we will watch 730 hours per year. Now it gets ugly. Let’s divide our total TV hours by our waking hours (sixteen). We find that we are spending a conservative 45.6 waking hour days in front of the TV every year. It is likely that we watch more than two hours per day.
One of the great ways we can bless God, and according to Jewish thought to gain treasure in heaven, is by the study of his word. Let’s use the same formula for our Bible study. Fifteen minutes per day for 365 days divided by the sixteen waking hour days gives us a total of 5.7 waking hour days per year of study. We watch TV nearly NINE times more than reading our Bibles every year! Where would you guess your prayer life would fall in this scheme?
Which do you think will matter more in the long run? Will the breath-taking results of “The Bachelor” mean more to us than participating in the Lamb’s wedding? Will finding out the next “American Idol” be as important as practicing the Ten Commandments? Will watching this season’s “Survivor” matter more than surviving by the Beatitudes? Will watching the Super Bowl be more important practicing pure religion (James 1:27)?
Keep The Light Burning!
Perry Greene
Jesus makes an interesting statement in the Sermon on the Mount. He says, 19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:19-21).
Notice that he says we are not to primarily seek earthly treasure but heavenly ones. We know that there is nothing we can do to “earn” salvation. It is a gift based on faith (Ephesians 2, et al). We also know that our earthly possessions are momentary at best (2 Peter 3:10). Jesus says that we can place lasting treasures in heaven. What an interesting possibility!
Jesus also told a rich young ruler, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me” (Matthew 19:21). It seems there are ways that we can “provide for our eternal futures” now.
The scriptures show us numerous ways to do this. It is essentially walking in the ways of God (Deuteronomy 13:5). As he told the rich young ruler, we can care for the poor; we can visit the sick (Genesis 18:1); we can clothe the naked (Genesis 3:21); we can bury the dead (Deuteronomy 34:6); and others. It all boils down to what Jesus cited as the first and second great commandments – to love God completely and our neighbors as ourselves (Matthew 22:37-40).
With this in mind, where should we spend the bulk of our time and energies? I heard a speaker recently talk of the enormous amount of wasted time in front of what my dad used to call “the idiot box” (TV). Consider these statistics. We have generally sixteen waking hours per day. That totals 5840 hours per year. If we watch two hours of TV per night we will watch 730 hours per year. Now it gets ugly. Let’s divide our total TV hours by our waking hours (sixteen). We find that we are spending a conservative 45.6 waking hour days in front of the TV every year. It is likely that we watch more than two hours per day.
One of the great ways we can bless God, and according to Jewish thought to gain treasure in heaven, is by the study of his word. Let’s use the same formula for our Bible study. Fifteen minutes per day for 365 days divided by the sixteen waking hour days gives us a total of 5.7 waking hour days per year of study. We watch TV nearly NINE times more than reading our Bibles every year! Where would you guess your prayer life would fall in this scheme?
Which do you think will matter more in the long run? Will the breath-taking results of “The Bachelor” mean more to us than participating in the Lamb’s wedding? Will finding out the next “American Idol” be as important as practicing the Ten Commandments? Will watching this season’s “Survivor” matter more than surviving by the Beatitudes? Will watching the Super Bowl be more important practicing pure religion (James 1:27)?
Keep The Light Burning!
Perry Greene
