Have you ever noticed that no matter how much we have, we always want more. If we get a raise and have the income we wanted, we just spend more so we never have enough.
And do we ever reach the point of being satisfied? When we have all the things that we’ve wished for in life, if there is no purpose in our life, are we then satisfied? Not likely.
What good does it do to build up riches on earth? When we leave this earth, we can’t take any of it with us.
This sermon series has been about giving what we have to others, so that we can build up treasure in heaven. Jon, our pastor, has led us through this series, not so that we’d give more to the church. That’s never a popular sermon to preach, I’m sure. But, he asked, “Why is it so hard to give?” Because we don’t believe. We’re insecure. Desiring power and control. We keep things for ourselves.
Our biggest obstacle to giving is the illusion that this is as good as it gets. We think that earth is our home. But the Bible tells us that we are pilgrims, aliens on earth, strangers in a foreign land. Sojourners on a journey.
Treasure Principle # 3 – Heaven, not earth, is our home.
We tend to chase shiny things because we want our treasure here and now. We hope that we’ll be in heaven one day, but we live like the way it is now on earth is as good as it gets.
The Dash, a poem about life on earth is a dot that begins and ends.
. _ . ____________________ But from that second dot extends a line that goes on for eternity. Right now we’re in the dash, but what are we living for?
Treasure Principle #4- Live for the line.
Giving is living the line. Storing up for yourself treasures in heaven. But it’s not about what you’re storing up. What you give now is where your happiness lies. Being able to see the smile on someone’s face when you provide something they don’t have through your generosity, is about as good a feeling as I can imagine.
“He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.” – Jim Elliot
He’s talking about gain. The kind of gain that we can’t lose. Treasures in heaven. We know that the wealth that we build up on earth can be gone in an instant and we can’t take it with us anyway. What you build up in heaven can’t be lost. Live for the line, not the dot.
When I come home after church, I sit down with my notes and look over them piecing together Jon’s message. I often have holes in my notes because I can’t get it all on paper. When I have questions, I turn to Jon with questions or refer to his sermon notes. My small synopsis can’t do justice to his sermons. You’ve got to be there to get the full effect. I always leave feeling blessed!
In Faith,
Pam
Where God Leads 