Two
important questions: 1. Why do people invest so much time, energy and money
preparing for a future that is uncertain? 2. Why do people spend so little
time, energy and money preparing for a future that is certain? It’s all about faith,
values, short and long term comfort.
Comparing
what people value to what God values, Jesus said: “What is highly valued among
people is detestable in God’s sight” (Luke 16:15b)
Jesus
teaches that we can identify our true ambitions by identifying the things we
value most. “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matt 6: 21)
Jesus defines treasure to mean that in which we take our greatest
delight, and towards which we give our greatest efforts.
Jesus
taught that we can actually accumulate wealth in the Bank of Heaven. He manages
an investment fund that always gains because he is the perfect fund manager and he
will only receive investments that last.
Jesus
said: “Do not store up for yourselves treasure on earth, where moth and rust
destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasure in heaven, where moth
and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.” (Matt 6:19-21)
Jesus
tells us we can store our treasure in one of two places. Keep this in mind: He
isn’t promoting poverty and he isn’t saying wealth is evil. Jesus is simply
helping us see that one line of investments are very high risk and the other is
absolutely secure and growing––unable to fail.
How to invest in
Heaven’s Treasure (three
stories)
1.
Jesus tells a
strange story in The parable of the shrewd manager (Luke 16)
The parable teaches that we should use our material
resources to gain friends. Use your worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it
is gone, you will be welcomed into heavenly dwellings.” (Luke 16:9) This is not about salvation through generosity. It’s about gaining eternal benefits for
those we help and for ourselves. The shrewd and worldly manager only gained
temporary friends. Jesus wants us to see that we can gain eternal friends
through the wise use of our material resources.
Think
about this: There may be people in heaven who will thank you for showing them
the light of God through your material generosity.
2.
The Parable of the rich fool (Luke
12:15-21) illustrates that we can
store enduring treasure in just one of two places. This parable has an application for Christians and for those
who aren’t Christian. Both can waste their lives storing up things for the
wrong reasons. It’s sobering to remember that the moment we die, everything we
have accumulated here on earth will be of no value to us.
3.There is to be an award giving ceremony in heaven: ‘If
what we have built survives, we will receive our reward’. (1 Cor 3:10-15)
We
should invest in heaven now—we may make a quick exit from our bodies.
Some
day the heavenly fund manager will present us with our eternal superannuation
statement. He will clarify our ‘lump sum’ that has been accumulating as we
made contributions while we were
on earth.
For
we must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ, that each may receive
what is due to them for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad
(2
Cor 5:10) Jesus will display his
pleasure in those who have used their lives to honour, love and serve him.
The
currency that is accepted in heaven: First,
we should make sure we are going to be there to access our wealth: Heaven’s
first treasure offered to people who are not Christian is the gift of eternal
life. This comes when we determine
to follow Jesus as our personal Lord and Saviour.
Responsible
use of wealth. “Command those who
are rich (We are the rich) in this present world not to be
arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put
their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our
enjoyment. Command them to do
good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In
this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the
coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.” (1 Timothy 6: 17-19)
Two things not to
do
1. Don’t become arrogant: This happens when we place
our confidence in
anything
other than Jesus himself.
2. Don’t put our hope in wealth: This happens when
we ignore Jesus, and believe we
are in control of our lives.
Three things to
do
1. Trust Jesus for the present and the future. (Matt
6) As we do this we free ourselves from the things unbelievers get stressed
over.
2. Measure
wealth by the good we do with it, not by what we have for our use.
3. Have a generous attitude by being ambitious to
share generously.
Two Outcomes
1.
The future: Our treasure is secure for us in heaven. And with wise and planned investment
here on earth it will continue to grow.
2.
The present: We are offered a fuller experience of eternal life now. And we have
freedom from the anxieties over the future that those who do not trust in Jesus
experience.
What holds people
back from investing in heaven?
The
main thing that keeps us from investing in heaven’s treasure is lack of faith. This causes us to opt
for earthly rather than heavenly treasure. Lack of faith also causes us to settle for the minimum investment
in heaven.
Jesus
must be Master over our hearts: His will, precepts and values must receive our
primary attention; then and not till then will everything in our inward person
fall into its right place. Unless
our hearts are so ordered, everything will be in confusion and our whole body
will be in darkness.
With
global economies wallowing in debt and failure it’s wonderful to know we have a
future that is absolutely secure. This should give us great joy. And to know we
can increase God’s pleasure in us through investing more of our resources for the
growth of his Kingdom should give us a sense of purpose, hope and adventure.
Consider
your spiritual investment portfolio—assess the risk and invest wisely.
