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Matthew 6:19-24 “Don't lay up treasures for yourselves on the earth, where moth and rust consume, and where thieves break through and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consume, and where thieves don't break through and steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is sound, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is evil, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness! No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other; or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You can't serve both God and Mammon” (WEB). The Lord Jesus told the disciples, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal” (Matthew 6:19-20). The hoarding of earthly treasure makes little practical sense. Eternal investments, investments in the kingdom of heaven, are far more profitable. They are certain, and the benefits long lasting. Earthly investments are short-lived. There are, as we know, various kinds of wealth, and Jesus reminded His disciples how each form of wealth was subject to loss of value. Clothing was considered one form of wealth in the near East (Joshua 7:21; 2 Kings 5:22). In some cultures today clothing is a form of wealth, or at least a symbol of wealth. However, such wealth is short-lived. Just one of the destructive forces at work in this area is the moth. No matter how hard we try to avoid it, the moth gets into our most precious and valuable clothing and eats holes in it. Rust can and does consume any metal forms of wealth. That is one reason why you and I have to keep buying new cars from time to time. It is doubtful, however, that rust is the primary image in our Lord’s mind. “Rust” is literally that which “eats” or “corrodes.” More likely one’s wealth would be, in those days, in the form of grain that would be stored until the price was high enough to make a good profit. Any foodstuff would be the target for vermin to get into and to contaminate or consume. The indestructible forms of wealth such as jewels or silver or gold are not so secure either. Burglars and thieves could, in those days, quite easily “break in” and steal them. Literally, this expression, “break in” meant to dig through. This was easily accomplished when walls were made of sun-dried bricks or mud. Even today, our most secure vaults are not burglarproof. In verse 21, Jesus tells us why we should not store up treasures on earth. “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Generally, we are inclined to think just the reverse of this. We suppose that a man will first fix his heart on something and then his money naturally follows. However, our Lord says that our heart follows our pocketbook. Where we spend our money, where we appropriate our material goods and our personal time, is where our heart will be. We might apply this principle to marriage. To the extent that we invest heavily, both in time and in money, we will find our affections more and more developed and committed. To store up treasures on earth is to set our heart on earthly things. It is difficult, even impossible, to desire the return of our Lord when we have made all of our investments in earthly things. Not only this but we also tend to put our trust, our confidence and hope in our investments. The great difficulty of the rich is that they are deceived into “fixing their hope on the uncertainty of riches” (1 Timothy 6:17). Jesus is not telling us we are forbidden to enjoy many of life’s pleasures, but that we view them as temporary and, in the long term, unsatisfying. Consequently, we choose to deny ourselves of some things in order to gain that which is greater. In verses 22 and 23 Jesus tells the disciples, “The eye is the lamp of the body; so then if your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness.” To the ancient mind, the eye was like a window that let light into the body. The condition or health of the eye determined the amount of light that entered the body. An unhealthy eye clouded or dimmed the entering light, subjecting the body to darkness. In the Bible, the eye represents a man’s character (Deuteronomy 25:12; 28:54, 56). A man with an “evil eye” is one who is greedy and miserly when confronted with the need of another: “A man with an evil eye hastens after wealth, and does not know that want will come upon him” (Proverbs 28:22 - NASB). The one whose heart is set on worldly riches has an evil eye. In looking out for himself, he neglects the needs of others. The one who is generous with others has a healthy eye. His vision of the needs about him is not distorted. He views his material wealth as belonging to God, and he quickly and willingly employs it to help those in need. The point of this principle is the love of money is not some minor flaw in the thinking of man. It is like a virus that has entered into the bloodstream. It affects the whole person. The love of money has far-reaching effects. Where we store up treasures is where our heart is drawn to and we invest most heavily. Jesus said, “No one can serve two masters; for either he hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” Put in its simplest form, “Money is either your slave or your master.” Money is like the fleshly desires. Either we will master them, or they will be our master. One may try to deceive himself into believing that he can pursue both goals simultaneously, God and money. However, our Lord said only one will be our Master. It is difficult for the Western mind to grasp the meaning of our Lord’s words. Many of us have second jobs. We may leave one job in the evening and go on to another at night. However, the language our Lord used was that of slave and master. A slave was the exclusive property of one master. He had no time of his own. His master could dispose of him as he wished. Perhaps an analogy that might be easier to understand is that of drug addiction. At first, a man begins to use drugs, but eventually they use him. His body builds up a tolerance for a certain quantity of a drug and he finds he must have more and more. Finally, the drug is his master and he is its slave. The more money one gets, the more one desires. This is what our Lord is saying. Storing up treasures on earth is dangerous and destructive because they take complete control over the one that should be the master. In His instructions to the disciples, Jesus warned us we should not view our material possessions as a means of ensuring comfort and security in this earthly life. Instead, we should invest in eternal things, for such an investment is secure and the benefits everlasting. Most people are inclined to think storing up earthly treasures as the inordinate desire to become wealthy for selfish ends. In other words, storing up earthly treasures is equated with financial ambition and prosperity. We who are storing up heavenly treasures often do not think storing up earthly treasures is a problem to us. However, storing up earthly treasures has two distinct forms. The first and most obvious is that dealt with in verses 19-24, the love of money that becomes the dominant and all-consuming passion of our lives. Most of us are not as close to the fire of this temptation as we are its opposite side. Rather than being absorbed in the hoarding of the material things we possess, we are consumed with concern about that which we do not possess. Every one of us is actively pursuing some goal in life. We are all devoted to one thing or another. If we have made our goal the quest for earthly treasures then we must redirect our efforts. The Christian life is not a matter of pursuing earthly treasures it is a matter of actively carrying out the will of God. Therefore, when it comes to the matter of worry we must not waste our energies on worry, but eagerly become involved in the task immediately before us. It is not wrong to be ambitious and aggressive. It is only wrong to pursue the wrong goals. It is a difficult thing to come to a balanced biblical outlook on material possessions in this passage, the Lord has been dealing with our priorities as they relate to material possessions. Our security is in the Lord, not in our bank account. It is not wrong to have material possessions, but with material possessions comes responsibility. There is no particular virtue in being poor either. In such a condition, we are sometimes tempted to distrust God or to be dishonest. Our proper handling of material things shows us to be qualified for greater responsibilities; may God help us to be faithful in the use of material possessions.
Article Source: http://christian-topics.info
New American Standard Bible King James Version World English Bible
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