There’s a story told that contrasts two very different lives … that really speaks to the Treasure Principle we’ve been learning together. And it goes something like this…
A ministry family went to Egypt to visit some missionary friends they supported there. While they were there, their missionary friends took them to see some sights they’d be interested in. One day, through the hot & dusty streets of Cairo, they were taken to a poorly kept graveyard for American missionaries. As the missionaries led them into the graveyard, they pointed out a sun-scorched tombstone that read: “William Borden, 1887-1913.” Borden has become a rather famous missionary since this time…
Borden, a Yale graduate and heir to great wealth, rejected a life of ease in order to bring the gospel to Muslims in Egypt. Refusing even to buy himself a car, Borden gave away hundreds of thousands of dollars (in his day) to missions. Then, after only 4 months of zealous ministry, Borden contracted spinal meningitis and died at the age of 25 years.
As they were looking closely at the tombstone, they dusted it off in order to read the rest of the epitaph. Basically what was written there described Borden’s love and sacrifices for the Kingdom of God and for the Muslim people there in particular. The inscription then ended with this phrase, which is somewhat memorable: “Apart from a faith in Christ, there is no explanation for such a life”…
From there, the missionary friends took the visiting ministry family straight from Borden’s grave to the Egyptian National Museum. The King Tut exhibit was on display there and, from what I read, it was mind-boggling.
Tutankhamen, the boy king, was only 17 years old when he died. He was buried with solid gold chariots and thousands of gold artifacts. His gold coffin was found within gold tombs … within more gold tombs … and within even more gold tombs. The burial site was filled—literally—with tons of gold.
The Egyptians, you see, believed in an afterlife—one where they could take earthly treasures. But all the earthly treasures intended for King Tut’s eternal enjoyment stayed right where they were … until Howard Carter discovered the burial chamber in 1922. They hadn’t been touched for more than 3,000 years…
Folks, I don’t know about you, but I’m struck by the contrast between these two graves…
Borden’s was obscure, dusty, and hidden off of the back alley of a street littered with garbage…
Tutankhamen’s tomb glittered with unimaginable wealth…
Yet, where are these two men now? Granted, only God knows for sure … but from a Christian—biblical—perspective…
The one who lived in opulence and called himself king … is most likely living the misery of a Christ-less eternity, for he thought himself a god…
The other, who lived a modest life on earth in service of the one true King, is enjoying his everlasting reward in the presence of his Lord…
Tut’s life was tragic because of an awful truth discovered too late—he couldn’t take his treasures with him. William Borden’s life, on the other hand, was triumphant! Why? Because, instead of leaving behind his treasures, he sent them on ahead…
As followers of Christ, we have to get into the mindset of a steward or caretaker of all God’s entrusted to us while here on this earth, but in order to do that … we have to have our eyes fixed firmly on eternity. Listen to our scripture today, as Jesus reminds us of that very necessary fact (Matt. 16:24-27)…
Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me. 25 If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. 26 And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul? 27 For the Son of Man will come with his angels in the glory of his Father and will judge all people according to their deeds.”
So folks, we have to realize that what we do here on this earth does count … and it will count for eternity… So, just like Jesus was encouraging his early followers, we too need to have our eyes on eternity. But, how can we do that? Well, first, God’s word helps us do just that, by teaching us about…
…ETERNAL REWARDS (AND THAT THERE IS SUCH A THING). If we’re to have our eyes fixed on eternity, then we need to talk about the realities of eternity (from God’s word), including rewards waiting for us… As I said last week, if you think heaven’s going to be all about sitting on clouds, strumming a harp, and singing songs all day (and that excites you), you’ll probably be very disappointed. However, if you trust Scripture, you’ll be filled with JOY and EXCITEMENT as you anticipate your heavenly home…
Biblically speaking, folks, heaven will be a place of rest and relief from the burdens of this fallen world—no more sin or suffering. But it will also be a place of great learning (which is why it’s so important to be a good student here); it will be a place of activity, artistic expression, exploration, fellowship, and, finally, service…
Some of us will reign with Christ (Rev. 20:6)…
Faithful servants will be put ‘in charge of many things’ (Matt. 25:21, 23)…
Christ will grant some followers leadership over cities, in proportion to their service on earth (Luke 19:12-19)…
Some of us will even command angels (1 Cor. 6:3)…
We’ll be given these eternal rewards for several reasons: doing good works (Eph. 6:8; Romans 2:6, 10), persevering under persecution (Luke 6:22-23), showing compassion for the needy (Luke 14:13-14), and even for treating our enemies kindly (Luke 6:35). God also grants us rewards for generous giving (Matt. 19:21—the Rich Young Ruler): “If you want to be perfect, go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven….” But, how does God know how to reward? Did you ever think of that? Well…
Did you know that God keeps a record in heaven of all we do for him, including our giving? That’s how God knows how to reward us … even for the smallest acts of kindness:
Matt. 10:42 – “And if you give even a cup of cold water to one of the least of my followers, you will surely be rewarded.”
Malachi 3:16 – “Then those who feared the LORD spoke with each other, and the LORD listened to what they said. In his presence, a scroll of remembrance was written to record the names of those who feared him and always thought about the honor of his name.”
Just imagine a scribe in heaven recording each of your gifts on that scroll—the bike you gave to the neighbor kid, the books you passed on to the jail ministry, the monthly checks to the church, or to missionaries, or other concerns of God—all being written down in heaven. And folks, scrolls are made to be read: I can’t wait to hear your giving stories and meeting those whose lives were changed because of what you gave…
Rewards or treasures in heaven, folks, are real! God’s word’s very clear about this. So, we have to be aware of that, if we want to keep our eyes on eternity. But, there’s one more thing today that will help us keep our eyes fixed there; Jesus, himself, helps us to know that we also need to have…
…A HEART IN THE RIGHT PLACE. In Matthew 6:21, Jesus tells us that wherever our treasure is, there will our heart be also, but before we get into that let me ask you this: Have you ever heard the song “Thank You” by Ray Boltz? Folks, whether we were their Sunday School teachers or put money in the offering basket, these people will one day express their gratitude to each of us for our giving! God promises us many generous heavenly rewards, like the reward of hearing about all the lives we’ve managed to affect in our lifetime, through our giving of time, prayers, and money…
And folks, we’ll know that our heart is in the right place when we know that leaving this world is something we can look forward to, instead of dread—a place where our treasures are stored…
John Wesley once toured a vast estate with a proud plantation owner. They rode their horses for hours and saw only a fraction of the man’s property. At the end of the day they sat down to dinner, where the plantation owner eagerly asked Wesley, “Well, Mr. Wesley, what do you think?” To which Wesley soon replied, “I think you’re going to have a hard time leaving all this”… It’s kind of the point Jesus was trying to make in Matthew 6:21 (NLT) when he said this: “Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.” And that is the 2nd key to the Treasure Principle… So, here we go with this:
TREASURE PRINCIPLE KEY #2
My heart always goes where I put God’s money.
By telling us that our hearts follow our treasure, Jesus is saying in essence, “Show me your checkbook (i.e. your VISA statement, receipts, etc.) and I’ll show you what’s important to you—where your heart is!”
Our hearts always follow our treasures … and Jesus knew that…
Invest in a new hobby … and that hobby’s what you’ll be thinking about…
Invest in a new mission … and that’s where your heart will be…
Invest in a new company (stock) … and pretty soon you’re checking that stock every day…
Our heart follows our treasure! Jesus just wants to make sure we’re investing his money in eternal things—that our heart’s in the right place…
Folks, never doubt this: GOD WANTS YOUR HEART… And by that, I mean that God wants your heart in the right place…
God isn’t looking just for ‘donors’ who stand outside a cause and just throw money at it…
God’s looking for Disciples who’re invested in the causes they give to…
God wants people so filled with a vision for eternity that they wouldn’t dream of not investing their money, their time, and their prayers where they’ll matter the most…
Remember, those who lay up treasures on earth are always moving away from their treasures … so death is a loss … and they’re headed toward despair…
But, those who lay up treasures in heaven are always moving toward those treasures … so death is always gain, and these people are headed toward a time of rejoicing…
So, are you despairing or are you rejoicing today? Remember: Keeping our eyes on eternity is what will help us to live out the Treasure Principle in our lives—realizing heavenly rewards are connected to our lives here … and realizing our heart always needs to be in the right place… So, where are you investing today? That’s the conversation you need to have with your heart…
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