Generous Treasure

"God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him." This is such a powerful statement by John Piper and one to truly mark our lives by. The depths of this statement reach into our hearts and minds and draws out questions. Can I truly say that God is being most glorified in me? Am I really satisfied in God? This world makes hundreds of offers each day. Every offer seeks to bring about satisfaction or gratification.

Have you ever noticed that the commercials on TV or on the side page of Facebook are geared toward catching your interest? Have you noticed that they seek to persuade you that you need "this" thing or "that" thing to be satisfied or happy? On Facebook, they track what you post about, the pages that you like, and probably way more things than we realize. What do these things say about you and I?

The current sermon series from church is about being generous and we discussed that last night in our life group. One of the greatest indicators of what satisfies us and what our heart desires is to see where our money, time, words and deeds are spent. Jesus said "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth where moth and rust destroy and thieves break in and steal but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is there will be your heart also.”

This is an assault on the views of our society and culture where we are told to look out for number one, me! We ask those having marriage troubles, “are your needs being met?” “Oh they’re not, well they don’t deserve you.” We focus on ourselves and we tell others to focus on themselves. We neglect the very words of truth that give life! Jesus didn’t give us this so that we would live a less fulfilled life, he gave us this because he wants us to live the most satisfied life we can. His life is the example we all should follow. He gave up his seat at the right hand of God, his kingdom, his power, and humbled himself to become like us. He lived the life we could not live (sinless) and exchanged it for our extremely sinful life.

One beautiful picture of this is of a father or mother teaching their child not to do something because it will hurt them but showing them the right way to use something. “Don’t touch the fire, it will burn you”…”use the fire this way and it is good and beneficial to you”. Such are the commands of our heavenly Father. This brings into question our belief in Him and what He has told us in His Word. As we approach Christmas and begin to get gifts and give gifts, let us remember not to store up treasures here on earth but to store up treasures in heaven. The encouragement that Jesus gave is not to deter us from giving or receiving but to give with eternal purposes in mind. If we give a shirt as a gift, it will eventually rip or tear, our shoes will wear thin, and even our earthly lives will end.

The time we have on earth can be fulfilling when we find our satisfaction in God alone. The beauty is that God’s commands and instruction bring about fulfillment in us. Marriage for God’s glory is immensely fulfilling. Marriage for your own satisfaction will crumble. Raising children for God’s glory is fulfilling (not easy), raising children for your own glory is destructive. A personal faith is fulfilling for a time but a personal faith that is shared brings immense pleasure and deeper knowledge of God. Jesus did not come to build a material kingdom he came to build a kingdom of people. He commanded us to go and make disciples not as a duty but as a joy. May we look to His Spirit, which is in us to lead and guide us. We cannot do this in our own strength, which is why he gave us the promise that ALL authority in heaven and earth has been given to him. Let us seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness.