God OR money

Matthew 6:19-24

So if you listened to the bible reading you can see our subject for this morning is money. And if you not a regular here this morning. you might be wondering: why has Kyle chosen to speak about money?

Well I wanna make it clear right at the beginning that its not because Im after your money. I didnt sit down and look at our finances and the bond we need to pay off and the things we wanting to do. And say: ah we need money for them. I better do a talk on money.

No. The reason we looking at money this morning is because this is the next passage in our series. This is our normal practice at REACH Summerstrand. Its to work through books in the Bible and it prevents us from avoiding uncomfortable sections. And so this is the next section in our series and it focuses on money.

But even more than that. I dont want you to think that we trying to manipulate you to give us your money. We gona see that the main purpose of this passage isnt actually to capture your money. The main purpose is to capture your hearts. We gona see that money has an unusual ability to capture our hearts and to entice away them from God. And Jesus doesnt want that to happen. Thats why He speaks about money.

And so you mustnt think this sermon is about taking from you. Its actually about giving to you. Its about giving you the true freedom of serving God.

So Lets pray and ask for his help.

Father we wanna be devoted to You. We know that thats the real purpose of our lives. Thats where true contentment and peace is found. We thank You that Your Word gives us instructions about how we can find that. So please open our eyes to understand Your Word. And enable us to serve You with an undivided heart. In Jesus Name Amen

Now let me just give you the context of this passage. Its part of the sermon on the Mount which is really all about radical living. It calls for undivided devotion to God.

And in Matthew chapter 6, Jesus warns us about 2 main things that can distract us from devotion to God. In verses 1-18, the first distraction is the praise of men. If we looking for praise from men, if we doing our acts of service to be recognized by men, then thatll distract us from sincere devotion to God. Thats the first distraction which we looked at a couple of weeks ago.

But then secondly in verse 19-34, the second distraction is wealth. You could call it money or possessions. This also has the potential to distracts us from to God. And so this morning we come to the first part of this section: verses 19-24. I want you to see 3 commands about wealth.

1stly dont store wealth

2ndly, dont seek wealth

3rdly, dont serve wealth

Repeat

So Firstly, dont store up your wealth? Verses 19-21

Jesus starts with some practical investment advice. And its very wise advice. The key to a wise investment is to put your money firstly where itll be most secure. Secondly where itll make the greatest profit. Only a fool invests his money in a place where he knows itll be lost.

And so look at the wise advice in Verse 19. 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 treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.

This is very simple investment advice. You dont have to be very bright to understand it.

Worldly treasure is insecure. And its just as insecure today as it was in Jesus day. Yes we might have come up with more advanced insecticides and rust proof paint and security systems and burglar bars. But now we need to deal with inflation and economic slumps.

And even if some of our wealth does last for the rest of our lives, I can guarantee you, in a hundred years, every bit of treasure weve invested on earth will be gone. We cant take it with us.

Naked we came into the world. Naked we will depart.

And so its a crazy to invest your treasure on earth

This is practical investment advice: Dont invest ur treasure on earth. Invest it in heaven. Its wise investment advice.

But now I want you to see, why does Jesus give us this advice? Its not just because Hes concerned about your possessions: your car or your money or your house thats gona be lost. Thats not His primary concern. His main concern is about your heart. Whatll happen to your heart?

And you can see that if you look at verse 21: why mustnt we store up treasure on earth? Why must we store it up in heaven? Verse 21 for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Thats why He gives this advice.

Its because the place where you store your treasure will inevitably influence your heart.

Your heart will be drawn to the location of your wealth.

And if you think about this, it makes sense. If youve got a million rand invested in Allan Gray and only 1 rand invested with Investec, which investment company will be closer to your heart?

Which one will you be primarily concerned about?

Obviously, Allan Gray.

And so in the same way, if youve got lots of treasures here on earth. Nice houses, fancy cars, big investments, thats gona be the focus of your heart. Whereever your treasure is, thats where your heart will be also.

And so obviously this is a special challenge for those of us who are rich. And when I talk about the rich, Im not just talking about the superrich who live in mansions and drive the fanciest cars. Im talking about anyone with wealth stored up.

Whether its stored up in investments or stored up in property or stored up in possessions.

If youve got wealth stored up in this world, then this is the danger for you.

Its not just that youll lose all these treasures when you die. That would be okay, if you yourself would still be saved. The real danger is that your heart will be invested in these treasures.

And then it wont just be your treasures that are lost. Your heart will be lost along with them.[endnoteRef:1] [1: ]

Thats why Jesus gives this command. Hes concerned about our hearts. And its a great warning.

If you store up treasure on earth, ur putting ur heart in great danger.

But I think for all of us, we tempted to try and evade this.

We think that somehow well be different. Somehow we will be able to own lotsa money without being affected.

And We love to point out the true version of that quote: that its the love of money thats the root of all evil. Its not owning money thats the problem. Its the love of money. We love to point that out.

And thats true... Its not wrong to earn money and to own possessions. Those things are good.

But can you see, Jesus is pushing us further here. Its not just the love of money thats dangerous. Its also the storing of money thats dangerous, because the stroing of money will inevitably affect your heart.

And so I wanna suggest three ways that this might happens. We might not feel obsessed with our possessions. But the reality is that we will be subtly affected. Firstly, by anxiety. The more possessions you own, the more youve got to be anxious about. Anxious about the investments. Anxious about the security. Anxious about the corrosion and the wear and tear of your possessions. Its very hard not to be anxious about your wealth.

Secondly, False confidence. The more possessions you own, the more youll find confidence in those things. Whether its confidence in your appearance. That you can wear the coolest clothes. That You can live in the fancy house. That you can drive a cool car. Theres a deep pride that grow in our heart because of our wealthy appearance.

Or it could be false confidence in our security. Youve got this back up. No matter what goes wrong, youll always be provided for. You feel self-sufficient. Proverbs 10 verse 15 the wealth of the rich is their fortified city.

In other words its their place of safety. Thats where they find strength and refuge. It makes it very hard for a rich person to depend on God.

Or thirdly, false joy. When you feeling down and you feel like you need a boost of happiness, its very tempting to look to your possessions. Whether its the latest gadget or the luxurious meal or the exciting holiday. We look to these things that our money can buy us rather than to God (the true source of all joy and comfort)

And so those are just 3 examples of how your wealth will capture your heart.

And theres only one way to escape. Jesus gives it for us: Store up your treasure in heaven. And that means using it for eternal purposes. Using it for the kingdom. Using it for the gospel. Using it so that more people can be saved.

It also means giving it away. Giving it to the poor. Sharing with those in need.

And thats a great challenge for us in South Africa with our massive inequality Of all people, we should be concerned to give.

2 Timothy 6 verse 18: Command those who are rich in the present world 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.

And so this is the only way to protect our hearts. We cant get away from it. As soon as we stop giving. As soon as we stop sharing. As soon as we stop using it for the kingdom. As soon as we start to store it up, then our hearts will be affected. Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

And before we move on, let me just deal with one objection that people often use. They say Im not storing it for myself. Im investing it for my children, so that after I die, they can be well off. But again I think in the light of this passage: thats a dangerous game to play.

We living in the last days. Jesus could come any day

And so I wanna suggest that as a general rule its safer to use your wealth now: provide for the basic needs of your family. Provide for the needs of those around you. Invest in gospel ministry. And in that way you actually will be investing in our children. In a much better way. Youll be teaching them how to use their wealth.

As Dick Lucas puts it: Use what God has given you in your generation. And then teach your children to use what Godll give them in theirs.

Thats a much safer way, I believe, to raise your kids if your primary concern is their hearts.

So thats the first command. Dont store up your wealth.

Now Secondly, dont seek after wealth.

I think thats the point of the illustration in verses 22.

The eye is the lamp of the body. (SLOW)

And its quite a simple illustration if you think about it

Imagine ur in a room full of light. It doesnt matter how much light there is. The only way for that light enter your body is if your eyes are working properly.

If you take a blind person and you put him in The brightest possible room. That wont bring light to his body. Because his eyes are bad. Theres no other way for light to enter, except through the eye. Your eye is the lamp of your body.

But when Jesus talks about your eye here. Hes not just talking about your physical eye. Hes using that as an illustration for the eye of your heart.

And thats typical of how the Bible often speaks. If you set your eye on something its talking about the focus of your heart.

And surely thats the meaning in this context. Thats what Jesus is talking about: the devotion of your heart. And thats why if you look at verse 23, it talks about the light that is within you. Its not talking about your physical eye. Its talking about the eye of your heart. If that light within you becomes dark, how great is that darkness.

You see just like your physical eye is the vehicle for physical light.

In the same way your heart is the vehicle for spiritual light.

No light can enter your life if your heart is spiritually dark. And in this context a darkened heart is a heart thats focused on wealth.

And so notice the progression here: (SLOW)

In the first point we saw how treasures can influence your heart.

Now we see that if your heart gets influenced itll control the rest of your life. Whatever you focus on with the eyes of your heart, that sets the direction for the rest of your life.

And so we need to examine the eyes of our heart.

I remember when I was still a student and I did my first ever technical mountain bike ride. And I was much fitter than I am today. But I still remember: I was embarrassingly slow.

I couldnt keep up with my cousin who is a girl and whos quite a lot younger than me. And the reason I couldnt keep up isnt because she was fitter than me. Its because she was better at avoiding all the obstacles. I kept riding into those stumps and rocks and falling off my bike. And this is what I was doing wrong: Whenever there was a rock or a branch in the track, Id fix my eyes on it. And then no matter how hard I tried to avoid it, because I was looking at it, thats exactly where my bike would go.

And apparently thats basic advice for a mountain biker. Dont fix your eyes on the obstacle you wanna avoid. Rather, Fix them your eyes on the path you wanna go. Wherever you fix your eyes, thats where your bike will go.

And the same is true with you heart. Its the control centre for your life. Wherever you fix your heart, itll set the direction for your life.

So Guard our hearts, Proverbs says, for it is the wellspring of life.

And so lets apply this to ourselves. If the first point was mainly for rich people.

Then the second point is for rich and poor. You see, you might not own treasures here on earth. But your eyes might still be fixed on them. You might have dreams of being wealthy. You might have dreams of a large home and a fancy cars and a wealthy suburb. Even if you dont own these things, they might still be the focus of your heart.

And according to the world, theres nothing wrong with that.

I asked a student the other day: Why did you choose to study this course? And she told me confidently. Its because I want to be rich.

You see, most people think theres nothing wrong with that. Its good to want to be rich.

But listen to the Bible. Listen to 1 Timothy 6 verse 9

People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction.

Thats very strong language. But thats the destination for those who want to be rich: ruin and destruction.

Verse 10 goes on. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.

And I can think of people like that. Theres a friend of mine who was active in the church. leading youth. He seemed to be a Christian. But then as he finished school, he started talking more and more about money. All his conversations were about making money and getting rich. And now hes wandered from the faith.

And so we do need to examine our hearts: What are we seeking? What are we dreaming about? What are we excited about? What is it that motivates us in the morning? If its anything other than God, thatll lead us into darkness.

You might have heard that old song:

Turn your eyes upon Jesus.

Look full in His wonderful face.

And the things of the earth will grow strangely dim

in the light of His glory and grace.

Its a beautiful old song.

But you know the opposite is also true.

If you focus ur eyes on money

Earthly treasures seeming so bright

Then your life will be filled with great darkness

For God alone is the source of true light.

Thats the 2nd command this morning. Dont seek after wealth.

Dont store wealth. Dont seek wealth. But then thirdly, behind both of those commands, theres actually a more basic command.

If you storing up your wealth. If you seeking after wealth. Thats actually just a symptom of a more basic fact: that you are serving your wealth.

And you mustnt miss the shock of that statement. Its very different from how we naturally think. We think that we are the masters. We are in control. We are using Our wealth and it is serving us.

But Jesus turns it round. If you seeking after money. If you storing it up. Its not you thats controlling your money. Its your money thats controlling you.

And you know, the the same is actually true of all idols. Weve all been made to serve something. And so if we not serving God, we will be serving something else.

And so thats the third command this morning. Dont serve your wealth.

But if you look at verse 24, youll notice its not actually a command. Its actually a statement. Verse 24

No-one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.

And so this verse is describing two things that are mutually exclusive. Just like you cant support chiefs and pirates. You cant support Barcelona and Real Madrid.

Those things mutually exclusive things. Well even more so, you cannot serve both God and money.

And so obviously this isnt talking about working relationships today. Today it is possible to have more than one employer. You might work for one person Monday till Wednesday. someone else Thursday and Friday. But thats not how it worked with slaves and masters. If you were someones slave, then your whole life belonged to that person. It wasnt possible to have more than one masters. And the same is true with God and money. You cannot serve them both.

But once again, I think there many of us who try and get around this. We wanna serve God. But we not willing to give up money. And we think that somehow well be different. Well be able to do it.

We can serve God on Sundays. We can serve money the rest of the week.

Or we can serve God with our lips. We can serve money with our hearts.

But the reality is we cannot do it. If you trying to hold on to money, then you cannot be serving God.

And notice Jesus isnt giving rules here about how much money we can own and how much we must give. No He goes much deeper than that. He speaks about the attitude of our hearts. Deep down, what is it thats controlling our lives?

And so we do need to examine your motivation.

Is it mainly to earn money? Or is it to serve God?

Is it to store up you wealth? Or is it to have more opportunities to give?

As John Piper puts it:

God prospers us not to increase the standard of our living, but to increase the standard of our giving.

Thats the only way to be free from the control of money: its to see all our wealth as a means of serving God

And so let me just give you one example of a man who was free from the love of money.

This prayer of Matthew Henry which he wrote in his diary on the same night that robbers had just broken into his house and stolen all of his money:

I wonder what wed have written if all our money had just been stolen. This is what Matthew Henry wrote.

My Father I thank you that I have never been robbed before.

I thank you too that although they took my money, they spared me my life

I thank you in the third place that although they took all my money, it wasnt very much.

And supremely Father, I thank You that it was I who was robbed and not I who robbed.

Isnt that beautiful? Theres a man who was free from the love of money

And so thats the third command this morning: dont store up your wealth. Dont seek wealth. dont serve wealth.

And so let me close by speaking to anyone here this morning who isnt saved. Maybe you thought Christianity was just rules. All these rules about what God wants from us. He wants our things. He wants our money. He wants our possessions.

Well if uv taken anything from this talk on money, I hope you can see that thats not what God really wants. Yes all your money does ultimately come from Him. You do owe it all to Him. But thats not what He really wants. Hes the Creator. The Cattle on a thousand hills belong to Him. He doesnt need your money.

But what weve seen over and over again is that what God really wants is your heart.

He wants a relationship. He wants the desire and the affection and the devotion of your heart. In fact He wants it so badly that He gave you His own Son as a sacrifice for your sins. Thats a gift far more precious than any money. He gave His One and Only Son for you to win your heart.

And so please dont leave church this morning saying: God wants my money. Rather go away saying: God wants my heart. And the only way for Him to have my heart is if its released from the service of money.

Lets pray that Hell do that for all of us

Closing Prayer:

Father we praise You that You alone are God. You do not share Your glory with another. We cannot offer You half hearted, lukewarm commitment. Thank You for Jesus Who died to win our hearts. Please may we respond to Him with undivided devotion. May we not be blinded by money. May we know the light and the treasure and the freedom of serving You.

In Jesus Name

Amen.