Where Lay Treasures?

“Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver have corroded... You have laid up treasure in the last days. Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord. You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter…

“Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.” James 5:1-5,8

“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.” Matthew 6:19

“So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God… Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” “Jesus said to him, ‘One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven.’” Luke 12:21,33-34; 18:22

“Those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.  For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith… As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy.  They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.” 1 Timothy 6:9-10,17-19

So many efforts go toward building and amassing that we don’t always realize what’s been collected and taking up earthly and head-space. Bit by dizzying bit we collect meaningless lovers, idols that vie for our affection, objects that crowd orderly living, and at the end are faced with ‘what can I offer Jesus?’ (1 Corinthians 3:12-13)

If treasure is important to God, if He’s entrusted us with amazing bounty and beauty to employ fruitfully, if He is indeed our very great reward, what should we make of treasure keeping? It’s easy to disorder treasure when we value the wrong things, objects and accolades that have only temporal significance. They have no proper home in God’s child, so they twist our attention when we finagle to make them room.(Genesis 1:27-28; 15:1; Isaiah 45:3; Luke 19:11-27)

So how do we keep the main thing the main thing, how keep desire pure and laying up noble? What if we held our labors before the Lord and said, ‘all for Thee, Jesus, all for Thee’? How might efforts increase in zeal, affections be reordered, conversation elevate, goods be shared with new generosity, if all were expended toward heavenly treasure? Fresh enthusiasm, favor, and joy comes to those whose heart has shifted direction.

Lord, may I lay up treasure for You and forever, to the praise of Your bounty and grace.