Sermon Tone Analysis

MATTHEW 6:19-21

WHERE HAVE YOU HIDDEN YOUR TREASURE?

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where 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 your heart will be also.”1

Christian values are always under assault, though never more so than in this present day.

Those in the world resist living lives marked by seeking and doing the will of the True and Living God.

Moreover, the world about us subtly infiltrates our thinking, gradually transforming our values until we are indistinguishable from those identified as belonging to the world.

The pressure seems calculated to compel conformity to the lowest common denominator—socially and culturally.

While I could speak of bold, new cultural attitudes that have become regnant in contemporary society—acceptance of homosexuality as normal, multiple sexual partners even among church members, approval of murder of the unborn for convenience sake and tolerance of raw sexuality as entertainment—it is a more insidious area of assault that concerns me in this message.

The question that I present to you today is, “Where have you hidden your treasure?”

If I review the lives of the professed people of God, would I discover that God is the centre of life?

Would I find evidence that He is our priority?

Christians sometimes profess to be unable to say what they treasure most; however, there is a simple test to discover one‟s treasure.

Your treasure is the one thing that you would most hate to be without.

Your treasure is that which consumes your thoughts—it is where your thoughts turn when you are free to think whatever you wish.

That which you treasure is what you speak of most and most ardently.

By this criterion, it is difficult, even impossible, to believe that knowledge of the True and Living God is a priority for contemporary Christians.

Should I ask individuals where their moneys are invested, I would undoubtedly receive a variety of responses.

Some responses would reveal that the individuals were holding stocks and bonds, T-bills and GICs.

Others would speak of the acquisition of collectibles, or tell how they were upgrading their home or purchasing vehicles.

I actually have some friends who have defended spending all they have, asserting that the government will provide for them as they age.

Such talk is foolish in the extreme; but it is more common than any of us might imagine, I fear.

What I seldom hear is talk of investing in the Kingdom of God.

We can defend the purchase of life insurance, knowing that we are responsible to provide for loved ones who survive us.

However, few Christians purchase policies that name the congregation or a missionary agency as the beneficiary.

We are careful to arrange our financial affairs to ensure that there is continuing income for our family, which is good and proper.

However, we seldom give thought to the need for continuing income for the work of God.

Summarising these observations, it is apparent that too often our priority is neither the church we profess to love nor the Head of the church.

We cannot say that we love the Kingdom of our Lord if our wealth is invested solely in this dying world.

If our worth is defined by what we hold, rather than who we are, we are not in love with God‟s Kingdom.

Before considering the words of the Master, I do need to address one further point.

Sermons concerning the way we handle our money is an irritant to many people.

Sermons on giving are the stuff of caricature of preachers.

The charge is frequently made by outsiders that all the church wants is their money.

Let me say very clearly that I do not want anyone‟s money.

Certainly, I do not want to receive money from anyone who is unhappy about giving.

Biblical instruction makes abundantly clear that giving is to be seen as an act of worship [see 2 CORINTHIANS 8:1 ff.; 1 CORINTHIANS 16:1, 2].

Whenever we prepare to receive the gifts of God‟s people during our worship, I make it a point to discourage giving from those who are unsaved.

It is my practise to urge the unsaved to receive the priceless gift of life that is freely given to each one who receives Christ Jesus as Lord [see 1 CORINTHIANS 2:12; 2 CORINTHIANS 9:9].

Based upon Paul‟s instruction to the Corinthian Christians, I emphasise that those who have no joy in the act of giving should not give, but rather they should take the time to reflect on God‟s goodness and mercy as others worship through bringing their gifts [cf. 2 CORINTHIANS 9:6, 7].

God has proven Himself generous toward me and my family throughout many years of service.

I have been supported through the generosity of God‟s people for many years.

I have not begged for money, nor shall I do so.

If God who appointed me to His service is incapable of supplying my need, I will cease to serve Him.

However, if He has appointed me to this service, then He is responsible to provide for me; and the means by which God provides is the same as revealed through His Word—the gifts of His people [cf.

PHILIPPIANS 4:10-20].

Having established this basis for the message, I invite your consideration of the words of the Master—words that were spoken as He was seated on the side of a hillock, addressing the vast crowds that followed Him during the days of His flesh.

As He instructed those who would please the Father, He spoke of the stewardship of life, for the moneys we give to advance His cause are nothing less than the administration of the grace of God.

A WARNING — “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal.”

Jesus‟ words in this pericope begin with a warning—an admonition to guard one‟s heart.

Listen again to the startling caution He forcefully delivered: “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal.”

It is difficult to take this warning seriously when we live in virtual luxury.

I realise that most of the people to whom I speak do not think of themselves as wealthy.

However, compared to the historical situation for our nation, or compared to the majority of people alive today, we are quite wealthy.

Few of us have to worry whether we will have food tomorrow, or whether we will have adequate shelter, or whether we will have transportation.

It is true that our desires outstrip our needs, but we actually have little need for the necessities of life.

An unknown author closed a letter he had written with this wise admonition to Christians, “Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, „I will never leave you nor forsake you.‟

So we can confidently say,

„The Lord is my helper;

I will not fear;

what can man do to me?‟” [HEBREWS 13:5, 6]

The acquisition of goods of itself is not sinful; the danger is that those things that we acquire are able insidiously to insinuate themselves into our lives, supplanting the love for Christ that once marked our lives.

How else shall we understand this admonition penned by the Apostle to the Gentiles?

“Now there is great gain in godliness with contentment, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world.

But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content” [1 TIMOTHY 6:6-8].

Godliness with contentment?

There is a concept that will not gain much favour in modern society.

You will undoubtedly recall the remainder of Paul‟s warning to the pastor of the congregation in Ephesus.

“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 and pierced themselves with many pangs” [1 TIMOTHY 6:9, 10].

The delight that accompanies acquiring goods can, and often does, crowd out love for Christ.

How strangely out-of-step with contemporary views is the Apostle‟s assertion: “I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content” [PHILIPPIANS 4:11].

The Word advocates what?

Contentment with what is necessary for life?

How utterly passé!

Thinking like that, much less living within our means, is so antiquated, so unfashionable; it is so yesterday!

Such a position is difficult, if not impossible, to sell in our modern world built on the concept of consumerism; restraint has been superseded by conspicuous consumption.

In the 1987 film “Wall Street,” Gordon Gekko, the character played by Michael Douglas addresses the stockholders of the fictional Teldar Paper Company in one memorable scene.

That speech has become legendary, if for no other reason than the words enshrine the prevailing attitude of contemporary Americans and Canadians.

The address closes with these classic lines: “The point is, ladies and gentleman, that greed, for lack of a better word, is good.

Greed is right, greed works.

Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit.

Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge has marked the upward surge of mankind.

And greed, you mark my words, will not only save Teldar Paper, but that other malfunctioning corporation called the USA.”2

Modern advertising fosters a spirit of greed, creating in us a feeling of loss and of lust, a sense of inadequacy and the desire to acquire, the thought that we can measure the worth of an individual by the size of his wallet.

Jesus‟ words in our text challenge that distorted view.

Many of us grew up in a simpler era.

We were taught to repair and reuse.

I suppose the old adage held true for many throughout the nation: “We eat what we can, and what we can‟t we can.” “Waste not, want not” was an aphorism that reigned in the social consciousness.

Times have changed, and we have adapted to the changing times.

Now, before it is used up we buy new.

It is seemingly mandatory that we spend, going into debt if we cannot afford what we want.

Easy credit has made it possible for us to have all we want and more.

The attitude has infected entire nations; the citizenry grows soft, demanding more of the intoxicating elixir of easy credit.

We would undoubtedly benefit from hearing the admonition to Timothy concerning wealth.

“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 6:17-19].

On one occasion while he was teaching, Jesus was approached with a request that He compel a brother to divide an inheritance.

His response must have startled not only the man making the request but all who listened on that day.