1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:03,040 We're going through a sermon series and a Sermon on the Mount 2 00:00:03,040 --> 00:00:06,200 series of Matthew chapter 5-6 and seven. 3 00:00:06,200 --> 00:00:09,480 And as we've been going through this passage, we can mentally 4 00:00:09,480 --> 00:00:14,040 picture how this progressed. We began with some teachings of 5 00:00:14,160 --> 00:00:18,240 Jesus on who are the blessed? Blessed are the poor, blessed 6 00:00:18,240 --> 00:00:21,200 are the meek, blessed are the peacemakers, and so on. 7 00:00:21,640 --> 00:00:23,640 And blessed are you when you face challenges. 8 00:00:24,160 --> 00:00:27,800 Then from there Jesus went on to teach on the significance and 9 00:00:27,800 --> 00:00:31,000 purpose of God's law and how God views what He says compared to 10 00:00:31,000 --> 00:00:35,400 how people view what God said. Then we learned that these 11 00:00:35,400 --> 00:00:40,040 explain to the people that keeping the law but not having 12 00:00:40,040 --> 00:00:42,080 the spirit of the law was not enough. 13 00:00:42,360 --> 00:00:45,560 God wanted a hard change, not just outward performance. 14 00:00:46,680 --> 00:00:50,000 And Jesus explained that showy performance style worship is not 15 00:00:50,000 --> 00:00:52,920 what God is after. And so Jesus taught that just 16 00:00:52,920 --> 00:00:55,920 making sure people are not getting killed by us, but we're 17 00:00:55,920 --> 00:00:59,880 still angry at them, that puts us in the in the murder category 18 00:01:00,280 --> 00:01:03,360 or just not doing physical adultery, but lusting is already 19 00:01:03,360 --> 00:01:05,120 putting people in the adultery category. 20 00:01:05,400 --> 00:01:09,120 But then Jesus switched it up from the law against doing wrong 21 00:01:09,120 --> 00:01:13,240 things, not doing wrong things. He said that's good, you 22 00:01:13,240 --> 00:01:16,920 shouldn't do wrong things. But then not doing wrong things, 23 00:01:16,920 --> 00:01:18,680 that in itself was also not good enough. 24 00:01:18,680 --> 00:01:21,080 You know how many people evaluate their lives, but how 25 00:01:21,080 --> 00:01:24,240 bad they not are? They evaluate themselves by the 26 00:01:24,240 --> 00:01:25,720 list of bad things they don't do. 27 00:01:26,120 --> 00:01:28,920 And so how are you good? Well, I don't do this and this 28 00:01:28,920 --> 00:01:30,040 and this. I must be good. 29 00:01:30,400 --> 00:01:32,880 That's not what God uses as the standard. 30 00:01:34,000 --> 00:01:37,520 Then we learned that giving to the poor, as good as that is, 31 00:01:37,880 --> 00:01:40,040 the left hand should not know what the right hand is doing. 32 00:01:40,040 --> 00:01:42,480 When we pray, we should not pray with self focus or pride. 33 00:01:42,760 --> 00:01:45,200 When we fast, we should not do it for a show. 34 00:01:46,000 --> 00:01:52,160 Now today we see another shift. Jesus switches it up. 35 00:01:54,520 --> 00:01:59,280 This time He talks about the earthly material and physical 36 00:01:59,400 --> 00:02:02,360 part of life. And we might think, why would he 37 00:02:02,360 --> 00:02:06,240 do that? What does the physical have to 38 00:02:06,240 --> 00:02:10,160 do with the spiritual? I remember many years ago, 39 00:02:10,160 --> 00:02:14,840 before the days of technology and digital stuff, people 40 00:02:14,840 --> 00:02:17,080 carried checkbooks. They would go to the grocery 41 00:02:17,080 --> 00:02:20,200 store and pay for the groceries with a checkbook, write a check, 42 00:02:20,800 --> 00:02:22,160 and they would carry these little booklets. 43 00:02:22,160 --> 00:02:24,200 And I used to do it for years too, with a little day planner, 44 00:02:24,200 --> 00:02:27,040 open it and OK, my day on this day is empty, My day on that day 45 00:02:27,040 --> 00:02:29,200 is empty or no, I'm busy and so on. 46 00:02:30,040 --> 00:02:32,680 I remember an old preacher one time said he said this. 47 00:02:32,680 --> 00:02:37,840 He said buy your checkbook and by your day planner. 48 00:02:37,840 --> 00:02:41,720 I can in a very short time tell where your heart is. 49 00:02:43,400 --> 00:02:47,080 And I think that is true. But let's just think about that 50 00:02:47,080 --> 00:02:50,320 for a second. Imagine that if all my minutes 51 00:02:50,320 --> 00:02:54,800 of every day and my dollars that I receive and spend, if that was 52 00:02:54,800 --> 00:02:57,840 on a PowerPoint projector on the Billboard summer for everybody 53 00:02:57,840 --> 00:03:00,160 to see, would I be comfortable with that? 54 00:03:00,960 --> 00:03:03,320 I was. Maybe I got some changes to 55 00:03:03,320 --> 00:03:06,240 make. And this whole area of money and 56 00:03:06,240 --> 00:03:08,600 time is very sensitive. People are reluctant to talk 57 00:03:08,600 --> 00:03:09,960 about it. We keep that private. 58 00:03:10,280 --> 00:03:12,240 And yet Jesus does not shy away from it. 59 00:03:12,920 --> 00:03:17,320 How we spend our time and our money is of interest to him. 60 00:03:17,320 --> 00:03:20,360 And it's not new. It was back then and it's today. 61 00:03:22,400 --> 00:03:24,960 And someone might be going through the Sermon on the Mount, 62 00:03:24,960 --> 00:03:28,360 reading Matthews 5-6 and seven and thinking, is there nothing 63 00:03:28,360 --> 00:03:31,040 off limits for him? Does he have to say something 64 00:03:31,040 --> 00:03:33,680 about everything? Yes, he does. 65 00:03:34,840 --> 00:03:36,720 He has something to say about everything. 66 00:03:37,040 --> 00:03:41,160 And in this passage I want to just say that whether you are 67 00:03:41,160 --> 00:03:45,400 rich or poor, we are all in the same boat. 68 00:03:46,360 --> 00:03:49,520 We all need mercy and grace from God in our lives to live our 69 00:03:49,520 --> 00:03:52,560 lives, to honor God. Whether we have little money, no 70 00:03:52,560 --> 00:03:54,920 money, or lots of money, it doesn't matter. 71 00:03:56,400 --> 00:03:59,320 That doesn't change anything. We're all in the same boat. 72 00:03:59,320 --> 00:04:02,600 All of us need Jesus. All of us need mercy and grace, 73 00:04:03,320 --> 00:04:06,440 but Jesus does have a lot to say to both rich and to poor in this 74 00:04:06,440 --> 00:04:08,520 passage. And in the end, it's about 75 00:04:08,600 --> 00:04:12,280 trusting Him. And again, if you're poor and 76 00:04:12,280 --> 00:04:14,840 not wealthy, just keep on being faithful. 77 00:04:15,040 --> 00:04:16,600 Keep trusting him to meet your needs. 78 00:04:16,880 --> 00:04:19,279 If you're rich, don't look at your money as a source of 79 00:04:19,279 --> 00:04:22,360 security, because it's not. It can be gone in an instant. 80 00:04:23,760 --> 00:04:27,800 And for everyone, rich or poor, beware of covetousness. 81 00:04:28,400 --> 00:04:32,120 It's a serious problem in the church as well as in the world. 82 00:04:32,880 --> 00:04:37,160 The reality is that as much as we do need material things and 83 00:04:37,160 --> 00:04:41,920 we can't live without them, and they are a blessing, but if we 84 00:04:41,920 --> 00:04:45,600 make them our security, our anchor, that is dangerous. 85 00:04:45,600 --> 00:04:48,920 So let's turn our thoughts to Matthew chapter 6, verse 19. 86 00:04:48,920 --> 00:04:53,240 I'll read that out of the Bible, and I want you to follow along 87 00:04:53,240 --> 00:04:57,680 in your Scripture. Matthew chapter 6, verse 19 to 88 00:04:57,680 --> 00:05:03,640 34 to the end of the chapter. Do not lay up for yourselves 89 00:05:03,640 --> 00:05:07,840 treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, where thieves 90 00:05:07,840 --> 00:05:11,720 break in and steal. But lay up for yourselves 91 00:05:11,720 --> 00:05:14,800 treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, 92 00:05:14,800 --> 00:05:16,880 and where thieves do not break in and steal. 93 00:05:17,360 --> 00:05:21,760 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 94 00:05:22,560 --> 00:05:26,840 The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, 95 00:05:26,840 --> 00:05:28,480 your whole body will be full of light. 96 00:05:29,440 --> 00:05:33,080 But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of 97 00:05:33,080 --> 00:05:35,640 darkness. If therefore the light that's in 98 00:05:35,640 --> 00:05:38,040 you is darkness, how great is that darkness? 99 00:05:39,120 --> 00:05:42,560 No one can serve 2 masters, for either he will hate the one and 100 00:05:42,560 --> 00:05:45,760 love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise 101 00:05:45,760 --> 00:05:49,640 the other. You cannot serve God and Mammon. 102 00:05:50,360 --> 00:05:53,640 Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you 103 00:05:53,640 --> 00:05:57,640 will eat or what you will drink about your body, what you will 104 00:05:57,640 --> 00:06:00,440 put on. Is not life more than food, and 105 00:06:00,720 --> 00:06:03,880 the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, 106 00:06:03,880 --> 00:06:07,760 for they neither sow nor reap, nor gather into barns, yet your 107 00:06:07,760 --> 00:06:11,520 heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than 108 00:06:11,520 --> 00:06:14,160 they? Which of you, by worrying, can 109 00:06:14,160 --> 00:06:17,440 add 1 cubit to his stature? So why do you worry about 110 00:06:17,440 --> 00:06:19,520 clothing? Consider the lilies of the 111 00:06:19,520 --> 00:06:22,440 field, how they grow. They neither toil nor spin. 112 00:06:22,440 --> 00:06:26,520 And yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not 113 00:06:26,520 --> 00:06:30,880 arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass 114 00:06:30,880 --> 00:06:33,440 of the field, which today isn't tomorrow's thrown to the oven, 115 00:06:33,680 --> 00:06:35,760 will he not much more clothe you? 116 00:06:35,760 --> 00:06:38,840 O you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, 117 00:06:38,840 --> 00:06:41,880 What shall we eat, what shall we drink, or what shall we wear? 118 00:06:42,400 --> 00:06:45,560 For after all these things the Gentiles seek, for your heavenly 119 00:06:45,560 --> 00:06:48,800 Father knows that you need all these things, but seek first the 120 00:06:48,800 --> 00:06:51,240 Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these 121 00:06:51,240 --> 00:06:53,880 things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about 122 00:06:53,880 --> 00:06:56,680 tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. 123 00:06:56,680 --> 00:06:59,600 Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. 124 00:07:01,920 --> 00:07:06,840 Let's look at a few definitions here before we unpack this 125 00:07:06,840 --> 00:07:08,520 passage. What is poverty? 126 00:07:10,040 --> 00:07:14,120 The status of people that do not have or do not earn enough money 127 00:07:14,800 --> 00:07:18,000 for the basic necessities of life. 128 00:07:18,360 --> 00:07:22,440 That excludes most of us. There are some here who would 129 00:07:22,440 --> 00:07:24,120 say, you know what? I don't have what I need. 130 00:07:24,600 --> 00:07:30,480 Granted, that may be true, but for the most of us, we have our 131 00:07:30,480 --> 00:07:34,240 fridges full, our fridge is full, we need to empty it, or 132 00:07:34,280 --> 00:07:37,560 our closets are full. Have a nice house or what's 133 00:07:37,560 --> 00:07:40,360 wealth? An abundance of valuable 134 00:07:40,360 --> 00:07:43,040 resources such as money or property or other assets that 135 00:07:43,040 --> 00:07:45,200 can be used to meet one's needs and desires. 136 00:07:45,560 --> 00:07:51,120 So there's the basics. I've sometimes said in the past 137 00:07:51,120 --> 00:07:55,120 that something does not need to be sin to be dangerous. 138 00:07:56,720 --> 00:07:59,840 Something does not have to be sin to be dangerous. 139 00:08:01,080 --> 00:08:04,560 Material wealth just is, but it has an attraction and it's 140 00:08:04,560 --> 00:08:05,880 dangerous. Verse 19. 141 00:08:05,880 --> 00:08:06,920 I hope you keep your Bibles open. 142 00:08:07,480 --> 00:08:10,000 Do not lay up for yourself treasures on earth. 143 00:08:10,200 --> 00:08:12,920 Were moth and rust destroyed? Were thieves breaking in steel. 144 00:08:13,320 --> 00:08:17,200 Beware of the dangers of wealth. Who was he talking to? 145 00:08:18,680 --> 00:08:20,800 Notice Jesus says this to the whole audience. 146 00:08:20,800 --> 00:08:22,840 There's no exceptions here. No exceptions. 147 00:08:23,280 --> 00:08:25,880 Jesus speaking to the rich and to the poor. 148 00:08:26,000 --> 00:08:28,440 He's not saying to the rich, hey, you rich guy, stop laying 149 00:08:28,440 --> 00:08:31,080 up treasures on earth or you poor people don't try to be like 150 00:08:31,080 --> 00:08:32,799 the rich people. He's not saying that. 151 00:08:33,320 --> 00:08:36,159 He's saying don't lay up treasures on earth to all 152 00:08:36,159 --> 00:08:38,679 people. Whether it's a dollar, a $10, a 153 00:08:38,679 --> 00:08:41,200 million or 10 million is not the question. 154 00:08:42,360 --> 00:08:45,320 Whether it's a small host, a big host, how much stuff you have or 155 00:08:45,320 --> 00:08:48,000 wish you had, it's a matter of the heart and what the heart is 156 00:08:48,000 --> 00:08:51,280 attached to. Laying up treasure on earth does 157 00:08:51,280 --> 00:08:55,400 not depend on the size of the bank account or the business or 158 00:08:55,400 --> 00:09:02,000 the paycheck. Laying up treasure on earth is 159 00:09:02,000 --> 00:09:05,000 any temporal, material, physical thing or position or status in 160 00:09:05,000 --> 00:09:08,160 life that we put more trust in and depend on more than in 161 00:09:08,160 --> 00:09:11,640 Christ. The object, the position, the 162 00:09:11,640 --> 00:09:14,200 status. That itself may not be sin, 163 00:09:15,080 --> 00:09:18,480 money, stuff or whatever, but our dependence on it that is. 164 00:09:19,800 --> 00:09:24,240 And for some people these actually did tell them get rid 165 00:09:24,240 --> 00:09:26,760 of it what you have, because for you you're better off without 166 00:09:26,760 --> 00:09:28,600 it. Does wealth ruin people? 167 00:09:29,000 --> 00:09:32,960 It does ruin many people. Many people seem to have fairly 168 00:09:32,960 --> 00:09:36,960 decent lives and stable until they attain wealth and it 169 00:09:36,960 --> 00:09:39,800 corrupts them. And then when the economic crash 170 00:09:39,800 --> 00:09:43,720 crash happens for those people, they lose what they trusted in. 171 00:09:44,640 --> 00:09:46,440 They sometimes think what's the end of the world? 172 00:09:46,600 --> 00:09:50,480 Lives fall apart. But in reality, an economic 173 00:09:50,480 --> 00:09:53,040 crash is sometimes healthy. It's a wake up call, even 174 00:09:53,040 --> 00:09:57,640 liberates them. If we depend on and trust in our 175 00:09:57,640 --> 00:10:00,760 material wealth, it can rob us of our peace, steal our joy, 176 00:10:01,040 --> 00:10:03,920 erodes our trust in God and eventually lures us away from 177 00:10:03,920 --> 00:10:07,360 Him. What's the problem with earthly 178 00:10:07,360 --> 00:10:09,720 treasure? Again, the treasure is not the 179 00:10:09,720 --> 00:10:11,360 question. I mean, the stuff is not the 180 00:10:11,360 --> 00:10:14,040 question. We need stuff to live, but it's 181 00:10:14,040 --> 00:10:15,560 temporary. It won't last. 182 00:10:16,960 --> 00:10:20,760 Trusting in and wanting stuff was a problem in Jesus day. 183 00:10:21,200 --> 00:10:24,160 But you know something? It's a far bigger problem in our 184 00:10:24,160 --> 00:10:26,360 day than it was then because we have so much more access to 185 00:10:26,360 --> 00:10:29,400 everything. There were some very rich people 186 00:10:29,400 --> 00:10:32,200 in Jesus Day reading the story of Mark. 187 00:10:32,480 --> 00:10:35,560 Won't go there this morning. Mark 19, we're 16 to 26. 188 00:10:35,560 --> 00:10:39,120 There's a rich young ruler. Imagine a rich young and a ruler 189 00:10:39,200 --> 00:10:40,920 doesn't get better than that in Jewish society. 190 00:10:41,040 --> 00:10:43,080 That's it. You're at the top, comes to 191 00:10:43,080 --> 00:10:45,480 Jesus, wants to know what must I do to have eternal life long. 192 00:10:45,480 --> 00:10:47,640 But do the commandments say love your father and mother And on it 193 00:10:47,640 --> 00:10:48,760 goes. I've done all that. 194 00:10:49,400 --> 00:10:51,440 Jesus, you lack something. You lack one thing. 195 00:10:52,040 --> 00:10:54,480 Go sell your stuff. Give money to the poor. 196 00:10:54,840 --> 00:10:56,680 Then come follow me and you'll have treasures in heaven. 197 00:10:57,880 --> 00:11:01,080 The man turns, walks away because his trust, his 198 00:11:01,080 --> 00:11:02,920 attachment to his money was too strong. 199 00:11:02,920 --> 00:11:05,280 It controlled him. That hasn't changed. 200 00:11:05,280 --> 00:11:08,760 Friends. If we look around the world 201 00:11:08,760 --> 00:11:11,920 today, the trust and wealth today is as big as it's ever 202 00:11:11,920 --> 00:11:15,400 been. But again, I want to tell us 203 00:11:15,400 --> 00:11:20,200 it's not the amount of money or the size of the income, it's the 204 00:11:20,200 --> 00:11:23,960 relationship we have with it. Jesus told his audience in verse 205 00:11:23,960 --> 00:11:25,960 19, they were not to store up stuff on earth that could be 206 00:11:25,960 --> 00:11:28,560 taken away or could lose value or be stolen, eaten by moths and 207 00:11:28,560 --> 00:11:30,520 rust and so on. But he says, he says in verse 208 00:11:30,520 --> 00:11:33,840 20, but lay up for yourselves treasured in heaven, where 209 00:11:33,840 --> 00:11:37,080 neither moth nor rust destroys, where thieves do not break in 210 00:11:37,080 --> 00:11:39,920 and steal, for where your treasure is there your heart 211 00:11:40,240 --> 00:11:44,360 will be also. Our threat today is not so much 212 00:11:44,360 --> 00:11:45,880 rust. We have stainless steel. 213 00:11:47,440 --> 00:11:50,720 We have protection from rust and not a ME. 214 00:11:50,720 --> 00:11:53,040 I don't think most people have moths in their closets today. 215 00:11:53,600 --> 00:11:57,720 Back in those days was an issue, but this, the principles remain. 216 00:11:58,920 --> 00:12:02,320 We have way more ways to get robbed than they did. 217 00:12:02,320 --> 00:12:04,560 Somebody would physically break into their house, get into their 218 00:12:04,560 --> 00:12:07,120 closet or whatever they had, take the gold, the silver and 219 00:12:07,120 --> 00:12:10,240 then and take off. Today we have digital wealth. 220 00:12:10,760 --> 00:12:12,880 Think about it. Bitcoin, I know next to nothing 221 00:12:12,880 --> 00:12:16,040 about it except that it's some form of computer code on some 222 00:12:16,040 --> 00:12:20,280 computer and you you can sell and buy Bitcoin and it's very 223 00:12:20,280 --> 00:12:24,040 volatile and some people have lost Bitcoin, lost money huge. 224 00:12:24,040 --> 00:12:26,800 Some have, Some have made money, some have some wish they had 225 00:12:26,800 --> 00:12:29,600 made money and it can even be robbed. 226 00:12:30,160 --> 00:12:33,240 Then people have investments, mutual funds, RSPS and so on. 227 00:12:33,240 --> 00:12:38,720 A lot of wealth is digital, and people can get robbed if they 228 00:12:38,720 --> 00:12:40,560 give away their passwords and whatnot. 229 00:12:40,560 --> 00:12:42,840 All kinds of things can happen, scams and whatnot. 230 00:12:43,440 --> 00:12:45,800 I'm not saying digital wealth is sin, don't get me wrong. 231 00:12:46,760 --> 00:12:50,840 It's just is. But is there confidence in it? 232 00:12:51,600 --> 00:12:53,440 Is that where we hang our trust in? 233 00:12:54,080 --> 00:12:55,760 What's our motive for having it to begin with? 234 00:12:58,000 --> 00:12:59,800 How do we lay up treasures in heaven? 235 00:13:00,520 --> 00:13:04,640 Again, it's not the amount, it's not the earthly value, it's the 236 00:13:04,640 --> 00:13:06,600 heart. Remember the story of the poor 237 00:13:06,600 --> 00:13:09,520 widow in the temple? There was a lot of people coming 238 00:13:09,520 --> 00:13:12,040 in and they were just taking their big pouches of coins and 239 00:13:12,040 --> 00:13:15,480 silver and gold and just dumping it into the treasury box in the 240 00:13:15,480 --> 00:13:17,360 temple. Here comes this poor widow. 241 00:13:17,360 --> 00:13:20,560 You can imagine the story. Old widow has 2 copper coins, 242 00:13:20,720 --> 00:13:23,640 clunk, clunk puts them in there. Jesus watches. 243 00:13:23,640 --> 00:13:26,440 He says that Lady right there, she put in more than everybody 244 00:13:26,440 --> 00:13:31,280 else. Imagine the cash, right? 245 00:13:31,280 --> 00:13:34,200 Not the cap, but the the spreadsheets in heaven going up. 246 00:13:36,120 --> 00:13:39,080 She's wealthy, Jesus says she's wealthy. 247 00:13:41,080 --> 00:13:43,840 Jesus saying here, laying up treasure in heaven is using the 248 00:13:43,840 --> 00:13:46,840 temporal, temporary earthly things for Kingdom purposes. 249 00:13:47,040 --> 00:13:49,320 That's an internal investment, eternal investment. 250 00:13:49,320 --> 00:13:54,600 And this does not now mean that we, when we earn money, we can't 251 00:13:54,600 --> 00:13:57,080 buy good things. I don't want to sound that way. 252 00:13:57,600 --> 00:14:01,080 Jesus is not condemning the purchase of nice things, but 253 00:14:01,080 --> 00:14:02,360 what's our purpose? What's our goal? 254 00:14:02,360 --> 00:14:05,480 That's the question. I read a store of a young boy 255 00:14:05,480 --> 00:14:08,680 one time. He had some coins in his hand 256 00:14:08,680 --> 00:14:10,840 and he was hungry for an ice cream. 257 00:14:12,000 --> 00:14:14,640 Went to the local ice cream store and walked inside and the 258 00:14:14,640 --> 00:14:16,800 lady behind the counter says what can I do for you? 259 00:14:16,800 --> 00:14:18,840 He says well I like to buy that ice cream. 260 00:14:18,840 --> 00:14:21,840 Pointed to ice cream he wanted and she proceeded to prepare the 261 00:14:21,840 --> 00:14:25,960 ice cream and finished. It wasn't cheap ice cream wasn't 262 00:14:25,960 --> 00:14:29,000 one of the lower lower priced ice creams was not nearly the 263 00:14:29,040 --> 00:14:31,280 expensive ones. She gave it to him. 264 00:14:31,280 --> 00:14:33,720 He went and sat down and enjoyed his ice cream. 265 00:14:35,280 --> 00:14:37,920 When he was done, he put a few coins on the table and getting 266 00:14:37,920 --> 00:14:41,400 ready to leave and she said, hey, you could have you have 267 00:14:41,400 --> 00:14:44,720 some money love, why did you not buy a different ice cream? 268 00:14:46,840 --> 00:14:49,920 He says to her, then I wouldn't have had it. 269 00:14:49,920 --> 00:14:51,360 I would not have had enough for a tip. 270 00:14:52,800 --> 00:14:55,600 You see friends, this boy got it right. 271 00:14:56,640 --> 00:15:02,400 The principle was the same whether $1,000,000 or $0.75. 272 00:15:03,400 --> 00:15:05,680 The store sold ice cream. He was hungry for one. 273 00:15:05,720 --> 00:15:07,680 Nothing wrong with that. He wanted to buy 1. 274 00:15:07,680 --> 00:15:10,160 Nothing wrong with that. But he thought of her. 275 00:15:10,600 --> 00:15:13,800 This the the lady behind the counter. 276 00:15:13,800 --> 00:15:16,000 He thought of her. He was free to enjoy an ice 277 00:15:16,000 --> 00:15:18,000 cream, but in so doing he was mindful of the person who was 278 00:15:18,000 --> 00:15:19,920 serving him. He wanted to leave a tip for 279 00:15:19,920 --> 00:15:22,920 this woman, this young man's view. 280 00:15:24,000 --> 00:15:26,480 He had a Kingdom approach to wealth. 281 00:15:26,480 --> 00:15:31,560 He had a Kingdom value mindset. You would say, well, that's not 282 00:15:31,560 --> 00:15:33,680 even a dollar, it doesn't matter. 283 00:15:34,200 --> 00:15:40,720 It's the heart. It works like this when for the 284 00:15:40,720 --> 00:15:44,680 sake of the Gospel, we do with less than we need for the 285 00:15:44,680 --> 00:15:48,480 benefit and blessings of others. That is storing up treasure in 286 00:15:48,480 --> 00:15:51,520 heaven. That is a Kingdom view of 287 00:15:51,520 --> 00:15:54,120 wealth. Let's ask ourselves, how are we 288 00:15:54,120 --> 00:15:56,840 doing? Are we storing up treasures in 289 00:15:56,840 --> 00:15:58,920 heaven? How's our account? 290 00:15:58,920 --> 00:16:00,360 How's our treasure account in heaven? 291 00:16:01,560 --> 00:16:02,920 How is our treasure account in heaven? 292 00:16:06,240 --> 00:16:10,000 Selfish living is storing up treasures on earth which we will 293 00:16:10,000 --> 00:16:14,240 lose. Sacrificial generous living is 294 00:16:14,240 --> 00:16:18,400 storing up treasures in heaven. There's a story in Luke and I 295 00:16:18,400 --> 00:16:20,840 want to just read this story, Luke 1213. 296 00:16:20,840 --> 00:16:22,120 You can read it on the PowerPoint here. 297 00:16:22,880 --> 00:16:25,840 Then one from the crowd said to him, Teacher, tell my brother to 298 00:16:25,840 --> 00:16:28,640 divide the inheritance with me. But he said to man, who made me 299 00:16:28,640 --> 00:16:30,200 a judge or an arbitrator over you. 300 00:16:30,480 --> 00:16:33,200 And he said to him, Take heed and beware of covetousness, for 301 00:16:33,200 --> 00:16:36,000 life's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he 302 00:16:36,000 --> 00:16:40,880 possesses. Then he spoke a parable to them, 303 00:16:40,880 --> 00:16:45,120 saying, the ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. 304 00:16:45,520 --> 00:16:48,360 And he thought within himself, What shall I do, since I have no 305 00:16:48,360 --> 00:16:51,360 room to store my crops? So he said, I will do this. 306 00:16:51,720 --> 00:16:55,280 I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will 307 00:16:55,280 --> 00:17:03,320 store all my crops and my goods. And I will say to my soul, soul, 308 00:17:03,320 --> 00:17:05,680 you have many goods laid up for many years. 309 00:17:05,680 --> 00:17:08,000 Take your ease, eat, drink, and be merry. 310 00:17:09,119 --> 00:17:12,760 But God said to him, Fool, this night your soul will be required 311 00:17:12,760 --> 00:17:14,480 of you. Then whose will those things be 312 00:17:14,480 --> 00:17:17,599 which you have provided? So is he who lays up treasure 313 00:17:17,599 --> 00:17:20,760 for himself, and is not rich toward God. 314 00:17:20,960 --> 00:17:23,280 You know what's so striking about this story? 315 00:17:23,599 --> 00:17:26,240 He was an honest man. He was a taxpayer. 316 00:17:26,240 --> 00:17:31,280 He hadn't cheated anybody. He was a good man in today's 317 00:17:31,280 --> 00:17:36,120 standards. He wasn't wanting what wasn't 318 00:17:36,120 --> 00:17:38,880 his. The story of the parable and the 319 00:17:38,880 --> 00:17:42,000 man who came to Jesus saying to tell my brother to divide the 320 00:17:42,000 --> 00:17:44,440 inheritance with me. That man too only wondered 321 00:17:44,440 --> 00:17:46,720 what's his. He didn't want what somebody 322 00:17:46,720 --> 00:17:49,520 else's His brother was wrong. His brother should divide the 323 00:17:49,520 --> 00:17:50,640 inheritance. That was law. 324 00:17:52,320 --> 00:17:57,360 Jesus, you got a problem, man. Sure, you, you deserve that 325 00:17:57,360 --> 00:17:58,800 inheritance, but that's not your issue. 326 00:17:58,800 --> 00:18:03,400 You have a heart issue. And you know what? 327 00:18:03,400 --> 00:18:06,840 If Jesus had helped this man, fought with his brother to get 328 00:18:06,840 --> 00:18:11,360 the inheritance, the man would have felt satisfied, but he 329 00:18:11,360 --> 00:18:14,320 would have been entrenched in this me focused attitude. 330 00:18:14,320 --> 00:18:16,480 That's why Jesus told the parable about this rich farmer. 331 00:18:16,680 --> 00:18:22,680 I, me, I me my. We know why Jesus didn't help 332 00:18:22,680 --> 00:18:25,480 him. He could have helped him and 333 00:18:25,480 --> 00:18:30,240 would have cemented in and solidified this covetous craving 334 00:18:30,240 --> 00:18:34,360 for wealth. He had a right to it, but it was 335 00:18:34,360 --> 00:18:35,960 unhealthy. It was wrong for him to pursue 336 00:18:35,960 --> 00:18:39,040 because of his motives. That's why Jesus spoke the way 337 00:18:39,040 --> 00:18:41,720 he did and told him the story of the rich successful farmer. 338 00:18:43,280 --> 00:18:46,440 The truth is this. When material wealth is what 339 00:18:46,440 --> 00:18:49,400 people strive for and work for most and and work for the 340 00:18:49,400 --> 00:18:52,960 hardest, it can trap them. The man in the parable worked 341 00:18:52,960 --> 00:18:55,000 for his wealth. It was on the stand, not stolen, 342 00:18:55,000 --> 00:18:58,400 not unfair. He was a good farmer, but he was 343 00:18:58,400 --> 00:19:02,640 anchored to it. And when that thing goes down 344 00:19:03,440 --> 00:19:05,520 and we're anchored to it, it takes us down with it. 345 00:19:07,840 --> 00:19:10,640 Whenever we find ourselves becoming drawn in and blinded by 346 00:19:10,640 --> 00:19:13,600 the desires and things of this world, we have a we have a need 347 00:19:13,600 --> 00:19:16,840 to undergo cleansing. So what is the answer? 348 00:19:17,720 --> 00:19:19,760 How do we how do we navigate this? 349 00:19:20,000 --> 00:19:22,240 Well, this has a response that's read verse 22. 350 00:19:22,960 --> 00:19:25,920 The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, 351 00:19:25,920 --> 00:19:27,440 your whole body will be full of light. 352 00:19:27,560 --> 00:19:29,880 If your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. 353 00:19:30,040 --> 00:19:32,800 If therefore the light that's in you is darkness, how great is 354 00:19:32,800 --> 00:19:35,840 that darkness? No one can serve 2 masters, for 355 00:19:35,880 --> 00:19:38,240 either he will hate the one, love the other, or else he'll be 356 00:19:38,240 --> 00:19:39,560 loyal to the one, despise the other. 357 00:19:39,720 --> 00:19:44,120 You cannot serve God in mammon. First and foremost, we need 358 00:19:44,120 --> 00:19:48,920 vision, we need sight, we need light so we have a right view of 359 00:19:48,920 --> 00:19:52,120 wealth. Jesus says the lamp of the body 360 00:19:52,120 --> 00:19:53,640 is the eye. He's not talking about our 361 00:19:53,640 --> 00:19:55,840 physical eye, He's talking about the focus of the heart, the 362 00:19:55,840 --> 00:19:58,800 spiritual eye. This is a very simple concept, 363 00:19:59,360 --> 00:20:01,640 but it takes a lot of discipline and practice. 364 00:20:02,000 --> 00:20:05,040 It's easy to become distracted and derailed. 365 00:20:05,640 --> 00:20:09,880 The desires of our heart will be revealed by what we focus on. 366 00:20:09,880 --> 00:20:14,320 So what is our focus? I read of a man who made it rich 367 00:20:14,320 --> 00:20:17,760 in the early years of oil discovery back in the 1800s. 368 00:20:18,200 --> 00:20:20,200 The man's name is John D Rockefeller, and some of you 369 00:20:20,200 --> 00:20:21,440 heard of him. He became very rich. 370 00:20:21,680 --> 00:20:23,680 He accumulated a lot of wealth in his time. 371 00:20:23,680 --> 00:20:26,120 He became a billionaire in his day and it was a lot of money. 372 00:20:26,680 --> 00:20:30,200 One source I read mentioned that in those days an hourly wage was 373 00:20:30,200 --> 00:20:33,560 maybe $0.20 an hour. You do the math or a family 374 00:20:33,560 --> 00:20:35,640 might live on $8 a week and he had a billion. 375 00:20:35,640 --> 00:20:40,440 That means 1000 million dollars. Very rich. 376 00:20:40,960 --> 00:20:43,520 One man asked him one day and says how much money does a man 377 00:20:43,520 --> 00:20:46,080 need? He said just a little bit more. 378 00:20:49,840 --> 00:20:54,640 I dare say that we would be very hard pressed here to not have 379 00:20:54,640 --> 00:20:56,200 people say, you know what? I want less money. 380 00:20:57,280 --> 00:21:00,200 Most of us would say, yeah, I could use a little bit more. 381 00:21:01,680 --> 00:21:04,680 I work a little more. I'm not judging that. 382 00:21:05,160 --> 00:21:09,760 But why? The story goes that he gained so 383 00:21:09,760 --> 00:21:11,760 much control over the oil industry, The Supreme Court 384 00:21:11,760 --> 00:21:13,720 stepped in and kind of split the monopoly, so to speak. 385 00:21:13,720 --> 00:21:18,440 And but he was very, very rich. He began to have health 386 00:21:18,440 --> 00:21:20,600 problems, came to a point where the doctors were saying he was 387 00:21:20,600 --> 00:21:24,320 going to die soon. It's said that at one point he 388 00:21:24,320 --> 00:21:27,320 was so I'll he could tolerate only a diet of soup and crackers 389 00:21:28,840 --> 00:21:30,600 of a very strained, intense life. 390 00:21:31,200 --> 00:21:33,800 He continued to go down during those critical days. 391 00:21:33,800 --> 00:21:36,680 It was believed it was one of his was going to die soon was 392 00:21:36,680 --> 00:21:39,920 the last day, so to speak. He shifted his focus away from 393 00:21:39,920 --> 00:21:42,520 the business then, focusing on what he could do with his 394 00:21:42,520 --> 00:21:44,960 wealth. He started building institutions 395 00:21:44,960 --> 00:21:47,560 and giving his money away to good causes and so on. 396 00:21:49,000 --> 00:21:52,840 And surprisingly, his health became better and better and 397 00:21:52,840 --> 00:21:55,440 improved, and he lived on and on. 398 00:21:56,120 --> 00:22:01,560 And at age 97, he died. The doctors predicted he 399 00:22:01,560 --> 00:22:03,640 wouldn't live long, but he did. He said what had happened. 400 00:22:04,840 --> 00:22:09,120 His eye had become light, no longer darkness. 401 00:22:11,600 --> 00:22:13,920 I want to say here that even though he was so very rich, this 402 00:22:13,920 --> 00:22:17,320 does not hinge on the dollar amount, but how he viewed what 403 00:22:17,320 --> 00:22:21,360 he had. Wealth is dangerous, and for 404 00:22:21,360 --> 00:22:23,600 those who do not well, have wealth but desire it, that's 405 00:22:23,600 --> 00:22:26,120 dangerous too. Again, the question is not the 406 00:22:26,120 --> 00:22:30,600 size or the amount for the rich, it is having it. 407 00:22:31,160 --> 00:22:34,280 For the poor, it's wanting it. At the end of the day, it's a 408 00:22:34,280 --> 00:22:37,240 heart issue because the eye is dark. 409 00:22:38,440 --> 00:22:41,120 Whether it's the poor man coveting it, the rich man 410 00:22:41,120 --> 00:22:43,360 hoarding it, it's both the same problem. 411 00:22:45,720 --> 00:22:48,040 Universe 22 The lamp of the body is the eye. 412 00:22:48,200 --> 00:22:50,280 If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of 413 00:22:50,280 --> 00:22:51,880 light. If your eye is bad, your whole 414 00:22:51,880 --> 00:22:54,080 body will be full of darkness. If therefore, the light that's 415 00:22:54,080 --> 00:22:57,600 in you is darkness, how great is that darkness? 416 00:22:59,240 --> 00:23:01,720 To have our focus in this life on the things of this life only. 417 00:23:01,720 --> 00:23:04,080 And that's where it's at. It's going to take us down. 418 00:23:05,920 --> 00:23:08,720 Many people live their whole life struggling, striving, 419 00:23:08,720 --> 00:23:10,680 pushing for what this life has to offer and that's it. 420 00:23:11,280 --> 00:23:13,760 They don't concern the other side what's coming after this 421 00:23:13,760 --> 00:23:16,160 life. You see, we have such a short 422 00:23:16,160 --> 00:23:18,640 window of time here and when it's up, it's up. 423 00:23:19,120 --> 00:23:21,600 There's no rewinding, no resetting, no do over. 424 00:23:23,040 --> 00:23:25,480 Jesus says clearly no one can serve 2 masters. 425 00:23:25,560 --> 00:23:28,000 Either he will hate the one, love the other, or else he'll be 426 00:23:28,000 --> 00:23:29,320 loyal to the one, despise the other. 427 00:23:29,560 --> 00:23:33,600 You cannot serve God and Mammon. We will serve one, but not both. 428 00:23:35,960 --> 00:23:38,160 We need to be honest with ourselves. 429 00:23:40,120 --> 00:23:42,280 Who are we going to worship? Who are we worshipping? 430 00:23:44,400 --> 00:23:50,280 Our lives tell the tale people who serve material or earthly 431 00:23:50,280 --> 00:23:51,720 things and they set their hearts on that. 432 00:23:52,000 --> 00:23:53,880 They will be disappointed in the end. 433 00:23:54,240 --> 00:23:57,000 It does not make life better, it makes it worse. 434 00:23:57,480 --> 00:24:01,200 Then Jesus goes on, he says in verse 25, He says, therefore I 435 00:24:01,200 --> 00:24:04,680 say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or 436 00:24:04,680 --> 00:24:06,320 what you will drink or about your body. 437 00:24:06,320 --> 00:24:09,320 What you'll put on is not life more than food in the body, more 438 00:24:09,320 --> 00:24:11,040 than clothing. Look at the words of the air. 439 00:24:11,040 --> 00:24:13,320 They neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns that your 440 00:24:13,320 --> 00:24:16,240 heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than 441 00:24:16,240 --> 00:24:19,800 they? Such simple common sense, right? 442 00:24:20,520 --> 00:24:22,240 But you don't know my story and you don't. 443 00:24:22,560 --> 00:24:25,720 He does. So Jesus says do not worry. 444 00:24:26,240 --> 00:24:30,640 We're commanded to trust God with our lives and not just part 445 00:24:30,640 --> 00:24:32,920 of our lives. He wants the whole thing, our 446 00:24:32,920 --> 00:24:38,080 whole body, everything. Do we worry about what we will 447 00:24:38,080 --> 00:24:39,480 drink? So what are you talking about? 448 00:24:39,480 --> 00:24:41,960 Just open the tap and drink. For us it is. 449 00:24:43,080 --> 00:24:45,880 We don't have to go to the town hall, town well or the village 450 00:24:45,880 --> 00:24:47,880 well to draw water as they did in Jesus Day. 451 00:24:48,040 --> 00:24:50,680 Remember the story in Samaritan? The Samaritan woman, she came to 452 00:24:50,680 --> 00:24:54,720 the well to draw water. They didn't have running water 453 00:24:54,720 --> 00:24:56,280 in their houses, never mind hot water. 454 00:24:58,680 --> 00:25:00,480 People would sometimes worry about things like that. 455 00:25:01,840 --> 00:25:04,440 Even today, truth be told, there are many countries in the world. 456 00:25:04,560 --> 00:25:07,160 Water is a scarce commodity. You don't have enough. 457 00:25:07,400 --> 00:25:12,280 You have to carry it a long way. And Jesus says don't worry about 458 00:25:12,280 --> 00:25:15,160 what you're going to eat. Food's another thing in Canada, 459 00:25:15,240 --> 00:25:17,240 so recently very affordable. Now it's getting more and more 460 00:25:17,240 --> 00:25:19,480 expensive. We complain a lot about it, like 461 00:25:19,480 --> 00:25:23,160 prices are going up so badly and so on, but we still have 462 00:25:23,160 --> 00:25:26,040 freezers pretty full of food, fridge is pretty full of food, 463 00:25:26,040 --> 00:25:29,680 pantry is pretty full of food. In most cases still plentiful, 464 00:25:29,960 --> 00:25:31,840 maybe not cheap anymore, still plentiful. 465 00:25:32,520 --> 00:25:34,520 And if it's just calories that we're concerned to fill our 466 00:25:34,520 --> 00:25:37,720 stomach while they're still reasonably cheap depending what 467 00:25:37,720 --> 00:25:40,560 we want to eat. Eating healthy is getting more 468 00:25:40,640 --> 00:25:44,280 costly, sure, but not in compared to what some countries 469 00:25:44,280 --> 00:25:49,160 where people are starving. Do we worry about what we eat? 470 00:25:49,880 --> 00:25:52,920 How about what we wear? Have you noticed how big closets 471 00:25:52,920 --> 00:25:58,080 are getting in new houses? He's not saying that when we go 472 00:25:58,080 --> 00:26:00,040 and stand in front of our overstuffed closets debating 473 00:26:00,040 --> 00:26:02,840 what to put on that day, That's not it's not what he has in mind 474 00:26:02,840 --> 00:26:04,600 here. You see, in those days, there 475 00:26:04,600 --> 00:26:09,480 was literally the case where people might have one shirt, 11 476 00:26:09,480 --> 00:26:13,000 robe, whatever, one pair of sandals of that, that's all they 477 00:26:13,000 --> 00:26:15,240 had. Some might have two pairs. 478 00:26:16,680 --> 00:26:19,200 They literally didn't have enough, had very little. 479 00:26:20,040 --> 00:26:22,400 But in our time with modern mass production, we don't know what 480 00:26:22,400 --> 00:26:24,160 to do with all the garbage clothes we throw out. 481 00:26:24,160 --> 00:26:26,080 We have more clothes and we'll know what to do with. 482 00:26:28,800 --> 00:26:31,800 I'm just going to speak for myself a bit here, but I think 483 00:26:31,800 --> 00:26:34,120 sometimes my wife would like me to worry a little bit about what 484 00:26:34,120 --> 00:26:36,120 I wear because I just go to my closet, pull something out and 485 00:26:36,120 --> 00:26:38,320 put it on, come out of the bedroom and say, oh, no, no, 486 00:26:38,320 --> 00:26:41,200 Jake, not that today that happens. 487 00:26:41,880 --> 00:26:43,760 I don't worry a lot about what to wear. 488 00:26:45,120 --> 00:26:49,480 She has to help me and for US men, perhaps sometimes we wish 489 00:26:49,480 --> 00:26:52,440 our wives would wear a bit less. But what to wear? 490 00:26:52,520 --> 00:26:56,240 So one man said his wife goes in front of the closet long row of 491 00:26:56,280 --> 00:26:57,880 dress. I got nothing to wear. 492 00:27:02,080 --> 00:27:07,880 I'll leave it there. Jesus reminds us of such missed 493 00:27:07,880 --> 00:27:13,000 placed worry. He says verse 27, which of you 494 00:27:13,680 --> 00:27:15,960 by worrying can add 1 cubit to his stature? 495 00:27:16,000 --> 00:27:18,960 Why do you worry about clothing? Look at the lilies of the field, 496 00:27:18,960 --> 00:27:20,680 how they grow. They neither toe nor spin. 497 00:27:20,680 --> 00:27:23,920 Yet I say even Solomon, all his glory was not read like one of 498 00:27:23,920 --> 00:27:27,080 these. Now if God so clothes the grass 499 00:27:27,080 --> 00:27:29,640 of the field, which today is tomorrow's thrown to the oven, 500 00:27:29,640 --> 00:27:32,880 will he not much more clothe you or you of little faith? 501 00:27:33,560 --> 00:27:35,320 He says worry, change is nothing. 502 00:27:35,880 --> 00:27:38,320 It's one of those things that really take up our time, our 503 00:27:38,320 --> 00:27:41,560 mind and gets we exhaust us. It tires us out. 504 00:27:41,840 --> 00:27:43,960 It's like this hamster in a wheel running and getting 505 00:27:43,960 --> 00:27:47,880 nowhere. Jesus had a very simple approach 506 00:27:47,880 --> 00:27:49,640 to life. It doesn't mean we shouldn't 507 00:27:49,640 --> 00:27:55,600 care or be diligent or work. We should do all those things, 508 00:27:55,960 --> 00:28:03,680 but from what perspective? And because all this is so, we 509 00:28:03,680 --> 00:28:06,560 should entrust all of our needs, all of them to God. 510 00:28:07,240 --> 00:28:10,080 He says it's the Gentiles who worry about those things, not, 511 00:28:10,080 --> 00:28:13,560 not you. He says, therefore don't worry, 512 00:28:13,560 --> 00:28:15,360 saying, what shall we eat or what shall we drink? 513 00:28:15,360 --> 00:28:17,520 What shall we wear? For after all these things the 514 00:28:17,520 --> 00:28:20,040 Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows 515 00:28:20,320 --> 00:28:23,560 that you need all these things, but seek first the Kingdom of 516 00:28:23,560 --> 00:28:27,760 God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added 517 00:28:27,760 --> 00:28:29,360 to you. Therefore do not worry about 518 00:28:29,360 --> 00:28:32,760 tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. 519 00:28:32,960 --> 00:28:36,520 Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. 520 00:28:37,680 --> 00:28:41,160 Seek first God's Kingdom and His righteousness. 521 00:28:43,240 --> 00:28:46,480 We can only do that if the eye is light. 522 00:28:47,560 --> 00:28:49,360 Dark self focused eyes can't do that. 523 00:28:51,160 --> 00:28:56,080 We stopped caring. Caring and worrying about what 524 00:28:56,080 --> 00:28:58,880 the other guy has. Or that I would like to have one 525 00:28:58,880 --> 00:29:01,560 extra and then I'd be happy or one more and then life would be 526 00:29:01,560 --> 00:29:04,240 good. It goes for everything. 527 00:29:05,560 --> 00:29:10,800 The house we live in, the type of food we eat for the most 528 00:29:10,800 --> 00:29:15,920 part, the clothes we wear, the car we drive, and the list could 529 00:29:15,920 --> 00:29:19,680 go on and on. Seeking God's Kingdom is living 530 00:29:19,680 --> 00:29:24,800 with a right focus in our heart. I know when money is short, the 531 00:29:24,800 --> 00:29:29,520 bills keep coming, worry does want to become a part of life or 532 00:29:29,520 --> 00:29:32,840 health is no longer there. Life begins to look bleak. 533 00:29:34,480 --> 00:29:37,800 It's when life becomes that that Satan works over overtime, 534 00:29:37,800 --> 00:29:41,080 trying to divert our focus away from God only onto the problems. 535 00:29:42,360 --> 00:29:45,760 But we must look to Jesus to trust him to see us through. 536 00:29:46,040 --> 00:29:50,240 He is our role model when it comes to Kingdom views on 537 00:29:50,240 --> 00:29:51,680 wealth. We must look to Jesus. 538 00:29:52,000 --> 00:29:55,600 In Philippians chapter 2, Paul writes about this, how Jesus 539 00:29:56,760 --> 00:29:59,320 emptied himself, gave up everything. 540 00:29:59,320 --> 00:30:02,080 Glory and majesty in heaven became one of us. 541 00:30:02,080 --> 00:30:06,760 Not just one of us, but the poorest of us, dependent on 542 00:30:06,760 --> 00:30:12,160 earthly parents, had next to no earthly wealth, had a row Robin, 543 00:30:12,400 --> 00:30:14,120 maybe a few items. We don't know what he had, but 544 00:30:14,120 --> 00:30:15,720 he had nothing, comparatively speaking. 545 00:30:16,200 --> 00:30:17,800 He never looked out for his own benefit. 546 00:30:18,080 --> 00:30:19,600 He taught the same to the apostles. 547 00:30:20,800 --> 00:30:24,840 He wanted his people, his audience, to experience the 548 00:30:24,840 --> 00:30:28,960 freedom of not being tied down with things that won't make it 549 00:30:28,960 --> 00:30:32,960 to heaven. Many people believe that wealth 550 00:30:32,960 --> 00:30:36,520 having more is the answer. And there are some who do need 551 00:30:36,520 --> 00:30:37,600 more money. That's true. 552 00:30:38,520 --> 00:30:41,480 But most of us don't. Most of us want more. 553 00:30:43,000 --> 00:30:46,120 I'm not saying good opportunity should be bypassed or should not 554 00:30:46,120 --> 00:30:48,320 be taken advantage of. But why? 555 00:30:48,480 --> 00:30:50,800 For what purpose? He says seek first the Kingdom 556 00:30:50,800 --> 00:30:53,000 of God. The blessing of material wealths 557 00:30:53,000 --> 00:30:55,280 are real. God chooses some people to bless 558 00:30:55,280 --> 00:30:58,120 them with plenty so they can be generous and to give and so on. 559 00:30:58,720 --> 00:31:02,200 And He chooses some to withhold wealth from them in order to 560 00:31:02,200 --> 00:31:05,080 show His power in their lives through trust in Him. 561 00:31:06,120 --> 00:31:09,280 And for those whom He chooses to bless with material wealth, it's 562 00:31:09,280 --> 00:31:11,600 not for the purpose of self resorting or putting trust in 563 00:31:11,600 --> 00:31:13,640 it. And for those whom He chooses to 564 00:31:13,640 --> 00:31:17,480 suffer through want, He expects them to serve faithfully in that 565 00:31:17,480 --> 00:31:21,880 category. We need to keep on working, keep 566 00:31:21,880 --> 00:31:24,680 on earning, keep on giving, keep on sharing. 567 00:31:25,360 --> 00:31:27,880 So what difference does this make for us today? 568 00:31:28,760 --> 00:31:32,680 Jesus LED a worry free life. I'm not saying I've accomplished 569 00:31:32,680 --> 00:31:35,040 that. He was poor by the standards of 570 00:31:35,040 --> 00:31:37,120 his time. He died young, was killed, had 571 00:31:37,120 --> 00:31:38,800 no regrets. He rose from the dead. 572 00:31:38,800 --> 00:31:41,760 And He promises eternal life and eternal peace to all who repent 573 00:31:41,760 --> 00:31:44,600 of their sin and receive Him as their Lord and Savior. 574 00:31:44,920 --> 00:31:49,400 And it's only as we trust Jesus and all Him into our lives we 575 00:31:49,400 --> 00:31:52,880 find this sweet peace that only He can give. 576 00:31:53,240 --> 00:31:56,480 And in Him we have a New Hope and new life, and we go forward, 577 00:31:56,640 --> 00:31:58,160 forward with confidence and trust. 578 00:31:58,360 --> 00:32:01,160 So let's make it our aim. Surrender ourselves to Him, 579 00:32:01,560 --> 00:32:04,080 trusting Him in everything, trusting Him to work on all 580 00:32:04,080 --> 00:32:06,480 things for His glory. Let's pray. 581 00:32:08,480 --> 00:32:10,880 Lord, thank you for the hope you give in Scripture. 582 00:32:11,600 --> 00:32:14,720 Lord, help us to be free of greed, free of worry. 583 00:32:15,360 --> 00:32:17,200 Thank you, Lord, you died for our sins. 584 00:32:17,680 --> 00:32:21,240 We have a gift of eternal life, and it's all for all who seek 585 00:32:21,240 --> 00:32:23,200 you. Lord, we pray that you will. 586 00:32:23,240 --> 00:32:26,720 We'll have eyes that see and may our bodies be full of light. 587 00:32:27,240 --> 00:32:28,680 We thank you for your word to us. 588 00:32:29,160 --> 00:32:31,840 May your word light up our hearts in such a way that people 589 00:32:31,840 --> 00:32:34,360 can see it and they too will be attracted to you. 590 00:32:34,640 --> 00:32:36,840 Thank you Jesus, we pray in Jesus name, Amen.