Let's take our Bibles and turn
with me to the book of Matthew, chapter 6. Matthew, chapter 6. Our Lord in His sermon on the
mount. I'd like to continue. I'd like to
deal in verses 19 through 23. The Lord is preparing
to speak on a subject that we absolutely need some instruction. He's going to be talking about
earthly and heavenly treasures. Now he had warned his hearers
those to whom he spoke that day on the mountain, obviously us
too, tonight, concerning their attitude on things that they
did. He exhorted them, first of all,
starting in chapter 6, verse 1 and 2, about when they did
their alms, actually when they did their righteousness, when
they did things or gave or whatever they were doing. Here's what
the Lord said, Matthew 6, 1, 2, take heed that you do not
your alms before men to be seen of them. Otherwise you have no
reward of your Father which is in heaven. Therefore when thou
doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the
hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they
may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, and here's
the key, they have their reward. Then he instructed them concerning
prayer. He says in verse 5, Matthew 6,
When thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are,
for they love to pray, standing in the synagogues in the corners
of the streets that they may be seen of men verily, I say
unto you, they have their reward." They earned it. They got it. Then he instructed them concerning
fasting, the denying of ourselves of the necessities of this life,
whether it's food, water, fasting, while humbling ourselves before
God. He says in verse 16, moreover
when you fast, be not as the hypocrites of a sad countenance,
for they disfigure their faces that they may appear unto men
to fast. Verily I say unto you, they have
their reward. Now, man by nature has one desire. One desire. Me. It's all about
me. And that reward toward me is
what satisfies. The Lord said in John 12, 43,
they love the praise of men more than the praise of God. Hold your place, but turn over
to Matthew 23, verse 5. Matthew 23, 5. Listen to this. Matthew 23, 5 to 7. He's talking
about the scribes and Pharisees, verse 5, but all their works
they do for to be seen of men. They make broad their phylacteries,
enlarge the borders of their garments, love the uppermost
rooms at feast, chief seats in the synagogues, and greetings
in the markets to be called of men, rabbi, rabbi. Man by nature loves the praise
of self. Now back in Matthew chapter 6,
now immediately after speaking on those subjects that he's was
mentioning doing the alms, praying, fasting, and each time he told
them that when they do those things to be seen of men, they
got their reward. They got it. They are in possession of it right
now. What they have done is they have therefore laid up a treasure
on the earth. That's where the treasure is.
So when the Lord begins to speak in verse 19, He's just continuing
the thought of what He's been teaching on. He says in verse
19 to 21, Lay not up for yourselves treasures on earth. This is what
they've been doing. That's what I've been warning
you about, He's saying. where moth and rust doth corrupt,
and where thieves break through and steal, but lay up for yourselves
treasure in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, where
thieves do not break through nor steal, for where your treasure
is, there will be your heart also." Or, there will your heart
be also. Now, notice what the Lord has
been talking about. He's been talking about laying
up treasures. Some on the earth, some in heaven. He's telling his hearers, don't
lay them up here on earth. Now, just for a second, what
is a treasure? Just what is a treasure? We know basically what it is,
but by definition, it's wealth. That's the definition of treasure,
wealth. It's a treasure that is trusted
to sustain. I just think whatever a man has,
a woman has, whatever they've got, and it's a treasure to them. I've made this statement. It may be a foolish statement,
but somebody will show me something. And it may be something that
they're that their mom or dad left them or something. My mother
made me a quilt, hand quilted it. And I remember I dated it
and stuff like this. And I thought my mother made
that for me. And I would say, now that's a
treasure to me. That's a treasure. Why, my mama
made that. And so that would be, it's wealth
to me. You know, it's something that
sustains, you know, my memory of my mother. And so that, it's
that which is valuable to you. That to which you give your affection,
your attention. That's a treasure, a treasure. So it's that which has your heart. That's what it says in verse
Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. So a treasure is something that
you just can't easily give up. You know, I might throw a cardboard
box in a bonfire, but I'm not going to throw that quilt in
a bonfire. Why? It's a treasure. It's precious
to me. Now, the Lord has given some
instructions. He said, now lay not up for yourselves
treasures on the earth. These treasures that men look
at and consider, they're not going to endure. They're not
going to endure. They're going to be destroyed,
and according to the scriptures here, you know, moth, rust, thieves,
they're going to be eaten up, they're going to rust away, somebody's
going to take them in steel, and it may not be a physical
thief. It may be something that is just
other than, maybe illness, death. And I won't be in possession
of it. There's no treasure on the earth. that's going to remain. A treasure
on the earth is born in the earth. It's earthy. He gave a parable
unto man illustrating the evidence of treasures and how these treasures,
and it's going to become real evident here, what the Lord's
talking about and it's spiritual. And that's where I'm going. I'm
building a kind of a foundation here, but he gave an illustration.
Hold your place. Look at Luke 14, 16. Luke 14,
16. How a treasure on earth, how
does it, when the Lord says, don't lay up treasures here,
don't let that which has your heart Don't let that which would
steal you away. Luke 14, verse 16. He said unto him, a certain man
made a great supper and bade many, and sent his servant at
suppertime to say to them that were bidden, Come, for all things
are now ready. Now here's a supper. Here's a
picture of the marriage supper of the Lamb. And the man that
is sent This is picture and type of the father who sent a man,
the son, the man, God man. He sent his servant, the servant
of Jehovah, at supper time to say to them that were bidding
come, for all things are now ready. And they all with one
consent began to make excuse. Why? They all had some treasures. There were some treasures that
were more important. than the supper. The first said
unto him, I bought a piece of ground, and I must go see it. I pray thee, have me excused.
Another said, I bought five yoke of oxen. I go to prove them. I pray thee, have me excused.
Another said, I married a wife. Therefore, I cannot come. So
that servant came and showed his lord these things. Then the
master of the house, being angry, said to his servant, go out quickly
into the streets, lanes of the city, bring in hither the poor,
the maimed, the haught, the blind. And the servant said, Lord, it's
done, as thou hast commanded. Yes, there are room. And the
Lord said unto the servant, go out into the highways and hedges,
and compel them to come in, that my house may be full. For I say
unto you, that none of those men which were bidden shall taste
of my supper. Now, here's the truth of this
passage of scripture. anything that chokes out the
word. You remember a sower that went
to sow? Some of them fell by the wayside, some of them fell
on stony ground, some of them fell on thorny ground, some of
them fell on good ground, but there was one on that thorny
ground. The thorny ground, it just looked like dirt, but the
roots of the thorns were there and it was sown. Thorns began
to come up, and it choked out the word, the cares of this world. And this is what was happening
right here. One had been bidding, they'd been bidding to come.
Well, I just can't do it. I bought a piece of property,
you know. I got to go look at it, you know. I bought some oxen,
I got to go prove them. I married a wife, I bid. Always
an excuse. That is a treasure on earth. an earthly treasure, but the
most subtle, the most deceptive treasure that men lay up for
themselves, and you see it, you that know him, you that believe,
you'll know exactly what I'm talking about here. The most
subtle treasure on this earth that men lay up is the lying
treasure of a deceived heart. That heart that thinks that it
has laid up treasure in heaven. By its own work, by its own will,
it thinks that it has laid up a treasure in heaven. The heart
is deceitful above all things. Who can know it? Here is the
subtlety of laying up a treasure on earth thinking that it's in
heaven. It's to those that think that. I've got everything settled in
heaven. I've made my peace with God.
I've established, you know, an acceptance with the Lord because
I gave Him my heart. Because I gave Him my heart.
Because I accepted Him. Because I walked down the aisle.
Because I was baptized. Because I went to the altar.
Because I spoke in tongues. All of those things are earthly
treasures. Because it was something that
a man could do. It's of the earth. And he thinks
that it's a treasure in heaven. That he's established. And there'll
be a time when they'll stand before God and say, Lord, Lord,
we prophesy in your name. In your name we cast out devils.
In your name we've done many wonderful works. And what is
the reward of all earthly treasures? What's the reward? Here it is. I never knew you. Depart from
me, you workers of iniquity. There's the reward. That's the
reward. There's only one reward. Whatever
a man does for himself is going to be rewarded with
being cast out. Cast out. Worldly mindedness,
the mind thinking that we're laying up treasures in heaven
is the fatal symptom of an unregenerate heart. Oh, what a deceitful thought,
always masked under the cloak of religion. Earthly treasure is something
that the carnal heart thinks it can produce. It always
sounds the best to that carnal heart, too. Let's look back at
Matthew 6. Now let's look at what our Lord
says here. But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven where neither
moth nor rust doth corrupt and where thieves do not break through
nor steal. Now I'm going to tell you something
that to every believer is one of the most glorious thoughts
and reminders that we've ever heard. Now listen to what the
Lord said. Verse 20, lay up for yourselves
treasures in heaven. The treasure of a believer. What is it? It's life in Christ. It's life in Christ. And that treasure, right there,
is laid up in heaven. It's a treasure that cannot be
lost. My sheep hear my voice, I know
them, they follow me, I give unto them eternal life, they
shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my
hand. Lay up for yourselves treasures
in heaven. Now here's the amazing thing
about that heavenly treasure. It is a treasure that I didn't earn. It is a treasure that I could
not produce. But it is a treasure given to
all of God's sheep and was given before the world began. And it's known when they're called
out of darkness through the hearing of the gospel. We're bound to
give thanks all way to God for you, brethren, beloved of the
Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation. through sanctification of the
spirit and belief of the truth, whereunto he called you by our
gospel to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is a treasure that is obtained
by grace and believed by God-given faith through the glorious person
of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now listen, listen. Man by nature,
by his carnal nature, thinks that he can produce treasures
in heaven by his will and by his work. Listen to what the Lord said.
John 15, 5. 5. I am the vine, ye are the
branches. He that abideth in me and I in
him, the same bringeth forth much fruit, for without me Ye
can do nothing. You can do nothing. The heavenly treasure is one
that is sure. All that the Father giveth me
shall come to me. And him that cometh to me I will
in no wise cast out. That treasure found in heaven
where there is no destruction or no consumption, no robbery,
no losing of it. I'm going to tell you something,
it is absolutely stable. 1 Peter 1, I'll read this to
you. 1 to 5, Peter, an apostle of
Jesus Christ to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus,
Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, Bithynia, elect. According to the foreknowledge
of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit unto obedience
and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ, grace unto you
and peace be multiplied. Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to His abundant mercy
hath begotten us again unto a lively hope. He birthed us. and that new birth that hath
begotten us again, born the second time, unto a lively, living hope,
confidence, expectation by the resurrection of Jesus Christ
from the dead to an inheritance that's incorruptible, undefiled,
that fadeth not away. It's reserved in heaven for you
who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation,
ready to be revealed in the last time. Brethren, The Lord warned
us against laying up for ourselves treasures upon the earth. That
is making, you know, what we think is going to be our treasure. He warned us against doing that. We think, man by nature thinks
it's in heaven. It's on the earth. Because man
did it. Man did it. But the greatest
warning that is given to men against laying up a treasure
in heaven, is that those are all going to be burnt up, destroyed. These are the words of our precious
Savior, and He speaks to us in covenant mercy, telling us this,
I'm the vine, you're the branch, you can do nothing. So whenever
the Lord told His hearers, Lay not up for yourselves treasures
on earth. This is what the scribes and
Pharisees were doing. That's what he taught them. They have
their reward. Lay up for yourselves treasures
in heaven where nothing is destroyed. Who laid that treasure for me?
He did. He did. And I being in him, I
being in him, that treasure was laid up for me. And it's sure. And it endures. And God's people
see it by faith. They look and they know and they
perceive that truth. They know I am what I am by the
grace of God. I have never ever laid up anything
of myself in heaven. How can I do that? A frail creature
of dust. After the Lord has told me, you
can't do anything. Salvation is of the Lord. And to perceive that, the last
two verses, back in Matthew 6, verse 22-23. He said, the light
of the body is the eye. If therefore thine eye be single,
thy whole body shall be full of light. Now the Lord continues
his discourse here concerning a man's treasure and the perception
of it and the knowing of it. And he proceeds to illustrate
that which he's been speaking upon by giving a reference to
the natural eye. He uses the eye right here as
an illustration. Now here he is. He says the light,
the illuminator of the natural body is the eye. This eye right
here. This is an organ that receives
light and the brain processes it and we understand and we perceive
what we're looking at. Now when the natural eye is healthy
and it's directed in a single way, steadily toward an object,
And everything is clear. It sees. And this body perceives
what it's looking at. Likewise, when a man has been
given from above a seeing eye, a hearing ear, a seeing eye,
an eye of faith, he looks now, by faith, upon Christ. And he sees Him. as life, as His salvation. That's what Simeon said. He held the infant Christ and
he said, Lord, I've seen Your salvation. I've seen Him. I know
Him. He saw Him with more than this
because He knew who that was. If your eye is single, then your
whole body is full of light, the light of heaven, the light
of the glory of God in the face of the Lord Jesus Christ. And
it beholds Him as His treasure. That is His treasure. Christ
is His treasure. I was chosen in Him, redeemed
by Him, regenerated by His Spirit. And He's kept me. And He's coming
back for me. He is my treasure. He that hath the Son hath life. There's my treasure. And that
treasure's laid up for me in heaven. Reserved. Kept. And God's people believe it.
Verse 23, But if thine eye be evil, the whole body shall be
full of darkness. Therefore the light that is in
thee be darkness. How great is that darkness. If one's natural eye, again,
is diseased. Evil, that's what it's talking
about. If it's diseased, the whole body will be in obscurity. It doesn't, it's just opaque. You know what opaque glass is? You can see light through it,
you just can't see clearly through it. It's just opaque. You can
see light. It's distorted. There's no clarity
to it. And spiritually speaking, knowing
that man by nature is blind, what can a blind man naturally
see? He sees nothing. It doesn't see anything. Therefore,
if the light that is in thee is darkness, if the light that
is admitted to the body, naturally speaking, is distorted because
of the blindness of the eyes, then you don't know. Likewise,
if light that is set forth by false preaching, a lie, a false
gospel, this world's religion. If that light falls upon a spiritually
dead eye that can't see, it's listening to falsehood and it
can't perceive that it's false, it doesn't know, then what that
man that is dead spiritually calls light is actually darkness. And the Lord said if the light
that is in thee, for what you think is light through a false
message, and all of your hope is in your treasures that you
built on this earth. If that light that you think
is light is nothing more than darkness, oh, how great is that
darkness. There's multitudes who possess
what they think is true light. sitting in false religion. I
sat there for years and years. And I'm telling you, I was convinced. I was convinced of it. That I
was right. That I was right. I was right. I thought. But men and women
are sitting in what they think is light. And it's nothing more
than spiritual darkness. And they've built, they've laid
their treasure, they've laid their treasure in the earth.
And it's not going to endure. It's going to be corrupted. It's going to fade away. Knowledge
puffs up man. Here's the conclusion of this
message. Man think that they can lay up treasures in heaven.
And all they are are treasures on earth. That's all they possess. But those that are found to be
loved of God, those who are made to know their true need, they
have their treasure truly laid up in heaven. And it was laid
there before the foundation of the world by God Almighty, and
it was given them in Christ Jesus. And by faith, they lay hold of
that. And they say, here's my life.
This is my hope. My hope is built on nothing less
than Jesus Christ, His righteousness. Paul writing to Philip in the church at Philippi. said this. He said, but my God shall supply all your need. What do I need? I need my treasure
to be in heaven. That's what I need. That's what
I need. I need my treasure to be there
where it's kept and it's secure and it's sure and it's reserved. I need that. My God shall supply
all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. The greatest message that a man
or woman will ever hear is this, without him you can do nothing.
But then to be told and given a heart to believe, God Almighty
has saved me. and given me life in Christ. And my treasure is where he is. He is my treasure. That's some
good news. And I pray that God bless this
message to our hearts for Christ's sake. Amen. All right.