treasure in heaven. I would like to read the verses
that led up to this concluding statement when he says sell what
you have and give alms and you'll have treasure in heaven. Let's begin reading in verse
13 of Luke chapter 12. And one of the company said unto
him, Master, speak to my brother that he divide the inheritance
with me. And he said unto him, man, who made me a judge or a
divider over you? And he said unto them, take heed
and beware of covetousness. For man's life consisteth not
in the abundance of the things which he possesseth. And he spake
a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich
man brought forth plentifully. And he thought within himself,
saying, What shall I do? Because I have no room where
to bestow my fruits. He said, This will I do. I'll
pull down my barns and build greater, and there will I bestow
all my fruits and my goods. That makes good sense, good business
sense. And I'll say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid
up for many years. Take thine ease, eat, drink,
and be merry. But God said unto him, thou fool, this night thy soul shall be
required of thee. Then who shall those things be
which thou has provided? So is he that layeth up treasure
for himself and is not rich toward God. And he said unto his disciples,
therefore I say unto you, take no thought for your life, what
you shall eat, neither for the body, what you shall put on.
The life is more than meat and the body is more than raiment.
Food is what keeps us alive. Clothing is what covers our shame. Now, he's talking about physical
food and clothing, yes, but he's talking about spiritual food,
Christ, and spiritual clothing, Christ. Christ keeps us alive. Christ covers our shame. Now
look what he says about these two subjects. Verse 24, consider
the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap, which neither have
storehouse nor barn, and God feedeth them. How much more are
you better than the fowls? And which of you with taking
thought, worrying, can add to his stature one cubit? If you
then be not able to do that thing which is least, why take ye thought
for the rest? Consider the lilies, how they
grow. They toil not, they spin not, and yet I say unto you that
Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
If then God so clothed the grass, which is today in the field and
tomorrow is cast into the oven, how much more will he clothe
you, O you of little faith? And seek not ye what ye shall
eat or what ye shall drink, neither be of a doubtful mind, for all
these things do the nations of the world seek after. And your
father knoweth that you have need of these things, but rather
seek ye the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be
added unto you." The kingdom of God. Who's the king of this kingdom?
Jesus Christ, the Lord. Then we also read of the kingdom
of this world. Who is the king of this world?
Who is the prince of this world? The Lord tells us Satan is the
prince or the god of this world. Now, which kingdom do you want
to be in? I know which kingdom I want to be in. I want to be
in that kingdom where Christ is the king. Seek ye the kingdom
of God. and all these things shall be
added unto you. Fear not, little flock, for it
is your father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom." Isn't
that a blessed thought? Now here's the concluding thought
with regard to all this, beginning what he said to that man that
was asking him to help him over the inheritance. And he said,
who made me a judge or divider over you? Here's the last thing
he says, sell that you have and give all of us. Provide yourselves
bags which wax not old, a treasure, not treasures, a treasure in
the heavens that faileth not Where no thief approaches, neither
moth corrupteth, for where your treasure is, there your heart
will be also. Now this is the same thing he
said to the rich young ruler, if you'll remember. He said,
one thing you lack. Rich young ruler came and said,
all these have I done from my youth up. I've kept these commandments.
He said, one thing you like, sell everything you have and
give it to the poor and you'll have treasure in heaven and come
and follow me. Now, here's a question. Is the
Lord saying. that we should not own personal
property, and if you do, you need to sell it. Sell it all.
Empty out your bank accounts and give everything to the poor,
and you'll have treasure in heaven. These gifts of yours will be
evidences and proof that you're really sincere and that you're
really a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. Is that what the
Lord is saying? Well, no, no. We have so many examples in the
New Testament of people who own property. You remember when the
Lord met in Martha's house and Martha and Mary and Lazarus fixed
him a meal. It was Martha's house. John had
a home and you'll remember from the cross, the Lord told John,
He said to his mother, woman, behold your son. And at that
time she entered into his home and he took care of her for the
rest of her life. Peter had a home. Peter's mother-in-law
had a home. There are many examples in the
New Testament of people owning property and some were very wealthy. So what's the point when the
Lord says, sell everything that you have and give to the poor
and you'll have treasure in heaven. The point is, you become a possessor
of one thing. You become a possessor of one
thing. Now, if somebody says, well,
I believe this is a literal command. You ought to sell all you have
and give it to the poor and start living as a street person. And
whatever comes your way, give it away. Go for it. Do it. Kind of like that fellow
that says, I believe the Lord is giving us a literal command
where he says, if your right eye of envy, pluck it out and
cast it from me. You first. The Lord is not saying sell everything
you have and give it all away and give it to the poor. If he is, I don't know if that's
done. Do you? Maybe there has been
somebody, but I've never been acquainted with anyone who has
done that. Sell what you have, whatever it is you have, get
rid of it. Give alms, acts of mercy and
giving. Providing or making for yourself a purse that doesn't
wax old. Anything that comes from you
is going to wax old and decay. It's no good. You'll become a
possessor of one thing. A treasure. A treasure. What's your treasure? What is it that you cannot do
without? What must you have? Now, this is a treasure in heaven,
a treasure that fails not. any earthly treasure will fail
and decay and be gone. But not this treasure. You can't
lose this treasure. Thieves have no power to break
in and steal this treasure. It can't be corrupted by moths.
You know, any human covering is going to be corrupted, isn't
it? I don't care how beautiful it is, give it some time and
it's going to disintegrate, it's going to decay, it's going to
be corrupted by moss. And our Lord tells us where your
treasure is and where has to do with location, doesn't it?
Where your treasure is. Where's your treasure? In a bank?
Is it in the street address in which you live with all the stuff
that's in your house? Is your treasure in this world?
Or is your treasure in heaven. Turn with me for a moment to
Matthew chapter 13, verse 44. Again, the kingdom of heaven
is like unto a treasure hid in a field. And I have no doubt that is speaking
of Christ hid in the word of God. He's hid. And the only way we're going
to see is if he makes himself known. He's hid. The witch, when a man hath found,
he hideth. Oh, he's afraid of losing this
treasure. He doesn't want to do anything
to lose it. And for joy thereof, and goeth and selleth all that
he hath, and buyeth that field, that man became a possessor of
one thing. He sold all he had. to have that
one thing. Look in verse 45, again, the
kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man seeking goodly
pearls, plural, who when he had found one pearl of great price,
he went and sold all that he had and he bought it. This man became a possessor of
one thing. Christ himself is the treasure. You believe that, don't you? Christ himself is the treasure. He becomes all you have. Nothing along with him or alongside
of him. Now listen real carefully. May
I say this the way it ought to be said? All I have is Christ. My hope isn't anywhere else.
My way of acceptance is found nowhere else. All I have is Christ. Don't have anything else. Don't
have anything else to put along beside him. Don't have anything
that would add to him. I sure don't have anything that
would take from him. All I have is the Lord Jesus Christ. If
all I have is Christ, somebody said, is that enough? Only if he's all you got. If you have anything else, No. He won't do you any good. It is only that one who has one
possession. All they have is Christ. I love that little line, the
poetry, whatever you'd call it, where the man said, I'm a poor
sinner and nothing at all. But Jesus Christ is my all in
all. I love that. I am a poor sinner
and nothing at all. I have nothing to claim to God. But Jesus Christ is my all in
all. My treasure is Christ himself. He's in heaven and that's where
my heart is. And I can say with complete conviction,
I'm a stranger here. I'm just passing through. What's
more, I'm looking forward to getting out of here and being
in the very presence of my Redeemer. My treasure is in heaven. When Peter wrote to believers
scattered abroad, the first thing he said, Peter, to the strangers,
to the strangers, pilgrims passing through, this world is not my
home. My home is where my treasure
is, where the Lord Jesus Christ is, being in his presence, sitting
at his feet. Now, if my treasure is here on
earth, if it's in my stuff, if it's in my position, if it's
in my self-image, If it's here on earth, that's where my heart
is, right here, and that's where my heart will remain. Now, this
treasure in heaven is not your good works and almsgivings. Sell
what you have, give to the poor, and you'll have treasure in heaven.
Why? You'll have all these evidence.
Here's a fella that sold everything he had. You know, this is so
sad. I was sitting with a man who was going through chemotherapy
and he knew he was going to soon die. And he said, I'm just scared
to death. He said, I just think there's
something more to this, what we've been saying. He said, look what
the Lord said to the rich young ruler. He said, go sell all you have
and give to the poor. I've not done that. I don't see
anybody doing that. And he was scared to death, dying,
thinking that he had not done enough. He didn't really have
an understanding of what this passage of scripture means. Now,
this does not mean that your treasures in heaven will be your
almsgivings and your good deeds and all that you've given up
for Christ and tried to help people out with. Now, every believer
ought to be rich in good works. Every believer ought to be generous
in their giving, in their acts of mercy, and you know that's
the case. We should never be indifferent
about such things. Scripture says in Ephesians 2.10
where his workmanship created in Christ Jesus and to good works
which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
Now, I'm not in any way taking away from the importance of acts
of generosity, acts of mercy, trying to seek to be a blessing
to other, but my good deeds and my almsgivings do not climb up
into heaven and become my treasure. My treasure is the one in heaven
who fails not. You see, he shall not fail, nor
be discouraged. He cannot be lost. He cannot
be corrupted. And truly, he is all I have. What makes you think God will
have anything to do with you? Well, it's because I sold all
my property and gave it to the poor. And I gave evidence that
I'm a true child of God. Really? If the rich young ruler would
have sold all he had and given it to the poor the way the Lord
said, would that have saved him? No. Sure wouldn't have. Salvation is impossible if it's
dependent upon us doing anything. Sell what you have, give it away.
It's not worth anything, is it? Not really. It's not worth anything. Sell all you have until your
only treasure is in heaven. And if you find anything else,
or if I find anything else to be a treasure, we've never had
him as our treasure. Now, what does it mean to have
Christ himself as your treasure? Well, turn with me to 1 Corinthians
chapter 1. I want to look at two or three
scriptures. Verse 26, For you see your calling, brethren,
how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not
many noble are called, but God hath chosen the foolish things
of the world to confound the wise, and God hath chosen the
weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty,
and the base things of the world, and the things which are despised
hath God chosen, yea, and the things which are not, which are
nothing. What's nothing look like? I don't
even know. It doesn't have any existence. There's a box that's
empty. There's nothing in it. That's
nothing. You know, Paul understood something
about this. He said, though I'm not a wit
behind the chief apostles, though I be nothing. Nothing. Now understand this. It's only when you become nothing
that you'll understand the rest of this passage of scripture.
You see, it's only when you're nothing that he is all. Now let's
go on reading. God hath chosen the things which
are not to bring to naught the things that are, that no flesh
should glory in his presence. You're gonna be, and I'm gonna
be brought to be nothing, nothing. Not one thing about me that could
possibly commend me to the Lord God. Nothing. You know it's a blessed thing
to be nothing. It's easy to trust Christ as your righteousness
when you have nothing of your own. It's simple. You don't have
anything else to do. You don't have anywhere else
to look. I mean, it comes natural when you're nothing. It's a blessed
thing to be nothing. Now, if you're something, if
you have something that you can recommend you to God, you can't
trust Christ. It's impossible. I can only trust
him as I am nothing. And let's go on reading. He does
this, that no flesh should glory in his presence, but One of the
best words in the Bible is but. Did you know that? It's a great
word. God saw the wickedness of man
was great in the earth and that every imagination of the thoughts
of his heart was only evil continually, but no one found grace, found
favor in the eyes of the Lord. He was in that group described
in Genesis 6, 5, but God did something for him. But God. who is rich in mercy for his
great love wherewith he loved us even when we were dead in
sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, but God. But, I
think it was Martin Lloyd-Jones who said, the whole gospel is
found in the word but. I like that, but. But, Although
you are nothing, but of Him are you in Christ Jesus, who of God
is made unto us wisdom and righteousness and sanctification and redemption,
that according as it's written, he the glorious, let him glory
in the Lord. Now you listen real carefully.
That person who is nothing, he has nothing, that's the only one that has
Christ as his wisdom. Any believer is a wise man, wise
unto salvation. That's the only one who has the
righteousness of Christ as their personal righteousness before
God. That's the only one who has true
holiness because Christ is his holiness before God. That's the
one who has true redemption and deliverance complete. It's only
as I have nothing that I have those things. Now this treasure
who is in heaven also dwells in these jars of clay by his
spirit. That treasure who's in heaven is with me right now.
For God, who commanded the light to shine out of the darkness,
has shined in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of
the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have
this treasure. The light of the knowledge of
the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. We have this
treasure in earthen vessels. jars of clay, that the excellency
of the power may be of God and not of us." You know that so,
don't you? We have this treasure in jars of clay. Turn with me
to Colossians chapter 2. Well, it's a blessed thing to only
possess one thing. It's a blessed thing. I don't have it. I'm not saying
this cliche. I'm not saying this. I really
mean this. All I have is the Lord Jesus
Christ. But you know what? He's all I want. And he's all
I desire. Colossians chapter two, verse
three, in whom the Lord Jesus Christ are hid all the treasures
of wisdom. and knowledge. How much of the
treasures of wisdom and knowledge are in him? All of them. Christ
is the wisdom of God. Now, I love that the scripture
says he's the wisdom of God. He's the power of God and him
being the wisdom of God. God is, who can describe the
wisdom of God? God is so wise. I know this. He's so wise that he's actually
made a way. to be totally just and punish
all sin, and yet justify and cause somebody like me to be
without sin. Now, only God could do that.
He only has the wisdom to do it, and He only has the power
to execute it. And He did it through the way
of the gospel, Christ being nailed to a cross. I see the very wisdom
of God in the cross. We've already read this scripture
when Don was reading. Ephesians 1, 6 says, He hath
made us accepted in the Beloved. Is that a treasure? To be accepted
by God? By the Holy God to be accepted? What a treasure. Ephesians 4.32
says, Be ye kind, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as
God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you. He didn't forgive you because
you asked to be forgiven. He didn't forgive you because
you were sorry. He didn't forgive you because you promised to never
do it again. He forgave you for Christ's sake.
Is that a treasure? It is finished. What's a grand of your salvation?
That. What's the grand of your shirts?
That. Is that treasure? He's the object of faith. Faith
is in him. He's the evidence of things not
seen. He himself is my prophet. He's my priest. He's my king.
What a treasure. He's my husband. He's my provider. He's my preserver. He's my Lord. He's my friend. He's my all. Only got one thing. But how rich? Turn to Colossians chapter 3. If you then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above,
where Christ, your treasure, sitteth on the right hand of
God. I love thinking about that right now. My treasure's in heaven,
sitting at the right hand of God. Set your affection on things
above, not on things on the earth. Why would you have them anywhere
else when your treasure is in heaven? For you are dead and
your life is here with Christ in God. You're dead. You're dead.
You're already dead. You're dead to the law. Law doesn't
have anything to say to you. You're dead to this world. You're
dead. You're a dead man walking through.
You're the only one with real, truly life, but you're dead to
this world. The world counts you a dead thing.
You're dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. You know, I don't even possess
my own life. How's that? Verse four, when
Christ, who is our life, notice the who is is in italics, when
Christ our life shall appear, then shall you also appear with
him in glory. You see, I only have one treasure,
Christ. He's actually my life. And I'm
not talking about him being my reason for living, although he
is my reason for living, but his life, his merit, his law-keeping,
his perfect life before God is my life that God accepts. God looks at me and says, you've
done good. Well done, thou good and faithful
servant. So in verse five, the apostle
says, mortified therefore your members, which are upon the earth,
put them to death. fornication, uncleanness, inordinate
affection, evil concupiscence, evil desire, and covetousness,
which is idolatry, for which things sake the wrath of God
cometh on the children of disobedience, into which you also walked sometimes
when you lived in them." Now, put them to death, and here's
how. Get up at four o'clock in the morning, spend two hours
in prayer, spend three hours reading the scripture, and on
and on and on. How do I mortify my members here
on earth? By having only one possession. That's what faith in Christ is.
By having only one possession. Verse eight, but now also you
put off all these anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication
out of your mouth. Put off these by having only
one possession. Lie not one to another, seeing
that you put off the old man with his deeds. There's no reason
to lie and pretend to be somebody you're not because you have this
one possession. There's no reason for it. Verse
10. And you've put on the new man
which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created
him. And what is that knowledge? There's neither Greek nor Jew.
Circumcision nor uncircumcision. Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor
free. All these fleshly distinctions
are dropped. But Christ is. in all. Certainly, if Christ is all,
he's all you have, and having him, you have all. The one who has only one possession
has all. You see, Christ is all that God
is. so much so that he could say,
he that hath seen me hath seen the Father. Christ is all in
the Scriptures. I hope that's not something we
just know but don't really think much about. Well, I've heard
the preacher say that. No, every one of these verses in every
book, Christ is the key. And if you don't even know what
the meaning is, you still know what the meaning is. It's Christ. Even if you
don't have it figured out, you know how, you know where it's
going. Christ is all in salvation. He's all in my acceptance before
God. He's all that God requires. He's all that God trusts. He's
all that I require. He's all that I trust. The only way he can be all to
you is if you have nothing else. Now sell what you have, get rid
of it. It's worthless anyway. It really is. and you'll have
treasure in heaven, the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, is Christ
seated at the right hand of the Father, ruling and reigning your
personal righteousness before God, your only hope of acceptance
before God? Is he your treasure? Then that's where your heart
is. It's not here. It's there. Let's pray.