Exposition Mt Essay, Research Paper

Exposition of

Matt 6:19-21

Introduction:

1.You may want to turn in your New Testament to Matthew chapter six, and find verses nineteen through twenty-one. Matt. 6:19-21.

2.One manifestation of the Deity and Wisdom of Jesus is ? with only a few words; He could penetrate through to the core of some subject or issue.

A.Jesus knew man.

B.He knew the tendencies, the temptations and the

trials of man.

C.And even today ? He knows all about you; there

is not anything about you Jesus doesn?t know;

there is nothing in your mind of life that can be

hidden from Deity.

D.And so ? because of who He is, we ought to listen

to what He said.

3.And on one occasion He said this ?

?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.?

Body:

I.I believe the first thing we must do with this passage

is ? develop a clear view of these two kinds of

treasures: treasures upon earth and treasures in

heaven.

A.When we read this passage, the first word

that leaps out at us is ?treasures.?

B.Treasures are simply things we value, and

therefore want to have.

C.Now let?s start with the earth.

1.There are things here on the earth we

value and want to possess.

2.There are some basic things we value

and want to possess ? food, clothing

and shelter.

3.We value food, clothing and shelter;

and we work from day to day in order

to have these things.

4.And it is considered normal and wise

to buy groceries ? not just for today,

but for the days ahead; many of us

buy groceries once a week ? so

we acquire nutritional treasures

for the days ahead.

5.Beyond the basics ? in our age there

are other things we value and want to

possess ? a means of transportation;

various methods of communication.

6.There are these things we treasure

here on the earth ? we work to have

them and store them up for future

use.

7.Treasures are simply things we value, and

therefore want to have ? and while we

live on the earth ? there are certainly

treasures we have here.

D.Now Jesus says ? there are treasures in heaven;

listen again to our text ?

19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal;

20 “but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.

21 “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

E.We are all well aware of the treasures we have

on earth ? the things we value and want to have

for our existence on earth. BUT THERE IS

ANOTHER KIND OF TREASURE ? Jesus

says there are treasures in heaven!

1.There are things that which are more valuable

than food, clothing and shelter.

2.There are commodities far more precious

than automobiles, houses and electronic

devices of communication.

3.Treasures in heaven!

4.Things we should value and want to have,

because they come from God, bring us close

to God, make us better people and prepare

us for a happy eternity after death!

F.One way to look at this is ? there are things we

need here on the earth; things we value and

want to have ? BUT WHAT ABOUT WHEN

THIS EARTH IS GONE? What about after

we die?

1.There are things beyond this earth we

ought to value and want.

2.There are things which will exists after

death and after this earth is gone ? and

those blessings from God are called

treasures in heaven!

G.The more we think about this, the more

obvious it all is!

1.The treasures of earth lie in the realm

of places, things, material commodities,

worldly values ? the tangible and temporal.

2.The treasures of heaven lie in the realm

of the spiritual ? forgiveness, fellowship

with God, the power of prayer, the develop-

ment of character and moral excellence, the

love of God and brethren, the hope of

heaven.

II.Now ? the whole problem that we sometimes call

Materialism has to do with our fascination with

earthly treasure over heavenly treasure!!

A.Now isn?t that true?

B.The whole problem ? when we talk about

materialism and worldliness ? is our fascination

with earthly treasure over heavenly treasure.

C.This earthly, worldly perspective was brought

home to me several years ago in a congregation

I was a member of.

1.It was right after Christmas ? I think the

Sunday after the holiday.

2.A young man had received from his

parents several gifts; they were wealthy

people ? one gift was a brand new,

bonded leather Bible; the most expensive

King James version published by Nelson

at the time.

3.The other gift was ? a brand new car.

4.On Sunday morning he came to the church

building for Bible class and worship ? with

his new Bible and his new car.

a.Which one was he most excited

about?

b.Which one did he show off?

c.He took all the teenagers out to the

parking lot to show them his new

car ? did not mention his new

Bible.

5.Do you think that young man was the

exception to the rule?

6.Do you suppose that we would never

react that way?

D.The whole problem that we call materialism

and worldliness is this ? our fascination with

earthly treasure over heavenly treasure!!

III.NOW THAT WE HAVE THIS IN SOME

PERSPECTIVE – I want to get right to the Lord?s

prohibition: ?Lay not up for yourselves treasures

upon earth?.?

A.In the NIV, the prohibitive nature of this

statement is plain: ?Do not store up for

yourselves treasures on earth??

B.I think this may be one of those cases where it

is necessary to talk about what this doesn?t

mean.

1.This doesn?t mean ? we must not think

about, plan or save for the future.

a.We are not to worry about the

future ? later in this chapter there

is the Lord?s statement, in verse

34, ?do not worry about tomorrow.?

b.We are not to become distracted

from present duty by some preoccupation

with the future.

c.But good stewardship and regard for

the needs of your family will require

some thinking, planning and saving

for the future.

d.I don?t believe Jesus is telling us to

ignore the needs of tomorrow; that

would be unwise ? in fact, in at

least two of the Lord?s parables,

He commends to us the action of

making plans for tomorrow ? the

parable of the talents and the

parable of the Unjust Steward in

Luke 16.

2.Furthermore ? ?Do not store up for

yourselves treasures on earth? does not

mean we are forbidden to have money

or earthly possessions.

a.In fact, in fulfilling our responsibilities

to ourselves, our families, our needy

brethren and to support to Lord?s

cause ? it is necessary to work, to

have income and to be a possessor

of earthly things.

b.Nowhere in the Bible ? does God tell

us that it is sinful to have income, to

have money and possess earthly things.

c.Nowhere in the Bible ? will you find

a rich man being punished merely

because of his wealth ? nor will you

find a poor man commended simply

because of his destitution.

d.Money is not the problem ? our misuse

of it is.

e.Money is not the problem ? our love

of it is.

C.So ? we shouldn?t be hindered or confused by

these shallow and unjustified conclusions.

1.When the Lord said, ?do not store up for

yourselves treasures on earth? ? He was

not saying that we must not think, plan

or save for the future.

2.And He was not forbidding us to have

money and possess earthly things.

IV.THE CRUX OF THIS TEACHING IS CAPTURED

BY THE WORD ?TREASURE.?

A.You remember what I said earlier ?

Treasures are simply things we value, and

therefore want to have.

B.Heavenly things are so much more valuable

than earthly treasure ? we ought to want

heavenly things and labor for heavenly

things and treasure heavenly things far more

than earthly things.

1.I believe that?s the point of what He

is saying.

a.He isn?t saying we should

plan for our future on the earth.

b.He isn?t saving we shouldn?t

have money, use money or save

money.

c.This is not a statement against

having a nice house or car.

2.This is about WHAT?S MORE VALUABLE;

what?s more important ? and what lasts

longer!

C.Heavenly things are so much more valuable

than earthly treasure ? we ought to want

heavenly things and labor for heavenly

things and treasure heavenly things far more

than earthly things.

V.NOW LOOK AT WHAT HE SAYS AGAIN ?

“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.?

A.If earthly treasure is your priority; if money,

possessions, status and earthly treasures get most

of your attention, time and energy ? Jesus says,

you?ve got a big problem!

1.The treasures of the earth do not last; they

are subject to things like the moth, the rust,

or the covetous work of thieves who break

in and steal.

2.The things of this earth have no permanence;

no durability ? and we cannot take them

with us.

3.Therefore it makes no sense to devote your

whole heart and life to something that will

soon be gone.

B.The better way of life is ? to store up for yourselves

treasures in heaven —

1.That means, invest your time and energy

in something that will last.

2.Work for money and use money wisely

and plan as best you can for you and your

family here on the earth ?

3.But let your main concern be the heavenly

treasures which are not subject to decay,

and cannot be stolen!

C.Thieves can break in and steal your television,

your computer and your credit cards ? but they

cannot take away your character; they cannot

remove the love of Christ from your heart; they

cannot take you as a hostage out of the kingdom

of God!

1.The Lord is saying to us ? ?If your

treasures are limited to this earth ? I

can tell you the whole story of those

things in three words ? moth, rust

and theft!?

2.That?s the whole trouble with the things

of this world ? we can be absolutely

certain that some day we will lose

them !!

3.Earthly treasure ? things, persons, places,

positions, favor, finances, etc. ? never

do last; they never fully satisfy.

4.These things never meet our real needs;

there is always something missing.

D.Has this ever happened to you? You get something

you have been craving ? and the moment you get

it, there is a sense of disappointment!

1.For years, I?ve wanted a pick-up truck ?

couldn?t afford one; it wasn?t convenient

when our kids were growing up ? then

earlier this year ? I got my pick-up; I

had a crash my plymouth ? but I got

my pick-up.

a.I like it.

b.It?s convenient.

c.But it doesn?t fulfill the needs of

my soul; and I?m over the initial

excitement.

2.I was with a preacher friend of mind this

summer — he and his wife are now living

in their dream house; that they designed

and built, in a perfect location.

a.The house they always wanted.

b.But he said to me one day ? we will

probably only be here 15 or 20 years,

before we get sick and die.

3.So many of the earthly treasures we crave

and work for and get excited about ? are

nice, but there is always something lacking,

if you place those earthly things above

heavenly things.

E.Earthly treasures are attractive, but do not

satisfy ? they never deliver all that we expect;

and besides ? There is nothing as fickle and

temporary as human taste.

1.We get something, and before we have

had it very long ? our joy in it has begun to dull,

and after a while we have lost all interest in

it; isn?t this why we have garages and attics

full of stuff?

2.That which occupies our interest and

attention this year ? may bore us next year.

3.Our earthly interests are constantly fluctuating,

and this is another problem when we invest

all our time and energy in this world.

F.If earthly treasure is your priority; if money,

possessions, status and earthly treasures get most

of your attention, time and energy ? Jesus says,

you?ve got a big problem!

VI.NOW THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT ? HIS STATEMENT

IN VERSE 21: ?For where your treasure is, there will your

heart be also.?

A.Let?s think about this ? just in a general way:

that which we treasure has great power over

us!

1.I saw a T-shirt one time with this message:

If they don?t have chocolate in heaven,

I ain?t going!

2.Perhaps that was written to over-state a

point, or simply for the sake of humor.

3.But it illustrates what the Lord is talking

about ? that which we treasure has great

power over us.

a.It may be a certain kind of misbehavior

that we treasure.

b.It may be our career that we treasure;

a hobby; a person; a place or thing.

4.That which we treasure has great power

over us; it draws us like a magnet; it

exercises a tremendous grip and

influence over us.

B.The obvious message is ? we should treasure

spiritual realities far above any kind of treasure

this world has to offer.

1.By ?spiritual realities? I mean the things

I mentioned earlier ?

2.THINGS LIKE, forgiveness, fellowship

with God, the power of prayer, the develop-

ment of character and moral excellence, the

love of God and brethren, the hope of

heaven; honoring Christ in all you do.

3.Our lives should be governed by our

affection for these things made available

to us through the gospel.

a.Yes ? we have to earn money and

use money; we have to have food,

shelter, transportation, health care.

b.We can have nice things and save

money.

4.But our heart ought to be controlled by

the heavenly treasures ? spiritual blessings

which cannot be touched by the moth, the

rust or the robber!

C.If the treasures of this earth have a grip on you;

if you are killing yourself to gain more and more

earthly treasure ? there is a subtle coolness about

spiritual things that slowly sets in ? and one

day you find out, you?ve got a lot of things;

but nothing of real substance that will last

after death!

D.How absolutely tragic ? when the treasures of this

earth have us in their grip; and we show where our

heart is.

Conclusion:

1.Listen to Jesus.

“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.?

2.And the question is ? WHERE IS YOUR HEART? If you need to repent and turn to the Lord now, we give you this opportunity.

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