Sermon Tone Analysis

Keys to Stewardship Living #3

Matthew 6:19-34

Treasures

Well, we have been thinking for the last few weeks about Stewardship Living.

We have talked about Contentment, that is being truly happy and satisfied with our lot in life.

Then we considered what it is to be generous.

Now if you are honest, you have to admit that you find it easier to want more and keep more than to be content and give away.

Those are hard things.

We struggle with generosity because we struggle with discontentment and we worry about the future more than we trust God.

I am not jaded enough to think that just because I preached a couple of messages, we are all now living lives of contentment and have become perfectly generous with your finances, your time, your talents, your homes, jobs, etc.

However, what I pray is that as individuals and families you are asking the questions.

Are we living in contentment?

Are we being obedient in our stewardship?

Are we learning to be generous?

Then we need to ask, what adjustments do we need to make it come in line with what God is teaching us.

But please let me encourage you to keep at it.

Galatians 6:9 says /“do not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up” /

Remember that harvest doesn’t come right away you *reap LATER* than you sow.

You also *reap WHAT* you sow and you *reap MORE* than sow … so keep it up don’t be frustrated because you are being obedient this week and everything isn’t suddenly perfect.

Press on, keep it up, and God will reward you as you are faithful and obedient.

So, we are turning a lock.

We got our first tumbler, contentment, and then back to the left we turned to generosity, and now we are going to turn straight back to our last tumbler, TREASURES.

I asked Donna, to email this week and ask you to answer the question, “what is a treasure?”

Here are some of your answers

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I treasure family, friends and relationships.

For me, nothing is more valuable.

My treasure: My Family

Treasure: Something valued, cherished, non-replaceable and resulting in great sadness when lost or damaged.

As with our relationship with God in Matthew 6:21 "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

What Do I treasure?

Life and all that it includes(family,friends,vacations, work, good times and bad-not so much this one).

What is a treasure?

God

What do I treasure...my husband, my children, my life, the roof over our head, the food in our stomach, the changing of seasons which allows the plants to grow...all of which are gifts given by God himself.

I treasure the most that he took my life and completely changed it around so that I may enter in without pain and suffering one day!

Treasure means to me, something that I value, appreciate, and adore.

I treasure the love of, Jesus, My wife, My son

A treasure is something so valuable to you, you cannot put a price on it

A treasure is something you absolutley adore and there is no way ou could ever live without it!

I treasure my relationship with Jesus Christ......

I also treasure my amazing husband Jim and my boys AJ and Bryan......

Treasure is something you admire, cherish, delight in, desire, prize, value, savor.

Jesus Christ is the utmost Treasure

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Let’s see what the Word of God says, go with me to the book of Matthew

Something we need to say first is this, Our text comes from Jesus’ “Olivet Discourse” or “The Sermon on the Mount”.

IN Matthew chapters 5-7, Jesus Christ reveals the expectations for those who are citizens of the Kingdom of God.

The message of Jesus, when he began to preach in Matthew 4:17, was “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.”

Then in chapter 5 he delivers this message.

If we are going to repent, that means we turn from something to another thing.

So, if we are to turn from a self-centered life to a God-centered life, what will that be like?

*READ Matthew 6:19-34*

To be true stewards of the things that belong to Jesus Christ, we have to determine what the valuable things are that are in our lives.

Whatever we treasure, we will protect and cherish.

In light then, of what we just read, let me ask you something

Do you want a HOUSE full of Treasures, or

Do you want a FUTURE full of Treasures?

That brings us to another question and my first point …

!

*1.

What Classifies as a Treasure?*

A treasure is something that has value right?

Matthew 6:19 then says /“store up for yourself treasures”/

“Store up” and “treasures” are the verb and noun form of the same Greek Word.

The verb is /thesaurizo = thay-sow-rid-zo= to gather, heap up, accumulate riches/

The noun is /thesaurus = thay-sow-ros= a treasure box in which precious things are collected and kept or the things stored in a treasure box/

There is nothing wrong with treasuring things.

But we need to be sure that we are treasuring treasures and not valueless things.

<show my childhood treasure box and the things in it> We value you some silly things don't we?

A treasure has value, yes, but my question is this, what do you treasure, and is the value of your treasure safe?

* If the value isn’t safe, then is it really a treasure?

Jesus said, don’t treasure things are susceptible to moths, rust, and thieves.

Things can be consumed by uninvited parasites so, that will affect the value so I have to watch where I store them

Things can be worn out or disintegrate so we have to be careful where we store it.

The word for rust means “that which consumes”

Things can be stolen or taken away from you by someone that wants what you have.

The word for thieves literally means /“wall digger”/ because in that day the walls were made of hardened mud so you dug through the wall to steal from a house.

If your treasure is boxed in places where they can be consumed by moth or rust, or if your treasures are boxed where they can be taken by “wall-diggers” then the value isn’t safe and so is it REALLY a treasure?

Jesus said the only things that are safe are things that are boxed up or treasured in Heaven.

V21 says your treasure is where your heart is … so determining the purpose of a treasure will determine its value

* Anything that can be consumed HERE or stolen FROM you has nothing more than *temporary* purpose.

My house, is good and nice but it has temporary purpose.

My house is subject to decay so it is temporary

So, make a list … if it can be stolen, eaten, consumed or can decay … it is temporary and has to go in the temporary file

* If it has *eternal* purpose, if it can be rewarded by God, if it will outlast my earthly life, it is of heavenly value and kingdom purpose that has value that is SAFE.

Most of what we hoard is temporary and ultimately without value.

!! It’s like hoarding monopoly money, what’s the point?

Now, while you are contemplating your list, we know that we all value and treasure things that perhaps aren’t worth it.

So, while you think about that lets see something else about treasures.

Treasures are powerful because

!

*2.

Treasures Drive the Heart vv21-23*

Have you noticed that our attention is drawn to the things that are important to us?

It’s amazing, we can be driving down a highway and things will be whizzing by but if I see a break in the trees and I see rolling, closely mown grass, my head turns and then I see a circle of sand, and a little flag on a stick and I say “golf course.”

My eyes are drawn to the thing that is close to my heart.

I can be in a crowd of strangers but if I see someone with an Ohio State hat on, I will walk passed them and simply say “O-H” … and their ear catches it and they say “I-O” … why?

It is because their ears are attuned to where their heart is.

“The EYE”, Jesus said, /“is the lamp for our body.

If you have GOOD eyes your body has light, but if you have bad eyes, you are full of darkness.”/

Let’s see it this way,

Where your heart is your eyes will look

Where your eyes look, your hands will act

Do you see the pattern?

If our heart is on temporal things, that is all we will see and do.