Matthew 6:19-21 (NKJV) “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.
In this passage, Jesus is not saying we should be so heavenly-minded that we are of no earthly good, but rather that our hearts should be in the right place so we can rightly prioritise the different roles that we play in our lives. What God requires of us is that we serve Him with our gifts and talents, because they are given by Him for a purpose greater than the temporal gains on earth. As wise Christians, we should learn to live a balanced life to fulfil the role of being a child of God, a servant of God, a parent, a spouse, and a good member of our community. Does your corporate role take up so much of your time that you fail to spend enough time with your family? Do you spend enough quality time with God to avoid being driven by the tyranny of the urgent? If we are not careful, we may end up with nothing being stored up in heaven because we can’t bring anything that we have accumulated on earth into eternity.
There will be heavenly rewards given out by Jesus to every one of us based on how faithfully we have served Him. These rewards are priceless because they last for eternity. You might ask, “Should we serve Him because we want the rewards?” Well, isn’t this something that the Lord wants us to do—to store up for ourselves riches in heaven where thieves and moths cannot destroy? Have you done an inventory check lately regarding what you have stored up for yourselves in heaven by serving God? We must try to ensure that we are well stored up in heaven because each of us will be receiving our own rewards. As much as we would like, we cannot share in our spouses’ rewards because we will be accountable to God regarding the gifts and talents bestowed on us.
Mark 9:41(NKJV) For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink in My name, because you belong to Christ, assuredly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward.
Jesus clearly put forth this truth to us that there are rewards for the individual who serves or helps someone, as simple as just serving them a cup of water. We are to do good to one another, especially to those who belong to the family of believers. These simple gestures will be counted as heavenly rewards. So let us store our treasures in heaven!
Sermon Series: ServeFest (September 2023)
属天的财富
马太福音6:19-21 中说: 19 “不要为自己积攒财富在地上，地上有虫子咬，能锈坏，也有贼挖窟窿来偷。 20 只要积攒财富在天上，天上没有虫子咬，不能锈坏，也没有贼挖窟窿来偷。 21 因为你的财富在哪里，你的心也在哪里。
在这段经文中，耶稣并不是说我们应该如此地超凡脱俗只顾念属天之事，对现世却一无是处，而是我们要把心摆正，帮助我们把生活中所担负的不同角色排好优先顺序。神对我们的要求是要我们以各自的天赋和才能事奉祂，因为这些从祂而来的恩赐是为了一个比暂时的属世好处更伟大的目的。作为明智的基督徒，我们应该学会活出平衡的生命，以履行作为神的孩子、神的仆人、父母、配偶以及社区里好成员等等这些角色的职责。你的公司角色是否占据了你大量的时间以至于你无法有足够的时间陪伴家人？你是否花足够的时间与神亲近，以避免被紧急的暴政所驱策？如果我们不谨慎，我们终将发现自己在天上一无所有，因为我们在地上所积攒的，没有一样能够跟随我们进入永恒。
耶稣会根据我们每个人如何忠诚地服事祂，赐给我们每个人天上的奖赏。这些赏赐是无价之宝，因为它们将永远存在。你或许会问：“我们应该为了得到这些奖赏而服事祂吗？” 那么，这难道不是主希望我们做的事情吗 — 积攒财富在天上， 贼和虫子都无法摧毁吗？你近期有没有盘点过你通过事奉神在天上为自己积攒了什么？我们必须努力确保我们在天上多多积攒，因为每个人都将得到各自的赏赐！虽然我们心里非常愿意，但是我们无法分享配偶的奖励，因为我们要按各自的天赋和才能向神交账。
马可福音 9: 41凡因你们是属基督，给你们一杯水喝的，我实在告诉你们：他不能不得赏赐。
耶稣清楚地向我们表明了这一真理，即人若帮助或服务他人是有奖励的，哪怕简单到只是拿一杯水给人喝。我们要彼此行善，尤其是对那些属于信徒家庭的人。这些简单的善举将被算入属天的赏赐。所以，让我们把财富积攒在天上！
讲章系列：服事招募节2023年9月
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