Mark 10:21-24 (NKJV) Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “One thing you lack: Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me.” But he was sad at this word, and went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. Then Jesus looked around and said to His disciples, “How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!” And the disciples were astonished at His words. But Jesus answered again and said to them, “Children, how hard it is for those who trust in riches to enter the kingdom of God!
This rich young ruler personifies what many people aspire to be. He was influential and had great possessions. However, he has put his security in the possessions that he had. He trusted in his possessions, and chose his possessions rather than God and salvation. Because he could only see the now, he forwent the promise of treasure in heaven. This is an important reminder for all of us not to build our identity on our corporate status or our possessions. It is a more secure position when we have our identity in Christ.
Everyone wants to be successful especially when we are immersed in this financial hub of Shanghai, where we can see the display of wealth and prosperity all around us. In fact, there is a spirit in the city that drives everyone towards success and money. Many parents are gearing their children up for a good career by sending them to the best academic institutions, but very often, we have exposed them to very liberal world views without much emphasis on the Christian world view. We may have placed them in certain schools because of their track records of academic excellence, and we ensure that our children have adequate extra curriculum activities to help them get into top universities, but many have neglected the need to model their walks with God to their children. Maybe these parents don’t even have a walk with God themselves which is why the God part was of little importance to them, and many parents are so busy that they don’t have much time to speak into the lives of their children. As a result, their children have been influenced by liberalism, and they may end up putting their identity in their corporate or business achievements when they grow up. So if we are not careful, we may end up raising someone who has high aspirations and ambitions, but has no relationship with God or good biblical values.
Therefore we need to educate our children and model for them what it looks like to be successful through God’s way and lay treasure in heaven. Otherwise, it will be very difficult to do so once their minds have been moulded by the world.
Sermon Series: Seriously?
我在天上的财宝
马可福音10:21-24: 耶稣看着他，就爱他，对他说，你还缺少一件。去变卖你所有的，分给穷人，就必有财宝在天上。你还要来跟从我。他听见这话，脸上就变了色，忧忧愁愁地走了。因为他的产业很多。耶稣周围一看，对门徒说，有钱财的人进神的国是何等的难哪。门徒希奇他的话。耶稣又对他们说，小子，倚靠钱财的人进神的国，是何等的难哪。
这个富有的年轻官员代表了许多人渴望成为的样子。他有影响力，拥有大量财产。然而，他把安全感放在了自己拥有的财物上。他信任自己的财产，选择了他的财产而不是神和救恩。因为他只能看到当下，他放弃了在天上拥有宝藏的承诺。这是一个重要的提醒，提醒我们不要把自己的身份建立在我们的公司地位或财产上。当我们的身份建立在基督里时，我们的身份更加安全。
每个人都想成功，特别是当我们沉浸在上海这个金融中心的时候，我们周围可以看到财富和繁荣的展示。事实上，这座城市有一种精神驱使着每个人向成功和金钱迈进。许多家长通过送孩子们去最好的学术机构来为他们打造一个良好的职业生涯，但往往我们将孩子们置于非常自由主义的世界观环境，而没有充分强调基督教的世界观。我们可能会因为优异的学术记录而将选择送孩子去某些学校，我们也会确保我们的孩子有足够的课外活动来帮助他们进入顶尖大学，但许多人忽略了给他们的孩子做好与上帝同行的榜样的需求。也许这些父母自己甚至没有与上帝同行，这就是为什么上帝对他们来说不太重要的原因，许多家长非常忙碌，他们没有太多时间来对孩子的生活进行指导。因此，他们的孩子受到自由主义的影响，当他们长大后，可能会把自己的身份看成是他们企业或商业成就的体现。因此，如果我们不小心，我们可能会培养出一个有着高远抱负和雄心壮志，但没有与上帝建立关系或缺乏良好圣经价值观的人。
因此，我们需要教育我们的孩子，并为他们做出榜样，什么才是通过上帝的方式成功，并在天上存下宝藏。否则，一旦他们的思想被世俗观念塑造成型，这样做将会非常困难。
讲章系列：认真的吗?
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