Heaven in Your Heart and in Your Pocket by Ed Montgomery

Author:Ed Montgomery [Montgomery, Ed]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2012-06-22T16:58:50+00:00

Chapter Seven

Heaven in Your Heart

What is your most valuable commodity? What possession do you hold dear? Is it your bank account, career, house, vehicle? Maybe it’s your family... your children...? You’ve worked for these things. You’ve given your time and perspiration to make them work. Whatever or whoever your most valuable commodity is, you consider it important enough to maintain and nurture.

Of course, our relationships with our families and friends are of inestimable value. But things, whether material or personal, are also considered to be items of value. Yes, you value them. They occupy a special place in your life. And contrary to some religious beliefs, it’s all right to hold these things as important.

Attitude Key

Faith allows you to see the silver lining you were never able to see before.

How interesting that the Bible spends so much time talking about material possessions. We’ve all heard the arguments about whether Jesus was rich or poor. Some say that since He was poor, we should strive to live a life below the poverty line. But the issue isn’t whether Jesus was rich or poor. The issue is— what does Jesus say about money?

In the Bible, there is a passage that reads: “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:

For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”3 We’ve probably heard this saying, “Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven....” a thousand times. It’s a grand saying. The words invoke a sense of security. We all want and need to know that what we possess is safe and secure. But, the question is: How can we possibly get treasure stored up in heaven?

No place on this planet seems safe nowadays. But heaven is a long way away. I’ve never been there, and I know the most common way of getting there is through death. So the idea of laying up treasures there seems sort of like putting your money in an eternal Certificate of Deposit.

However, the treasures being talked about in this Bible passage are evidently vulnerable to moth, rust and thieves. So they must be real, honest-to-goodness, material goods! Goods that can be corrupted, destroyed and stolen. The Bible says we are to ”... lay up treasures in heaven....” and that by doing so, we will be able to keep our possessions safe and sound. This sounds wonderful! Heaven must be the safest place anywhere. But again, how do we deposit this week’s paycheck in heaven? Heaven is a spiritual place.

Attitude Key

Welcome change, for it will usher you into brave new worlds.

This conflict drove me to search out the real meaning of this passage, because this direct quote of Jesus has more meaning to it than meets the eye. But before we can fully get an understanding of this quote, we must define some terms.

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