Heavenly Treasures

Jesus balances His thought of verse 19 now by taking a positive approach to laying up treasures. He has already taught us that we are not to lay up treasures on earth for ourselves. Now He tells us to lay up treasures in heaven. The treasures He speaks of here are not temporal or material. These are things that cannot be rusted or destroyed.

We need to learn how we can invest in heavenly things. What exactly does He mean by laying up treasures in heaven? The things that we place high priority on are the things we treasure. These things are to be things that we can lay up in heaven. The term for heaven here refers to the “seat of order for all things eternal.” In other words, we are to value things that we can keep at the headquarters of God’s Kingdom. That is the seat of order – the throne of God! He orders all things eternal. He is our sovereign LORD. He is the One who redeems and keeps us.

He is to be our priority! His glory. Jesus should matter to us more than anything else on this earth. We must value Him and our relationship with the Father through Him. We must spend time in fellowship and prayer with Him. He must be our all in all. And as we walk with Him the things we value and the fruit our lives produce will be stored up for us in His kingdom!

In His kingdom there are no thieves. There are no moths to eat up or rust to destroy. Our fruit, our inheritance is perfectly safe. And one day when we put off this corruptible body we will put on an incorruptible body and then we will able to enjoy the fruit of our labor, produced by Christ through us and for us. Of course the true joy will come in us having rewards to throw back at His feet in adoration and thanksgiving for the sacrifice He made for us.

Instead of investing all we have here and now for ourselves, we must strive to lay up those things which are eternal and will benefit us as we praise Him for all He has accomplished with and through us! And we must learn that the things we treasure, if truly of eternal value, will last forever! What we have here and now will one day pass away. Think about that – won’t it be sad if everything we truly value and love is burned up and dissolved with the rest of Creation at the judgment? After all, there are only two things on this earth that will last forever – people and the Word!

So what treasures can we lay up in heaven? What fruit can we see produced in our lives? Some would say that winning souls to Christ is bearing fruit. But the Bible doesn’t say that witnessing and leading people to Christ is a fruit. It says that is our command! We must bring people to Jesus! So then, what does the Bible tell us about fruit?

Fruit more often than not is an attitude or motive! It is a decision of the regenerate will to be obedient to God. Fruit is not people – fruit is spiritual progress. When we grow in Him, when we are obedient, when we love, and have joy – that is to bear fruit. Scripture tells us in Galatians 5:22-23 that fruit that the Spirit produces in us consists of :

1. Unconditional love for all – not lust or selfish desire

2. Unquenchable joy – not happiness – happiness is always based on happenings and circumstances can change – true joy is greater than happiness and it sustains us even in times of grief

3. Uncomprehendable peace – not living a stress free life, but being at peace with God and others (even our enemies)

4. Uncompromising patience, or longsuffering – bearing up under the good and bad that can happen to us from day to day

5. Unusual kindness – kindness even in the face of persecution

6. Uncommon goodness – being good and holy because He is holy

7. Unquestioning faithfulness – because He is faithful even if we aren’t

8. Unique gentleness – the ability to be known for our gentle , peaceful spirit

9. Uncharacteristic self control – or the self under the control of the Holy Spirit

These are the things the Bible calls fruit. And notice, it is not fruits, plural, but fruit, singular. Just like an orange with many sections, our lives have many facets – all must be in balance and under His control in order for us to lead healthy spiritual lives! This fruit, when produced in our lives, will have eternal effects on us and others and that is laying up treasure in heaven, to do things and say things that are eternal in scope. Things that can change someone’s life forever. If we can affect forever, how much more can we effect the here and now? Today – lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven – do things that will last forever!