January 8th, Matthew 6:19-7:11
Good Morning All!
"The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry." I was truly sorry I was not able to be with the church family this past weekend! It was almost humorous that my plan to spend the preaching year from the Daily Life texts got derailed right out the gate! I guess it should be a reminder and permission that resolutions are better employed to 'pick us up' than they are for 'perfection'. :) I DID enjoy worshiping with the Bethesda family via the radio broadcast, and appreciated much the worship team's ministry, Mary's 'Ancient Words' solo, and Pastor Rodney's sermon. I am improving from this nasty virus, and hope to return to work in a day or so. (By the way, let me say 'thanks!' for the quality of thought and work all of you have put in your blog posts -- a wealth of insight!)
I read today's text with my family this morning, and it struck me how related the verses seemed to the misplaced, distorted aspirations warned about in yesterday's reading (Matthew 6:1-18). (I appreciated Londa's developing this in her blog around the word 'reward'.) Reward that is sought only for self-importance and temporal life becomes an empty dead-end of vanity. It makes us small. It makes us less. The reward God would give us is from Him and in Him; perhaps best said, it is Him. This reward enriches us now, but will blossom astronomically in eternity. It evokes from us not the conceit and calculated deviousness painted in 6:1-2,5,7,15,16 (aren't these pictures simultaneously revolting and convicting?!); but rather true 'reward' draws from us the responses of Hope, Gratitude, Generosity.
Again, it seems that in today's text, we see a related aspiration, 'treasures' (v19). And once again, if the pursuit becomes self-centered and temporal-bound, like with reward, we are left with an ugly caricature of the aspiration. In a word, it becomes WORRY. (cf. vv 25, 27, 28, 31, 34, 7:3). Wow! These verses cut to the heart, don't they? If I read them every day, would I fully learn and follow their meaning? In seeking treasure, I have instead found Worry; worry about moths and rust and thieves and food and drink and clothes! Worried about 'so many things' like Martha (Luke 10:41). Because worry 'loves company' and is visionary in a twisted way, I'll worry about 'tomorrow' (v34)! And, if my many possible worries weren't enough to occupy me, I might just expand my horizons further to 'franchise' my worrying -- I'll even begin to worry about... YOU! (7:3) Because this is an area of giftedness, I'll worry for the both of us!!!
This seems the predicted trail of demise when treasure becomes only about me and mine, only about now, and sought apart from God and His future desired for me. This is what the pursuit of treasure, absent of faith, comes to yield.
One of the benefits I love about reading scripture in a different translation is how familiar verses can fibrillate my attention. Isn't it fresh and awful to hear, "Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?" (v27), and "Why do you have so little faith?" (v30 - it IS a faith issue, isn't it?!), and "These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers" (v32)?!
That's the odd thing: treasure was meant to serve us as we serve God. But when pursued apart from faith, it 'dominates' us. And (now the Word gets meddling!), it shapes an ugly love triangle between us and God and Money (v24) -- a love triangle this verse declares CANNOT persist. It's a polygamous relationship destined to fail! It will eventually turn faith to infidelity and love to despising.
So let me bow and repent, and confess He is first and only -- there is no other. If I do not find my true treasure in Jesus, in His forgiveness, in communion with Him now and anticipation of more beyond, my reward will end up being only conceit, and my treasure a mound of worry.
PPaul
"The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry." I was truly sorry I was not able to be with the church family this past weekend! It was almost humorous that my plan to spend the preaching year from the Daily Life texts got derailed right out the gate! I guess it should be a reminder and permission that resolutions are better employed to 'pick us up' than they are for 'perfection'. :) I DID enjoy worshiping with the Bethesda family via the radio broadcast, and appreciated much the worship team's ministry, Mary's 'Ancient Words' solo, and Pastor Rodney's sermon. I am improving from this nasty virus, and hope to return to work in a day or so. (By the way, let me say 'thanks!' for the quality of thought and work all of you have put in your blog posts -- a wealth of insight!)
I read today's text with my family this morning, and it struck me how related the verses seemed to the misplaced, distorted aspirations warned about in yesterday's reading (Matthew 6:1-18). (I appreciated Londa's developing this in her blog around the word 'reward'.) Reward that is sought only for self-importance and temporal life becomes an empty dead-end of vanity. It makes us small. It makes us less. The reward God would give us is from Him and in Him; perhaps best said, it is Him. This reward enriches us now, but will blossom astronomically in eternity. It evokes from us not the conceit and calculated deviousness painted in 6:1-2,5,7,15,16 (aren't these pictures simultaneously revolting and convicting?!); but rather true 'reward' draws from us the responses of Hope, Gratitude, Generosity.
Again, it seems that in today's text, we see a related aspiration, 'treasures' (v19). And once again, if the pursuit becomes self-centered and temporal-bound, like with reward, we are left with an ugly caricature of the aspiration. In a word, it becomes WORRY. (cf. vv 25, 27, 28, 31, 34, 7:3). Wow! These verses cut to the heart, don't they? If I read them every day, would I fully learn and follow their meaning? In seeking treasure, I have instead found Worry; worry about moths and rust and thieves and food and drink and clothes! Worried about 'so many things' like Martha (Luke 10:41). Because worry 'loves company' and is visionary in a twisted way, I'll worry about 'tomorrow' (v34)! And, if my many possible worries weren't enough to occupy me, I might just expand my horizons further to 'franchise' my worrying -- I'll even begin to worry about... YOU! (7:3) Because this is an area of giftedness, I'll worry for the both of us!!!
This seems the predicted trail of demise when treasure becomes only about me and mine, only about now, and sought apart from God and His future desired for me. This is what the pursuit of treasure, absent of faith, comes to yield.
One of the benefits I love about reading scripture in a different translation is how familiar verses can fibrillate my attention. Isn't it fresh and awful to hear, "Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?" (v27), and "Why do you have so little faith?" (v30 - it IS a faith issue, isn't it?!), and "These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers" (v32)?!
That's the odd thing: treasure was meant to serve us as we serve God. But when pursued apart from faith, it 'dominates' us. And (now the Word gets meddling!), it shapes an ugly love triangle between us and God and Money (v24) -- a love triangle this verse declares CANNOT persist. It's a polygamous relationship destined to fail! It will eventually turn faith to infidelity and love to despising.
So let me bow and repent, and confess He is first and only -- there is no other. If I do not find my true treasure in Jesus, in His forgiveness, in communion with Him now and anticipation of more beyond, my reward will end up being only conceit, and my treasure a mound of worry.
PPaul
PS: pic from http://www.oneyearbibleblog.com/
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