SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 12/21/2020 1:25 PM
My Worship Time Focus:
PT-2 “A Single Treasure”
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Matthew
6:19-21
Message of the verses: “19 Amass not for
yourselves treasure upon the earth, where moths and rust may consume it, or
thieves breaking in may steal it. 20 But provide for yourselves treasure in
heaven, where are neither moths nor rust to consume it, nor thieves to break in
and steal it. 21 For where your treasure is, your heart will also be.”
As
I look at these verses I can’t help but remember something that my first
Pastor, that is first after I became a believer said one time that sticks in my
mind. He was talking about giving as he
said “A cow gives milk, but a pig leaves bacon.” Maybe you will have to think about that. He also said “Do your giving while your
living so you knowing where it’s going.”
We
want to talk about the fact that both testaments recognize the right to
material possessions, which include money, land, animals, houses, clothing, and
also every other thing that is honestly acquired. We have seen in our study of the Word of God
that God has made many promises of material blessing to those who belong to,
and are faithful to Him. There is a
foundational truth that underlies the commandments and that is not to steal or
covet is the right of personal property.
I have mentioned that the tenth commandment is probably the hardest one
to keep, and this is not to covet. So
with that said we know that stealing and coveting are wrong because what is
stolen or coveted rightfully belongs to someone else. I remember when I was in the Army, and I was
only there for a short time, but while in Georgia there seemed to be many southern
men in the place where I was waiting to get discharged, and the subject of
watermelon came up. One of these
southern gents said “watermelon does not taste good unless it is stolen.” Another
better example of this is the story of Ananias and Sapphira as they did not
forfeit their lives because they kept back some of the proceeds from the sale
of their property, however it was because they lied to the Holy Spirit as seen
in Acts 5:3. Let me kind of set the
stage for this by looking at the end of Acts chapter four where we read “36 Now
Joseph, a Levite of Cyprian birth, who was also called Barnabas by the apostles
(which translated means Son of Encouragement), 37 and who owned a tract of land, sold it and brought the
money and laid it at the apostles’ feet.” Then as we begin chapter five we see that
what probably happened was that Ananias and Sapphira saw what was happening as
not only Barnabas, but others were giving things to the Apostles in order to
make sure no one was hungry, and greed happened to this couple. They wanted people to see what they were
doing, but they wanted to keep some for themselves, and so they died because
they lied to the Holy Spirit about what they were doing. I have to say that after this happened that
the whole church probably did not tell a lie for a long time.
It
is true that our Lord expects His people to be generous. One of the verses we went over in our Sunday
school class yesterday came from Psalm 37:21 “The wicked borrows and does not
pay back, But the
righteous is gracious and gives.” Jesus said that it is more blessed to
give than to receive, and this is surely a true statement. God also expects, and even commands, the
believers not only to be thankful for but to enjoy the blessings that He gives, including the material
blessings. You may want to read over
this again to help it to sink in. Let us
look at 1 Timothy 6:17-18 “Charge the rich in the present world not to be
elated in mind, nor to trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who confers on us richly all
things for enjoyment—18 to do
good, to be rich in lovely works, ready to distribute, communicative” (Living
Oracles). Verse 17 is specifically
written to “those who are rich in this present world,” but they had a right to
keep it, as Peter makes plain in verse four of Acts 4 as he spoke to Ananias “4
"While it remained unsold,
did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not under your
control? Why is it that you have conceived this deed in your heart? You have
not lied to men but to God.’”
Spiritual meaning for my life today: I have to say that my late father-in-law had
the right idea about money, not that he did everything right with his money,
but it was how he viewed money that I am talking about. He viewed money as something that was
necessary but he never seemed to abuse it or invest it in a way where he would
lose it. He put his money in CD’s and
never worried about his return.
My Steps of Faith for Today: Do my giving while I’m living so I’m knowing
where it is going.
12/21/2020 1:59 PM
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