"Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Mt.6:21)
Oh don't we all need to be reminded that what we treasure reveals our heart's deepest desires and direction. And when we start treasuring the wrong things, it's time to reevaluate, repent, and return to our priceless treasure: the Lord Jesus.
But boy, it's so easy to get off track, isn't it? And it can be such a seemingly slight and subtle movement off course. We slowly begin to veer towards the world's pale and poor imitations of treasure and away from our greatest, truest Treasure. It's a little here, a little there. a tiny move in the wrong direction...and the next thing you know, you're waaaaaay off course. Missing God's best. Losing the peace and joy only He can give. Forfeiting the gifts His grace generously bestows when we're walking in His will.
C.S.Lewis put it so powerfully in The Screwtape Letters: "It does not matter how small the sins are, provided that their cumulative effect is to edge the man away from the Light and out into Nothing. Murder is no better than cards if cards can do the trick. Indeed the safest road to Hell is the gradual one--the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts."
Oh Father, protect us from such indifference to You and Your Word! Lead us relentlessly towards the Light and give us strength, every day, every hour, to choose rightly. Help us in our daily lives to see You high and lifted up, rather than to focus on ourselves, our circumstances, and our often selfish desires. Jesus is our greatest treasure and the surest source of infinite and indefatigable joy...not our possessions...not our pleasures...not our success...not our healing...not our comfort...not even our families and those we love most dearly.
It's funny the things God uses. A few minutes ago I was trying to figure out how to delete a few photos from our overburdened computer. But, being a techno-moron, I accidentally deleted the entire photo library. ALL OF IT! Every picture from our daughter's wedding; every picture of family and friends from the past few years; every picture of the grandparents; every picture of old Moses before he died and Bingley as a puppy; every picture of high school graduation, college graduation, state championships; every picture of family vacations; every picture of proms and school events; every picture of birthdays...ALL OF IT GONE!
Let me tell you, for a techno-moron, this was not only a terrible, horrible, helpless feeling...this was a DISASTER. I tried pushing every button I could find to restore it. I asked the computer's "Help" button in a million different ways how to find it. (Note to self: my definition of "help" and the computer's definition of "help" vary dramatically. Computer jargon that only a Ph.D can understand is not "help" in my world.)
The panic began to rise as I realized I had foolishly and quite literally thrown away the most important thing saved on our computer--our cherished photos of loved ones. And no matter what I did, I couldn't get them back. My ignorance and inattention had lost them seemingly forever.
Here's the ridiculously good news--after nearly 45 fruitless, frustrating minutes, God somehow led me to push some button (I still don't know which one it was) and bing--they magically and wondrously reappeared. I couldn't believe it. I wanted to weep with relief and joy that the treasure I thought I'd lost, had been found.
Remind you of any stories Jesus told in the New Testament? About lost coins, lost sheep, or lost pearls?
Suddenly I didn't care a whit about the laundry or the dishes or the golf schedule or the yard or the items on my to do list. All I could think about for that moment was those irreplaceable pictures.
But what are some pictures in comparison to the Treasure of treasures? Even those pictures--of far more value to me than most material possessions--pale into nothingness when measured against the masterpiece of our Redeemer. One day those pictures will all fade into oblivion. They will be completely forgotten...but our Lord reigns forever and ever. Hebrews 13:8 says "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever."
Think of that--the same power...the same love...the same grace...the same goodness...the same beauty...the same forgiveness...the same majesty...the same compassion...the same glory today as He had two thousand years ago...and as He will have two trillion years from now.
Jesus is the Treasure that never fades or weakens or dims. Ever. What else in your life can you say that about? Nothing...save the Word of God. And His Word describes Jesus, our Living Word.
So it all comes down to the question: what is your treasure?
Or as John Piper once probed, "What is your deepest root of joy? What God gives to you? or what God is to you?"
Jesus, You are our Pearl. You are our Treasure. Anything less than our Savior as the exalted Sovereign King of our lives and as the Treasure of our hearts will ultimately lead to emptiness and loss. But when Jesus is our Treasure, as Piper says, "the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be our shepherd, and He will guide us to springs of living water, and He will wipe away every tear from our eyes." (Rev.7:17) Christ will be our "everlasting pleasure." Hallelujah!
To God, our beautiful Treasure, be all the glory.
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