GVCA Opening Chapel

At our 15th annual opening chapel service in August, Principal Sharon Broderick welcomed all students, parents, several new faculty members, and many alumni to Grace Valley Christian Academy’s 2012-13 school year.

Mrs. Broderick spoke from Matthew 6:19-21: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven where moth and rust do not destroy and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

What does Jesus mean when he says do not store up treasures on earth? We might think that this command just tells us not to hoard money. And that is a true point, but that is not where the command ends. Jesus is not simply focusing on what we have, but what we think about what we have. It is not a sin to have things of the earth (money, home, etc.), but it is a sin to love these things and to find our contentment in these things.

“Do not store up…” also refers to the way we view ourselves. If our primary interest is in “me and mine”— my honor, my pleasure, my ability, my promotion, my reputation—then we are dwelling on things of the earth. When our minds are focused on these things, we are storing up treasures on earth, and these treasures will one day be destroyed.

We can be storing up earthly treasures without even thinking about it. For example, working hard in classes in order to earn good grades is not a bad thing. But when we begin to make an idol of our grades, and our grades become our glory and identity, then we have begun to store up these perishing treasures of earth. So you see, this is fundamentally an issue of the heart.

There is limited space in our hearts. If our focus is on ourselves, our pleasure, our glory, then we have no room for God and His glory and what pleases Him. The purpose of the Christian life is to glorify God and enjoy him forever. We are not able to do this effectively when our hearts are consumed with earthly things.

Deep within our souls, we know that these earthly treasures are fleeting—they come and go—they cannot be depended upon. Focus on such things makes us restless and anxious. These destructible treasures do not produce the long-lasting inner contentment that all people crave. According to the Scriptures, this contentment only comes to those who repent of their sins, put their faith in Jesus Christ, and live as his obedient disciples. Contentment only comes to those whose hearts are fixed on heaven.

Saint Peter was a man who learned what it meant to store up treasures in heaven. Before Christ’s crucifixion, Peter three times denied knowing Jesus Christ. Peter was still treasuring this earth– he was treasuring his life! He was not prepared to die for Jesus Christ. But after Jesus was raised from the dead, he came back to a dejected Peter and asked him, “Do you love me more than these?” Three times, Peter answered that he did love Jesus. Peter never again denied knowing Christ, but proved his love and his heavenly treasure— and in the end he was crucified because of his allegiance to Christ.

It is unlikely that many of us will be called to die for Christ. But we store up treasure in heaven by obeying the commands of God, as revealed in the Bible. Simple obedience is great heavenly treasure.

We must always be asking the question—do I love God more, do I treasure heaven? When I am tempted to go in the sin that my friends are committing—do I love Him more, do I treasure heaven? When I am mocked for standing up for truth—do I love Him more, do I treasure heaven?

We are pilgrims traveling through life on this earth, on our way to heaven. Preacher and theologian, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones notes, “We are walking through this world under the eye of God, in the direction of God, and towards our everlasting hope.” He says that a Christian holds this world loosely—he is blessedly detached from it.

If you are not a Christian, you need a new heart. You need a new heart that loves God and delights in obeying his commands. Sinful hearts treasure earth and cling to it. And the earth is like sand. You try to get hold of it, but it seeps out between your fingers. The Christian, the one to whom God has given a new heart—he treasures the things of God. He loves to obey God. He is willing to give up everything for God and His glory.

What a wonderful thing it is to store up lasting treasures in heaven. It is a life so rewarding, so full of contentment and profound peace and joy! So let us fix our eyes not on what is seen and temporary, but on what is unseen and eternal. Let us follow in the footsteps of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Let us store up our treasures in heaven.