“But gather and heap up and store for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust nor worm consume and destroy, and where thieves do not break through and steal.” Matt 6:20 (Amplified)
I once heard the story of a man who died and was, contrary to expectation, allowed to take something of this world with him to heaven. So, this man gathered up his most valuable asset – bars of gold, put them in a sack and commenced his celestial journey to the great beyond. When the angels guarding the pearly gates saw him afar off, they were puzzled as to what this man could be carrying. They noticed that it was heavy and that he was really struggling with his load. This further piqued their interest in this uncommon sight as they wondered what could be that precious that this man could not leave behind on earth and had to carry with him to heaven. When the man finally reached their post, the angels duly asked to see what was in the bag that this man was carrying. One of them leaned over and peered into the bag after the man had opened it expecting to see something that would wow him, only to disgustingly hiss and look away. His reaction got his partner even more eager to know what was inside the bag, so he asked his colleague what it was. The first angel replied, “Only tarmac”.
Of course, this story is not true, but it makes an important point that we need to take to heart. The reason why gold is valuable is because it is precious, portable and can easily hold its value anywhere in the world. It is the standard against which wealth is compared and guarantees the currency of every country. Nevertheless, we understand that this gold that is so precious to us here on earth is only good enough for paving the streets of heaven where God our Father lives; hence the angel’s disappointing remark – “Only tarmac”. So, if our greatest reward here on earth is what people dismissively walk upon in heaven, wouldn’t it be wiser on our part to ensure that we live our lives worthy of that place so that we can in the end gain that which is of infinitely more value than ‘mere’ gold. The bible enjoins us to store up for ourselves treasures in heaven. So what treasures can we store up and how? According to 1 Cor 3:12-15, the treasure we store up in heaven are our actions here on earth and what determines their relative values are our motives at the times we do those things that we will ultimately be rewarded for in heaven. Those heavenly deposits that withstand God’s fiery testing constitute the treasure that we will be rewarded for and those that can’t will be lost to us forever.
Therefore, the question you need to ask yourself is are my treasures stored in God’s safety deposit or are they earth-bound? Am I in my daily living topping up my deposit or is my focus primarily on what I do here on earth? Whatever good I do, will it meet God’s high standard or will be just rubbish before Him? What am I really living for – eternity or the ephemeral world? You can do far better that work for tarmac; you can own the road and rule the city in heaven. So, start living worthy of this ideal. There is no guarantee that you will be a millionaire here on earth, but by working towards your mansion in heaven, you too will be able to live the dream.
Prayer:
Lord, you are the Spirit of wisdom. Open my eyes so that I can discern your truth from the lies the world constantly place before me. Help me understand that living for you is all that matters and give me the grace to spend my last breath fulfilling your will for my life in Jesus’ name. Amen.