“So, what’s our focus?”

By Rev. Michael Stonhouse

Meditation – Saturday, September 30, 2023

Matthew 6:19-24 (Forward, p. 63) CEV p. 988

Often, since coming to Lloydminster, I have talked about ‘the Lloydminster disease’, that is, the obsession of many of its residents on ‘things’, their focus on material possessions. When I arrived here I could not help but notice all the spiffy and high-end motor vehicles, the Hummers, the SUVs and the expensive, never-off-the-highway trucks. And then there was the succession of expensive, overly priced, unaffordable homes that some people ‘bought into.’ And, don’t forget the conspicuous consumption of recreation vehicles and vacation homes and other material objects. It was if many of our fellow residents were putting ‘all their eggs in this one basket’, a basket that was only a missed mortgage payment or a lost paycheque away from disaster.

Jesus certainly has something to say about this—to quote His own words-- the idea of ‘storing up our treasure’ here on earth. Here He reminds us that all of this, no exceptions, is subject to decay and rust and loss. None of it is permanent and can be lost ‘in a heartbeat.’ Instead, Jesus says, we should lay up treasure in heaven, where nothing can ever touch it. But then, how are we to do this?

This is a strange and tantalizing difficult question, to which the Scriptures give us only a partial answer. At the close of Luke’s Parable of the Rich Fool, Jesus says, about the fool, ‘This what happens to people who store up everything for themselves, but are poor in the sight of God’ (Luke 12:21). But then, what does that mean, to be poor, or to be rich, in the sight of God? A few verses later (verses 32-33) Jesus gives us a further explanation:

“My little group of disciples, don’t be afraid! Your Father wants to give you the kingdom. Sell what you have and give the money to the poor. Make yourselves moneybags that never wear out. Make sure your treasure is safe in heaven, where thieves cannot steal it and moths cannot destroy it.”

This is entirely in keeping with what Jesus said to the rich young ruler:’

“There is one thing you still need to do. Go and sell everything you own! Give the money to the poor, and you will have riches in heaven. Then come and be my follower” (Luke 18:22).

However, if you are like me—someone who certainly does have possessions, and possessions in abundance, you may well be asking whether this is ‘the full story’. Is this what God expects of all of us, without exception?

I would suggest not, for there are numerous examples in the Scriptures, in the New Testament in particular, where there are persons of wealth, of substance, who use it to good effect:

-Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus, who use their wealth to

provide for the crucified Jesus;

-or Barnabas, in the Acts of the Apostles, who uses his wealth to

support the needy in the infant Jerusalem church;

-or Lydia, the merchant of purple in Philippi, who opened her home

to Paul and the others;

So, ‘what’, you might be asking, ‘should our guiding principle be?’ Today’s passage gives us two clues:

“Your heart will always be where your treasure is” (verse 21). In other words, what is the focus of our lives, the things of this earth or the things of heaven? As Jesus also said, “Seek ye first [or, only] the kingdom of heaven.” In other words, is the kingdom of heaven our priority, our number one goal, here on earth?

“You cannot be the slave of two masters…You cannot serve both God and money” (verse 24). So, what is our master? Do our

possessions serve us [or God]—or do we serve them? It is a

crucial, and telling, question that says it all. It all comes down to

whatever is the focus of our lives.

Forward notes: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal, but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven” (verses 19-20a).

“What does Jesus’s teaching mean for people struggling to meet their basic needs? In my contemporary North American context, these verses conjure an image of true faithfulness as focused on spiritual matters and ignoring material issues. When this ideal for faithful life intersects with capitalism’s economic inequities, it can produce a shaming message toward those who struggle to make ends meet.

“When I approach these verses as teachings for a crowd of mostly impoverished people, however, I see a different path through Jesus’s metaphors. The words for both ‘store up’ and ‘treasures’ can etymologically suggest future-oriented putting or placing, and heaven in Matthew often symbolizes the political order of the kingdom of heaven. Jesus invites people to reclaim and put their future in God’s kingdom. I find no ignoring or shaming in these words, for in God’s kingdom, as he says, the meek shall inherit the earth and those longing for justice will be filled.”

Moving Forward: “Have you ever felt shame after hearing this verse? What do think Jesus is saying?”