This post is part of my Join Me on The Mountainside series. If you listen to the audio you will hear two interviews I had with members of my church who are involved in ministry and what their experience has been like. I highly recommend you listen to their testimony about how being involved in helping others allowed them to see God working in a very real way in their lives and in the lives of others.

19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
- Matthew 6:19-21 NKJV

What you treasure will have a profound impact on your life. What are some things that consume your thoughts? Are the things you are chasing and the things you worry about worth all the energy you dedicate to them?

Is your treasure fleeting or eternal?

Spiritual treasure should be defined as broadly as possible—as everything that believers can take with them beyond the grave—e.g., holiness of character, obedience to all of God’s commandments, souls won for Christ, and disciples nurtured in the faith. In this context, however, storing up treasures focuses particularly on the compassionate use of material resources to meet others’ physical and spiritual needs, in keeping with the priorities of God’s kingdom (vv. 25–34; cf. Luke 16:8–13).
— Craig Blomberg, Matthew, vol. 22, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1992), 123.

The main idea is clear. Jesus is talking about treasures that are not money or any earthly possessions. It is not bad to have things, but it becomes a problem when your things have you. Our focus should not be on things but rather on people. People are of infinitely greater value than things, especially in light of eternity. Paul and the early Christians understood this.

People > Things

The glory and joy of the early church were not buildings or funds, it was the people. The building and the funds of the church should exist for the benefit of the people, not the other way around. Once again, possessions are not evil, but our things should not possess us. We will not bring our things to heaven, material goods are temporary, which makes them of zero value in light of eternity. On the other hand, our heart, or our character, is of infinite value. We get a new body when Jesus comes again (1 Corinthians 35-58), but we will still be ourselves, sin will be removed, but we keep the core of who we are, our character remains. The heart or character of people is of the highest value in light of eternity and your character is shaped by your thoughts, decisions, and actions.

The way you choose to live your life will significantly impact your character and your eternal destiny. Following Jesus is not simply an intellectual exercise; it is a life-changing experience that impacts everyone you interact with.

A life with Jesus is a life focused on things which are of eternal consequences. We no longer live completely absorbed by the problems of this world, we live for Jesus and focus on what He prioritized. People are more important than things. When we focus more on God’s plans for the people around us (He wants to save them), we begin to pray for them and to look for ways to bless them. We partner with God in the salvation of those around us. As a result, our hearts are better aligned with God’s and our lives with His will. This allows us to begin to truly experience what a life with Jesus can be.

So, where is your treasure?