Thoughts of a Pastor-Historian

Matthew 7:1 may have overtaken John 3:16 as the most well-known Bible verse in America. It seems that everyone in America, both Christian and non-Christian alike, can quote this verse verbatim. Once I heard a preacher quip that the unchurched must have a secret VBS in which all their children are taught only one Bible verse: “Judge not that you be not judged.”

This verse is quoted whenever someone states that any belief is false or any action is sinful. If you ever say that anything is false or sinful, you immediately hear: “Judge not.” or “You shouldn’t judge.” This verse has become a rallying cry for Postmodernity’s denial of any absolute truth or moral certitude. But is that really what this verse is about? In this morning’s message we will examine this often misinterpreted verse in its context. By doing so we will find that, contrary to popular opinion, Jesus is not forbidding His disciples to make moral and truth judgments, but rather is providing guidelines on the proper attitude one must have when addressing an area of weakness in a brother or sister in Christ.

Judge not, that you be not judged. (2) For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. (3) And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? (4) Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? (5) Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. (6) Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces. Matthew 7:1-6

I. Guideline #1: Be Gracious, vv. 1-2.

Jesus begins in verse one with those famous words, “Judge not.” But He doesn’t stop there. Jesus goes on to say “that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.” This is a call for graciousness in our evaluation of others.

As I already alluded to, Jesus is not categorically denying a Christian’s responsibility to be discerning. As we’ll see in a few moments in verse six, Jesus calls upon us to be discerning by not giving what is holy to dogs nor casting pearls before swine. This requires discernment. Who is a dog and who is a pig? Later in this same chapter (vv. 15-20), Jesus calls upon His followers to beware of false teachers. One must be able to judge whether someone is a false teacher for that command to make sense.
“You will know them,” Jesus says, “by their fruits.” In 1 John 4:1 the apostle John writes,
“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.” So when Jesus says in Matthew 7:1 “Judge not.” it obviously doesn’t mean what many interpret it to mean in our day. Namely, that no one should ever question the beliefs or actions of anyone. That is the spirit of our age, but not the teaching of Jesus.

So what is Jesus saying? As I’ve already stated, Jesus is saying that we should be gracious in our evaluation of others. The motivation for this is the fact that we will be judged by the exact same criteria that we judge others. God’s judgment of us will always be appropriate and proportionate to the judgment with which we judge others. The realization that we will one day be judged by God is to be a deterrent to our critical, nit-picking manner of judging our brothers and sisters. Paul put it this way in Romans 14:10 in regard to those things which are not directly forbidden or commanded in Scripture,

But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you show contempt for your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. (11) For it is written: “AS I LIVE, SAYS THE LORD, EVERY KNEE SHALL BOW TO ME, AND EVERY TONGUE SHALL CONFESS TO GOD.” (12) So then each of us shall give account of himself to God. (13) Therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather resolve this, not to put a stumbling block or a cause to fall in our brother’s way.

Jesus says in verse two that you will be judged by the judgment with which you judge others. This proportionate judgment is explained further in the second half of verse two: “with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.” Here Jesus is referencing the wording of a grain contract in His day in which many times it would be specified in that contract that the delivery of the grain and the payment for the grain would be measured with the exact same instrument, a scoop. This was done to guarantee justice in the transaction. Jesus is saying that justice will be served by God upon the one who is constantly critical and needlessly nit-picky. Turning this around, if we want to be judged graciously by God, we should be gracious in our evaluation of others. The brother of Jesus said in James 2:13, ” For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy.” and, “Mercy triumphs over judgment.” Or as Jesus Himself put it in the fifth beatitude: “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy” (Matt. 5:7). So the first guideline when evaluating others is to be gracious.

II. Guideline #2: Be Genuine, vv. 3-5.

In verses 3-5 Jesus expresses the need for genuineness for the one who would dare to attempt to correct another. This is illustrated in an absurd way by Jesus. He rebukes the hypocritical attitude of many with humor and hyperbole. Look at verses 3-5. The Gk. word translated “speck” or “mote” is karphos and can refer to any kind of small particle. It is often translated “speck of sawdust” or “splinter” because that would make the connection clearly with the “beam,” “plank,” or “log” which is the Gk. word dokon. This same word was used for the piece of wood which bore the weight of a floor or roof and stretched across the length of a house. We might speak of it today as a floor joist or as a ceiling truss. The contrast is clear: a speck of sawdust and a large piece of timber. This ridiculous contrast is used by Jesus to show the absurdity of the hypocrite attempting to correct the faults of another. Picture this in your mind: a man with a 30′ long 1′ in diameter log protruding from his eye trying to help another man remove a speck of sawdust from his eye. It’s an absurd picture, right? This is a rebuke to the one who is not genuine.

We all have the tendency to see our sins as small and everyone else’s sins as large. We make excuses for ourselves. We have extenuating circumstances. There are reasons for the way we are. But no one else has any excuse good enough. We need to reverse that and see our sins as large and everyone else’s sins as small! We need to quit making excuses for our sins and start recognizing that there may be circumstances in that other person’s life which we know nothing about.

Notice that Jesus does not say, “Don’t remove the speck from your brother’s eye.” Instead he says, “Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.” This goes against the common misinterpretation of verse 1, doesn’t it? We are to help our brothers and sisters by pointing out areas of sin and weakness, but not until we’ve dealt with the sin in our own lives!

Paul provides further guidelines for restoring a fallen brother or sister in Galatians 6:1-2,

Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such a one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted. 2 Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

When evaluating others, we must be gracious, genuine, and . . .

III. Guideline #3: Be Discerning, v. 6.

There is some debate about whether this verse belongs with verses 1-5, verses 7-11, or whether it stands alone. I obviously believe that it is tied to verses 1-5. It is a warning by Jesus to be discerning when seeking to provide instruction to others. There are many who will not hear it, even if you’re gracious and genuine. They may even respond violently. There is a proverbial wisdom in these words by Jesus. Jesus’ words here correspond with proverbs like:

Proverbs 1:7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Proverbs 9:8 Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate thee: rebuke a wise man, and he will love thee.

We must therefore be discerning about who we seek to exhort and correct. Some will not receive it. The fool will not receive instruction. The scorner will hate you. The dogs will turn and tear you in pieces. The swine will trample your words under feet, not recognizing their value.

The dogs of this verse are the wild, scavenging dogs of the middle east, not their domesticated American counterparts. Both the swine and the dogs were considered unclean to the Jews and were terms of insult to Gentiles.

Conclusion:

Jesus is not forbidding the judgment of truth claims or moral issues. Instead Jesus is providing guidelines on how one should evaluate such issues. We must be gracious, genuine, and discerning.

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We have plenty to worry about. Jeffrey Kluger wrote in an article in TIME magazine last year (Nov. 26, 2006):

It would be a lot easier to enjoy your life if there weren’t so many things trying to kill you every day. The problems start even before you’re fully awake. There’s the fall out of bed that kills 600 Americans each year. There’s the early-morning heart attack, which is 40% more common than those that strike later in the day. There’s the fatal plunge down the stairs, the bite of sausage that gets lodged in your throat, the tumble on the slippery sidewalk as you leave the house, the high-speed automotive pinball game that is your daily commute. Other dangers stalk you all day long. Will a cabbie’s brakes fail when you’re in the crosswalk? Will you have a violent reaction to bad food?

Also, with increased medical knowledge has come increased number of worries. While previous generations only feared death, we live in constant fear of cancer, diabetes, lung disease, heart attack, stroke, and much, much, more. With all of these reasons to worry, and many more, it must be perfectly ok to worry, right? Wrong! In this morning’s text Jesus provides three important reasons why Christians should not worry. Worry for the Christians is foolish, futile, and faithless.

Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? 28 “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; 29 and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. Matthew 6:25-34

Three times in this passage, Jesus asserts His kingly authority by commanding His disciples to not worry (vv. 25, 31, and 34). Specifically we are commanded not to worry about our lives which is defined in three categories: what we eat and drink, our bodies, and our clothing. Since Jesus commands us not to worry, to worry is a sin! Whenever we worry, we are disobeying a direct command from Christ our King. Likewise, the apostle Paul wrote under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit in Philippians 4:6-7,

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Let me put it bluntly: worry is a sin! We make excuses for worry every day. We even brag to each other about being worried. “I was so worried about you.” “I worry so much!” Can you imagine if we took other sins so lightly? “I just lust so much!” It’s one thing to sin, it’s another to be proud of it. After issuing His command in verse 25, Jesus gives three reasons why Christians should not worry in verses 26-30.

I. Don’t Worry Because Worry is Foolish, v. 26.

Jesus gave three specific categories of things which the Christian should not worry about: what we eat and drink, our bodies, and our clothing. To each of these Jesus offers a response. First Jesus addresses worrying about what we eat or drink. Now we must keep in mind that Jesus is speaking in a first century world in which the provision of food and drink could not be as easily assumed as it is today. We live in a world of refrigeration and preservatives where it is possible to stockpile large quantities of food and drink in advance. That was not a luxury which Jesus’ hearers had. Nevertheless, Jesus portrays worry about the availability of these daily provisions as foolish. Since many of us don’t have to worry from meal to meal about whether we will have something to eat (we have to decide what to eat), we can apply this worry of food to our worry about any provision which we need. When we’re tempted to worry about the supply of any necessity of life, Jesus’ instructions remain applicable: “Look at the birds of the air . . .” Jesus essentially asks, “Have you ever seen a bird sowing seed, or reaping, or gathering grain into a barn? Yet, you’ve never seen one bird starve to death either. This is because your heavenly Father feeds them!” Notice the rebuke here, Jesus does not say “their heavenly Father,” but “your heavenly Father”! The point is that the One who feeds the birds is “your heavenly Father.” Can you imagine how much bird seed it would take to feed the estimate 200 to 400 billion individual birds in the world? It would easily bankrupt Bill Gates. Yet God feeds those birds every single day! But Jesus’ point here is that humans are of more value than birds (v. 26c). This is not a politically correct thing to say in today’s world where many politically oriented environmental groups seem to value animal life over human life. But if one believes the Bible’s account of Creation, humans were created by God as the highest created beings on earth. Animal life is to valued because it is created by God and their protection has been entrusted to us by God, but humans are clearly on a higher order than birds. This is Jesus’ assumption and it exposes the foolishness of worry about our daily provisions. The God who feeds the birds every day is “our heavenly Father” who values humans as His special creation and believers as His new creation.

Not only should we not worry because of its foolishness, Jesus also commands . . .

II. Don’t Worry Because Worry is Futile, v. 27.

After addressing the category of eating and drinking, Jesus addresses the issue of worry about one’s body. This is an issue that is still alive and well today as healthcare and fitness industries are multi-million dollar entities. Everywhere you go you can find health food today. Even McDonalds! The pharmaceutical industry is the single most profitable industry in the United States. The reason is that health and promises of an extended life sell! There is nothing wrong with using the gifts of medicine and technology which God has provided to care for our God-given bodies. There is certainly nothing wrong with being health conscious in our diet. But the problem comes when our societies emphasis on health and long life results in worry about matters which are ultimately out of our control. Jesus says, “Don’t worry about your body, because worry is futile.” It doesn’t work. Jesus asks the question: “Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?” A cubit originally referred to the distance from the tip of one’s finger to the elbow and later to a measurement of 18 inches. Jesus is asking then, “Can you add 18 inches to your height simply by thinking about it?” Of course not! Jesus’ point is that worry is futile. It accomplishes nothing!

The word translated “stature” in verse 27 normally refers to one’s age, not height and the word for cubit could refer to an amount of time. Thus, Jesus could have been asking, “Can one add a span of time to one’s life by worrying about it?” Again, the answer is “Of course not.” In fact, medical studies have repeatedly shown that those who worry most age fastest and die earliest. There’s something else for you to worry about!

Regardless of whether Jesus is referring to the futility of extending one’s height or one’s life through worry, the result is the same. Worrying is futile.

This is a good question to consider when tempted to worry about the health of your body. Can you change anything about your body through worrying about it? Since the answer is no, you shouldn’t worry!

III. Don’t Worry Because Worry is Faithless, vv. 28-32.

“Why do you worry about clothing?” Jesus again points to nature by saying “Consider the lilies . . .” Jesus not only points to the birds of the air to illustrate the foolishness of worry, he also points to the flowers of the field to show the faithlessness of worry. The flowers of the field don’t labor over their sowing machines to produce the beautiful garments that adorn them. The Greek word in the text which is translated “lilies”can refer to a variety of flowers. Perhaps Jesus was pointing his hearers to a field of purple anemones or buttercups which would have been a wonderful comparison with the purple robes of royalty worn by King Solomon. Even Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as these flowers!

Jesus presses the point in verse 30. If God clothes the grass of the field this splendorously, even though their existence is temporary. He refers to the common practice of the day of cutting down grass and flowers to use as fuel for the fire of ovens. In other words, God dresses the field this beautifully when he knows that they will soon be cut down and used as fodder for the fire! If God does this, how much more will He clothe you, who are eternal beings with immortal souls!?!?

Jesus then addresses His hearers with the title “O you of little faith”. This expression is actually the translation of one compound Greek word ολιγοπιστοι literally “little faiths”. Here we discover that worry is not only a sin because it disobeys the commands of God, it is an ugly sin because it disbelieves the promises of God!

Unbelief!!! What a terrible sin against a great and a good God. Whatever is not of faith is sin (Romans 14:23)! Worry is fundamentally a failure to believe God’s promises! God’s promises like:

I will never leave thee nor forsake thee. Hebrews 13:5

I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. Philippians 4:13

But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19

George Mueller once said ,”The beginning of anxiety is the end of faith, and the beginning of true faith is the end of anxiety.” Robert Mounce comments, “Worry is practical atheism and an affront to God.” (58).

Therefore . . . “Don’t worry! (v. 31). This is what the Gentiles (pagans) do. Your heavenly Father knows what you have need of. Worry implies that God doesn’t know about and doesn’t care about our needs!

Instead we are to seek God’s kingdom and righteousness! This verse is often quoted but probably not always understood. What Jesus is calling on His disciples to seek is His kingdom which is His kingly rule, which is therefore to submit to His authority. Obey what He has commanded. This is also the way that righteousness should be understood in this context. Righteousness is being obedient to the demands of Christ as revealed in the Sermon on the Mount. It is a righteousness which exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees (5:20) and without which no one will see the Lord (5:48).

When we obey Christ’s commands, He promises to supply all our physical needs. Therefore it is only when we stop worrying about life’s necessities that life’s necessities will be provided to us.

Jesus concludes one more time by saying don’t worry about tomorrow, because each day has its own challenges and must be faced one day at a time.

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Storing up treasure can be harmful to your health. That’s what a 62 year old man in western France who suffered from a rare psychological disorder called “pica” learned in 2002. This man died after complications that arose following surgery to remove a 12 lb. mass from his stomach comprised of coins, necklaces and needles. Those who suffer from “pica” face a compulsion to eat things not normally consumed as food. This particular man had swallowed approximately 350 coins valued at $650. The intensive care doctor said that while the family of the patient tried to keep coins and jewelry away from him, “When he was invited and came in some homes, he liked to steal coins and eat them.”

Now I certainly hope that no one here suffers from this serious condition, but most, if not all of us have a similar tendency to hoard up material possessions on this earth. Think about it: we spend most of our lives accumulated more and more things. For most of us this is not a problem of the mind, but a problem of the heart! Jesus addresses this serious heart problem in this morning’s text. In Matthew 6:19-24 we read the King’s authoritative word on treasure.

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. (22) The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. (23) But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness! (24) No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. Matthew 6:19-24

I. A Command With An Incentive, vv. 19-20.

The contrast between treasure on earth and treasure in heaven is what the first 18 verses of this chapter have been about. There is a way of giving, praying, and fasting that will only produce treasure on earth (the praise of men). There is another way of giving, praying, and fasting which will produce treasure in heaven (the reward of the Father).

In verses 19-20 Jesus sternly warns His disciples “do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, . . . but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven.” This is a command that is to be obeyed by all of Jesus’ disciples. This includes you and me! The reason given makes sense when you think about it. Treasure piled up on earth faces a threefold danger. It can be eaten by pests, corroded by the elements, and runs the risk of being stolen by thieves. But treasure laid up in heaven faces no such risk! Amen!

In the ancient world , as today, one of a rich person’s most prized possessions was their wardrobe. One could tell more about the wealth of an individual by the way they dressed than in any other way. The problem was that moths were present in the ancient world and mothballs had not yet been invented. Many high-priced garments were destroyed by the moths. In the ancient world, there was no stainless steel and no pressure treated lumber. Rusting and rotting were a constant threat to the amassed treasures of people in the first century. In Jesus’ day, most homes were made out of hardened mud or clay and it was easy for thieves to literally “break in and steal”. There were no locks or bolts on these mud and clay houses. Yale was not yet producing locks. It was risky business to try and amass a large treasure in the first century world and Jesus says that it is not worth the risk. Instead we should lay up treasure in heaven where no moth, rust or thief is present. Jesus stated elsewhere the futility of gaining even the whole world at the expense of his soul. He asked in Mark 8:36-37,

For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? 37 Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?

In verses 19 and 20 we are given a command by Jesus, but it is not a command without motivation. Parents often tell their children when they ask why they should or shouldn’t do what they have been told to, “Because I said so!” Sometimes God says that to us. Remember when Peter asked Jesus “What about John?” after he had been told about his own death. Jesus’ answer was essentially, “That’s none of your business.” That is an entirely appropriate thing for Jesus to say because at times we need to learn that we need to obey whether we understand why or not. Children need to learn this, Christians need to learn this. But God sometimes graciously provides a reason for His command to unveil His gracious purpose in the command. When He does this it is an evidence that even when these purposes are not revealed, they are present, though veiled. Here Jesus commands His disciples to not lay up treasures on earth, but rather to lay up treasure in heaven. What a drag! Surely Jesus must not want what is best for us! He doesn’t want me to have treasure on earth. But look closer, Jesus explains why. Treasure on earth is not lasting. It rots, is eaten by moths, rusts, and can be stolen by thieves. But treasure laid up in heaven cannot rot, will not be eaten by moths, will not rust, and cannot be stolen. Thus it is far better to lay up treasure in heaven. See, Jesus is not trying to decrease our joy, but increase it eternally. It’s like a wise father instructing his child not to waste money or some cheap toy that won’t last until they get home. Instead, wait a few more weeks, he says, save your money and you can get something much better. At the moment, the child may think his father is not on his side, but if he listens to his instruction his happiness will be much greater in the future.

Texts like this one provide a window into others where God’s gracious purpose in His commands are not as clearly discernable. Rest assured that whatever God commands is ultimately for our good and His glory.

But not only does Jesus issue a command with an incentive, He also gives:

II. A Caution About Our Intentions, vv. 21-23.

Jesus continues His authoritative teaching on treasure by issuing a warning about the intention of our heart when we treasure earthly things. The warning is that what you treasure will determine the condition of your heart. That is a scary thing to think about. Where is your heart this morning? What do you treasure? What do you value and esteem? If you say, “I don’t know.”, let me help you. Where do you spend your time and money? Look at your date book and your checkbook, for “there your heart will be also.”

Jesus powerfully illustrates the danger of what we treasure effecting our heart in verses 22 and 23. A comparison is made between the outer eye and the inner eye of the heart. The eye is “the lamp of the body” because it allows light into the human body. If you have a good eye, light is allowed to enter. If your eye is bad, no light enters and you are filled with darkness or blindness. Now Jesus makes the comparison, if the inner eye of your heart is filled with darkness it is of much graver concern! “How great is that darkness!”, Jesus says.

Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived, said in Prov. 4:23, “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life.” We must guard our hearts with diligence for all the important matters of life flow from our hearts. Our behavior influences our heart & our heart influences our behavior!

It’s a dangerous thing to give your heart away to anything. Steve Green sings about this topic in a song called “Guard Your Heart”. In it he pleads, “Guard your heart! Guard your heart! Don’t trade it for treasure! Don’t give it away! Guard your heart! Guard your heart! As a payment for pleasure it’s a high price to pay.” Men, women, boys and girls, please listen to me! Don’t give your heart away to anyone but King Jesus!

As serious as this warning is, we can also learn something about the nature of our heart from verse 21. If what we treasure influences our heart, the good news is that we can exercise our heart into good practices by purposing to treasure the right things. How can you do this? Again, by looking at your checkbook and date book. How can you purpose today to invest your time and money into God’s kingdom? If you do, you will find your heart will begin to be interested in the work of God. If you start giving to missions, your ears will perk up when someone begins to talk about missions. If you invest time in prayer and Bible study, your interest in those areas will increase. Stop treasuring the things of the world and begin to treasure the things of God! If you do, I believe that your heart will soon follow!

III. A Contrast that Demands Our Attention, v. 24.

The contrast is between serving God or wealth! Jesus here categorically declares that “No one can serve two masters.” It is an impossibility. Verse 24 summarizes the entire argument of verses 19-23.

There have been times in my life when I’ve had to work more than one job to provide for my family. I’ve had more than one employer. That’s possible. But what Jesus says is impossible is to have “two masters.” You can have a lot of different jobs, but you will only be serving God or mammon.

The end of verse 24 restates the beginning of the verse: “You cannot serve God and mammon.” These are the two competing masters. The word mammon is the transliteration of an Aramaic word meaning “wealth or property.” The root of the word has the idea of “that in which one trusts.”

There are two competing masters: God and wealth. They are also two sources of human trust. Who or what are you trusting in? Are you trusting God or your own wealth that you have accumulated.? Money has been said to be a wonderful servant, but a very cruel taskmaster. In Scripture, love for the material wealth of this world is always considered a danger to be avoided.

For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. 1 Timothy 6:10

The danger of love for the world is that love for the world is antithetical to love for God. The two cannot mutually exist. We see that in the words of Jesus in verse 24, but also in the testimony of both John and James:

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 1 John 2:15

Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. James 4:4

St. Augustine wrote long ago that “he loves Thee too little who loves anything together with Thee, which he loves not for Thy sake.” Any time that we love God’s gifts more than we love the Giver of those gifts, we are guilty of idolatry

Conclusion:

Clearly treasuring earthly possessions is a danger that must be avoided. Jesus has issued a command with an incentive, a caution about our intentions, and a contrast that demands our attention. As the 62 year old man in France found out in 2002, storing up treasure can even be harmful to your health!

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