Thursday, November 30, 2006

My father loved his Sunday Bible Class--a class he taught in different places for more than 35 years. He would often fly back home late on a Saturday night just to make it in to Sunday School the next morning. I think it was a time of refreshment for him; a time to relax and be refilled. It was during one of these special classes that he asked this question:

"Where is your heart?

There was no room at the inn for Jesus, but there's room at the cross for you. There's room for people in the Kingdom of God.

God says He’s prepared a place for you. The picture is of a great oriental palace, very popular in those days. And that palace has many, many rooms in it; luxurious suites all the way down to closet-sized accommodations. You are going to inherit a room in that palace that is in direct proportion to your life of service for Christ. In other words, Salvation is God’s gift to everyone, but the blessings of Heaven and eternity are individually bestowed on the basis of one’s life of dedication and service for Christ.

That’s why Jesus said, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth” because the moth and the rust corrupt it and the thieves break through and steal. (Matthew 6:19-21) But lay up for yourselves treasure in Heaven because if your reservation is there, nobody cancels it. If your reservation is there, the moth and the rust can’t corrupt it and the thieves can’t even get near it.

So where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. If you’re looking forward to being in the presence of Christ and can’t wait for the joy of seeing him, then your heart’s there and your treasure’s there. Unfortunately, there are too many people with one foot on earth and the other foot in Heaven. God calls us to be living sacrifices; the problem with living sacrifices is they have a nasty habit of squirming off the altar. There are far too many people trying to feather their beds on earth when they should be storing up treasure in Heaven.

How do you store treasure in Heaven? You do it by prayer, supplication, and thanksgiving. You store treasure in Heaven by service to God; by presenting your body as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God. You lay up treasure in Heaven when you permit the fruits of the Spirit to blossom in your life: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self‑control.” (Galatians 5:22, 23) You’re allowing treasure to be stored for you when you allow the Holy Spirit to live in you and work through you to touch the lives of others. Even a cup of water in the Master’s name will not go without its reward.

Do you want to know how to store treasures in Heaven? Obey God now. Let the fruits of the Spirit, the power of the Spirit, and the life of Christ be part of your life. Do you want to be sure of having great treasure in Heaven? Then don’t set any store on the permanency of your possessions on earth. Let the life of Christ be lived in you. You can’t do it yourself—let Christ do it. I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me." (Philippians 4: 13)

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