Flashback Episode — Treasure, Light, and Slavery: Matthew 6:19-24

During Jesus’ famous Sermon on the Mount, He shares some advice that is both practical for everyone, as well as profound. While some people might think Jesus came to teach and challenge only one or two certain groups of people, what He shares in the passage we are focusing on for this episode not only is applicable for Christians and Jews, but for everyone else as well.

Let’s read what Jesus shared and learn what He wanted to teach us. Our passage comes from the gospel of Matthew, chapter 6, and we will be reading from the Contemporary English Version of the Bible. Starting with verse 19, Jesus continued by saying,

¹⁹ Don’t store up treasures on earth! Moths and rust can destroy them, and thieves can break in and steal them. ²⁰ Instead, store up your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy them, and thieves cannot break in and steal them. ²¹ Your heart will always be where your treasure is.

While some might be quick to say that they don’t believe in heaven, the advice Jesus shares is not as much about heaven as it is about where we are placing our security. Even if we don’t believe in heaven, most people, if they are truly being honest, will acknowledge there is no place on earth that is 100% guaranteed to be safe for our treasure. The best security system, or the most hidden hole in the ground, is only a deterrent for some people. Others see acquiring your treasure as a challenge, and the harder you try to protect it, the greater the challenge.

But the focus of this set of verses is not even on our treasure either. Instead, it is on the location of our heart. God wants our hearts to be safe with Him in heaven. This is why He tells us in verse 21 that “Your heart will always be where your treasure is” and he both advises us in verses 19 to “Don’t store up treasures on earth” and “store up your treasures in heaven”. This whole thought centers around getting our hearts into heaven.

But Jesus isn’t finished sharing. He continues in verse 22 by saying,

²² Your eyes are like a window for your body. When they are good, you have all the light you need. ²³ But when your eyes are bad, everything is dark. If the light inside you is dark, you surely are in the dark.

Let’s pause again and focus on these two verses. While Jesus had just been focusing on our hearts, He shifts to talking about our eyes, but in these two verses, Jesus is sharing truth on multiple levels.

On the surface, what Jesus is literally saying makes sense: when our eyes are good, we can see everything we need to see; and the opposite is also true, because when our eyes are bad, everything is dark.

However, Jesus finishes by saying something that doesn’t make as much sense on the surface. He then shares in verse 23 that “If the light inside you is dark, you surely are in the dark.” Up to this point, light enters our bodies through our eyes, but now Jesus shifts the focus to a light inside of us.

It is with this final phrase that we see a different meaning for Jesus’ earlier statements. If we understand Jesus to be instead talking about spiritual light, and seeing through spiritual eyes, then we discover that Jesus is talking not only about what we are looking at and focusing on, but also on how we are interpreting the things we are seeing and/or experiencing.

If the light inside us is darkness, there is no way to really see true light. In other words, if our outlook on life is negative, pessimistic, or depressing, everything we see and experience will appear to us as negative, pessimistic, or depressing, even if what we are looking at includes things that would bring someone else joy.

Reading this also reminds me of this song, “This little Light of Mine”, which on the surface simply talks about sharing light, but when we think about the idea of sharing light, there is the subtle truth that our attitudes are contagious, and if we are living life with a negative outlook, this negative outlook can spread to those who are with us and bring them down as well.

However, the reverse is true, and living with a positive outlook on life is also contagious, and over time, it can spread and lift others up as well.

Jesus then shares a profound idea in verse 24 that is true for everyone alive at every point in history. He tells us that:

²⁴ You cannot be the slave of two masters! You will like one more than the other or be more loyal to one than the other. You cannot serve both God and money.

Some translations might say servant rather than slave, but regardless of the wording, the truth is there. While slavery isn’t the same today as it once was in the past, if you have ever had two jobs, you can see the truth of this statement: one job likely was more favorable than the other. While both jobs hopefully paid you money, there was one you preferred over the other.

However, if you only have ever had one job, you could understand this truth by comparing your home or personal life with your job life. Your responsibilities at home are different than your responsibilities at work, and chances are you prefer one over the other. For some, they might prefer work over home, but hopefully for all of us listening in, we prefer home over work.

But Jesus finishes with a huge parallel idea that challenges our motivation and purpose. Jesus finishes by saying, “You cannot serve both God and money.”

This distinction is huge, because it pushes us to reflect on what is motivating our lives. While some people might think that Satan is the biggest adversary pulling our hearts, minds, and lives away from God, Jesus hints at the truth here that perhaps “money” is a bigger adversary than even Satan when it comes to God getting our hearts.

The way we can test whether we are serving God or money is by asking ourselves a question such as, “If God asked me to give more than I thought I could afford, would I trust Him enough to do it?” Another similar question we could ask is, “Is my motivation for this decision because it helps God or others, or is it because of the money I will earn?”

Another question to help us reframe money from a completely different angle is, “What is something that money cannot buy?” Some possible answers to this question include love, solid and healthy relationships, and health. While money can help us be healthier in some ways, it cannot cure an incurable disease or illness.

These questions help guide us to where we should place our trust, where we should ultimately look to for the light inside of us, and where we should seek to store our treasure and hearts. The safest place for our trust, our light, our treasure, and our heart is with Jesus in heaven.

As we come to the close of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

Do a self-assessment and ask yourself one or more of the questions I shared earlier. If you get the idea that you are trusting or serving money over God, then take steps to make the switch. While God is not opposed to us having or using money, our motivation should be serving Him regardless of the money or lack of money serving Him will bring.

Also, the Bible has a lot to say about money. Many scholars believe that money is the most common subject in the entire Bible, and one of the most common subjects that Jesus talked about during His life on earth. With these ideas in mind, pray and study the Bible for yourself and keep your eyes open for things that the Bible teaches us about money. When I did this, I found some surprising references and truths that have impacted my own life.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or give up on where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!