“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but LAY UP FOR YOURSELVES TREASURES IN HEAVEN, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For WHERE YOUR TREASURE (thésauros: a storehouse for precious things) IS, THERE YOUR HEART WILL BE ALSO.” (Matthew 6:19-21)
What are the things that are MOST IMPORTANT or VALUABLE to us? Is it our family, our possessions, our finances, our job? How about our relationship with God? Or our love for the Word of God? This is the advice Jesus gives us, “…SEEK FIRST the KINGDOM OF GOD and HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS, and ALL THESE THINGS shall BE ADDED TO YOU.” (Matthew 6:33) The phrase “Kingdom of God” or “Kingdom of Heaven” appears more than 80 times in the New Testament. The Kingdom of God can be summarized as the ETERNAL DOMINION where God is sovereign and Jesus Christ rules forever. “…always thankful to the Father who has made us fit to share all the wonderful things that belong to those who live in the KINGDOM OF LIGHT. For He has rescued us out of the darkness and gloom of Satan’s kingdom and BROUGHT US INTO THE KINGDOM OF HIS DEAR SON…” (Colossians 1:12-13) “And I, John, saw the HOLY CITY, the NEW JERUSALEM, coming down from God out of heaven. It was a glorious sight, beautiful as a bride at her wedding. I heard a loud shout from the throne saying, “Look, THE HOME OF GOD IS NOW AMONG MEN, and He will live with them, and they will be His people; yes, God Himself will BE AMONG THEM.” (Revelation 21:2-3)
Jesus taught his followers how to enter the Kingdom of God: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one WHO DOES THE WILL OF MY FATHER who is in heaven.” (Matthew 7:21) “When the Jesus comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him…All the nations will be GATHERED BEFORE HIM, and He will separate them…He will set the SHEEP on His right hand, but the GOATS on the left. Then the King will say to those on His RIGHT HAND, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, INHERIT THE KINGDOM PREPARED FOR YOU from the foundation of the world…Then He will also say to those on the LEFT HAND, ‘DEPART FROM ME, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels…Jesus will say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not (help) one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ And the UNRIGHTEOUS will go away into EVERLASTING PUNISHMENT, but the RIGHTEOUS into ETERNAL LIFE.” (Matthew 25:31-34, 41, 45-46)
Your Personal Pastor -Bill Stockham