November 24, 2020
But godliness with contentment is great gain.—1 Timothy 6:6
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If you have Me—your Savior, Lord, and Friend—you have everything that really matters. You may not have riches, fame, or success, but don’t let that discourage you. As I said to My disciples, “What do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul?”
Nothing can be compared with the priceless treasure of eternal Life! Consider a jewel merchant on the hunt for excellent pearls. When he found one that was flawless, he sold everything and bought it. My kingdom is like that: of inestimable worth! So learn to be content with having Me, beloved, regardless of what you may lack in this world.—Jesus1
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A man told me how a recent fire was the second time he had lost everything. A number of times this week I have heard the words “I’ve lost everything” or “All is lost.” That, of course, is according to how you look at earthly possessions. If the heart and soul are set upon earthly possessions, then when you lose them, all is lost. If there has been a misplaced attention—the emphasis in life on just things, home, possessions—then when the loss comes, the hurt and the tearing loose from such things you love is something terrific. The emphasis has been in the wrong place, on the temporal instead of the eternal.
Jesus said where your treasure is, there your heart is also.2 Some people quote that “Where your heart is, there will your treasure be also.” But that isn’t the way it is. The Lord said where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
I heard Joey Brown sadly tell how his lovely home had burned to the ground, and with it his scores of trophies—almost 100 trophies burned also. He lost them all, and he prized them so highly because he wanted to leave them to his children and his grandchildren. But Joey can leave them a better heritage, and so can you and I—a better heritage than such trophies. We can leave them eternal treasures, instilling into them faith in God and confidence in the blessed book of God, and all the joys of real salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ, so they’ll be rich toward God and have a mansion in heaven.
Some time ago Ira Stanphill,3 a well-known songwriter, passed a humble house, somewhat run-down, and he asked the little girl who was sitting outside if she lived there. She said yes, but that her father was building a nicer home for them just over the hilltop. That was the inspiration for the well-known song, “I’ve Got a Mansion Just Over the Hilltop.”
I’m satisfied with just a cottage below
A little silver and a little gold;
But in that city where the ransomed will shine
I want a gold one that’s silver lined.
I’ve got a mansion just over the hilltop
In that bright land where we’ll never grow old;
And someday yonder we’ll never more wander
But walk on streets that are purest gold.
Don’t think me poor or deserted or lonely
I’m not discouraged, I’m heaven bound;
I’m just a pilgrim in search of the city
I want a mansion, a harp and a crown.4
And I know you do. God grant that you have a mansion over there. He wants you to. He loves you.—Virginia Brandt Berg
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For the Christian, life here, no matter how good it is, is nothing compared to the life that awaits us in heaven. The glories of heaven—eternal life, righteousness, joy, peace, perfection, God’s presence, Christ’s glorious companionship, rewards, and all else God has planned—is the Christian’s heavenly inheritance,5 and it will cause even the best life on earth to pale in comparison. Even the richest, most successful person on earth will eventually age, sicken, and die, and his wealth cannot prevent it, nor can his wealth follow him into the next life. …
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”6 …
Our hearts reside wherever our treasure resides. What we value in life permeates our hearts, our minds, and our very existence, and it inevitably comes out in our speech and actions. If you’ve ever met someone whose life is bound up in pursuing wealth and pleasure, it is obvious immediately, because it’s all he talks about. His heart is filled with the things of this life, and out of the abundance of his heart, his mouth speaks.7 He has no time for the things of the Lord—His Word, His people, His work, and the eternal life He offers…
But the Bible tells us that the “kingdom of heaven,” not worldly wealth, is like a treasure hidden in a field—so valuable that we should sell everything we have to attain it.8 There are no scriptural admonitions to pursue and store up wealth. … Jesus urged the rich young ruler to sell all that he had and follow Him so that he would have treasure in heaven, but the young man went away sad because his wealth was his heart’s true treasure.9 …
If we know Jesus Christ as our Savior, [heaven] awaits us … where we will spend eternity in joy and bliss, enjoying a life that is better than the “best” we could have now.—From gotquestions.org10
Published on Anchor November 2020. Read by Reuben Ruchevsky.
Music by John Listen.
1 Sarah Young, Jesus Always (Thomas Nelson, 2017).
2 Matthew 6:21.
3 Ira Stanphill (1914–1993) was a well-known American gospel songwriter. By the age of 10, Stanphill had already learned to play the piano, organ, ukulele, and accordion. At 17, he was composing and performing his own music for church services, revival campaigns, and prayer meetings. As a singer evangelist, Stanphill traveled to forty countries over his career to preach and perform his music (Wikipedia).
4 From the gospel song, “Mansion Over the Hilltop,” by Ira Stanphill, 1949.
5 1 Peter 1:3–5.
6 Matthew 6:19–21.
7 Luke 6:45.
8 Matthew 13:44.
9 Mark 10:17–23.
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