WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:09.220 Welcome to the Willow Ridge Sermons Podcast, where you can listen to audio from our most 00:00:09.220 --> 00:00:10.300 recent sermons and more. 00:00:10.860 --> 00:00:15.100 Thanks for listening, and be sure to add this show to your library if you'd like to automatically 00:00:15.100 --> 00:00:16.820 receive new episodes each week. 00:00:26.900 --> 00:00:34.460 If you have your Bibles, and I hope you do, I want to invite you to join me in Matthew chapter 6. 00:00:35.340 --> 00:00:39.340 As you turn there, a couple things that I would like to mention to you. 00:00:39.420 --> 00:00:44.140 If you do not have a copy of God's Word, we want to invite you to give you one. 00:00:44.220 --> 00:00:45.560 We have Bibles in the back. 00:00:45.880 --> 00:00:47.660 I'll be back there at the end of the service. 00:00:47.740 --> 00:00:48.860 You do not have to wait on me. 00:00:49.080 --> 00:00:52.520 If you want to go back there and grab one right now, right there at the connections table, 00:00:52.680 --> 00:00:53.820 you can have one of these. 00:00:53.900 --> 00:00:55.340 This is our gift to you. 00:00:55.340 --> 00:00:59.080 We want every single person to have a copy of God's Word. 00:00:59.220 --> 00:01:01.980 Let me say this as well, because I've had this question come up to me. 00:01:02.280 --> 00:01:06.980 What if you have a friend or a family member that does not have a Bible and would like one? 00:01:07.140 --> 00:01:08.920 Can you get one and take one to them? 00:01:09.380 --> 00:01:09.780 Absolutely. 00:01:10.100 --> 00:01:10.800 You bet you can. 00:01:10.860 --> 00:01:16.460 We want everyone to have a copy of God's Word, and so we would invite you to go by there and 00:01:16.460 --> 00:01:17.960 grab one of those. 00:01:18.400 --> 00:01:22.920 Also, I would like to share with you guys something that will be going on in my life next week that 00:01:22.920 --> 00:01:25.420 will affect you guys for next week. 00:01:25.760 --> 00:01:27.100 Next week, you're going to be blessed. 00:01:27.440 --> 00:01:30.140 Josh is going to be, Josh Nix is going to be here. 00:01:30.460 --> 00:01:31.260 He's going to be preaching. 00:01:31.560 --> 00:01:33.640 He's going to continue on in Matthew. 00:01:34.040 --> 00:01:35.500 He's going to do a wonderful job. 00:01:35.780 --> 00:01:39.740 I've been talking to Josh over the last couple weeks, and the Lord is doing a wonderful work 00:01:39.740 --> 00:01:44.200 in his heart and in his life on this passage as he prepares to preach. 00:01:44.600 --> 00:01:47.440 Next week, my wife and I and our kids will be out of town. 00:01:48.020 --> 00:01:53.220 Back this past March, I got a phone call from Calvary Baptist Church in Augusta, Georgia, 00:01:53.420 --> 00:01:57.820 which is the church that I grew up in before we moved to First Baptist North Augusta, and 00:01:57.820 --> 00:02:00.280 they asked if I would come and preach at their homecoming. 00:02:01.060 --> 00:02:03.980 And so I said, well, let me go and let me ask our elders. 00:02:04.420 --> 00:02:07.160 And so I asked our elders, and they said, absolutely. 00:02:07.560 --> 00:02:13.100 A wonderful little church there in Augusta, Georgia, say this, and I'm letting you guys 00:02:13.100 --> 00:02:17.300 know this, number one, because I desperately want your prayers, need your prayers. 00:02:17.400 --> 00:02:20.140 This is a congregation that I went there. 00:02:20.240 --> 00:02:25.860 Our last Sunday there as a family was in 1989, and then I went a handful of times. 00:02:25.860 --> 00:02:31.600 And then in 1995, which was the last time I was in that church, was for my grandfather's 00:02:31.600 --> 00:02:31.920 funeral. 00:02:32.320 --> 00:02:36.020 So it's a congregation that I do not know, but a congregation that God has called us to next 00:02:36.020 --> 00:02:38.200 week to be able to preach, and she'll do that. 00:02:38.760 --> 00:02:43.100 The other reason why I'm sharing that, guys, with you is because in a world of social media 00:02:43.100 --> 00:02:50.440 where if you get on and someone tags me standing in another church preaching, I just wanted 00:02:50.440 --> 00:02:52.260 to say, we love it here. 00:02:55.860 --> 00:02:58.040 I sent a message out to my family. 00:02:58.040 --> 00:03:07.820 My aunt had her family portrait taken with all of her daughters, their husbands, their 00:03:07.820 --> 00:03:10.900 kids, their spouses, and their kids. 00:03:11.300 --> 00:03:12.720 And there's 80 people. 00:03:14.020 --> 00:03:14.300 Right? 00:03:14.420 --> 00:03:14.580 Wow. 00:03:14.720 --> 00:03:15.020 Isn't that? 00:03:15.100 --> 00:03:15.260 Yeah. 00:03:15.700 --> 00:03:15.900 Yeah. 00:03:16.040 --> 00:03:19.100 So I sent out a text message because we all grew up going to that church. 00:03:19.300 --> 00:03:21.100 And I said, hey, I'm going to be preaching there. 00:03:21.180 --> 00:03:24.380 Would love it if you guys, because they all still kind of live in the Augusta area. 00:03:24.500 --> 00:03:27.160 Most of them do, if you can make it there. 00:03:27.320 --> 00:03:31.260 And then the very first text message was, are y'all moving back to Augusta? 00:03:31.400 --> 00:03:36.820 I was like, no, no, we are not moving back to Augusta. 00:03:36.940 --> 00:03:40.500 So please believe me in my heart, we're going there for homecoming. 00:03:40.880 --> 00:03:44.840 If you don't know what a homecoming service is, then you might not have been raised Southern 00:03:44.840 --> 00:03:45.200 Baptist. 00:03:45.280 --> 00:03:49.060 If you know what a homecoming service is, you were raised Southern Baptist. 00:03:49.420 --> 00:03:53.980 So if you're curious what it is, basically it's a once a year for a lot of churches and 00:03:53.980 --> 00:03:54.660 they'll do these. 00:03:54.780 --> 00:03:58.940 And then they invite, maybe if they have someone who's called out of ministry from their congregation 00:03:58.940 --> 00:04:03.080 to come preach like they're doing with me, it's an opportunity for grandma to have her 00:04:03.080 --> 00:04:06.480 grandkids come and worship with them if they've moved on to a different part. 00:04:06.600 --> 00:04:09.400 So just a wonderful, wonderful opportunity. 00:04:09.980 --> 00:04:13.420 And so praying through what God has for me to be able to share with them. 00:04:13.740 --> 00:04:17.280 But I did want to communicate that to you guys. 00:04:18.280 --> 00:04:20.080 So last night was prom. 00:04:20.220 --> 00:04:24.460 It was our last prom at the Bradbury house as our kids are graduating from high school. 00:04:24.900 --> 00:04:28.240 I heard someone say this and I'm going to apply this to my life. 00:04:29.220 --> 00:04:32.920 The saying was, I am 47 years old. 00:04:33.060 --> 00:04:37.960 I have the sense of humor like I'm 12 and I feel like I fought in the Civil War. 00:04:38.420 --> 00:04:38.680 All right. 00:04:40.320 --> 00:04:41.500 That's me this morning. 00:04:41.700 --> 00:04:44.460 All right, so let's pray and then we'll jump right in. 00:04:44.880 --> 00:04:48.040 God, I thank you so much for this morning, Lord, and for this opportunity. 00:04:48.580 --> 00:04:49.740 Lord, I thank you for this church. 00:04:50.020 --> 00:04:54.620 I thank you for their investment, not just in my life, Lord, in the life of my family, 00:04:55.020 --> 00:04:57.400 but in the working and the ministry of the gospel. 00:04:57.980 --> 00:04:59.800 God, I thank you for our time of worship together. 00:04:59.920 --> 00:05:01.340 Lord, I pray that you were exalted. 00:05:02.280 --> 00:05:04.340 God, I pray for our time in the word today. 00:05:04.740 --> 00:05:06.220 I pray that you will be exalted. 00:05:06.640 --> 00:05:10.800 Lord, remove from this, Lord, what is of me. 00:05:11.440 --> 00:05:17.820 And Lord, may it only be what is of you for your name and for your glory. 00:05:18.280 --> 00:05:19.760 And it's in Jesus' name we pray. 00:05:20.480 --> 00:05:20.780 Amen. 00:05:21.780 --> 00:05:22.060 Amen. 00:05:23.120 --> 00:05:29.600 Well, guys, we live in a society that loves stuff. 00:05:30.660 --> 00:05:31.320 We do. 00:05:31.320 --> 00:05:41.460 One of my favorite TV shows is American Pickers, where they go around and literally pay money 00:05:41.460 --> 00:05:43.500 for people's trash, right? 00:05:43.760 --> 00:05:44.640 I love it. 00:05:44.780 --> 00:05:48.520 We are a society who loves stuff. 00:05:49.320 --> 00:05:53.760 I think Lexington County, it's got great evidence of that. 00:05:53.760 --> 00:06:00.160 And I would encourage you on your drive home this morning to count how many storage building 00:06:00.160 --> 00:06:05.660 facilities you pass on the way from here to your house. 00:06:06.060 --> 00:06:07.060 We love stuff. 00:06:07.060 --> 00:06:07.620 We love stuff. 00:06:07.620 --> 00:06:15.440 We love stuff so much that when our stuff outgrows our house, we don't get a new house. 00:06:15.440 --> 00:06:17.140 We don't get rid of stuff. 00:06:17.280 --> 00:06:23.720 We pay $150 a month so that someone else will hold on to our stuff. 00:06:23.980 --> 00:06:25.200 We love stuff. 00:06:25.840 --> 00:06:32.380 We have TV shows where people try to solve the problem of hoarding because people have 00:06:32.380 --> 00:06:34.160 hoarded too much stuff. 00:06:34.500 --> 00:06:42.660 But we also have TV shows where people celebrate the fact that people hoard and have too much 00:06:42.660 --> 00:06:43.220 stuff. 00:06:43.620 --> 00:06:44.880 We love stuff. 00:06:45.620 --> 00:06:53.960 We love stuff so much that we have a business whose entire model, which is extremely significant, 00:06:53.980 --> 00:06:59.560 successful, and you will know who this business is, who says that the moment you realize 00:06:59.560 --> 00:07:08.040 that you need more stuff, all you have to do is pick up your phone, tap your screen, and 00:07:08.040 --> 00:07:11.060 you can have more stuff there by tomorrow. 00:07:12.680 --> 00:07:22.140 Jesus, as he's teaching in the Sermon on the Mount, speaks to an eternal danger that arises 00:07:22.140 --> 00:07:38.120 when our hearts become consumed with, when what we begin to pursue is the matter of stuff and 00:07:38.120 --> 00:07:43.180 how we need stuff and find our identity to stuff. 00:07:43.720 --> 00:07:55.120 And in that, to surrender to the pattern of this world and instead of to him and his kingdom. 00:07:56.540 --> 00:08:04.740 So would you read with me this morning, Matthew 6, we're going to read verses 19 through 24. 00:08:07.000 --> 00:08:08.540 Jesus in teaching says, 00:08:08.540 --> 00:08:19.400 Do not lay up for yourself treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves 00:08:19.400 --> 00:08:20.700 break in and steal. 00:08:22.060 --> 00:08:31.400 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves 00:08:31.400 --> 00:08:34.720 do not break in and steal. 00:08:34.720 --> 00:08:42.700 Verse 21, for where your treasure is, there your heart will also be. 00:08:44.120 --> 00:08:47.320 The eye is the lamp of the body. 00:08:48.380 --> 00:08:53.240 So if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light. 00:08:54.040 --> 00:08:58.200 But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. 00:08:59.620 --> 00:09:06.580 If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness. 00:09:08.160 --> 00:09:10.240 No one can serve two masters. 00:09:11.740 --> 00:09:19.760 For either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise 00:09:19.760 --> 00:09:20.240 the other. 00:09:21.020 --> 00:09:25.820 You cannot serve God and money. 00:09:27.540 --> 00:09:33.480 Two things I want to remind us of in the Sermon on the Mount before we look at this group of 00:09:33.480 --> 00:09:40.860 three illustrations that Jesus brings to us is Jesus, if you'll jump back, I apologize that 00:09:40.860 --> 00:09:47.840 this won't be on the screen, but Jesus has called people to faith by repentance of their sin. 00:09:49.000 --> 00:09:54.560 You see, the Sermon on the Mount is being set on the foundation of what he says in Matthew 00:09:54.560 --> 00:09:55.240 4, 17. 00:09:55.620 --> 00:10:02.740 It says, from that time, Jesus began to preach, saying, repent, for the kingdom of heaven is 00:10:02.740 --> 00:10:03.660 at hand. 00:10:04.080 --> 00:10:06.540 This was not a one-time message Jesus said. 00:10:06.680 --> 00:10:11.180 This was a continual, over and over and over again message. 00:10:11.540 --> 00:10:17.840 Some biblical scholars think that from the time Jesus said that in Matthew 4, 17, to the time 00:10:17.840 --> 00:10:22.240 that we pick up the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5, 1, that it's been a little bit 00:10:22.240 --> 00:10:23.060 over a year. 00:10:24.820 --> 00:10:28.800 So Jesus is saying, repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. 00:10:29.100 --> 00:10:31.200 Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. 00:10:31.980 --> 00:10:39.160 The second thing in understanding that the Sermon on the Mount is Jesus is calling people to 00:10:39.160 --> 00:10:43.580 something while calling them to reject something. 00:10:43.900 --> 00:10:50.500 He's calling them to something while Jesus is calling them to reject something. 00:10:50.980 --> 00:10:57.860 Jesus is preaching for the way of the kingdom and the rule of the king. 00:10:58.740 --> 00:11:05.220 Part of Matthew's point of his gospel is to point his audience to the fact that Jesus Christ 00:11:05.220 --> 00:11:06.480 is king. 00:11:07.240 --> 00:11:12.240 And that you and I, when we surrender to the king, we are a part of the kingdom. 00:11:13.360 --> 00:11:18.880 And in the Sermon on the Mount, we get this kingdom ethic that's there. 00:11:19.920 --> 00:11:25.600 He's been doing this as he's been battling with the false teachings of the Pharisees. 00:11:25.660 --> 00:11:32.060 All throughout chapter 5, we see where Jesus is correcting the false teaching of the Pharisees, 00:11:32.160 --> 00:11:36.280 where he says, you have heard that it was said, but I say to you. 00:11:37.580 --> 00:11:43.600 And he corrects on matters of anger and lust and divorce and oaths and retaliation, and it 00:11:43.600 --> 00:11:45.080 goes on and on and on. 00:11:45.320 --> 00:11:51.260 He then picks back up, as we saw over the last couple weeks, in chapter 6, was speaking 00:11:51.260 --> 00:11:53.320 to, don't be like the hypocrites. 00:11:53.520 --> 00:11:54.740 Guess who the hypocrites are? 00:11:54.880 --> 00:11:56.400 The hypocrites of the Pharisees. 00:11:57.160 --> 00:12:00.660 He says, don't, excuse me, don't be like the hypocrites. 00:12:01.220 --> 00:12:08.800 Don't be like the hypocrites who do these religious acts and deeds with the wrong heart and the wrong 00:12:08.800 --> 00:12:09.260 purpose. 00:12:10.100 --> 00:12:13.120 They do it for themselves, not of God. 00:12:13.820 --> 00:12:16.560 So when you give, give with a heart for God. 00:12:16.640 --> 00:12:18.660 When you pray, pray with a heart for God. 00:12:18.780 --> 00:12:22.620 When you fast, fast with a heart for God. 00:12:23.620 --> 00:12:31.620 And so Jesus has been challenging the notions and practices of the day concerning false religion, 00:12:32.120 --> 00:12:33.040 false faith. 00:12:33.920 --> 00:12:40.100 He's confronted their false use of scripture and their false practices as well. 00:12:40.820 --> 00:12:45.260 And now through these three illustrations, I want to be honest with you, that seem on the 00:12:45.260 --> 00:12:51.700 surface, to be a little disconnected, Jesus is what we're going to see as though doing them 00:12:51.700 --> 00:12:57.720 with an intentional purpose as he moves from one illustration to the other, comes to this 00:12:57.720 --> 00:13:00.940 at the end, you cannot serve God and money. 00:13:02.780 --> 00:13:10.540 So why would Jesus, in this context, be speaking to this issue of money? 00:13:11.320 --> 00:13:14.060 Well, here's what is at the heart of the Pharisees. 00:13:14.800 --> 00:13:25.620 The Pharisees would use religion for the purpose of not exalting God, but for the purpose of making 00:13:25.620 --> 00:13:25.960 money. 00:13:26.940 --> 00:13:31.200 Now, let's complete candid moment here, right? 00:13:31.340 --> 00:13:32.440 This is my job. 00:13:33.320 --> 00:13:40.840 I am very grateful that every two weeks, a paycheck hits my account for me serving as 00:13:40.840 --> 00:13:42.180 the pastor of this church. 00:13:42.600 --> 00:13:46.620 That's not what's happening with the Pharisees. 00:13:47.200 --> 00:13:55.420 They are using their religion, they are leveraging false teachings in order so that they can make 00:13:55.420 --> 00:13:59.620 a profit of where their heart is and what their heart desires. 00:13:59.620 --> 00:14:06.660 And so Jesus, within this, is going to press toward them of who they are to be. 00:14:06.960 --> 00:14:11.540 Who is your real master? 00:14:12.780 --> 00:14:15.880 You see, Jesus is not going to talk about that it's wrong to possess money. 00:14:16.520 --> 00:14:18.740 He says it's wrong for money to possess you. 00:14:20.020 --> 00:14:26.180 And that oftentimes, this can come in and appear in our lives, in the matters of materialism, 00:14:26.580 --> 00:14:29.380 which can enslave and capture the heart. 00:14:30.100 --> 00:14:32.380 You see, this is not a call toward poverty. 00:14:32.840 --> 00:14:39.480 The rich and the poor will both suffer with this if they're not careful. 00:14:39.800 --> 00:14:46.200 So the question for us, the question Jesus is going to be asking is, where is your heart? 00:14:46.640 --> 00:14:50.280 Who or what has captured your heart? 00:14:50.280 --> 00:15:01.560 Matthew 6, 21, for where your treasure is, there your heart will also be. 00:15:02.460 --> 00:15:04.040 Have you ever thought about what you treasure the most? 00:15:05.080 --> 00:15:07.660 Have you ever thought about where you treasure the most in this life? 00:15:08.560 --> 00:15:09.740 Where you invest your time? 00:15:09.840 --> 00:15:11.000 What consumes your thoughts? 00:15:12.000 --> 00:15:19.480 Is it set on the king, in the kingdom, or on the lesser things of this world? 00:15:20.600 --> 00:15:24.260 You see, for the Pharisees, to be rich was to be holy. 00:15:25.080 --> 00:15:31.440 To be rich was evidence of God's obedience, I'm sorry, of your obedience and God's blessing. 00:15:32.000 --> 00:15:39.160 The problem for the Pharisees in this line of thinking was this, the more they had, the more they wanted. 00:15:40.780 --> 00:15:49.860 There was no satisfaction with what God was doing and how God was using this in their life. 00:15:49.940 --> 00:15:56.920 And so Jesus gives three illustrations here that will address their heart and our hearts today. 00:15:57.680 --> 00:16:05.140 That as they struggled with greed and materialism, will pour it in and ask us the exact same question. 00:16:06.340 --> 00:16:17.080 Regardless of how much money is or is not in your account, where is greed and materialism in your life? 00:16:17.980 --> 00:16:20.820 So today we are going to talk about money. 00:16:21.660 --> 00:16:27.480 It's a topic that a lot of people are uncomfortable with, but we are going to look at this and talk about money. 00:16:27.740 --> 00:16:30.180 I thought this was interesting in my study this week. 00:16:30.580 --> 00:16:40.440 Jesus in Matthew alone, Jesus in Matthew alone talks about money 109 times. 00:16:41.760 --> 00:16:49.180 In fact, Jesus talks about money five times more than any other topic. 00:16:50.280 --> 00:16:55.920 And while we may not like to talk about money, we like to think about it. 00:16:57.540 --> 00:16:59.200 We like to think about money. 00:17:01.280 --> 00:17:12.920 It might be the topic of conversation that can kill a family lunch together, but all while we're there, we think and we long for it. 00:17:13.780 --> 00:17:20.460 When we think about money, money is the thing that oftentimes gets blamed for our greed and materialism when they creep in our lives. 00:17:20.460 --> 00:17:27.060 And we find it's the scapegoat to blame money for our problems. 00:17:27.620 --> 00:17:30.640 But here is what we see in 1 Timothy 6.10. 00:17:31.380 --> 00:17:33.280 Here's the problem concerning money. 00:17:33.340 --> 00:17:35.000 And this is what Jesus is going to address here. 00:17:35.260 --> 00:17:36.760 Here's what Paul says to Timothy. 00:17:37.300 --> 00:17:42.520 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. 00:17:43.380 --> 00:17:52.000 It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs. 00:17:52.860 --> 00:17:56.080 You see, the issue is not the object. 00:17:57.040 --> 00:17:59.180 The issue is not money. 00:17:59.480 --> 00:18:07.160 The issue is for you and I and our longing and our desire for the money. 00:18:07.300 --> 00:18:13.520 Of what we desperately want and desperately crave. 00:18:14.500 --> 00:18:17.180 So Jesus is going to give three illustrations. 00:18:17.760 --> 00:18:21.000 The first illustration that he gives us here is two treasures. 00:18:21.780 --> 00:18:22.520 Two treasures. 00:18:22.640 --> 00:18:26.640 Matthew 6.19-21. 00:18:27.560 --> 00:18:36.240 Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. 00:18:36.760 --> 00:18:45.920 But lay up for yourself treasures in heaven where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 00:18:45.920 --> 00:18:52.180 For where your treasure is, there your heart will also be. 00:18:52.880 --> 00:18:54.880 So what is Jesus saying? 00:18:55.020 --> 00:18:58.000 But also, what is Jesus not saying? 00:18:58.960 --> 00:19:13.760 Sometimes this passage of scripture will be used to twist and to manipulate the agendas, the goals, and the pursuits of godly people who seek to do godly things with the finances that God has blessed them with. 00:19:14.500 --> 00:19:18.160 Here, Jesus is not saying don't save. 00:19:18.160 --> 00:19:20.080 Jesus is not saying don't be wise. 00:19:21.020 --> 00:19:23.660 Jesus is not saying don't work for retirement. 00:19:23.660 --> 00:19:27.460 Jesus isn't even saying don't be wealthy. 00:19:28.340 --> 00:19:33.620 Jesus here is addressing that your and my attitude for what we have. 00:19:33.980 --> 00:19:37.740 Because here is the thing about our stuff. 00:19:38.200 --> 00:19:40.740 Here is the thing about our possessions. 00:19:41.340 --> 00:19:52.460 Some of the greediest people I have encountered in my life are the people with the fewest possessions and the smallest amount of wealth. 00:19:53.420 --> 00:20:03.660 However, in my life, some of the most generous people that I have ever known, real, sacrificial givers, are wealthy in who they are. 00:20:04.540 --> 00:20:07.540 So the amount of stuff and the amount of money is there. 00:20:07.800 --> 00:20:09.780 The issue is not what do you have. 00:20:10.040 --> 00:20:13.140 The issue is how do you view it. 00:20:14.120 --> 00:20:16.680 It's the motive of the heart. 00:20:17.880 --> 00:20:20.880 We look at them what we see in scripture. 00:20:21.880 --> 00:20:27.280 We look at David, Solomon, Abraham, and a list of others in the Old Testament. 00:20:28.460 --> 00:20:28.920 Wealthy. 00:20:29.800 --> 00:20:42.080 King David, Solomon, Abraham came as Abram as a man who came from a family of wealth and influence. 00:20:42.880 --> 00:20:44.660 We see in the New Testament. 00:20:45.560 --> 00:20:52.760 We see Jesus' calling of Zacchaeus and the type of tax collector that Zacchaeus was. 00:20:53.380 --> 00:20:55.220 Zacchaeus would have been wealthy. 00:20:55.680 --> 00:21:07.760 We see in Acts chapter 16 and the salvation of Lydia and what God, what we believe God would continue to do in her life through the church at Philippi. 00:21:08.140 --> 00:21:15.520 We see God working and moving with people of wealth, people with a kingdom mindset. 00:21:15.720 --> 00:21:16.760 Here's the key for us. 00:21:17.180 --> 00:21:21.540 Whether you, where you view yourself on that scale does not matter. 00:21:21.800 --> 00:21:29.620 It's that people with a kingdom mindset do not amass fortunes or possessions for themselves. 00:21:30.760 --> 00:21:42.040 Instead, they look at what they do have, recognizing of who it came from, and they ask themselves this question, 00:21:42.920 --> 00:21:45.820 how do I use this for the kingdom? 00:21:47.120 --> 00:21:51.500 How do I use this for the glory of God? 00:21:52.300 --> 00:22:01.360 How do I take and be a faithful steward of what it is that God has entrusted me with? 00:22:02.160 --> 00:22:13.900 Whether it's little or whether it's much, and how do I use this for the growth of the kingdom? 00:22:15.380 --> 00:22:22.160 For where your treasure is, there your heart will also be. 00:22:23.160 --> 00:22:38.500 That in our abundance or in our few, what we see is a love for the king and a love for the kingdom. 00:22:39.780 --> 00:22:46.420 In Matthew 13, 44, there's a parable Jesus teaches, a very simple one-verse parable. 00:22:47.080 --> 00:22:55.480 He says, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. 00:22:56.400 --> 00:23:05.680 Then in his joy, he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. 00:23:07.080 --> 00:23:14.480 You see, because in finding the treasure, the kingdom of heaven, and in Christ, 00:23:15.540 --> 00:23:26.120 the goal is how do I gain more of who God is and for the glory of his name? 00:23:27.140 --> 00:23:31.320 The second illustration that Jesus gives us is two visions. 00:23:32.160 --> 00:23:32.800 Two visions. 00:23:33.680 --> 00:23:35.400 Matthew 6, 22 through 23. 00:23:37.080 --> 00:23:39.700 The eye is the lamp of the body. 00:23:40.820 --> 00:23:45.380 So if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light. 00:23:46.260 --> 00:23:50.160 But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. 00:23:51.100 --> 00:23:57.760 If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness? 00:23:58.720 --> 00:24:00.740 I'll be candid with you guys. 00:24:00.740 --> 00:24:11.500 These couple of verses consume me with trying to fully be able to grasp everything that is said and everything that is implied in these two verses. 00:24:12.360 --> 00:24:23.760 There's language that is used here that is different and not like the language that you and I use on a daily basis and illustrations that you and I don't use on a daily basis. 00:24:23.920 --> 00:24:27.380 And what I don't want to do is miss the forest for the trees here. 00:24:27.600 --> 00:24:29.140 So let me explain it to you this way. 00:24:29.340 --> 00:24:31.080 Here's what Jesus is saying. 00:24:31.440 --> 00:24:33.620 That our eye is like a window. 00:24:34.580 --> 00:24:41.280 And when an eye is healthy, it's like a clean window that lets light into the house. 00:24:41.660 --> 00:24:45.440 And the clean window does not block or distort the light. 00:24:45.780 --> 00:24:52.800 But when an eye is bad, it is like a dirty window that distorts or even blocks out the light. 00:24:53.000 --> 00:24:57.420 And the eye here illustrates the heart. 00:24:58.300 --> 00:25:01.600 So do I have a healthy eye, a healthy heart? 00:25:02.280 --> 00:25:07.540 Or do I have an unhealthy eye and an unhealthy heart concerning the gospel? 00:25:08.820 --> 00:25:10.220 Well, here's what's neat within this. 00:25:10.760 --> 00:25:11.820 Look at verse 22. 00:25:12.260 --> 00:25:14.400 So the eye is the lamp of the body. 00:25:14.860 --> 00:25:23.200 So if your eye is healthy, if your heart is healthy, your whole body will be full of light. 00:25:23.660 --> 00:25:25.220 Here's what's interesting about this word healthy. 00:25:25.940 --> 00:25:29.060 This word healthy is synonymous with the word generous. 00:25:31.080 --> 00:25:31.560 Generous. 00:25:33.560 --> 00:25:46.240 So let's read, if your eye is generous, if your heart is generous, so your whole body will be full of light. 00:25:47.120 --> 00:25:57.600 You see, what comes from the heart shows and reveals who the person is. 00:25:58.300 --> 00:26:02.160 Let me ask you, do you want God to be generous or greedy towards you? 00:26:03.380 --> 00:26:08.740 Do you want God to be generous or greedy towards you? 00:26:09.660 --> 00:26:11.860 I don't know about you, but I want God to be generous to me. 00:26:12.640 --> 00:26:17.440 And praise God that he is generous to you and to me. 00:26:18.300 --> 00:26:25.260 He does not give what we deserve, but he gives out of his grace and out of his generosity. 00:26:26.100 --> 00:26:32.640 And we see this as evidence and truth in our life, not just simply with the common grace that we share with all of the world, 00:26:33.520 --> 00:26:41.780 but we see it through his wisdom, his truth, his presence, his eternal blessing, his joy, his peace, his salvation. 00:26:41.780 --> 00:26:43.820 It goes on and on and on. 00:26:44.880 --> 00:26:55.780 He continually pours out blessings, the heart of the generosity of our God toward us. 00:26:56.700 --> 00:27:06.580 So you and I are called, whether it's in the small that we have, or in the large that we have, 00:27:06.900 --> 00:27:11.460 if it's in the minimal that we have, or the excessive that we have, 00:27:11.620 --> 00:27:15.920 to give and give in godly generosity. 00:27:17.140 --> 00:27:21.120 To not give as the Pharisees would have given, 00:27:21.900 --> 00:27:27.100 so that people would look at the Pharisees and praise who they are for what they've done. 00:27:28.060 --> 00:27:33.500 Not to give so that people would look at us and think that we are godlike, 00:27:34.560 --> 00:27:41.120 but so that we would give because we desire to be godly. 00:27:41.800 --> 00:27:48.160 To be like God who's called us and saved us and glorified him. 00:27:49.240 --> 00:27:52.740 And when we are full of light, 00:27:53.820 --> 00:27:59.280 the generosity that will flow is evident in who we are. 00:28:01.120 --> 00:28:06.700 To be generous as God is generous to us. 00:28:07.520 --> 00:28:10.540 In the third illustration that we see, 00:28:11.660 --> 00:28:12.600 in verse 24, 00:28:14.360 --> 00:28:17.380 Jesus says he's been building. 00:28:18.500 --> 00:28:20.200 He's been building two treasures, 00:28:21.140 --> 00:28:21.960 two visions, 00:28:22.960 --> 00:28:25.620 and if the crowd is missing it, 00:28:26.700 --> 00:28:29.540 Jesus brings it and draws it together. 00:28:30.540 --> 00:28:31.920 He says in verse 24, 00:28:33.080 --> 00:28:33.760 no one, 00:28:34.560 --> 00:28:35.900 no one 00:28:35.900 --> 00:28:38.860 can serve two masters, 00:28:40.040 --> 00:28:42.640 for either he will hate the one 00:28:42.640 --> 00:28:44.300 and love the other, 00:28:45.060 --> 00:28:47.720 or he will be devoted to the one 00:28:47.720 --> 00:28:49.720 and despise the other. 00:28:50.360 --> 00:28:53.300 You cannot serve 00:28:53.300 --> 00:28:56.400 God and money. 00:28:58.060 --> 00:29:00.040 In a day and a time 00:29:00.040 --> 00:29:04.240 where slavery was a common interaction 00:29:04.240 --> 00:29:05.660 in their world. 00:29:06.460 --> 00:29:06.940 Here, 00:29:07.240 --> 00:29:09.060 Jesus uses the language 00:29:09.060 --> 00:29:10.300 of slavery. 00:29:11.340 --> 00:29:12.620 While slavery is something 00:29:12.620 --> 00:29:13.900 that you and I know of 00:29:13.900 --> 00:29:15.720 and that you and I are aware of 00:29:15.720 --> 00:29:17.120 and that we've studied, 00:29:17.580 --> 00:29:19.900 and I'm not saying that there's slavery 00:29:19.900 --> 00:29:21.420 still all over this world. 00:29:22.560 --> 00:29:24.020 In our day and time 00:29:24.020 --> 00:29:25.860 where we find ourselves, 00:29:26.000 --> 00:29:27.800 you and I don't fully understand 00:29:27.800 --> 00:29:30.060 the language of slavery. 00:29:30.760 --> 00:29:31.180 Now sure, 00:29:31.340 --> 00:29:32.020 we have people 00:29:32.020 --> 00:29:34.240 who have expectations of us, 00:29:34.300 --> 00:29:34.480 correct? 00:29:34.980 --> 00:29:36.740 And sometimes we can misuse 00:29:36.740 --> 00:29:37.240 and say, 00:29:37.340 --> 00:29:37.440 you know, 00:29:37.520 --> 00:29:39.160 I feel like they're treating me 00:29:39.160 --> 00:29:40.280 like I'm a slave. 00:29:41.140 --> 00:29:42.320 And it's a misunderstanding 00:29:42.320 --> 00:29:44.060 and a misapplication 00:29:44.060 --> 00:29:45.860 of what that word means. 00:29:46.720 --> 00:29:46.980 Sure, 00:29:47.060 --> 00:29:49.100 we have bosses over us. 00:29:49.340 --> 00:29:51.160 We have governmental agencies 00:29:51.160 --> 00:29:53.140 who enforce things on us. 00:29:53.140 --> 00:29:54.420 We have managers. 00:29:54.820 --> 00:29:55.660 You and I, 00:29:55.820 --> 00:29:57.160 none of us are separated 00:29:57.160 --> 00:29:58.380 from the fact 00:29:58.380 --> 00:29:59.680 that we have people 00:29:59.680 --> 00:30:02.020 who have expectations of us. 00:30:02.800 --> 00:30:04.660 But where we find ourselves 00:30:04.660 --> 00:30:06.240 and where we live, 00:30:06.400 --> 00:30:07.640 unless we come from 00:30:07.640 --> 00:30:08.660 some horrible, 00:30:08.840 --> 00:30:09.580 horrible situation, 00:30:09.580 --> 00:30:10.220 that is real. 00:30:10.360 --> 00:30:11.420 I don't want to belittle this. 00:30:12.080 --> 00:30:12.740 I don't want to belittle, 00:30:12.860 --> 00:30:14.700 but the reality for us, 00:30:14.980 --> 00:30:16.400 this more than likely 00:30:16.400 --> 00:30:17.800 is not the case. 00:30:18.460 --> 00:30:19.600 You and I 00:30:19.600 --> 00:30:21.080 have never truly been 00:30:21.080 --> 00:30:21.820 a slave. 00:30:23.180 --> 00:30:25.020 And when Jesus says, 00:30:25.580 --> 00:30:26.840 no one can serve 00:30:26.840 --> 00:30:28.320 two masters, 00:30:28.320 --> 00:30:29.500 that language 00:30:29.500 --> 00:30:30.960 would have resonated 00:30:30.960 --> 00:30:32.540 in that world 00:30:32.540 --> 00:30:33.920 different than us. 00:30:34.100 --> 00:30:34.700 And so here 00:30:34.700 --> 00:30:35.960 is the picture of it. 00:30:36.060 --> 00:30:37.440 It's not demands. 00:30:37.640 --> 00:30:39.220 It's not expectations. 00:30:39.760 --> 00:30:40.500 Jesus is saying, 00:30:40.740 --> 00:30:42.180 only one person 00:30:42.180 --> 00:30:43.080 can own you. 00:30:44.660 --> 00:30:46.100 And they own you. 00:30:47.280 --> 00:30:49.000 They own every part of you. 00:30:49.860 --> 00:30:51.160 They own your yesterday, 00:30:51.400 --> 00:30:51.940 your today, 00:30:52.060 --> 00:30:52.980 and your tomorrow. 00:30:53.720 --> 00:30:54.920 They own the words 00:30:54.920 --> 00:30:56.200 that come out of your mouth. 00:30:56.540 --> 00:30:58.080 They own the thoughts 00:30:58.080 --> 00:30:58.960 in your mind. 00:30:59.060 --> 00:31:00.340 They own the deeds 00:31:00.340 --> 00:31:01.180 of your body. 00:31:01.640 --> 00:31:03.700 They own you. 00:31:05.920 --> 00:31:06.960 Jesus says, 00:31:07.960 --> 00:31:09.780 and by that definition, 00:31:11.120 --> 00:31:14.400 you cannot have 00:31:14.400 --> 00:31:16.860 two masters. 00:31:20.200 --> 00:31:21.060 You see, 00:31:21.140 --> 00:31:22.480 when we come to Christ, 00:31:24.420 --> 00:31:25.360 repent, 00:31:26.080 --> 00:31:28.220 for the kingdom of heaven 00:31:28.220 --> 00:31:28.820 is at hand. 00:31:29.980 --> 00:31:31.800 When we come to Christ, 00:31:32.800 --> 00:31:34.720 and we receive Jesus Christ, 00:31:34.780 --> 00:31:36.560 the work of Calvary, 00:31:37.000 --> 00:31:37.860 the cross, 00:31:38.300 --> 00:31:39.020 through the power 00:31:39.020 --> 00:31:39.920 of death, 00:31:40.380 --> 00:31:40.740 burial, 00:31:41.040 --> 00:31:41.920 and resurrection, 00:31:42.300 --> 00:31:43.580 and we receive 00:31:43.580 --> 00:31:45.580 that salvation work 00:31:45.580 --> 00:31:46.620 that he's doing 00:31:46.620 --> 00:31:47.960 on our life. 00:31:48.780 --> 00:31:50.260 He is our Savior, 00:31:51.540 --> 00:31:53.680 and he is our Lord, 00:31:54.640 --> 00:31:56.120 and he is our master, 00:31:57.040 --> 00:31:58.700 and he is our king, 00:31:59.520 --> 00:32:01.740 and we are a part 00:32:01.740 --> 00:32:02.760 of this kingdom. 00:32:04.300 --> 00:32:05.400 In Romans 6, 00:32:05.480 --> 00:32:06.160 I want to read to you 00:32:06.160 --> 00:32:08.520 the Apostle Paul's words. 00:32:10.660 --> 00:32:11.480 He says this, 00:32:11.560 --> 00:32:12.460 starting in verse 16. 00:32:13.900 --> 00:32:14.980 Do you not know 00:32:14.980 --> 00:32:17.500 that if you present yourselves 00:32:17.500 --> 00:32:18.820 to anyone 00:32:18.820 --> 00:32:20.680 as obedient slaves, 00:32:21.000 --> 00:32:22.160 you are slaves 00:32:22.160 --> 00:32:22.740 of the one 00:32:22.740 --> 00:32:23.460 whom you obey? 00:32:26.120 --> 00:32:27.440 Either of sin, 00:32:27.880 --> 00:32:30.260 which leads to death, 00:32:31.180 --> 00:32:32.720 or of obedience, 00:32:33.240 --> 00:32:34.900 which leads to righteousness. 00:32:35.860 --> 00:32:36.580 Verse 17, 00:32:36.740 --> 00:32:38.780 thanks be to God. 00:32:39.520 --> 00:32:41.200 Thanks be to God 00:32:41.200 --> 00:32:41.940 that you, 00:32:42.280 --> 00:32:43.400 who were once 00:32:43.400 --> 00:32:44.980 slaves of sin, 00:32:45.160 --> 00:32:46.400 have become obedient 00:32:46.400 --> 00:32:47.360 from the heart 00:32:47.360 --> 00:32:48.100 to the standard 00:32:48.100 --> 00:32:48.680 of teaching 00:32:48.680 --> 00:32:49.900 to which you have committed, 00:32:50.140 --> 00:32:51.000 and have been being 00:32:51.000 --> 00:32:52.580 set free from sin, 00:32:52.840 --> 00:32:53.780 have become 00:32:53.780 --> 00:32:54.860 slaves 00:32:54.860 --> 00:32:57.000 of righteousness. 00:32:59.400 --> 00:33:00.320 I'm speaking 00:33:00.320 --> 00:33:01.580 in human terms 00:33:01.580 --> 00:33:02.700 because of our 00:33:02.700 --> 00:33:03.760 natural limitations. 00:33:04.080 --> 00:33:04.220 Paul said, 00:33:04.260 --> 00:33:05.260 I want you to grasp 00:33:05.260 --> 00:33:06.080 and understand 00:33:06.080 --> 00:33:07.260 what this means, 00:33:07.460 --> 00:33:07.800 and so I'm going 00:33:07.800 --> 00:33:08.700 to use worldly 00:33:08.700 --> 00:33:09.540 examples 00:33:09.540 --> 00:33:10.560 so that we can 00:33:10.560 --> 00:33:11.640 understand them. 00:33:12.320 --> 00:33:13.340 For just as you 00:33:13.340 --> 00:33:14.260 once presented 00:33:14.260 --> 00:33:15.020 your members 00:33:15.020 --> 00:33:16.640 as slaves 00:33:16.640 --> 00:33:17.360 to impurity 00:33:17.360 --> 00:33:19.000 and to lawlessness, 00:33:19.700 --> 00:33:20.780 leading to more 00:33:20.780 --> 00:33:21.380 lawlessness, 00:33:22.120 --> 00:33:23.520 so now present 00:33:23.520 --> 00:33:24.320 your members 00:33:24.320 --> 00:33:25.780 as slaves 00:33:25.780 --> 00:33:27.080 to righteousness, 00:33:27.760 --> 00:33:28.320 leading 00:33:28.320 --> 00:33:29.920 to sanctification. 00:33:35.420 --> 00:33:36.120 for where 00:33:36.120 --> 00:33:36.820 your treasure 00:33:36.820 --> 00:33:37.600 is, 00:33:39.800 --> 00:33:40.920 there 00:33:40.920 --> 00:33:43.100 your heart 00:33:43.100 --> 00:33:44.800 will also be. 00:33:46.020 --> 00:33:46.460 I'm going to ask 00:33:46.460 --> 00:33:47.180 the praise team 00:33:47.180 --> 00:33:48.120 if they'll make 00:33:48.120 --> 00:33:49.220 their way up on stage, 00:33:50.180 --> 00:33:51.160 ask our prayer team 00:33:51.160 --> 00:33:52.220 if they'll make 00:33:52.220 --> 00:33:52.640 their way 00:33:52.640 --> 00:33:53.380 to the sides 00:33:53.380 --> 00:33:55.000 of the auditorium. 00:33:58.880 --> 00:33:59.960 Where are your treasures? 00:34:01.960 --> 00:34:02.900 Where are your treasures? 00:34:04.280 --> 00:34:05.460 What consumes 00:34:05.460 --> 00:34:06.140 your thoughts, 00:34:06.700 --> 00:34:08.300 your mind, 00:34:09.000 --> 00:34:10.260 your motives, 00:34:11.100 --> 00:34:11.980 your hearts? 00:34:12.980 --> 00:34:14.500 Is your heart 00:34:14.500 --> 00:34:16.260 reflective 00:34:16.260 --> 00:34:18.040 of the grace 00:34:18.040 --> 00:34:18.860 and generosity 00:34:18.860 --> 00:34:20.540 given from God 00:34:20.540 --> 00:34:21.620 to you? 00:34:22.580 --> 00:34:24.000 Or is your heart 00:34:24.000 --> 00:34:24.700 reflective 00:34:24.700 --> 00:34:26.580 of the sinful 00:34:26.580 --> 00:34:27.980 pursuits 00:34:27.980 --> 00:34:29.380 of this world? 00:34:31.540 --> 00:34:32.420 Who's your master? 00:34:34.100 --> 00:34:34.940 Who's your master? 00:34:36.900 --> 00:34:37.300 Repent 00:34:37.300 --> 00:34:39.360 for the kingdom 00:34:39.360 --> 00:34:39.720 of heaven 00:34:39.720 --> 00:34:40.220 is at hand. 00:34:42.460 --> 00:34:42.900 Folks, 00:34:43.460 --> 00:34:44.540 may we be 00:34:44.540 --> 00:34:44.980 the people 00:34:44.980 --> 00:34:48.040 who dig up 00:34:48.040 --> 00:34:48.540 Jesus, 00:34:49.640 --> 00:34:50.960 who uncovered 00:34:50.960 --> 00:34:51.400 the truth 00:34:51.400 --> 00:34:51.980 of the gospel 00:34:51.980 --> 00:34:54.240 and say, 00:34:54.860 --> 00:34:55.000 oh, 00:34:55.060 --> 00:34:56.080 I want more of that 00:34:56.080 --> 00:34:58.240 and I'll give up 00:34:58.240 --> 00:34:58.840 anything, 00:34:59.640 --> 00:35:00.520 anything 00:35:00.520 --> 00:35:02.460 for more 00:35:02.460 --> 00:35:03.540 of him. 00:35:04.580 --> 00:35:05.060 Would you pray 00:35:05.060 --> 00:35:05.380 with me? 00:35:06.920 --> 00:35:07.340 God, 00:35:07.400 --> 00:35:07.700 thank you 00:35:07.700 --> 00:35:08.480 for who you are, 00:35:08.900 --> 00:35:10.200 for your working 00:35:10.200 --> 00:35:10.900 and your moving 00:35:10.900 --> 00:35:11.680 in our life. 00:35:13.060 --> 00:35:13.540 Lord, 00:35:13.620 --> 00:35:14.200 may we 00:35:14.200 --> 00:35:14.780 seek 00:35:14.780 --> 00:35:16.540 to surrender 00:35:16.540 --> 00:35:17.100 all, 00:35:18.220 --> 00:35:19.300 all of who 00:35:19.300 --> 00:35:19.780 we are, 00:35:20.720 --> 00:35:22.160 all of what 00:35:22.160 --> 00:35:22.720 we have, 00:35:23.440 --> 00:35:24.280 all of what 00:35:24.280 --> 00:35:24.820 we desire 00:35:24.820 --> 00:35:26.280 for you 00:35:26.280 --> 00:35:27.700 and you alone. 00:35:28.540 --> 00:35:29.200 It's in Jesus' 00:35:29.320 --> 00:35:29.800 name we pray. 00:35:30.600 --> 00:35:30.880 Amen. 00:35:33.960 --> 00:35:34.560 That's it 00:35:34.560 --> 00:35:35.280 for this week's 00:35:35.280 --> 00:35:35.680 message. 00:35:36.180 --> 00:35:36.800 Be sure to check 00:35:36.800 --> 00:35:37.640 back next week 00:35:37.640 --> 00:35:38.460 for a new episode 00:35:38.460 --> 00:35:39.800 and in the meantime, 00:35:40.080 --> 00:35:40.760 you can visit us 00:35:40.760 --> 00:35:41.620 online at 00:35:41.620 --> 00:35:43.260 willowridgechurch.org 00:35:43.260 --> 00:35:44.300 or by searching 00:35:44.300 --> 00:35:45.340 for Willow Ridge Church 00:35:45.340 --> 00:35:46.120 on Facebook, 00:35:46.460 --> 00:35:46.900 Instagram, 00:35:47.220 --> 00:35:47.680 and YouTube. 00:35:48.120 --> 00:35:48.620 Thanks again 00:35:48.620 --> 00:35:49.080 for listening. 00:35:50.720 --> 00:35:51.720 Bye.