Matthew 6:19-21
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth where moth and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
“Well done, good and faithful servant.” Isn’t this what we all long to hear when the day comes that we meet Jesus? The truth is, not all of us will hear these words – even for the Christians. There will be a moment when our life’s stewardship—what we did with our time, talent, treasure, the truth that we possess and the relationships that we have—will be judged. Thankfully, we are saved by grace if we have a personal relationship with Christ, but that doesn’t mean that we will all have the same experience in heaven.
Did you know that God wants to reward us for what we did here on earth? 1 Corinthians 3 12-15 tell us that our works will be shown for what they are and that God will reward us for those. That also means there will be some who will not experience this reward. We have one shot at this! We need to be listening and praying for what God wants for our lives, including our finances. The Bible has more to say about money than any other topic. The reason is that God knows that where our treasure is, our hearts will be right behind. We give back money to Kingdom purposes not because God is the ultimate fundraiser and needs our money, but because it loosens our grip on our treasure allowing God to do whatever He wants us to do with our resources.
So to be very clear, our decisions, our purchases and our life’s work will have impacts that will ripple for eternity. No matter what age you are or how much money you have, God cares about how you are handling your resources. Money is a tool, yes, but it is also a test. There is only one time in the Bible that God says test him (Malachi 3:10). If what we do with our money is so important to God, it is critical that we take a look at some of our priorities here on this earth and redirect them to kingdom purposes that will have eternal impact.