Where is Your Treasure?

Scripture – Luke 12:33-34 (NRSV)

Sell your possessions, and give alms. Make purses for yourselves that do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Devotion

When I was a boy, I loved treasure hunts. Every now and then Mr. Goff, who lived up the street from my family, would make treasure hunts for my friends and me. He’d create a bunch of clever clues that led us all over the neighborhood. Sometimes his hunts would take a couple of hours. But, at the end, there would always be an ample supply of candy, thanks to Mr. Goff and his generosity. Tricky clues, lots of running and scrambling, plenty of candy, sharing with friends . . . what’s not to love about a treasure hunt!

As far as I know, Jesus never talked about treasure hunts, but he did have things to say about treasure. In Luke 12:32, after noting that our Heavenly Father loves to give us the kingdom, Jesus says, “Sell your possessions, and give alms. Make purses for yourselves that do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.” This is a surprising way of talking about treasure. Usually, treasure has to do with having valuable possessions, the more the better. Treasure is something we keep in purses and protect from thieves and moths.

But Jesus tells us that real treasure is something else. It accumulates when we sell our possessions in order to give to the poor. It’s a matter of giving, not getting, of generosity, not gathering. Through giving to others, Jesus says, we will produce “an unfailing treasure in heaven.” The Greek work translated here as “unfailing” can also be rendered “incessant, uninterrupted, infinite, inexhaustible.”

Scholars often talk about the kingdom of God as the “upside down kingdom.” Here is a good example of how God’s ways are the reverse of the world’s ways. If you want lots of lasting treasure, then start giving away your earthly treasure to those who need it. Not only will you experience joy in the moment, but also you’ll be accumulating a kind of treasure that lasts forever.

One reason to be generous, according to Jesus, is that you actually receive much in return. You receive the joy of giving. You receive the gratitude from those who are blessed by your generosity. You receive God’s blessing and the knowledge that God delights in your altruism.

But that’s not the only reason. Jesus adds in verse 34, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” This isn’t only a statement about your emotions, though we do tend to love that which we treasure and treasure that which we love. Yet the heart, in the language of Jesus, isn’t only or even primarily the location of our feelings. Rather, it’s the faculty by which we choose. The heart, in Scripture, includes our thoughts and feelings, but has everything to do with our will. When you choose to act in a certain way, that choice is an exercise of your heart. Our choices reflect the things we treasure. We pursue that which we value the most.

Jesus urges us to value things that will last forever, things like love and grace, generosity and justice, kindness and worship. When we strive for God’s kingdom, we choose that which God values most. Our beloved treasure is no longer what we accumulate for ourselves, but rather what we give to others.

Find all Life for Leaders devotions here. Explore what the Bible has to say about work at the unique website of our partners, the Theology of Work Project. Commentary on today’s Life for Leaders theme can be found here: Store Your Treasure in Heaven, Not on Earth (Matthew 6:19-34)

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