Well, let's turn to Luke chapter 12. Luke chapter 12, we've been going through this wonderful gospel together, and we are going to look this morning at verses 31 to 34, but I'm going to read beginning in verse 22. So if you're able to stand, stand with me for the reading of God's Word. hear the word of the Lord from the gospel of Luke. And he said to his disciples, for this reason I say to you, do not worry about your life as to what you will eat, nor your body as to what you will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap. They have no storeroom nor barn, and yet God feeds them. how much more valuable you are than the birds. And which of you, by worrying, can add a single cubit to his lifespan? Therefore, if you cannot do even a very little thing, why do you worry about other matters? Consider the lilies, how they grow. They neither toil nor spin, but I tell you, not even Solomon, in all his glory, clothed himself like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass and the field which is alive today, and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, how much more will he clothe you? You of little faith. And do not seek what you will eat or what you will drink, and do not keep worrying. For all these things the nations of the world eagerly seek. But your father knows that you need these things. But seek his kingdom. And these things will be added to you. Do not fear, little flock, for your father is well pleased to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions and give it as charity. Make yourselves money belts which do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven where no thief comes near nor moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there Your heart will be also. Let's pray together. Father, we thank you for your word. Give us ears this morning to hear and eyes to see the wonderful things that are found in your word. Lord, give us perspective, give us a biblical view of our possessions, our wealth, our mission. Lord, may they be conformed to what your word teaches. Help us, Lord, to govern our lives according to your word, not the whims of this world, but what your word directs us to do. Help us, Lord, we pray in Christ's name, amen. You can be seated. William Whiting Borden was born in 1887. He entered this world amidst great wealth and affluence. His father was a successful and profitable businessman that afforded his family a luxurious lifestyle. William Borden attended prestigious high school or schools, and one in particular in Chicago where he graduated with honors. His family attended Moody Church under the teaching of R.A. Torrey. And William, from a very young age, had a tender heart. towards spiritual matters. He confessed Christ at the age of seven. Before William attended Yale University, his parents gave him a year-long tour around the world, from California westward to Japan, China, India, Egypt, Palestine, throughout Europe and the British Isles, and then back to the eastern seaboard of the United States. And it would be that trip around the world that would change William Borden forever. He had a growing burden as he traveled the globe for hurting people, the hurting people of the world, those who had no witness to Jesus Christ. And he wrote home to his mother, I want to be a missionary. He was 16 years old. Once at Yale, William quickly became a prominent student as he excelled in the classroom, on the football field, in friendships. He was well respected by all his peers and even his professors as such a young man with such a fixed purpose in his life. His Ivy League years were not wasted in self-indulgent partying. as we kind of imagine the college scene today. But even then, he wasn't engaged in those kinds of things. He refused to join a fraternity and instead filled his time with intentional ministry and service. William started a prayer group with a few friends who met together before breakfast to read scripture and to pray. And by the time William graduated from Yale, there were over 1,000 students who attended that prayer and scripture reading. There were only 1,300 students at the time at Yale. He helped start and even finance what would later become known as Yale Hope, mission, which served over 17,000 meals every year and provided a warm place for those who were struck with homelessness. Gospel messages were preached daily to all who were being assisted. William studied hard, he played hard, he prayed hard, and prospered in everything that he did. On the weekends when most Yale students were partying with friends or returning home to see family, William could often be found with his arm around the shoulder of a city drunk, pointing him to Christ. Few people actually knew that William Borden was a millionaire. When William was 18 years old, his father died suddenly. And he became the manager of a very large portion of his family's wealth. When a friend who knew of William's millions once asked him why he didn't buy himself a car, he answered sincerely, I cannot afford it. And the reason why is he couldn't justify buying one of Ford's new Model Ts when he could build a hospital in China. for the same amount. After Yale, William went on to attend Princeton Seminary, where he sat under the teaching of theological giants like Machen and Warfield and Voss. Still, William served in various ministries and quietly wrote checks. to Bible societies and mission work that amounted to thousands and thousands of dollars. He was wealthy, but very few ever knew it. William Borden was the polar opposite of the rich farmer that we read about several weeks ago in Luke chapter 12. William was, as Jesus described, rich toward God. Or as Paul admonished the rich in 1 Timothy chapter six, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share. In our text, in Luke chapter 12, Jesus has been warning his disciples. He has been preparing his men for the dangers that would face them in following him, the dangers in discipleship. In chapter 12, verse 1, he warns them to be on guard against hypocrisy. They need to take care of what's going on in their own hearts first because hypocrisy spreads. So you need to worry about your own heart. Take care of it. In verse 15 of chapter 12, he warns them against every form of greed. And there are various forms. It's not just the rich who are greedy. All of our hearts can be gripped by greed. There's a great danger in being so earthly minded that the only concern in our life is that of material things. The material comfort that our possessions bring, that they afford us, the physical needs that we have of clothing and food that Jesus has talked about in our text. And so Jesus warns them about worrying about these things, of being so concerned and overly anxious as it pertains to their material needs. He warns them about that kind of concern and says in verse 22, do not worry about your life. Jesus' men were not to be known for their anxiety and concern and attention to worldly things. And so Jesus has been providing some reality. He's been providing them some perspective to consider. And these truths that he's been giving them are things that are going to tether them in this life, tether their faith so that they're not so overly anxious and concerned. And we looked at three of them last week, and we'll look at another three this week and my hope is that these truths will serve to anchor your concerns. They'll serve to anchor your anxieties about material possessions and things. Last week we looked at the first three, and I'll just remind you of them quickly. The first one was the fact that Jesus emphasizes several times that life is more than your possessions. Life is more than your stuff. He talks about the profundity of life. Life has more to do, there's more to do than just the material things that your eyes need to be open to the spiritual realities of life. Second, he noted the providential care of our Heavenly Father. He says, listen, you're more valuable than ravens. You're more valuable than the lilies or the grass of the field. And look at how God cares for them. If you are infinitely more valuable than they, if He cares for those things, how much more? An argument from The lesser to the greater. How much more will he care for you and provide your needs? And I noted there's a difference between needs and wants. Those aren't the same. We need to be reminded of that as Americans, right? Food, clothing, shelter, those are basic necessities. And the Lord tells his people that I will provide those things for you. I will take care of you. But then thirdly, we noted the powerlessness of worry. And that's that section there where how many of you are able to add to your lifespan by all of your concerns? By all that high blood pressure and sleepless nights, how many of you actually that something good happens out of all of that worry and concern? Jesus says, listen, you have a heavenly father who is concerned for you, who cares for you, so don't worry about those things. Don't be overly concerned. So rather, Jesus points out, than living for earthly things, Jesus turns their hearts towards spiritual matters, especially in our verses this morning. And look first at verses 31 and 32. Jesus says this. but seek his kingdom. And these things, that is those needs that you have, will be added to you. Do not fear, little flock, for your father is well pleased to give you the kingdom." And this leads us to that fourth truth, and that is the pursuit of the kingdom. That fourth point that that anchors us, that our ambitions and our attitude and our heart ought to be towards kingdom things rather than worry, negative. We should be seeking after the kingdom of God, something positive. And then he adds this assurance that the father is eager and willing and pleased to give the kingdom. That's a present tense command, by the way. Keep on seeking the kingdom. That is to be their ambition. That is to be their main pursuit, their objective. The kingdom. Spiritual matters. They are to strive after His kingdom. It is to be their constant pursuit. And here's the contrast, while the world is preoccupied with earthly things and fading things, stuff and possessions and earthly securities and pleasantries, he says, no, men, you need to be preoccupied with the pursuit of his kingdom. While the world's ambition is dominated by stuff, they don't have or they want to get or things that they already have and need to keep, striving after food, fine food and fashionable clothing and wealth and houses and cars. Jesus is calling his men to a different way of living, a different way of seeing their time here on planet Earth. It is a different ambition, a different pursuit, one that is after God's kingdom, not their own. Not an earthly kingdom, not primarily or ultimately. His kingdom is to shape and guide and govern all other pursuits. In fact, in Matthew's Gospel, Jesus says to seek first the kingdom of God. In other words, that kingdom is to be their ultimate priority. All other pursuits all other ambitions are to fall under that main priority of seeking after the kingdom. And so in a real sense, these disciples needed to view their time as kingdom time. They needed to view their possessions as kingdom possessions, their families as kingdom families, their relationships as kingdom relationships. Even our churches are, at least to some degree, depending on your eschatology and how you view the kingdom, but to some degree, even our churches are to be kingdom churches in the sense that we are outposts, that we are a small taste of what will be. We experience the joy of peace among brothers. We experience the peace among nations, in a sense, because we're not divided by our national identities, right? We're one in Christ. And so we experience peace and brotherhood and concern, mutual concern. We, too, try to live righteously and deal righteously with one another and deal in equity. These are all things that the kingdom will ultimately be. And so, in a real sense, these disciples were to have that be their main ambition, and everything would be defined by that. Now, I know the big question that a lot of people are asking is, what exactly is the kingdom? Inevitably, these discussions are closely tied to your end times view or your hermeneutic. Are things just spiritual? Are they literal? And various people disagree on their view of the kingdom. The post-millennial view of the kingdom is different than the amillennial view a little bit and that of the pre-millennial view. I don't want to deal with that today. We're dealing with it in Sunday school if you want to join us at 9.15. But essentially what you're asking in these things is, has the kingdom been realized here on earth now? Or is it yet future? Has it been inaugurated? Is it all ready and not yet? For our purposes, I just want to say this, that the kingdom is the place where God and his Messiah rule and reign. And so while we might want to see a distinction between the kingdom and the church, and I don't have a problem seeing a difference between the kingdom and the church, I would say the church is still ruled and the Messiah reigns in the church, right? He is the head of the church. But the kingdom, as we look at it in the Old Testament and even the New Testament, is a time of unprecedented peace. It really is a return to the way things were in Eden. Evil is subdued, righteous and equity rule. Even if you read, for example, in Isaiah 11, even the kingdom world, or the animal kingdom is transformed. Where all of a sudden, the predator is lying with those that it prays against, right? The lion and the lamb. So everything is kind of returned to Eden. And that's kind of the imagery that the kingdom gives. It's peace and righteousness and prosperity. We know that Psalm 2 is emphatic as to the fact that Yahweh has established his king. Even when nations and others plot against it, they don't want to sit under his rule. They plot to undo his kingdom. You have Yahweh who declares, I have established my king. You can war all you want. He is king whether you like it or not. And so then you have in Psalm 2 as well the promise that Yahweh will give the nations to the Son as an inheritance and He will rule. This is a kingdom that is not just one kingdom as in Israel, this is a kingdom that embraces all nations. His rule will extend to the ends of the earth, all the nations. And so Yahweh says, kiss the sun, pay homage to the sun, lest you perish. So has that happened? And that's the big question. Is it now? Is it happening in heaven? What will happen on earth? After all, we do pray your kingdom come, your will be done, what? On earth as it is in heaven, right? We know that Jesus was preaching the good news of the kingdom. His rule, his reign. He said, even in Luke's gospel, that the kingdom has come upon you. So it seems that Jesus's earthly ministry brought about the beginning of what will ultimately culminate in the end. And so in some sense, the church is an outpost of the kingdom. It's a little taste of what the kingdom will be like, or at least it ought to be. Right? Again, the church is imperfect. We know about that. But we experience aspects of the kingdom. And so Jesus tells his men, you need to be about the kingdom. You need to seek after the kingdom. Pursue it. You ought to have your concerns and your worries and your ambitions be directed that way. And then he says, and these things will be added to you. Those daily provisions that overcome your mind and overwhelm your heart. The Lord will take care of those things. You be about the kingdom. Now, this is not a promise about earthly riches. It's not a promise that we're going to own homes in Malibu, or have a bunch of cars like the prosperity gospel points out. That's not what that's talking about. He's saying these daily things. Remember, these disciples had very little anyway. And he says, listen, those daily concerns that you have, you have your mind and your perspective on the kingdom. You pursue that and all those other things the Lord will provide. You make much of me. You preach Christ. You proclaim him. You obey Christ. You obey his rule, his reign. That ought to be the consuming interest of believers, the lordship of Christ, that Christ is indeed king. And that other men and women would know that Christ is king, that they too would kiss the sun, right? That's the aim of the church, right? We proclaim Christ, that they might come under his lordship, that they may repent of their sin and believe on him and have eternal life. We're calling others to embrace Christ. And so our preoccupation, our highest ambition, our priority is that. It is the rule and reign of Jesus Christ. So be busy about making much of Jesus Christ. And again, notice the assurance that he gives in verse 32. Do not fear, little flock, for your Father is well pleased to give you the kingdom." What language there, little flock, reminiscent of Jesus' words where he says, I am the good shepherd, or the words of Yahweh in Psalm 23, the Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. In other words, this God is your caregiver, he is your shepherd, he is watching out for you. You are precious to him and so he will provide, he will bring you along. And so again, just as those who are under the care of Yahweh, you need not fear. Even though they were small in number, a small band of brothers, but they had a shepherd who would lead and guide and comfort. And notice he's not a reluctant father. He's pleased. It is his pleasure to see the kingdom materialize, and it will. And so it doesn't matter that these disciples are nobodies. It doesn't matter that they were few in number. It's the father's delight to give you the kingdom. That's assurance. That really becomes a death blow to our concern and our worry. The kingdom is here, and it is coming, and there is nothing that is able to stop it, and it's the Father's good pleasure to bring it about. I mean, you think about the American ideal. We're always pursuing the sure thing, right, in this life. We want the sure thing when we are investing our money for the future, for retirement. or you want the sure thing in a spouse, or a sure thing in a career choice, or a sure thing in fill in the blank. We want that sure thing. We want to be confident in our decisions. We want to be confident in the things that we're pursuing. Jesus would say, listen, there is no surer thing than the kingdom. Nothing more that you could bank your life on with more certainty and more confidence than the kingdom. Think of the writer of Hebrews who And chapter 11 gives us the heroes of the faith, this long line of people who believed God and trusted God, even though they didn't see these things come to pass, that God's promises would come to pass. And in Hebrews 11, verses 8 and 9, it says that Abraham, when he was called, he obeyed, not knowing where he was going. He sojourned in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob. He trusted the Lord. And then in verse 10 it says, for he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God. He was looking for a greater city. And then in verse 13 it says, all these, talking about the patriarchs. Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and even Sarah, all these, talking about them, died in faith without receiving the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance. They believed them to such a degree that it was like they were right in front of them. Then after rehearsing the faith of all of these patriarchs that were waiting for the promises to come to pass, the writer of Hebrews says these words in Hebrews 12, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken. This is a kingdom that cannot fail. You realize there's no promises that the American kingdom will succeed past its 250 years of existence, right? It's been a great experiment. We'll see what happens. There's no certainty. I can't give you any certainty about the stock market or your investment portfolio. I can't give you any certainty about these things. We don't know what kingdoms will be around in 2050. There's no certainty about any of those kingdoms. Will America still be a thing? Maybe. Possibly, but there's no certainty. I don't know about your financial planner, but one of the first things he always says is, I'm not a prophet. I don't know what's going to happen. Because what is he saying? There's no certainty. There's no certainty in this. Every other kingdom of this world has a shelf life, right? Where are the Philistines today? They're not a kingdom anymore. The Babylonians, the Persians, the Greco-Roman Empire, every other kingdom has a shelf life, not this one. We are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, the writer of Hebrews says. And all of these other kingdom rulers, if they could tell you, they would tell you the scriptures are correct. Ask Nebuchadnezzar. about the certainty of kingdoms or Belshazzar or Daniel. It's not the case with this kingdom. Jesus says you seek this kingdom. This kingdom that cannot be shaken for it is built by God and it is his delight, Jesus says, to give it to you. There is no surer thing than that. We have no idea Right? We were reminded of that again this month even, right? Or last month with the fires of California. There's no guarantee about our possessions. And so Jesus says, listen, you seek that kingdom. That has to be your priority. Pursue that kingdom. It's the certainty of this kingdom that then leads Jesus to conclude with this radical imperative in verse 33. Look there. You seek after the kingdom and all of these things will be added to you. And then he says this, sell your possessions and give it as charity. And everyone started going, is this hyperbole? Is Jesus being serious? Like all my stuff? How about some of my stuff? How about the stuff in my garage? I can give that away. I've got boxes and boxes, right? If ever there was a verse on having a yard sale, this is it, right? And so, but is Jesus, you know, should we sell our possessions like everything? Or is he pointing out, hey, what is going to be our ultimate treasure? Earthly things or eternal things? And this leads us then to the fifth anchor, the fifth truth to anchoring our anxiety, and that is the practice of generosity. The practice of generosity. Listen, it's all going to burn. You're not gonna take any of your possessions with you, that favorite outfit, that favorite earthly keepsake, that favorite blanket or accessory or fill in the blank, none of it. Remember, these men didn't have much to begin with. They weren't wealthy monetarily. They didn't probably have a lot of possessions. Notice that Jesus doesn't even say how many possessions to sell. It's open-ended, and when you look at the scriptures, you see that this command is actually different for different people. For example, in Luke 18, Jesus will say to the rich young ruler, sell everything you have. It's like, wow, are we supposed to do the same? And he says, sell everything you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven, and come follow me. So in that instance, for his own purposes, the command of that young man was sell everything. And it's because his love was for his possessions, his trust was in those things. In Luke chapter 19, when Zacchaeus encounters Jesus, Zacchaeus says, behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor, and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will restore it fourfold. So for Zacchaeus, this command, sell your possessions, was I'm gonna give 50% of my possessions to the poor, and I'm gonna make restitution to those who I have defrauded. Now notice, Zacchaeus said that. of himself. That's what he, hearing that command, sell your possessions, that's what he's deciding. We read, for example, in Acts chapter 4 where it talks about Barnabas and that he sold a field that belonged to him and he brought the money and laid it at the apostles' feet. So Barnabas sold at least one field. Did he have more? We don't know. In fact, when Peter confronts Ananias, you remember the story of Ananias and Sapphira for lying about how much they sold the property for, Peter says this, while it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? In other words, you decide that. You decide what that looks like. And after it was sold, was it not under your authority? You didn't have to lie about this. This was yours to give. No one was twisting your arm. No one was making you. Then he says, why is it that you laid this deed in your heart and you have not lied to men but to God? It was yours to give, in other words. So this is kind of a open-ended command that Jesus gives that's expressed differently in scripture. Sell your possessions and give it as charity. That's going to be different for different people. Again, this is not a command to make a vow of poverty. to sell all of your possessions and have nothing. The issue is not about being deprived or non-indulgent, some kind of form of asceticism where we're really rendering ourselves and making sure that we're feeling the pain of having nothing. like the Buddhist monks who you might see at your neighborhood supermarket, right? They come in and they're doing shopping and their heads are shaved. And if you know anything about them, they have no bank accounts. They have no cards. They have no jewelry, no clothing, nothing earthly that belongs to them other than that brown robe or yellow robe that you see them wearing. That's all they have. That's not what Jesus is getting at here. Rather, it's an encouragement to really take the perspective of William Borden about his wealth. It wasn't simply for his own enjoyment, that he had an obligation to charity, to give, to be ready to share, and that that was to be a priority, that there were higher priorities than his earthly well-being. namely the kingdom. The kingdom was far greater to live for than earthly possessions and wealth. And again, if you look at scripture, it's not a sin to be wealthy. It's not a sin to have riches. Jesus does later in Luke 18 say how difficult it is for those who have earthly wealth, and literally that word wealth is those who have things, right? To enter the kingdom of God. And so again, the idea is this has everything to do with what you treasure. What do you treasure above all? Your stuff? Or do you treasure God and his kingdom and Christ? It really is a call to be more simple-minded and open-handed when it comes to our possessions, that we are to be marked by generosity. Because if we treasure God and we treasure His kingdom, giving some of our earthly treasure to those in need, giving it to the poor will be no problem. Hey, I have what I need. I'm going to give the rest. We likely have more than we need, especially as Americans. That becomes more and more evident. We have so much stuff. And so this is a call for us to be open-handed, seeing wealth the way scripture does. I mean, think about how Paul describes our work ethic as believers. It's always shocked me. He says, let the thief steal no longer, but rather let him work with his own hands. So there's the ambition and the need to work. 2 Thessalonians talks about if you don't work, you don't eat. And so work, the necessity of doing those things. But then he says, for what reason? Why do we labor with our own hands? And it's not only, it is, of course, to do this, but to provide for our own needs. But Paul says so that you would have something to share with others. Is that how we look at working? I don't know. That's a tough one that we're thinking, no, I'm working so that I'm working hard. I'm doing what I need so that I might have things that I might help others with. Is that how we view our things? Is that even how we view work? It seems so upside down. Jesus says, here, your possessions are to help those in need. You think, so bizarre to see it that way. What do you mean, give it away? I might need that. Right? I think we do a lot of that in the garage. You have all this stuff and you're like, I might need it sometime. in the future, and so we store it up. I'm not saying you need to get rid of it. You might need it. But it is to say, man, we need to be a little more open-handed. All that fear and worry that causes us to hoard things instead of hand them out, right? Causes us to gather for ourself and our own kingdom and our own interests instead of being generous to others. Jesus says, listen, don't worry about your stuff. Be open-handed. Be generous. You ever wonder, it's an honest question, why God doesn't give everyone the same level of income? It was the same thing in the church. You had rich and you had poor. For what reason? Why not just have the same level for everyone? Let's redistribute the wealth, right? That's a common thought these days. But that's not what you have happening. You have those who have and those who don't. And those who have are generous to those who don't, and they meet needs. They don't cut up half of it, sometimes they do, Zacchaeus, right? They give different, because in God's providence, he wants there to be those that have more than others, so there's a giving and a sharing that takes place in God's kingdom, or in God's church. This isn't a rich person command, because poor people can be stingy too. Right? This isn't about how much you have, but rather the attitude in which you see your things. Jesus tells his men who already don't have that much to be open-handed, to live simply and selflessly. And he's calling them to see their possessions differently. Their possessions are so temporary. Because notice what he says, he redirects their gaze, he redirects their focus, and he says, make yourselves money belts which do not wear out. That's not an earthly money belt, right? He's saying, look, an unfailing treasure in heaven where thieves don't come near and moths do not destroy. And this refocus then directs us to our final truth that should anchor us in times of concern, and that is the priority of treasure in heaven. So we've looked at the pursuit of the kingdom, the practice of generosity, and now tied to even this practice of generosity is us thinking about our things differently, right? The priority for us ought to be treasures where they don't wear out, where they're not destroyed. Because all earthly treasures will fade. They'll fail. We don't take it with us. Naked we came into the world, and naked we return, right? We depart. That's not to say you're not dressed in your casket. It's just to say you don't take any of that stuff with you. You're not enjoying those clothes. Your dead body is in the ground. You don't take any of it with you. They don't come with you. Jesus even points out the uncertainties of your possessions and wealth in the here and now. They don't continue on. They wear out. Thieves steal, moths eat that expensive fabric. It's the uncertainty of riches that Paul instructs Timothy to instruct those who are rich and say, hey, Don't bank your life on these things. They can come and go. Rather, Jesus says, we should be concerned with the unfailing treasure in heaven. We need to bank our lives there. We need to deposit and invest there. Because these money belts don't wear out. Where you deposit there, thieves cannot steal, and insects cannot destroy. Notice something about this treasure that it's unfailing. It's unfailing, it's inexhaustible. In other words, it's something that cannot be consumed. It cannot be used up. That's not the case with our earthly investments that are subject to depreciation or inflation, right? We've all enjoyed that. Loss and theft and liquidation. Rather, Jesus, invest in the kingdom of God. Invest in the kingdom, it's safer. Store up for yourselves, he says in Matthew, treasures in heaven. Randy Alcorn, in his book, The Treasure Principle, says this, where we choose to store our treasure depends largely on where we think our home is. Again, that bigger question, that perspective question, what are we ultimately living for? Because where we choose to store our treasure will depend largely on where we think our home is. Jesus, again, is reminding them, you are living for a higher cause, a greater treasure, a greater kingdom. Peter echoes the very words of his Lord when he told a dispersed church that was walking into very difficult days, he reminded them of the treasure they have in Christ, the inheritance they have in Christ. And listen to how he describes it. 1 Peter 1.4, an inheritance incorruptible Undefiled, unfading, kept for you in heaven. None of the treasures we have down here could be characterized as incorruptible, undefiled, and unfading. We live for that which cannot fail, that which cannot fade, and Jesus says invest there. Invest there. Treasures in heaven. This is what we're living for. Now, you're likely wondering at this point, Well, what exactly do we do with that? How do we invest in heavenly things? How do we invest in the kingdom? It's not like we can put some cash in an envelope and mail it to heaven. We can't do that. And Jesus gives a little bit of an indication in verse 34, for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. What do you ultimately treasure? Your stuff, your ease, your comfort, or God's kingdom? And again, that's why I started with the story of that guy, William Borden, because it became evident, even though he had so much, He gave it away. He was living for a greater kingdom, a greater king. Things that were beyond just his earthly comfort and possessions. Paul gives a pretty good description of making investment in heaven in 1 Timothy 6. I've alluded to that passage and even quoted part of it, but it's instruction to the rich, and he tells them, don't be haughty, don't be arrogant about your riches because they're uncertain. You might be rich today and not tomorrow, so don't be arrogant about these things. They're not given to you so that you might be boastful and prideful about all of your possessions. That's not. Instead, he says, rather instead, be rich in good deeds, in other words, doing good works, right? Be generous, be ready to share. And then Paul says this in verse 19 of 1 Timothy 6, thus storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, right? Invest in eternal things where Moth and rust do not destroy, where thieves do not break in and steal. How do you store up treasures in heaven? In Paul's thinking about these who are rich, you do that by being generous, by being rich in good deeds, being ready to share. You do it by caring about the things that God cares about. This world tells us that the good life is gaining money for ourselves and spending it on ourselves. The Bible's message is the direct opposite. The good life is found in giving and blessing. Strange though it may seem, it is more blessed to give than to receive. So we want the use of our money and possessions to align with the priorities of heaven. We want to use it in a way that reflects God's priorities. And that seems to be this kind of open-handed generosity, this sharing it with others. So practically speaking, we ought to be looking for ways to give away what we have. One of the ways we can do this is by partnering with a local church. That's why we often give, right? There's an explanation in our bulletin how you can give to the local church. Because in doing so, you're giving to gospel causes like those in Cambodia or Uganda or those that are going on here. You give. We have monies for benevolence, for helping other saints who are struggling, right? We see this with Barnabas, who sold the field that belonged to him, and what does he do with his money? He lays it at the Apostles' feet. For what? So that they can distribute it. So you see this precedent of giving toward local assemblies, local churches, for the betterment and the help of others, to help those in need. He did this to the needs of the congregation that he might be aware of, but not all of them could be met, right? That the gospel would continue to go forth. We see this practice, maybe not always selling of the field, but this practice of giving is in the New Testament. First Corinthians 16, Paul writes, now concerning the collection for the saints, as I directed the churches of Galatia, so not only Corinth, but the church at Galatia, so do you also on the first day of every week, Sunday, Each one of you is to set something aside, saving whatever he has prospered so that no collections be made when I come." In the second letter to the Corinthians in chapter 9, verse 7, he says, each one must do justice. He is purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion for God loves a cheerful giver. And so we see that part of treasures in heaven is giving to the local church. God calls us as believers to contribute to the giving of the work of the gospel through the local church. And we even see in that passage in 1 Corinthians 16 or in 2 Corinthians 8 and 9, we see several insightful instructions, right? We are to give, right? That's what he means. Each one of you set something aside. He doesn't tell you the amount. He's not telling you as the rich young ruler or Zacchaeus or Barnabas. They're doing it themselves. We're to give. We're to do so generously. That's the whole context of what we're talking about here in Luke 12. Give regularly, Paul says, on the first day of every week. Give deliberately. Paul says you should set it aside. You give it intentionally. You give it voluntarily. No one's twisting your arm. No one's calling you. No one's sending you emails about, hey, you don't give. No one's doing that. It's given voluntarily, just as he is purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion. I know a lot of times people's views on giving of a tithe, right? An Old Testament principle of the tithe. We don't really see that in the New Testament. It's free will giving. I mean, it might be 10%, but it might not be. It might be more than that. It might be less than that. And that's dependent upon people's circumstances, their jobs, the wealth that they have. It's a lot of different factors. But you give voluntarily. No one's forcing you. No one's twisting your arm. You do it willingly. He does mention that you give proportionately. Each one of us are going to give different amounts, because the amount isn't the issue. And then we see a seventh, give cheerfully, that God loves a cheerful giver. And then other things that we see in scripture too, we give it quietly, right? We give it quietly, almost as William Borden was doing. Many of his peers didn't know the immense wealth that he had. He wasn't living that out there and he was giving quietly. So we see in the New Testament scriptures that Christ's people further Christ's work by giving to the local church. It's one of the ways we demonstrate where our treasure truly is. That might come up in different ways as well, right? You go to an event, and it's maybe something that's going on in the Ukraine, or it's a young mother's, unwed mother's home, or whatever it might be, and you give. You're giving to meet those needs. That's one of the ways that we demonstrate where our treasure truly is. Where we put our money is an indication of where our hearts ultimately are, what we ultimately treasure. We can either have our money and possessions taken away at death, which is what Jesus says, or we can use them by giving them away, by being open-handed and generous, knowing that everything that we have belongs to the Lord. And we give because God has given to us. And so that's the way we should view possessions, the priority of giving treasures in heaven. Let me finish the story just in conclusion of William Borden, that young man. Despite William's enormous wealth, the foreign mission field was his aim and focus. His eyes were fixed on the mission field all throughout Yale, all through his time in Princeton. The fruit of what was started on that year-long tour around the world, it never ended. In fact, he had his sights on a particular people in Western China. Centuries before this particular people, the Kansu, had been converted to Islam. And they remained in spiritual darkness with no Christian witness. They numbered in the millions, and they would have been considered an unreached people group within China. Well, in order to reach them, William knew that he would need to not only learn Chinese, but he'd need to learn Arabic. So on December 17, 1912, William Borden said goodbye to friends and family and made his first stop, which was a time in Cairo, Egypt. It would be there that he would learn Arabic and be educated in Islamic studies. Borton had not been in Cairo for two weeks before he organized students of that theological seminary that he was a part of to do house-to-house canvassing with Christian literature for that whole city, all 800,000 of them. The director of that study center said of William Borden, I never saw a man come to Egypt with eyes more open to see the kingdom of God. That same person, the kingdom burned in his heart in Yale, in Princeton, and now here in Cairo, Egypt as he prepares for missionary work in China. After Cairo, Borden After he goes to Cairo and does his work there learning Arabic, his plan was to go to London to learn medicine because he figured he could minister to the needs of both body and spirit in the mission field if he was coming as a doctor or as someone who could help them physically. But William Borden would never leave Cairo, Egypt. After only a few months in Egypt, William contracted spinal meningitis and died at the age of 25 on April 9, 1913. The news of the young millionaire's death flashed by cable around the world. Memorial services were held in Princeton and Yale and in Moody Church in Chicago. Before sailing east, William had executed a will He had bequeathed $250,000 for China Inland Mission, $100,000 to the Moody Bible Institute, and like amounts to several other Christian ministries. He gave $50,000 to Princeton Theological Seminary, and $25,000 each to the American Bible Society, the Chicago Tract Society, and the African Inland Mission. So sure, William Borden was rich with earthly money, but he proved to be richer toward God, for his life belonged to Christ. And what is evident in William's life is that he treasured Christ above all, more even than all of his riches and possessions. Tucked away in the northwest corner of an American cemetery in Cairo, Egypt, you will find the grave of William Borden. There is a humble cement slab that serves as his gravestone, and engraved at the bottom of William Borden's tomb are these words, apart from Christ, There is no exclamation, sorry, apart from Christ, there is no explanation for such a life. Apart from Christ, there is no explanation for such a life. May that be true of us as we think of our own possessions and our own life and our own pursuit of those things that are precious to the Lord. May we seek his kingdom as well. Let's pray together. For your word, it is both instructional and convictional. Lord, we confess our own confidence is often in our earthly well-being. Our confidence is often in something that is so uncertain, the uncertainty of riches. Lord, may our perspective, when we consider our basic needs, may we be mindful of our great God, our Father, who is our great shepherd. May our eyes be set upon heavenly things. May our investments be directed in that way, and may our lives also May it be said of them that apart from Christ, there would be no explanation for our lives. May we live in light of the words of Christ, we pray in Christ's name.