A, Ash Wednesday- Matthew 6:19-21 "The Litany of Jesus' Treasures"

Matthew 6:19–21  Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Who is Jesus?  How do you explain Jesus to someone else?  Who is Jesus to you? What makes Jesus important to you, for you in your day-to-day life?

Jesus tells those who listen to his Sermon on the Mount, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasurers on earth… but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven…  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

In coming weeks, we will be examining a litany of Jesus’ life to see his treasure.  Then we can identify our treasure to gain a deeper understanding as to why and how Jesus gave up his divinity and served humanity through what he treasured.

Last Sunday we came to and from the Mountain of Transfiguration.  Now we travel with Jesus in remembrance to the Mountain of Calvary, to the cross, where the Gospel was nailed out for our deliverance from sin and death. 

We are being led to God’s kingdom, forgiven, and equipped to forgive.  Given what we need to walk the way of this wilderness through heartache and suffering.  But also, given it with hope in the great day of salvation, when Jesus will lead us through the Jordanian waters of death into the eternal land of milk and honey.

However, first we find ourselves on the mountain of teaching with Jesus as he opens up the Law to us in greater depth than the Old Testament, and with greater width than we can possibly fulfil during the length and breadth of our lives on earth.

Jesus begins the Sermon on the Mount with the beatitudes, “nine statements of blessedness”, then calls the hearer to be the “salt of the earth” and the “light of the world”. 

He explains that he has not come to abolish the law and the prophets but to fulfil them.  Then what would have surprised everyone he teaches, one’s righteousness needs to exceed that of the pharisees and scribes, to enter the kingdom of heaven.

He expounds the laws of murder and adultery to include, hatred and lust.  He teaches how to pray, giving them his prayer, the Lord’s Prayer, to turn meditation from themselves to God and his gifts.

What becomes apparent to all who listen with the right heart to his Sermon on the Mount, is that no one can fulfil what the law and the prophets have said.  And even more so!  Now, that Jesus has expanded the Commandments to include not glorifying the self, nor being anxious or worrying.  As well as increasing hating and calling one a fool into the same as murder, and likewise desiring with sexual hunger as the same as adultery. 

In the midst of his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus focuses on what are one’s treasures.   A treasure is literally anything that you set aside as security for yourself.  He then focuses us on the greater treasures of heaven.  But the sting he leaves with us is this:  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

What is your treasure, where is your heart?  What is your haven of heavenly treasure?

To work out firstly what your heaven might be, we can place ourselves in the shoes of the young man who came up to Jesus, enquiring…

“Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?”  And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments.  The young man said to him, “All these I have kept. What do I still lack?”  Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”  When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.”  (Matthew 19:16-17, 20–22 ESV)

Jesus tells him to sell all his goods.  Or, to rid himself of all the things he deems good for his existence.

Now that you are in the shoes of this young man, how do you receive these words from Jesus?

This should rightfully make you feel uneasy.  With his word, Jesus cuts to the heart of every person’s treasure.  Or what we can rightfully call, goods or riches that have become idols or gods.

Jesus follows on, and says to his disciples, “Truly, I say to you, only with difficulty will a rich person enter the kingdom of heaven.  Again, I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”  (Matthew 19:23-24 ESV)

The disciples get the gist of Jesus’ word and on hearing, “they were greatly astonished, saying, “Who then can be saved?”  But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:25-26 ESV)

God gives us what we need to live, but we take these things and they become treasures greater than the treasures of heaven.  But they perish, and once we’ve made them our gods, we too are in danger of perishing with them. 

Yes!  We all die!  However, these earthly treasures tempt us to trust them and lead us away from being saved.  One’s treasures can lead, not just to a physical death, but an eternal death!

The treasures of the kingdom of heaven are only possible through God.

So, what Jesus was teaching at his Sermon on the Mount is that getting the treasures of heaven is only possible through him.

In a moment we are going to receive the imposition of ashes and I will announce to you as I place an ash cross on your forehead, “remember you are dust and to dust you shall return.”

We do this in full realisation that through humanity’s knowledge of good and evil, we lost access to God, and that we live under the curse of death.  But upon the knowledge of the law we live looking forward in faith in the knowledge of Jesus Christ.

During the Lenten season we will examine just what this knowledge of Jesus Christ is.  After the imposition of ashes, we will pray the “Litany on the Life of Jesus” which will be the form of our five meditations. We will also learn of the activity of God the Holy Spirit as Jesus passively lived seeking treasures of his Father in Heaven, his name, his kingdom, and his will, as he walks to the cross for us.

In this Litany of Jesus’ treasures, the Holy Spirit will seek to give you a deeper understanding and teaching of…

1)   The prayers of Jesus, so we might allow the Holy Spirit to inspire us to pray.

2)   The gifts of Jesus, so we might allow the Holy Spirit to inspire us to give.

3)   The toils of Jesus, so we might allow the Holy Spirit to inspire us to work.

4)   By the love of Jesus, so we might allow the Holy Spirit to inspire us to love.

5)   By the cross of Jesus, so we might allow the Holy Spirit to inspire us to live. 

In allowing the Holy Spirit to rule in our hearts, bringing us to Jesus, we will be Holy Spirit prepared to tell others what the Gospel is.  How we are blessed by forgiveness.  Understand for ourselves God’s purpose for us, despite the curse of sin and death in our lives.  And therefore, show the compassionate steadfast love and generosity we receive, to others, who like us, need God’s forgiveness and salvation.  Amen.

C, Maundy Thursday - The Lord's Prayer #7 - Matthew 6:11 "Give us today our Daily Bread"

This is the last sermon in the Lenten series and as you can see by the diagram, we come to the crux of the Lord’s Prayer.

From the outset, theological language scholars struggle to know what the Greek adjective “daily” actually is.  There are several possibilities such as: give us this day the bread of existence; give us this day the bread for today; give us this day the bread for tomorrow; or give us this day the bread for the future.

Within the context of the Sermon on the mount, Jesus talks about the things we need for survival, saying…

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal,  but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”  (Matthew 6:19–21 ESV)

And, “…if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?  Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’  For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.  But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.  Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”  (Matthew 6:30–34 ESV)

Every day has enough of its own trouble, so we pray to our Father, “give us what we need every day.”  So, what do we need every day from our Father who is in heaven?  Or put better, “What does God require of us every day?”  What does God require of you if every day has enough of its own troubles and deceptive treasures?

Jesus highlights the troubles of the day, as working for treasures that leads your heart away from the true treasures of heaven, as well as being anxious and distracted in one’s desire to have what one decides to be enough of these treasures.

It’s here you’re called out of trusting yourself, back to trusting OUR father in heaven.  You are called to know that Jesus not only teaches God’s children to pray this prayer, but has been praying these petitions for you, and on your behalf before the Father.  He has proven himself 100% faithful to the Father, even unto death, and is now raised in victory over death, and intercedes on your behalf, before the Father, for your victory over death.

Our Father in heaven, Jesus the Son of God, and the Holy Spirit want God’s kingdom, power, and glory, to be your eternal reality in community with them.

For this to happen, God gives us access to him through his holy name, to call on him, to deliver us from every evil within and from without.   Having begun the work of moving us from evil to holiness, he continually seeks to lead us away from all kingdoms, which lead to evil and death, to his kingdom.  This is a kingdom of holiness and peace, set apart for you to be with him in all his power and glory.

While we are here on earth, he forgives us our sin.  It is his responsibility and pleasure to do so!  Because he is a steadfast loving God, we have a right to receive his forgiveness and a right to be able to forgive others.  He gives us the freedom and the will to accept that responsibility of passing his forgiveness onto others. 

As Christians, or, children of a loving God, we give the right to others to receive our forgiveness.  When we struggle to forgive, God gives us the responsibility to ask him to help us forgive as he has forgiven us.

If these are not enough troubles for each day, then we can add on what we need to eat, wear, and sleep.  But as we have heard he wants us to seek first his kingdom and the treasure of his holy righteousness and will.

Each day it pleases God that we ask him for the bread to sustain us now, tomorrow, and forever!

In fact, when we pray for our daily bread, the Lord’s Prayer names the treasure or bread of eternal life in our praying for deliverance from evil into the holiness of God’s name.  The Lord’s Prayer names the treasure or bread of eternal life which leads us from the temptation of building our own kingdoms into his kingdom of peace and sabbath.  The Lord’s Prayer names the treasure or bread of eternal life which restores in us the will of God, so, in prayer we can confess our sin, praise him for our forgiveness, forgive others, and confess our unity as his children through our common forgiveness of sins.  These are our daily bread. 

Therefore, our daily bread and true treasure of the heart is Jesus Christ.  Jesus Christ gives us himself in this prayer when he gives us the words to pray it.  Jesus’ prayer, our Lord’s Prayer to his Father and our Father, is the word of God given to us from he who is the Word made flesh.  The Lord’s Prayer is taught by Jesus, the source of grace, who fulfils grace, at the cross!  The Lord’s prayer is both treasure from the mouth of God, and treasure in the ear of God, for all who receive it from Jesus, believe it in the heart, and pray it to the Father with the mouth.

If it’s our Father in heaven’s good pleasure to give us eternal rest in his kingdom of power and glory, how much more will he give us our daily bread each day of our troubled life on earth?  Therefore, Jesus tells us to seek first the Kingdom of Heaven and his righteousness, his treasures, and everything we need for this life, like, food, clothing, and shelter will be supplied by our Father who loves us.

If God would go to such lengths to provide for your salvation, by having his Son die for you, and raise him, why would he then not provide the lesser things for you? 

Furthermore, why would Jesus, who faithfully died for you, mandate for humanity on Maundy Thursday, a new covenant to receive his body and blood for the forgiveness of sin, life, and salvation?  As well as command us to do this eating and drinking of his body and blood in remembrance of his birth, life, death, resurrection, and ascension, if he would then go on to not give us the things we need for this life? 

Also, why would Jesus tell his disciples and then after his resurrection and ascension, send the Holy Spirit to guide us in all truth, give us understanding in his word, engage faith within us, creating the will in us to do the greater work of confessing our sins, now that he has gone to the Father and prays ceaselessly for us, if he wasn’t sustaining us in this life? 

And why would the Holy Spirit move us to baptise in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and believe in our baptism into God’s kingdom, if he weren’t going to lead us through this kingdom of life, and away from all its troubles that end in death?  Only then not to raise us from death into his kingdom of eternal life, peace, and holy community!

Every time you pray the Lord’s Prayer you are in community with the Triune God, glorifying him in his presence and fulfilling your function in creation with all others who believe and pray.

Every time you pray the Lord’s Prayer you pray a Holy Spirited lifegiving prayer, because you are allowing God the Holy Spirit, to turn you from your helplessness, and place you in Jesus Christ the Son of God, and he in you.

Every time you pray the Lord’s Prayer you are forgiven and fed on God’s holy eternal living bread. 

Jesus Christ is our most treasured and holy daily bread.  Amen.   

Come Lord Jesus, be our guest, let all your gifts to us be blessed, blessed are you our daily bread, may the world be clothed and fed.   Amen.