Who is #1?

Who is #1?

What do we treasure most in life? Is it a person, our money, or our possessions?
Who holds the number one position in our hearts? Is it really God?
This country is so amazingly rich and filled with comfortable distractions. Our
lives are easy in comparison to many places around the world. We can get in a
car and drive wherever we want, eat what we want when we want. Do whatever
we want to do for the most part. Then again, we don’t have to go anywhere, we
can have everything delivered to our front door! Either way we are blessed to be
burdened with such luxuries.
Don’t get me wrong - I love door dash, and Amazon is not a bad thing. What I
am saying is we have it really good, and I wonder if I am putting this world and
its pleasures ahead of God. Jesus should hold the most special place in our lives.
He teaches us:
 Earthly Treasures are Temporary and Vulnerable
Jesus says, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths
and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.” (Matt 6:19) He’s
pointing out that material possessions (money, clothes, valuable items, etc.)
are inherently fragile and fleeting. Moths can eat through fabric, rust can
corrode metal, and thieves can steal what you’ve accumulated. The core
message here is that anything we hold dear on earth is subject to decay,
damage, and loss. It’s an unreliable investment for our ultimate security and
happiness.
 Heavenly Treasures are Permanent and Secure
In contrast, Jesus instructs, “But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven,
where neither moths nor vermin destroy, and where thieves do not break in
and steal.” (Matt 6:20)
“Treasures in heaven” refers to spiritual, eternal rewards and values. This isn’t
about literal gold in the sky, but rather about actions, attitudes, and a life lived
in accordance with God’s will. Examples of “heavenly treasures” include acts
of kindness, faith, love for God and others, righteousness, service, and seeking
God’s kingdom above all else. These are things that cannot be taken away or
destroyed by earthly circumstances.
 Your Heart Follows Your Treasure
Jesus concludes with a powerful statement: “For where your treasure is, there
your heart will be also.” (Matt 6:21)
This verse highlights the deep connection between what we value most and the
direction of our hearts, desires, and ultimately, our lives. If our primary focus
is on accumulating earthly possessions, our hearts will be consumed by worry
about them, by the pursuit of more, and by the fear of losing them. Our
affections and loyalty will be tied to temporary things. However, if we
prioritize heavenly treasures, our hearts will be oriented towards God and
eternal values. This leads to a life of generosity, trust in God, and a focus on
what truly lasts.
Jesus urges us to :
 Shift our perspective: Don’t invest your life’s energy and passion into things

that are temporary and can be lost.
 Re-evaluate our priorities: Focus on what has eternal value and
significance.
 Understand the true nature of security: Real security and lasting fulfillment
come from a relationship with God and living according to His principles,
not from material wealth.
This teaching isn’t a condemnation of having possessions, but rather a warning
against letting possessions possess us and dictate our hearts. It’s about where our
ultimate devotion and hope lie. We are a product of our priorities. So I challenge
us to examine ourselves and discover who or what is our number one priority?
- Terry Ryan

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“ Heaven Holds All ”

Tillit S. Teddlie is said to have written some 130 hymns. He died in 1987 at the
age of 102. At about the midpoint in his life he visited the old homeplace where
he had lived as a child. He remembered what it had been like when he was a boy,
but now found that much had changed. It was in shambles. Trees had died, and
the barn was falling down.
He sat down on the ground, leaned against a tree, and turned to a blank page in
his pocket-sized Bible. There he wrote the words:

Earth holds no treasures but perish with using,
However precious they be.
Yet there’s a country to which I am going.
Heaven holds all to me.

That hymn has inspired thousands of worshippers since then to think of heaven
and set their affections on things above.
We sometimes sing, “This world is not my home . . .” Do we really feel like our
citizenship is in heaven - that we are just pilgrims, making our way to our eternal
home?
If we will focus our mind’s eye on “things that are not seen” - the eternal things -
we can joyfully sing, “Heaven holds all to me!”
- Leonard White



We should never let the things we don’t have,
or can’t have,
or shouldn’t have,
Spoil the enjoyment of the things we do have.

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