National Treasure Series

NATIONAL TREASURE

A STUDY ON THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT: PART XXI (WEALTH)

INTRO: This woman definitely has a master, you decide.

Rah, Rah, Rah, Robbery

Cops: Teen cheerleader stole $187 from wheelchair-bound Georgia boy

JULY 8--A teenage cheerleader stole $187 from a wheelchair-bound boy who had earned the money selling t-shirts for a charity, police charge. Chelsea Steele, 17, was arrested last Friday, a few hours after she allegedly robbed Joseph Green at a Marietta, Georgia community pool house where Green was "selling t-shirts and hats...for charity," according to a criminal warrant. Steele, who attends Sprayberry High School, is listed as a member of the school’s varsity cheerleading squad in a roster available for downloading from the school’s web site (though it appears that her name was scrubbed elsewhere from the site following her July 3 bust). Steele, pictured below in a Cobb County Sheriff’s Office mug shot, is facing a felony robbery count (she was also hit with an underage alcohol possession rap). Police are investigating whether Steele had accomplices, since she was spotted fleeing the pool house in the company of a friend, with whom she departed the area in a Ford Taurus.

TRANSITION: Some people will do anything for money. But why? Today, we continue our lesson on the Sermon on the Mount, or in this week’s case, the Sermon on the Amount.

BIBLE VERSE: Matthew 6:19-24

6:19 “Do not accumulate for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. 6:20 But accumulate for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. 6:21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

6:22 “The eye is the lamp of the body. If then your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light. 6:23 But if your eye is diseased, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!

6:24 “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.

TRANSITION II: Yes, today we are talking about money. And don’t churches get a hard time talking about money. But do you know who talked about money a lot? Jesus did (my Bible has a list of Jesus parables, if a list can be attained, show it, I think most people would be surprised to find out that roughly 40% of Jesus’ recorded parables talk about money).

1. ACCUMULATION (OF WEALTH)

State of Famine: When it comes to an accumulation of wealth, it is important to save, to conserve. There are a lot of Proverbs written about saving up for the day of famine, etc (and if you didn’t know, our country is in a state of famine). 9.5% unemployment and rising. Many families were prepared, many are not. And some who are prepared are stuck because of so many others that did not.

Waiting Room Principle: I’ve heard wealth put this way, we are all living in a waiting room—its just most of us think we are living in heaven. Seriously, people buy all sorts of extravagant items, hot cars, fancy paintings, bling bling (think of some funny youth trends here if it pops in your head), but it is really foolish. This world is a doctor’s waiting room, and we spend all our lives decorating it. Sadly, some never even get to go in and meet the good doctor.

All Goes Back into the Box: Let me put it to you one more way. Life is a board game (maybe even have a board game on hand for this), and the game is fun to play. Even Monopoly that goes on and on and on. But when life is over, it all goes back into the box. Some people have a whole lot of things that go back into the box. What concerns me…is what souls go to heaven! Does that concern you? Look at this next verse.

BIBLE VERSE: Philippians 3:7-8

3:7 But these assets I have come to regard as liabilities because of Christ. 3:8 More than that, I now regard all things as liabilities compared to the far greater value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things – indeed, I regard them as dung! – that I may gain Christ,

2. TREASURE

What is Treasure? Of course, treasure does include money, gold, jewelry, etc. That is true. But treasure also refers to our personal beliefs, our friends, our family—anything with value to us. That is real treasure.

THE 3 D’s:

A. Durability: When deciding on a major purchase, one must ask this question: How Long Will It Last?