The Best Gift Ever
Even though we acknowledge this truth, however, many of us experience the pressure to have decorations, parties, and gifts that we really can't afford. So today, I ask you to focus on what really matters at Christmas not by looking to the new born Christ lying in a manger but by looking instead at the story of the rich, young ruler.
And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before Him and asked Him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’” And he said to Him, “Teacher, all these I have kept from my youth.” And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”
Mark 10:17-21 ESV
This story has been on my heart for a week. I couldn't see how this had anything to do with Christmas until God showed me. This young man came to Christ wanting to know what HE could do to EARN eternal life. In Jesus' way of teaching without directly answering the question, He tries to show the ruler that he cannot do anything to earn eternal life because it is given as a gift.
Jesus came to the earth and lived as a man to give us life. It is a gift from God, not something we can earn.
Jesus tells this wealthy man the same thing He tells everyone, "Cut your heart strings to everything of this world and come to Me. Follow Me." Don't be distracted by Jesus telling the ruler to sell all his possessions. Jesus tells him this because it is those very possessions that the man has secured his heart to. So, I ask you - What is your heart attached to?
Is there anything you value more than Jesus Christ?
Jesus came to earth to make us right with God, our Father in Heaven. He asks us to put Him first in our heart, to value Him more than anything else in this world. In exchange not only will we have true treasures in heaven but we will also have life and life more abundant (John 10:10).
In Matthew 6:19-21 Jesus tells us to lay up treasures in heaven where moth and rust cannot destroy them. Our heart is our treasure chest. Jesus lives in our heart. But again I ask you, what is your heart attached to?
This morning in church, I was stopped by the following verse:
But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart.
Luke 2:19
Mary shows us what is to be treasured and where we are to keep them. The word of God is a priceless treasure that we are meant to store in our heart. Just as Mary took the words of the shepherds who declared the message of life given to them from heaven regarding Jesus, we are to take the words that God speaks and hold them in high esteem within our hearts.
We cannot let the things of this world distract us from the truth of God's Word. Life is a gift. We only get one shot at it on earth. We have to guard our hearts from the lies of the enemy. Falling prey to the deception that Christmas is about spending money and possessions will lead us round and round the mountain of frustration, lack, and unhappiness.
Turn back to Christ. Make Him the most prized treasure in your heart. Let nothing and no one move Him out of first place. Surrender daily to His all knowing wisdom and watch Him open doors of opportunity and adventure that you never would have dreamed you could have.
The greatest treasure in this world is found only in the lives of those whose hearts are only filled by Jesus Christ.
Heidirn
Is there anything you value more than Jesus Christ?
Jesus came to earth to make us right with God, our Father in Heaven. He asks us to put Him first in our heart, to value Him more than anything else in this world. In exchange not only will we have true treasures in heaven but we will also have life and life more abundant (John 10:10).
In Matthew 6:19-21 Jesus tells us to lay up treasures in heaven where moth and rust cannot destroy them. Our heart is our treasure chest. Jesus lives in our heart. But again I ask you, what is your heart attached to?
This morning in church, I was stopped by the following verse:
But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart.
Luke 2:19
Mary shows us what is to be treasured and where we are to keep them. The word of God is a priceless treasure that we are meant to store in our heart. Just as Mary took the words of the shepherds who declared the message of life given to them from heaven regarding Jesus, we are to take the words that God speaks and hold them in high esteem within our hearts.
We cannot let the things of this world distract us from the truth of God's Word. Life is a gift. We only get one shot at it on earth. We have to guard our hearts from the lies of the enemy. Falling prey to the deception that Christmas is about spending money and possessions will lead us round and round the mountain of frustration, lack, and unhappiness.
Turn back to Christ. Make Him the most prized treasure in your heart. Let nothing and no one move Him out of first place. Surrender daily to His all knowing wisdom and watch Him open doors of opportunity and adventure that you never would have dreamed you could have.
The greatest treasure in this world is found only in the lives of those whose hearts are only filled by Jesus Christ.
Heidirn
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