Being Heavenly Minded | Liberty at Home

They're so heavenly minded that they're no earthly good.

Have you heard this line before? Let's talk about why it's oh so

wrong on this week's episode of Liberty at Home.

Hey now, welcome to this week's episode of Liberty at Home

brought to you by the Liberty Baptist Church of Easton and

powered by Easton Community Access Television.

I'm your host, Pastor Adam Rivero, here to bring you

another 5 minute episode of biblical truth and

encouragement. And today, as always, we're

broadcasting from the beautiful town of Easton, MA, where the

leaves are falling everywhere and even people with Boston

accents are saying it's fall y'all.

Today we'll be reading a portion of the Sermon on the Mount as we

consider that old saying that they're so heavily minded that

they're no earthly good. So join me in Matthew chapter 6

Matthew 6 · chapter mention

as I read beginning in verse #19 it says lay not up for

yourselves. Treasures upon earth, where moth

and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves breakthrough and steal.

But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where

neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do

not breakthrough nor steal. For where your treasure is,

there will your heart be also. Our language has been affected

by the Bible far more than many people realize.

There's a host of common phrases that have been used so often

that many people don't even realize they originated from the

Bible. Have you ever been at your wit's

end trying to finish something at the 11th hour?

Hey, it's just a reminder that you have feet of clay.

You don't have to see the writing on the wall to know that

many of these phrases, and many more like them, are all biblical

in origin. On the other hand, there's a

litany of phrases that seem to come from the Bible but can't be

found anywhere within the pages of this holy book.

While cleanliness is next to godliness, you won't find it in

the Bible, nor will you see the spurious line God helps those

who help themselves, or even the famous maxim God won't give you

more than you can bear. And that one's a personal pet

beeve of mine that will save for another episode in the future.

And then there's the phrase I know you've heard before.

They're so heavenly minded that they're no earthly good.

While this expression may have a spiritual ring to it, it's very

ideas faulty. The premise that someone could

be so dedicated to their faith that they are of no functional

youth on earth is a strange one. Plus, let's be honest, how many

people have you ever met that would even fall into this

category in the 1st place? So rather than dwell on that old

saying, I want to reverse the order of this phrase to give us

a different thought to consider. As a Christian, I believe it's

possible to be so earthly minded that we're no heavenly good.

See the difference? Now consider my reasoning for a

moment. The Bible tells us that we're

pilgrims here on this earth, travelers who are here for a

time so brief that James chapter 4, verse 14 compares it to a

James 4:14

vapor. Although our time in this life

is short, in light of eternity, it's easy to become infatuated

with the things of this life, well outright ignoring the

things of eternal importance. In today's text from the Sermon

on the Mount, Jesus explained the error of being earthly

minded and not giving any thought to the life to come.

Now, I don't know many Christians who are so heavily

minded that they can't figure out how to walk and chew gum at

the same time. Yet I believe many Christians

would have to admit how difficult it is to put the words

of Jesus into practice. Lay not out for yourselves

treasures upon earth, where moth and rust up corrupt, and where

thieves breakthrough and steal. But lay up for yourselves

treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth

corrupt, and where thieves do not breakthrough nor steal.

So how do we develop the mindset where laying up treasures in

heaven is a priority? How do we break out of the mold

of living for the day-to-day with no consideration for things

that are heavenly good? I believe the best way to do

this is to give our greatest effort and attention to the

things that have everlasting importance, like focusing less

on accruing wealth and focusing more on giving it.

Soak up less of the 24 hour news cycle and feed yourself with the

eternal Word of God instead. Talk to fewer people about the

latest game on TV and spend more time sharing the good news of

the gospel. Paul illustrates this so vividly

in First Timothy 48 by saying, For bodily exercise profiteth

little, but godliness is profitable unto all things,

having the promise of the life that now is and of that which is

to come. It's not that exercise or

finances or the news or even leisure is immaterial.

Quite the contrary, however, Paul reminds young Timothy not

to miss eternal issues of real importance at the expense of

more temporary ones. Friend, if all this talk of

heavenly things makes you feel like you're at your wit's end,

don't distress. By avoiding an earthly mindset,

believers in Christ will actually find life more joyful,

more liberating, and more fulfilling than they ever

dreamed possible. So where is your mind today?

It's a worthy question when I pray we can all answer correctly

before the 11th hour. And you know, Speaking of the

clock, it seems that it's time to call it a day for this week's

episode of Liberty at Home. And while we may be out of time

for today, there's never a bad time to visit Liberty Baptist

Church. You can find us at 800

Washington St. across from Easton Pool and Spa here at

Easton. And we meet every Sunday

morning, Sunday night, and Wednesday night.

Check us out on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, all the

podcast platforms or at my libertybaptist.org.

Well, don't forget that where the Spirit of the Lord is, there

is Liberty. I'm Pastor Adam Rivero and I'm

signing off from get another episode of Liberty at Home.