Do & Don't With Riches (1 Timothy 6:17-19)

You have your bibles, if you'll turn with me to

First Timothy chapter six this morning, First tim Timothy chapter six,

and if you'll turn to verse seventeen, that'll be the

passage that we'll be in together this morning. You know,

if you ever notice, it seems like everything that we

have today comes with the label. I got from office

this morning, a little extension cord that I use in

my office, and even look at it right here, there's

a label. And on this label it comes with things

that I should do with this extension cord and things

that I should not do. I mean, just very simple

do's and don'ts. I mean, do not run through doorways,

whole ceilings, walls, right, make sure you what I am

to do. I'm going to insert it into the outlet

just in case I did not know that. You know,

don't modify, bend right, don't use it, says A four.

So there's do's and don'ts on simplest things in our life,

right as far as extension cord. But you know, I

did notice today, and I don't know if you've ever noticed.

I do have something else and on it, although there

may be a dozen don't for extension cord I do

notice that I have something else right dollar bill. Have

you ever noticed on the dollar there's no do's and don'ts.

It doesn't say this is what you should do, this

is what you don't do right, And many times that's

how we approach our money. Right. We think, oh, well,

you know, there's a lot of things I'm to do

with certain things, and what I shouldn't do with extension cords.

But as far as my money, I can do whatever

I want to do with my money. You know, the

Bible does give us instructions this morning of what we

are to do with our riches, what we're to do

with the money that God gives us, what we're to

do with our wealth. And so over the last few weeks,

if you remember, we've been talking a lot about possessions

and money and material and Paul has spoken a lot

about the importance of us as believers not having the

love of money or materials.

He's condemned last week he's told Timothy to flee.

From the love of money, to not love money or materials,

but to flee from the love of money. You can

imagine as we come to first Timothy, there's one thing

that's happening in the Church of Timothy. There's people in

the church that are rich, to have money. As you

think about it this last series and Paul talking about

condemning the love of money, condemning to flee from money,

there would be many in the church who might feel condemned.

And so Paul returns back to this subject to address

those in the church who may have money, who may

have riches, and what they are to do with their riches,

what they are to do with it, what they are

not to do with their riches.

You know, as I approached this passage.

This week and have been reading and studying, I think

the one thing that I was fearful of, and I

want to just just speak clearly to you my fear

is as we read this passage this morning, as you're

sitting in this church this morning, or maybe watching online,

you might think, well, good man, man, this sermon is

not for me. Praise the Lord. He's talking about rich today.

I am not rich. This is good. There might be

some other people in the room, but it's not me

he's talking about this morning, He's talking about others. Can

I tell you, if you if you think about it

this morning, all of us here today, if we live

in America, we're rich according to the World Center. Do

you know today, according to the World Bank, forty million

people living in our world lived at less than two

dollars and fifteen cent per day. That's seven hundred and

eighty five dollars a year. Seven hundred million people living

on this world live on less than two dollars a day. Actually,

three point five billion people in our world, that's forty

four percent of the world's population live on less than

six dollars and eighty five cent a day. That's two thousand,

roughly twenty five hundred dollars a year. If you take

those averages and do some calculations, if you make more

than fifteen thousand dollars a year, you're in the top

fifteen to twenty percent of the world Economically, you could say,

if you make thirty thousand dollars a year, you're in

the top eight to ten percent. If you make seventy

five thousand, you make roughly you're the top two to

five percent. If you make more than one hundred thousand,

your top one or two percent of the world. So

I would submit to you today, living in America, for

according to the World centered. We are blessed. God's granted

that's a lot as Americans. So I think this passage

applies to all of us today, no matter where we are,

God's blessed us. Living in America, we have opportunity, we

have ability to have much. So what are we to

do with these What are we to do? What are

we not to do with the money that God's given

of the riches that God's given us? So this morning,

let's examine what God's word says. You know, it may

not be a label on your chap book, they may

not be a label on your dollar. But God does

give us instructions of what we are to do with

the money that He's given us, what we're to do

with the wealth that He's given us. So let's be

faithful of stewards of God's word. And let's be a

state faithful steward of what God's given us. And let's

see what God's word says for us today. Would you

stand with me, let's read God's word together. It's first Timothy,

starting going to chapter six and we're going to read

in verse seventeen and we'll just read through the rest

of the book. Here. The Bible says One Timothy, chapter six,

verse seventeen. As for the rich in this presence, age

charge it not to be haughty, nor set their hopes

on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly

provides with us everything to enjoy, there to do good,

to be rich and good works, to be generous and

ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as

a good foundation for the future, so they may take

hold of what is which is truly life. Oh Timothy,

guard the deposit and trusted to you. Avoid irrelevant Bible

and contradictions that are falsely called knowledge, for by professing

it some have swerved from the faith. Grace be with you.

Let's pray together, Father, God, we thank you that you

have blessed us. You blessed us e live in America.

You've blessed us with a wonderful country, a wonderful church,

wonderful homes, so many provisions that God, you've blessed us

with today and God, we acknowledge the Lord. Every good

gift comes from you. Lord, you are a good God,

and we thank you for the things that you've given us. Lord.

I prayed today we'd be faithful stewards of what you've

given us, that God, we would consider today what your

word has for us, what your word says for us. Lord,

I pray today as I prepared. Lord, you know my heart. Lord,

I pray today not for head knowledge, but heart knowledge. Lord,

I pray that you would change our hearts. Lord, that

you could victim hearts by your spirit, and you'd lead

us to heart change, not just head knowledge. So speak

Lord through your words today. Lord, feel me, Lord, with

your spirit, feel me with your words, not my own.

And Lord, may I decrease and may you increase. And Lord,

may we hear today what your word says. Lord. We

love you, We thank you Lord for your word for us,

and your name. We pray, Amen, you may be see them.

So Paul commands the wealthy. If you could think about

in the churches at the time, there would be wealthy. Actually,

all the early churches, the first churches, were actually at homes,

and so in order to commodate the size of the churches,

the churches would meet in the wealthy homes of church

members there. And so Paul commands those in the church

there who are wealthy what to do with their wealth,

what they are to do, and what they are not

to do with their wealthy. He begins with this passage. Look,

he has verse seventeen says asks for the rich. So

he just names who's addressing here in this present age,

and so he's speaking of he's identifying the rich there.

And as I said, there's many the rich would lead

the churches. Actually in Classions, chapter four, verse fifteen, Paul

has given greetings. He's asked at the end of the

letter of clautions, and he gives greetings the different people

in the church. And one of the person people that

he greets is a lady named Nimpha Nympha. It says

in first Crime, in not first Clautions, Classus four fifteen,

give my greetings to the brothers in laot to see them,

and to Nimphah and the church in her house. Mempha

was known as somebody was very wealthy, and she had

a large house in the church of layout to see

him bet in her home. Wells know other people in

the Bible that had a lot of wealth. Joseph Arimathea

was a rich man, according to Matthew twenty seven fifty seven.

And when it was evening they came to a rich

man of Arimathea named Joseph, who was a disciple of Jesus.

We know it's this Joseph of Arimathea that when Jesus

has died, they took Jesus's body and put in in

his grace. So we know there was rich people and

in the New Testament church, and in Jesus' time. We

know in the Old Testament Solomon was known for his riches, right,

he is known for the witches of his home and

his kingdom. And the queen of Sheba what heard of

Solomon's great wealth and his great wisdom, and she went

to seek that he had the favor of God because

what God had given him. So we see that there

was many of those. And that's who's addressing here in

this passage as for the rich, but not just what

else he says. He uses the term here looking with it.

It says, as for the rich in this present age,

he's one. He's I think it's important that he's ment

and he's he's talking about this present age is is

their lifetime. Right. As for the rich of this present age,

he's he's talking about here in their lifetime they have money.

He will see, we will see in a little bit.

He doesn't compare. In contrast, he talks about those who

have wealth in this life are in their life. Then

he also talks about future, those who what they might

have in the future. So we'll go back to that

in a moment. But he says, as for the rich

in this present age, now look at the next word,

charge them. So who's he talking to. He's talking to Timothy,

right first Timothy is is Paul writing a letter to Timothy,

who's the pastor of the church in Ephesus. So he

tells Paul tells Timothy, Timothy, as the pastor, you're to

who you are to speak to the rich, and you

are to charge them. The word charge, there is another

term we use. Is is the same Greek words used

to command. Paul uses this word probably four different times

in the letter of first Timothy, and he uses it interchangeably.

Sometimes he uses charge, sometimes he used command, and in

one Timothy for eleven he said command and teach these things.

So Paul is instructing Timothy very simply to command the

rich and what they're to do with their money. Now

that sounds like a lot of fun as a pastor.

For me to tell you what you should do with

your money, right, I tell you that's I've been a

pastor for a very long time and it always gets

really quiet in the room when the preachers preaching on

money or tithing, whatever it may be. But I want

you to understanding this pastor of scripture, this was a

command by God giving to the pastor of what he

was to do and how he was to speak, and

what he was to speak about to the church in emphasis.

You know here at time and time again the different

times through my ministry, I don't need any preacher telling

me what to do. I tell you there's things that

I have must address it to you according to the

word of God. And if I don't do that, I'm

being unfaithful to what God's commanded of me, what God's

charged and instructed to me. So listen and with all

love that I have this morning, it probably would not

be my choice to speak on money. But God's instructed us,

and God's instructed me to charge you, to command you

according to what you should do with what God's given you.

To understand that it's not because I want to do

this or to have arterior motives. Right, this is what

God's commanded Timothy that he's to command to the church something.

It's very important to understand that that God word instructs

pastors to command believers on how they are to obey scripture,

and in particular, on this instance, it's about money. Here,

listen to what he says as for rich.

Charge them not first.

Here's the first instruction he uses. By the way, if

you want to follow through the grammar, here he uses

a set of infinitive clauses to give these instructions infinitives.

Starts with the word too, and so you see that

happening throughout this passage. Charge them not to be here's

the first two or the things not to do. Not

to be haughty. The word haughty is a is the

it's only used this one time in all the New Testament.

It's a compound word, so two words coming together to

make one word. And it means to think or cherish

like exalted thoughts. That it's the idea of someone thinking

a lot of themselves. We would say they're arrogant. Right,

if someone thinks too highly of themselves, we say that

person is arrogant, or that person is prideful. Right, they're

they're haldy. They think they're better. They're arrogant. They think

they're better than others. Why because of their money, because

of their wealth. And Paul is telling these rich as

for the rich command them first, what are they not

to do with their money?

Number one, they are not to be haughty with their money.

They're not think because they have money they are better

than others. In particular in relationship with this church, that

there's people in the church you have more money than others,

and charge them not to think that they're better than

others in the church right or outside the church. Furthermore,

I can remember you ever think about this? And sometimes

if we're not careful, we have a tendency to think

we're better than others. Right we say nine nine n Pastor,

I don't do that. No, no, no, I'm not that way.

But at times, if we're not careful, we can think

about what we have and what others don't have. I

think probably one of the greatest images I saw of

this was when we were on a mission trip. And

there's a few of you here today that were with

me in Georgia, and there we were ministering to these

refugee children. There were Kurds and they were probably one

of these living less than two thousand dollars a year,

and their parents would send them to the streets the bag.

The parents would give them an allotment of every day

they were to go get a certain amount of money,

and if they didn't get that money, they would punish them.

Where as a result, these children were despised in the community, despise, hate,

It would they wouldn't even be acknowledged. I think it

was Devon was on a subway. They were going to

run some errands, and they were on a subway, I think,

going to one part of the city and the other.

And as they were on the subway, they noticed that

one of the kids that we were ministering, one of

these critish children, were on the subway and there was

some pandemonium, and then they looked over and saw one

of the kids, and they they called him over, and

the child came over and he was so excited that

the Americans was talking to him and he and Devin says,

he noticed that everybody on the train were watching and

they could not believe the Americans would even speak to

a child like that. You see that the natives or

locals got to where they looked down upon this, these

poor children, and they despise them. And I think at

times we can come across where we've got a lot

of things, and there are a lot of people as

around us that don't have what we have. Sometimes we

can look down upon them like the people in that

country look down upon those children. Listen as God's bless

us with many things that we should never use what

we have to look down upon others who don't have

what we have, whether there's a clothes or where there's

houses or whatever it may be, we have that the

others do not. We should never look down upon others

for what they don't have the what we do have.

And Paul was very clear upon that. And one we

we're never to look down upon others. We're not to

be haughty because of what we have and what others

do not have. You see, Secondly we're not to be

haughty because our riches. But secondly we're not to hope

in our riches. As into the passage scripture, Timothy says

here as for the rich in this presence, is charge

them not to be halty, but secondly, nor to set

their hopes on the uncertainty of riches. The term hope

is a term that Paul uses throughout Just throughout his writing,

he uses a virtue that we should have faith, hope,

and love. Is commonly the triad that's used a lot.

The hope is the idea that we as believers. It's

a theological term. It's the idea that we we put

a firm expectation in God, we put a trust in God.

A it's used to that idea of a condition that

we're hoping in something, and what are we hoping in?

We're hoping in God. That's where I hope is. But

here Paul uses this virtue we're to strive as believers,

that we're to have hope in God. And he uses

it contrary that what the danger is for those who

are rich not there to put their hope in God

and put their hope in what they're riches, in their

in their money. He charges us not to be halty,

not to be prideful, not to be arrogant, look down

upon others who don't have what we have. But secondly,

we're not hoping our riches, we're hoping God. We shouldn't

hope in how much money we went have in our

bank account. What we have in our savings, our money

market are our investment portfolio.

We're to put our hope in the Lord.

I think I remember I told you a few weeks

ago that God says, or Jesus says very clearly, and

by the way, Paul parallels his instructions here with Jesus'

destructions that you can't serve two masters. Right. But here

if you remember a few weeks ago I talked about

the seahorse, right, and that the seesaw. You remember that

you would get on one side and the other person

get on them. As one go up, the other one

go down. And I said, Paul links or one writer

says that our worship for things is connected, and you

can't love money and love God. If your love for

for money increases, your love for God will decrease. Right,

If your love for God increases, your love for money

will decrease. Your love or your worship of things is connected.

And that's what Paul is saying here again. You can't

have hope and money and have hope in God. You've

got to have your hope in the Lord. Matthew six nineteen.

This is the passage. Why should we not put hope

and riches well, he says, here because nor set their

hopes in the uncertainty of riches. Why should we not

put hoping riches because riches is uncertain. It's the same

imagery that Paul, I mean Jesus gives in Matthew six

nineteen through twenty one. He says, don't lay up for

yourselves treasures on earth, where malt and rush destroy, where

thieves break in and still, but lay up for yourselves

treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroy, where

these do not break in.

For where your treasure is, there will be your heart. Also,

you see in both passages he seemed like.

Don't store your treasures on earth, why because they're uncertain. Right,

rust comes in, thieves come in. But lay your treasure

in heaven, right because it's certain there. Riches here is uncertain.

Maybe a few years ago, I was, I think we're

in Myrtle Beach somewhere, was playing golf with a friend.

I was I think I was pasturing there at the time,

and we were playing golf on the golf course, and

that was time for me to get a little snacks.

I have me a pack of knaves and a drink,

and I was eating my little crackers, and we were

going down the hole and it was time for me

to hit my shots. So I left my crackers on

the seat and I went to go hit my golf

ball and looked over and suddenly I looked up and

there was a bird that was flying by, and I

had a cracker in his mouth, and I realized he

had my cracker in his mouth. You know, I feel

like sometimes that's the way riches are. Right. We have something,

We've got it stored up back waiting, right, we're waiting

for a moment where we're gonna need it come to find.

Something comes along with an emergency, and it can be

a washing machine, It can be a car that breaks down.

It can be a.

Medical bill that comes in. And it comes in like that.

Bird, and it sweeps in and it takes away from

your savings and just when you thought it was going

to be there.

And I feel good that things are stable and things are.

In place, and then something comes along that sweeps in

an emergency that sweeps away your savings. Right Why, because

money is uncertain. No matter how much you think you

can save or how much you can hope in it,

you cannot anticipate what is coming in the future, no

matter how prepared you think you might be.

Do you know today they tell us medical bills and

health insurance, I mean costs are the leading causes for

personal bankruptcy in America.

Did you know that medical bills and I know not

just coming after that, that industry. I'm just saying that's

and I gives you the illustration that we might think

we can save.

Up right, but we don't know what's coming.

This life is uncertain. It's the same thing that Paul

was saying, the same thing that Jesus is saying. Don't

put your hope in something that is uncertain. Set your

hope and who in God listen to the imagery, but

nor set their hopes on certainty of riches. But what

you're to set your hope on your set your hope

on God. Why? Because God is the one who RICHI

provides us with everything. Why are you hoping the Lord

and not into riches? And riches is uncertain, But you

hope on God because God is the one who provides

everything for you. It is that today me said this

before everything that you have today, your home, your car,

your clothes, the money of the bank, that should go

to bow Jangles with later on after church. Everything that

you have, God's given you. It's not by your hands,

it's not by your mind. It's not by your power.

It's not by your ability, it's not by your knowledge.

It's not because of your academics. It's not because of

what you've chosed in your career. Everything that you've received,

God has richly provided for you, and therefore we should

hope in Him. And we see this by the way

and First Timothy, if you turn back with me a

few chapters. This is the second time Paul has mentioned

this idea that everything God has given us, everything that

we've received in this life, that's given by God. And

First Timothy four, Chapter four, verse three says, who forbid

me marriage and requires abstinence from foods that created by

God to be received with thanksgiving for by those who

believe and know the truth. For everything created by God

is good. Nothing is to be rejected if it's received

with thanksgiving, for it was made holy by the word

of God and prayer. Everything that we have have been

given by God and to us for all of us.

We're to receive it, but we'll receive it with thanksgiving.

God's given us everything. I think everything is important to

understand everything is a gift from God. Right. We didn't

do it to anything to earn it. God gave it

to us. Why did he give it to us? He

gave it to us for us to us to enjoy,

and we're enjoyed by what giving him. Thanksgiving today? Can

I ask you this very simply? Where's your hope today?

Are you're hoping that things of uncertain riches? Or you're

hoping is the one who's given you? Are you're hoping

the one is you're hoping the gift? Or is your

hope in the giver? You know? The Bible says that

no one can serve two masters. You're the hate the

one or love the other. He'll be devoted to one

or despise the other. You cannot serve God and money today?

Where's your hope? What we are not to do with money,

with our material, with our wealth. We're not to be

haughty with it. We were not hope in it. We're

hoping the one who gave, who gives? Next, Paul goes

into what are we to do with the riches that

He's given us? Look at what the Bible says here

verse eighteen. He picks up the deues, and they are

to do good, to be rich in good works.

So where do we are to do we First, we

are to.

Do good with riches. The idea of good here is

the idea of using riches to care for others, to

benefit others. Acts fourteen seventeen Paul's describes God, who gives

good gifts to us, who does good by giving to us.

He says, here, what does God give us? He gives

us fruitful seasons. He gives us abundance in harvests. Is

what he's describing here, that they might provide for their families,

to provide for their means. That's the way he says

in Acts fourteen seventeen. Yet He did not leave himself

without a witness. He did good by giving you rains

from heaven, fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with food and gladness.

Gives us the imagery that God did good for us.

And what was the good that He did for us?

He did good bye, providing for us, giving us what

we need with rains, giving us what we need with

fruitful seasons, satisfying us with food and gladness. That's the

idea of God doing good for us, and Paul commands

us to do good with our riches. Listen to the

imagery there, do good to be in this idea. He's

using this imagery of wealth right, and he's of being

rich with money, but how he now uses it to

be rich in what good deeds. Not be rich in

material possessions, but be rich in actions actions for the

Lord there to do good, to be rich in good

works there. I remember we were kind of right out

of seminary many many years ago and we went to

our first church in South Carolina and using that idea

of something coming along we weren't prepared for. We just

had bought a house, we had Chloe and I started

having some dental issues and I needed a tooth that

was giving me a lot of pain, and I would

just have the money we had. We were just had

little to nothing. And I remember we were at Hickor

Grove and Conway and we had a revival and a

pastor came to visit and speak that for us that week,

and there was a guy that was with him that

traveled along with the pastor of that time he was

speaking at the time, and his name was Dan Dan

was a dentist and he would travel along with his

pastor when he diod revival and they would play golf

and space the time together. And so he wanted to

take us to play golf, me and the pastor there

in Pretchy, Jerry. He wants to go play golf with them.

And so while we were playing golf, we were just talking.

He told me, he said dentist. And I just something

mentioned about that I was the Missues and he had

a dentist office and easily. And he says, I'll tell

you what, Johnathan, if you'll travel easily, he said, I'll

fix your tooth for you for free. And I traveled

to South Carolina. I traveled up to easily and he did.

He repaired my tooth for me for free. And I

asked him one day, or talked to him. He says,

I thanked him. He says, listen, you don't need to

thank me. He said, my parents are missionaries. And he

said I grew up on the mission field, but a

little to nothing. And he says, and I when God

provided for me, I knew God was given me wealth

that I might care for those and use it for

good works. And he says, there I get joy in

using what God's given me to bless others who around me.

You see. You see Dan had this principle that he

knew that God had given him the wealth that he

might be generous and give to others and care for

those who around him had needs around him. He used

it for good works. Just challenge you to think about today.

God's been generous with you.

He's given you good, good riches, good things.

He's satisfied with you with fruitful good years in your

work career. He's given you good, fruitful seasons. He's provided

food for you, provide for your home, provides your home,

provides you a lot of different things. We are to

be good in doing good for others, caring for others,

which you see this. He goes a little further. There's

there to do good, to be rich and good works,

he says. He there's another inventitive there to be generous

and ready to share. God uses this idea. Paul uses

this idea that we are to be generous and giving,

ready to share God's given us that we might give

and share with others. You know, we last week we

talked about these virtues that Scripture talks about virtues that

we should grow in right and that was at the

beginning of the passage. Last week he says, oh, verse eleven,

but I ask for you, a man of God, flee

these things pursue right, righteousness, godliness, faith, love, stepfasts, and gentleness.

These things we should pursue. These things we are to

grow in.

And we talked about set times that we have ambitions

that we want to grow in different areas of our life.

But how much do we say God, I want to

grow in my righteousness. Personally, I want to grow in holiness.

I want to grow in these different things, steadfastness, gentleness.

You know, there was a church in Paul's time and

it was Church of Korns first Corinthians. Paul writes a

lot of them. And Paul was telling the church in

corinth about another church we know, like living in Durham.

You know the sister churches in the area. You know,

good things, they're doing, bad things, they are doing whatever

he may be. They heard testimonies or her testimony of

the good and he was telling a testimony of a

church church and they Macedonia was a church. And Paul

was telling karrinth about how the Church of Macedonia was growing.

They were growing in different things. They were growing in

faith as a church, they were growing in speech, they

were growing in knowledge, they were growing in earnestness, they

were growing in love. But one other area that Paul

really wanted the church in carinth to know about how

the church and Macedonia was growing is he wanted them

to know how they were growing in their giving.

You see, sometimes we think about all these different virtues.

But for Paul, one of the virtues that we are

to grow in, the disciplines that we are to grow in,

is the the disciplines of giving. This is in what

he says in the Second Corinthians one eight through seventy.

I want you to know, brothers, about the grace of

God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia,

for instance, severe test of reflection, their abundance of joy

and their extreme poverty have overflowed in the wealth of

generosity for their on their part, for they gave according

to their means, and I can testify beyond their means

of their own accord, begging us earnestly for the favor

for taking part in the relief of the saints. And

this not as we expected.

But they gave themselves first to the Lord, and then.

By the will of God to us. Accordingly, we urged

Titus that that he has started, so he would complete

among you this act of grace. But as you excel

in everything, in faith and speech, and knowledge, and earnestness

and love, for you see that you excel in this

act of grace. Also was saying, listen, I can tell

you that the Church of Macedonia, they're growing. And see

Paul was taking up an offering because there was a

disaster to hit Jerusalem and they were taking up money

to bring relief to the churches in Jerusalem. In Macedonia.

Although they were they lived in poverty, they gave above

their means, and Paul gives them praise.

Can I tell you today I want you to hear

this that.

You individually, I challenge you, according to the word of

the Lord, to grow in your generosity and giving and

your tithing. I challenge you every day every year to

look it says am I growing in my giving? Or

if I become stale, I just give and I don't

think about it. I want to grow in that. But

I want to challenge you too, not only individually, but

corporately as a church, we must consider God, You've given

us some You've blessed Bethesda. How are we growing in

giving to those in need as a church body. I

tell you one thing that's really burdened me as a

pastor is I've been a part of churches that have

a lot of money that God's blessing them with, but

they use it in no way to advance the Gospel

in their community and to the end of the world.

And I think God will hold us accountable for being

faithful individually, but God will also hold us accountable for

being faithful corporately as a church. So may we grow

in our generosity with our riches as this, as Paul says,

grow in this act of grace. Also give generously because

God's given generously to us once you see. Lastly, as

we finish up this morning, thus storing up treasure for

themselves as a good foundation for the future, why why

should we Lastly, we are to do good with riches.

We're to give generously with riches. Lastly, we do lay

up treasures with your riches? What should we do?

We should lay up treasures? You ever heard that term?

It's a term that Paul, I mean Jesus used in

Matthew six, don't lay up for yourselves treasure on earth,

where mouth and rust destroy, but these break in, But

lay yourselves up treasures in heaven. Have you ever thought

about how do I do that? I mean, there's not like,

you know, there's an atm down the street, a bank

of heaven, you know, and you go in and make

a deposit and know that one day you'll get an internity.

There's nothing like that. So how do we do that? Well,

Paul is explaining how we do that in this past

of scripture. How do we do that? By giving generosity,

by giving, giving what God gives us. Use that in

giving to the church, giving to those in need around us.

That's how we store up treasures in heaven. You know.

It's interesting as we go to Tanzania. One thing I

noticed from the first time went in Tanzania is you

just walk and you would you go through villages and

you would just see like a property and you would

see land, but you would just see foundation and you

would see that. Then you'd go to another house and

you'd see the land and you'd see just walls. And

one day I asked the guy we were with, I said,

why do you do? What do they Why is it

like that? Why is these houses incomplete houses everywhere? He

says in Tanzania, he says, you don't do home loans.

You don't go get debt, get a home and build

the house. You build the house as you have money

for it. So you may only have money for the land.

So you buy the land. And then once you get

a little bit money for the foundation, and you take

that money, you get the foundation. And when you have

money for the walls, you build them and you just

stagger it. Right. Well, I tell you that because that's

the idea of this passage of Scripture. Paul is saying,

if we store treasures in heaven and we give faithfully

right to the church and to those in needs around us,

he says it, it's storing up listen to the imagery,

thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation

for the future. He's given us this imagery that when

we giving, we're building to our heavenly foundation in heaven.

I want you to notice something in this passage of Scripture.

At the very beginning, he says, as for rich in

this present age, right, he's given this imagery that there

are those in the church who have riches here, but

it doesn't guarantee that they'll have riches in heaven. Do

you see that? You see? Only those who store up

treasures in heaven will have riches in heaven. We see this,

and I don't have time for this this morning, but

you see this in the Parable of Matthew twenty five

of the Parable of Talents. Right, God gives talents to

each one, and if they're faithful with their talents, then

they're given much more. And by the way in that parable,

I encourage you to go look at it, he is

speaking of the kingdom of heaven. He's talking about the

kingdom of both parables ahead of that in the parable

after it, it's all in reference to heaven, the future kingdom.

But listen the imagery Paul is saying here, if we

store up treasures, how we make sure we have something

in heaven even though we might have money here, doesn't

necessarily mean we'll have treasures in heaven. We do that

by storing up, by giving, being faithful to giving. You know,

we think about I was thinking about this today in

or the last few days, and you know, we really

do think a lot. In our world today, we really

do think about what we're saving for later. Even Dave

Ramsey has what we call it a investment calculator, and

you put in what you're investing right now to your

retirement plan and it will forecast and when you retire

how much money you have in savings. You know. Dave

Ramsey says that if a as an example in the

vestment calculator, if someone at age twenty five starts putting

one hundred dollars a month into retirement and he does

that one hundred dollars a month all the way till

he's sixty five, if you have over a million dollars

in savings, it's the idea of that I'm just slowly

putting something back that one day I'll have it at

the end.

And we think a lot about what we're investing.

Earthly today, but I want to challenge you, what are

you investing eternally? We'll think a lot about what we're

saving for the future, and we should do that. I'm

not negating the same. We shouldn't do that, but we

should also think about, God, how am I investing eternally

for not what I'll have one day? At my retirement,

but one day when I go to home to heaven,

how I'm investing in eternity. As we finish up today,

I just challenge you God's bless us. May we not

be haughty, We're not hoping our riches. May we do good,

do good with what God's given us, knowing everything God's

given us has been a gift. May we be generous

sharing what God's given us, be faithful stewards. And may

we store up treasures in heaven, not on earth or

mouth and rust come in, But may we store treasures

in heaven. You know, in the end this passage is

that Matthew he says that Matthew twenty five twenty nine.

For everyone who has been given, more will be given,

and he will have an abundance. But for one who

has not even what he has will be taken away,

and the cast and cast the worthless servant in the

utter darkness, that place where they'll be weeping and gnashing

of teeth. You know, in the passage of the Parable

of Talents, God's given blessings to all three in and

one was not faithful, and thus he was cast into

hell for eternity. You know, I think The important thing

as we close today is not what we do with

our money, not what we do with the possessions that

God give us. The most important things that were, thing

that we should think considered today of being a faithful

steward is what have we done with Jesus. You see,

for the man who has been given a lot, the

one thing he never received or ever put his trust

in with Jesus. You know today you may have money,

you may have a nice house, you may have a

nice car, you may have good health, you may have

a lot of different things, but that money, those possessions

will not get you into Heaven, and then I will

not get you a relationship with Jesus. The only one

thing that you and I all need today, and that

is a right relationship with Him. I ask you today,

not so much. I ask you today what are you

doing with God's given you money? But most importantly, what

have you done with Jesus. That's the most important question

we all must ask today. Would you pray with me Father?

I thank you Lord for this morning. I thank you

Lord for your word. God. I pray that today we

would recognize every good gift come from You. Got everything

we've received today has been you've given us, and you

cause to be faithful stewards of it. So, Lord, I

pray today we would hear the words of your your

spirit God, we surrender, Lord, do you or? I pray

we would consider all today what we've done with you, Jesus.

Today we've received your word, we've heard your word, You've

given us your word. Today. I pray we would be faithful,

Lord to hear to a bad surrender. If there's someone

here today that doesn't know you as Lord and savior, Lord,

I pray that today they'd put their trust in you. Lord.

I pray help us grow, Lord, and in our giving,

help us grow and being faithful, to help us grow,

being good, being rich and good works. We love you.

We thank you, Lord for today in your name, we

pray Jesus, pain and all to