Treasures

Jesus spoke to his followers during the Sermon on the Mount and said, "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Matthew 6:21, Luke 12:34) So what does that simple truth lead us to understand about His own heart? I pondered over this question for a few months before coming to a conclusion. Jesus Christ, God and man in one, is compassion incarnate; but where then does His heart lie? The answer to that simple, childlike question is infinitely more simple. His heart, full of love and adoration lies in us. His children. The only creations in the known universe made in HIS OWN IMAGE. That is a lot to take in, but even that is just the tip of the iceberg.



In Deuteronomy 7:6, we are told, "For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be His people, His treasured possession." There is the heart of the matter. Each member of His Church, is "His treasured possession," rare, glorious, and invaluable; without price or comparison, beauty and intricacy compiled in one fluid motion and sealed by Christ's death on the cross. You, reading these words, are an invaluable resource to God Himself and hold an important place in His kingdom.



I need to stop here and say that if you are reading this and do not know Christ as your savior, you cannot be enveloped in the love and adoration of the Creator until you do. Do it now. Don't wait. Allow Him to make you a dazzling, irreplacable treasure. When you accept Christ as your savior, He whispers, "I will give [you] an undivided heart and put a new spirit in [you]; I will remove from [you] [your] heart of stone and give [you] a heart of flesh." (Ezekiel 11:19) Say a simple prayer and let Him transform you. "They will be mine, " says the Lord Almighty, "in the day when I make up my treasured possession. I will spare them, just as in compassion a man spares his son who serves him." (Malachi 3:17)



The Lord is deeply in love and jealous of His children. We are told this in plain print: "Do not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God." (Exodus 34:14) This is a heavy statement to burn into your heart. He loves us so much that He is jealous for us! He is like a jealous lover, craving our attention so fully that we do not even notice another god! The Creator of the universe loves us that much. Incredible! That's a lot to wrap your head and heart around.



There are a million tiny proofs throughout each of our daily lives and our relationships with Him that prove His love to us. There is a passage of scripture that more fully encapsulates this principle. Isaiah 43:1-4 says: "But now, this is what the Lord says--He who created you, O Jacob, He who formed you, O Israel: 'Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead. Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give men in exchange for you, and people in exchange for your life."

I wrote all of this to say this: It does not matter what the world, or what people, may say or think about you. What really matters is that the Great Star-Breather, God and Creator of the Universe, thinks you are without compare and so valuable that He sacrificed His perfect Son on the cross to redeem you, to pay your ransom. HIS opinion, and no other, of you is what really matters.