John Piper On What Jesus Demands From The WorldSýnishorn

Lay Up Treasures in Heaven 

Think about your toys as a child. You doubtless spent hours playing with those toy cars, dolls, stuffed animals, or video games that are probably now either stored in a box in the attic or discarded in a landfill. Think about your family’s first computer. As useful and enjoyable as it was, the technology has now become obsolete, forcing you to replace it with a newer model that doesn’t require floppy disks or DOS commands. Today’s top smartphone will be cast off in three years. Your new car will rust and eventually break down. The birthday present your children ask for will likely be neglected or forgotten a year from now. Such is the life cycle of all our possessions. 

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth” doesn’t mean that Christians shouldn’t give gifts, use computers, drive cars, buy homes, or save for retirement. But His teaching raises the important question: Where is our treasure? What does how we spend our paychecks say about what we most deeply enjoy and esteem? Jesus teaches a great deal about money because He knows that the way we use it signals where our heart is—that is, what we worship. 

Christians and non-Christians go to the same grocery stores, shopping malls, and websites to buy what they need and want. They deposit their earnings at the same banks. Yet Jesus demands that His followers lay up treasures in heaven. We do this by using our money and possessions strategically and sacrificially to serve others in love and to advance God’s kingdom priorities.

Jesus demands that we lay up treasures in heaven, not on earth, and in verse 24 He makes clear that we cannot serve both God and money. Sandwiched between these two demands about money, Jesus has this to say about the “eye” in verses 22-23.

Jesus’ point is that how we see reality is the key test for whether we are in the light or the dark. An expert jeweler can quickly discern the difference between the exquisite diamond and the imitation cubic zirconia. Similarly, the eye that is “healthy” (ESV) or “good” (HCSB) discerns what is beautiful and what is ugly, what is precious and what is worthless. The good eye is not fooled by money’s counterfeit appeal and rightly views God as supremely more valuable than money.

The good eye sees God as more beautiful and desirable than money, which motivates us to store up treasures in heaven and not on earth. We must pray for such a clear vision for God as our singular treasure. We must also fight to keep a good eye and not grow careless, as Jesus says: “Therefore be careful lest the light in you be darkness” (Luke 11:35). Do not settle for any other competing treasure. See and savor the glory of God in Jesus Christ.