WHOLE-HEARTED: A 5-Day Journey Exploring the Essential Center for MissionExemplo

In the middle of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus talks with his disciples about the three central practices of Jewish piety—almsgiving (charity to the poor), prayer, and fasting (Matt. 6:1–18). He assumes that these will be part of the life of his followers too—but with a caveat. He cautions them: “Don’t do these things just to be seen by others” (vv. 1, 5, 16). Right practices can be done from wrong motives—and getting “likes” or “retweets” from fans or applause from peers is the wrong reason for doing these good things. Jesus makes it clear that the reward for such showy religion will come only from the here-today-gone-tomorrow approval of fans and followers. God will not be impressed!

Jesus calls this “on display” kind of religion “storing up treasures on earth.” This is a truly foolish activity since all the “likes” and claps and headlines are as fragile as rotting cloth, as useless as a rusted-out car with no wheels, and as vulnerable to theft as valuables left in an unlocked room (v. 19). The opposite of this foolish and futile pursuit is to “store up treasures in heaven,” treasures that won’t be vulnerable to decay, rust, or theft. Jesus has already told the disciples what this looks like in day-to-day practice: helping the poor, praying, and fasting “in secret,” without concern for a human audience. It means that all our going, doing, and being is for an audience of one: “your Father who sees in secret” (vv. 4, 6, 18).

Then Jesus sums it up: “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (v. 21, NRSV). Treasure is what we consider valuable, what gives us a sense of security, what we desire—and our hearts (decisions, choices, priorities) follow our desires. Part of having a whole heart, and walking before the Lord in truth and faithfulness, is having our desires focused on God. If our desire (treasure) is elsewhere, our hearts will be elsewhere—and then we could end up like Solomon, who finished his life’s race with a serious heart condition: “he did not have a whole heart with the Lord his God.” (You may want to re-read 1 Kings 11:1–4 from yesterday.)

We are building a picture of whole-hearted living as we pursue becoming more and more like Jesus. Whole-hearted living means undivided loyalty to God and his purposes. It also means aligning our desires and treasures with the things that are important to God.