Show Notes
Matthew 6:19-24
The measure of a person’s life is not determined by what he acquires in life but by what he gives to it. What we gain from God and pass on to others is the real test of a godly life. In Jesus’ well-known address, known as the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus focuses on the issue of genuine discipleship. There is both a cost and a commitment to following Jesus Christ. In contrast to the hypocritical approach toward righteous living in his day by the Pharisees, Jesus challenges his followers in every generation with other subtle spiritual battles for our hearts. In these texts from Matthew 6:19-24, Jesus addresses the issue of worldliness and idolatry. Worldliness is an attitude reflected by our warped affections for this world’s values in place of God’s. Idolatry is simply putting something or someone ahead of God in our lives.
The Bible reveals three areas where the spiritual battle is being waged against the believer: the world, the flesh, and the devil. Here Jesus is focusing on the world. Jesus gives three pictures or metaphors of the conflict that is waged against our souls to help us understand the nature of the battle. Jesus calls us to undivided loyalty to his kingdom and the values of his kingdom, which is ultimately to live a life worth living.
