Live For the Line, Not the Dot

BIG Idea: Live for the line, not dot.

Have you ever encountered someone who lacked perspective? If you have, you’ve probably been amused/annoyed/concerned/entertained by their complete lack of self-awareness. It might be the two-year-old throwing down Armaggedon in the grocery store because his mom wouldn’t get him the candy that apparently his life depended on.

It might be a teenage girl stomping to her room and cocooning herself in an isolated sanctuary of self-pity and grief because her boyfriend broke up with her and apparently her prospects for love in life are now dead and gone. Or maybe it’s the college kid who’s having way too much fun at college, with no idea that real life is about to come crashing down on him.

When people lack perspective, things tend to go wrong. For the past several Wednesdays, we’ve been looking at our relationship with money. Today, we’re talking about money and an eternal perspective. Here’s what Jesus said about money:

  19 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.” Matthew 6:19-20

The picture Jesus is trying to create when he says “store up for yourselves treasure” is the idea of stacking or hoarding. It’s like the tv show “Hoarders” that I watch from time to time as a guilty pleasure. I’m fascinated to see how someone can fill their houses with absolute junk and let their quality of life take such a nosedive.

Jesus is saying, “don’t be a hoarder here on earth.” Don’t live as if this world is all there is. Why? Because everyone lives forever somewhere. There is a life after this life. Eternity awaits us all. And the Bible clearly teaches that how we live our lives affects our eternity. This life is a small dot. Eternity is a line that extends forever. Live for the line, not the dot.

Jesus is saying, “don’t handle your money as if this world is all there is.” Don’t hoard useless stuff in your life that you won’t be able to take to the next. Look at how you spend God’s money. Are you blowing it all on you? Are you hoarding it like you’re going to keep it forever? Or are you using it to invest in the Kingdom, storing up for yourselves treasures in heaven?

Live for something bigger than yourself, and invest your money accordingly. You can thank me when we’re up in heaven.