I’m slowly making my way through the book Desiring God by John Piper and have been turning in my mind a phrase he used about how the true mark of a Christian is that Jesus is their treasure. Regardless of whatever else they gain or lose, they count themselves rich because they have a relationship with God, who is good, who is love, and who Himself is the ultimate source of fulfillment.
Christianity isn’t about escaping hell or enjoying the riches of heaven. It’s about getting to spend eternity with God. It’s about starting that relationship with Him here on earth and about enjoying and valuing that relationship more than anything else. It’s about accepting Jesus as our Eternal Treasure.
This kind of belief is why Job could lose all his earthy possessions, including his heath, and yet not curse God. He didn’t understand what was happening, but he still had the Ultimate Treasure. And actually, through his hardships, he gained a better understanding of his Treasure than ever before.
In Job 42:5, he says, “I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye has seen you.” (NET)
For me, life is pretty good right now, but I’m reminded all of the good things in my life come from God. It’s my goal to ensure that I love Jesus more than I love all the gifts He’s given me in this life. It’s a process. I’m far from perfect. But Paul reminds me in 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 that I’m not working on my own.
Now may the God of peace himself make you completely holy and may your spirit and soul and body be kept entirely blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is trustworthy, and he will in fact do this. (NET)
Praise God, He’s working in me, and one day He’ll finish His work and welcome me into His presence, where I’ll get to enjoy My Treasure forever.
I suppose that on one level or another, I’ve known this for years, but I was struck by it when I read it, and maybe you’ll be challenged in your faith, too.
Recent Comments