24 September 2011

Psalm 87, 90; 2 Kings 11:1-20a; 1 Cor. 7:10-24; Matt. 6:19-24

Athaliah was one of the most wicked women in the Bible. Her son, Ahaziah, was put to death by Joab and her response to that news was to kill anyone else who had a claim to the throne, her own children and grandchildren. One, however, was saved from this massacre, Joash, by the wife of the high priest. This child was secreted into the temple where he lived the first six years of his life with the high priest, Jehoiada and his wife, Jehosheba. During this time Athaliah ruled over Judah. Essentially, the nation was dominated by women from the time of Ahab and Jezebel forward to this time, and they were wicked women indeed. Finally, Jehoiada mustered his courage and called the Carites, who were mercenary soldiers, and the temple guards, and gave them the plan to keep the boy king safe from harm by his grandmother and they would proclaim him king. Apparently, the queen was wildly unpopular and it took little prodding to get the soldiers to kill her and the people rejoiced.

How do we lay up treasures in heaven? We set our eyes on eternal things and we understand these things as truly valuable. We esteem the things of God. Sometimes the best way to understand what that means is the process of elimination, we know what are the things of earth so we eliminate them to the point where we now know what remains. Jesus also shows us what this means by His life. What were the important things to Jesus? The answer is relatively simple, the glory of God and those who were created in His image and who would put their faith and trust in Him. Therefore, love the Lord your God and love your neighbor as yourself are the two great commandments. If we set those things at the center of our lives and maintain them there, we shall get a better understanding of how to live in the midst of all this stuff and yet lay up treasures in heaven.

Paul says that our earthly status is not of the utmost importance. He encourages the Corinthians to trouble themselves little about status in the world and to rejoice and take delight in the reality that in the spiritual realm they have been set free from all those other things that would define who they are. Their identity is sons and daughters of the King of kings and Lord of lords and so their earthly status is not quite immaterial but it is of lesser import now that they have been redeemed at a price. Their value is found in Jesus’ willingness to die for them to set them free from spiritual bondage and eternal death, separation from God. Do we live from that place of value or are we seeking value and validation elsewhere?

Rejoice the Lord is King!

Your Lord and King adore!

Rejoice, give thanks and sing,

and triumph evermore.

Refrain:

Lift up your heart!

lift up your voice!

Rejoice! again I say, rejoice!

Tune