How Can We Store Up Treasure In Heaven?
We can’t earn salvation through good works, but as Steph Nickel states in this devotional, we can store up treasure in heaven!
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How Can We Store Treasure In Heaven?
We’ve been talking about storing up treasure in heaven.
Matthew 6:19-21 says, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (ESV).
Let’s talk today about how we can deliberately store up treasure in heaven.
Accept God’s Gift Of Salvation.
This is where it all starts. We can’t store up treasure in heaven if we don’t have a relationship with the Lord.
Romans 10:9-10 says, “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved” (ESV).
If you have not confessed your sin and accepted God’s gift of salvation, I can’t encourage you strongly enough to do so.
Fellowship With Other Believers.
As Christians we are meant for community.
Hebrews 10:24-25 says, “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near” (ESV).
Do we always get along with our brothers and sisters in Christ? No.
Are church fellowships free of disagreements and tension? Definitely not.
Should we use these as excuses for not getting involved in a local fellowship? Not according to this passage in Hebrews and other passages in God’s Word.
Regularly Spend Time In Prayer.
What an amazing truth that the Creator of the universe invites us into His presence!
Is He impressed with eloquence and many words?
Matthew 18:2-4 says, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven” (ESV).
While the Jesus isn’t specifically talking about prayer in this passage, I believe we should consider how a child approaches their parent when we think of how we should pray.
When we have a need, we can ask the Lord to provide.
When we are sad, we can turn to Him for comfort.
When we are excited, we can burst into His presence with enthusiasm.
While we must approach God humbly and reverently, He invites us to do so with a childlike faith, overflowing with the assurance that He wants to hear from us.
Diligently Study God’s Word.
The fact that we can never learn all there is to know about the Scriptures is both exciting and overwhelming.
Second Timothy 2:15 says, “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth” (ESV).
This takes time and effort. We can always learn how to better handle the word of truth, the teaching of Scripture. However, even a brief passage can be life-changing.
Don’t let the fact that you can’t spend hours each day reading the Bible stop you from reading and meditating on a few verses throughout the day.
Put It Into Practice.
While Ephesians 2:8 assures us, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,” we must remember James 2:20, which says, “Faith apart from works is useless” (ESV).
Though we cannot earn salvation, it will motivate us to reach out in love to those God brings across our path.
Will it always be easy? It won’t.
Will we always know what we ought to do? We won’t.
Will everyday demands distract us? You can be certain of it.
Will there be times our resources and our energy will be stretched to the limit? Without a doubt.
Can we depend on God to give us the desire and wherewithal to do the right thing? Absolutely!
Do you ever feel like you don’t belong? We would love to hear from you. Comment below or contact us at HopeStreamRadio.
Steph Nickel
Steph Beth Nickel is eclectically interested and eclectically involved. In all she does, Steph seeks to nurture and inspire. She is currently working on the first book in a nonfiction series. Nurture and Inspire LOVE is a compilation of the first devotionals she wrote for HopeStreamRadio.
Steph is a freelance writer and editor. She is the coauthor of Paralympian Deb Willows’ award-winning memoir, Living Beyond My Circumstances, published by Castle Quay Books. Deb and Steph are working on a follow-up book.
You can visit her website, stephbethnickel.com, to learn more about her.
Visit Steph’s contributor’s page or at Steph Nickel’s Eclectic Interests.
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