Today on bold steps with Mark job, we're taking a hard look at what we truly treasure in this life.
The Bible tells us that Jesus said, you want to come and follow me. That means that I affect the way you talk, the way you walk, the way you think, your attitudes, how you marry, how you parent, how you read, what you think, what you do. Because I am the Lord of your life and I am the master. And so therefore, if I'm the Lord of your life, I am at the center of your life.
Welcome to Bold Steps with pastor Mark Jobe, president of Moody Bible Institute and senior pastor of New Life Community Church in Chicago. I'm Wayne Shepherd. Yesterday, Mark began an eye opening message called The Treasure Principles, where he challenged us to examine what we're really valuing in life through the illustration of his grandson's treasured backpack. Mark showed us how the things we value today might look very different
from an eternal perspective. Today, as we continue part two of this message, we'll discover why the lens through which we view life determines how we live it. If you miss the first part of this powerful teaching, you'll find it, as always at Boldsystems.org. But right now, let's join Mark Jobe for today's lesson.
The great majority of us, I believe we live primarily conscious of what we can touch and feel, the here and the now. And what Jesus is saying is that you need to live with a with a bigger mindset. The Bible talks in first Thessalonians that we are body, soul and spirit. Some people call it the trichotomy of man. Your body is that which you you know. It's the physical part of you. It sounds like at 73 we start to wear out. How many of you are already
feeling the wearing out? Boy, I don't know. Some of you. Just to get up in the morning. There's grunts and groans and ah, you know, sounds like you just run a marathon. You're just getting out of bed. Um, because your body is not meant to last forever. Your body has an expiration date. And the moment that your body dies, your heart stops beating. Your brainwaves stop functioning. Your body is done. It goes to the grave, but your soul and your spirit do not have an expiration date. In fact,
your soul. The Bible talks about the soul of man and woman and your soul. Is that unique part of you that, uh non-tangible invisible part of you that we that makes up who you are. It's your personality. It's your mind, your intellect, your volition. It's who makes you. You. The Bible says that that does not have an expiration date when you die. Listen to me. When you die,
when your body dies, your soul continues to exist. That's not only taught in the Bible, but you will find even a lot of other scientific, um, studies that have indicated that when people die, their heart stops, yet they have this consciousness of seeing their body still on the bed there. And they have these experiences that scientists and doctors can't explain because there's an awareness, a consciousness, even after their body has died, of what was happening in
the room. Because your body, your soul, it doesn't pass away when your body passes away. But then you also have a spirit. Every person is born with a spirit. You are a spirit being, uh, when you are born, the spirit part of you is the part that interacts with the spiritual world. So you have a body, you have a soul, and you have a spirit. Now don't confuse that with the Holy Spirit because you are a spiritual being. But the Holy Spirit, which is a third
person of the Godhead, the Holy Spirit. When you become a believer, he quickens or makes your spirit alive and suddenly you are conscious of the spiritual world. God speaks to you in powerful ways. The Word of God comes to life. You're convicted. You're led, you're prompted, you're helped. You're empowered through the Holy Spirit. So body, soul, and spirit, your body passes away. And what Jesus is saying to us,
listen to me, this is important. What Jesus is saying to us is most of us live valuing a very temporary treasure when our treasure needs to be more eternal. And what Jesus is saying is that most of us, our heart is fixed on the here and the now. Um, he tells us where your treasure is. There your heart will be also. Listen to me. Your heart follows your treasure. So look for what you value the most and you
will find where your heart is at. And when you find where your heart is at, you will also find the greatest influence on your life. So many of us get deluded into thinking that what other people value, the material world that we live in, that that is the most important thing, and our heart is close to that. And we live very shallow, superficial lives because our values are placed on things that are temporary. Can I tell
you something? I mean, that scratch that you got in that newer car that you have that almost sent you to therapy. You just couldn't get over talking about it for weeks on a time, and you were angry and upset about it. Can I tell you something? When you are on your deathbed, You are not going to have one thought about that scratch on your car. Can I tell you something else? When you're on the other side of life, that is going to seem like some of
the little items in Finn's backpack. You're going to look and say, that was so dumb. Why did I care so much about that? And so what Jesus is reminding us of is he's telling us, listen, so many of us are living our lives with our treasures in the wrong place. We need to redefine what our treasure is so that our heart can follow our treasures. Jesus is very clear about that, because your heart is going to be where your treasure is at, and many of us,
our heart is in the wrong place. And if your heart is in the wrong place, you're living the wrong way for the wrong things, with the wrong priorities, and ultimately wasting your life. Number two, not only your heart will always be close to where your treasure is at. But secondly, the second treasure principle Is this the way the lens through which you view life will determine how you live life? Notice what Jesus tells us in verse 22.
It's in the context of our priorities, our treasures, our heart. He says this the eye is the lamp of the body. So if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is that darkness? Now Jesus says he uses a physical illustration to represent a spiritual truth. He says, if you're blind and can't see, then your body is full of darkness. Through your eyes
you see light. And when you see light, you know where you're going. Your body's full of light. You have direction. You have purpose. But if your eyes are not open, then your entire being will be full of darkness. What is Jesus saying? I believe that Jesus is talking about how we see the world and clarity of vision. Clarity of vision. Many people don't see clearly the purpose and the priorities in their life. And when you don't see clearly the purpose and priorities of your life, you start
to live the wrong way. You will always make mistakes and wrong turns if you cannot see clearly where you're going spiritually in life. Listen, some of you right now have made a virtual mess of your life your marriage, your family, your relationships, your priorities, your finances, your emotions, your mind. Why? You've made a mess because there's been a lack of clarity. You have not seen things clearly, spiritually speaking, in your life. And when there's a lack
of clarity, you make a lot of mistakes. Recently, I was driving down I-55, and I don't know if anybody else got caught up in this, but as I was driving, they had predicted a storm. The sky got dark, the clouds rolled in, and then suddenly, at first very lightly, but then I got pelted with huge hailstones. Was anybody else in that? I mean, these were huge. I got a picture of it. That's my hand right there with those. That's literally hailstone that I picked up off the side
of my yard. They were that big. I mean, golf ball size. And I had to, uh, cars were pulling under bridges. People were turning out there was accidents that were happening. I actually got off the main expressway, went under a tree just because I thought, this is going to dent my car. The point was, I couldn't see clearly because of the because of the hail, because of the darkness that was there. When you can't see clearly, you end up in accidents. And there are multiple accidents
that happened because of lack of clarity. Listen to what second Corinthians chapter four verse 18 says. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. Since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
You're listening to Bold Steps with Mark Jobe, and before we continue examining what truly matters our hearts, I want to remind you that we love hearing from listeners about how these messages impact your life.
That's right, Wayne, whether you have a testimony to share, a prayer request, a Bible question, we love to hear from you. And you can reach out to us by simply going to our website at Bold Steps dot. Or if it's easier for you to do this, you can leave a message at 312329 2011. By the way, we love to hear people's voices, so if you could do that, I'd love to hear the intonation of your voice again. That's 312329 2011.
All right. And speaking of listeners reaching out, here's a question we got recently, Mark, to you from Stephanie. If we can be forgiven of our sins, how come the devil can't?
Hey, Stephanie, I love your heart of compassion. Let me tell you that, boy, we could get in a very lengthy theological discussion about this, but let me try to keep it simple. Angels are not human beings. There's a different relationship that God has with human beings created in his image. Then he has with angelic beings. And it appears, Stephanie, that there was a season of time where God was allowing these angelic beings to choose what their state would be.
A group of angels that were intent on their own glory rebelled against God, and they were given a chance. Before, though they were given a chance, they could decide, but they were. The Bible says cast out of heaven. We know them now as demons and the head fallen angel as Lucifer or the devil. Angels both on the good side, cannot sin. So there is no angel there in a state of not being able to sin. And then we have the demonic angels, those that are fallen, that are
in a state of non redemption. And so they did have an opportunity. They chose their state. And now that appears to be a permanent state that they live in. Again different than human beings. Human beings can always have an opportunity to experience a repentant heart.
I've never thought about that before. So Stephanie, thanks for asking the question. Giving Mark a chance to address it here today. And if you're listening and want to share your own story or your question you have, you can contact us again. The website is Bold steps.org. Or as Mark said earlier, give us a call (312) 329-2011. Now back to the message. Here again is Mark with today's lesson the treasure principles.
Can I tell you that many of us, your treasure is in what you see and what God is telling us, is that your greatest treasure you normally need, your greatest treasure in God's economy needs to be in what you cannot see. Not too long ago, my grandson, it was Finn. We're in the house and he said. He said, Papa, why can't I see God? And so I took him to the back window. I had done this with my younger kids when they were small as well, and I looked out the back window and I said, hey, it
was a windy day. I said, do you see the wind? And he said, yeah, see in the tree, I see the wind. I said, no, no, no. Do you see the wind? The wind is invisible. You can't see the wind, but you see what the wind does. And if you open the door you feel the wind. So you can feel the presence of God. And you can see the hand of God. Even though he's invisible. Hey, that's theology for a four year old. But I think it works. And can I tell you that? Can I tell you
the same thing about our relationship with God? The Bible tells us that what really, really matters in life is usually invisible. And here's here's the question that I ask you as you think through this. Where your heart is at and where your values are at. I ask you this question and not to be morbid, not to scare you, but if you were to die today unexpectedly, a heart attack or get hit by a car and you were to look over your life, can I ask you this question?
What would you be living for? Would you be content with your life? Or would you look at your life and say, I've lived for a lot of things that really don't matter? I valued a lot of things that have little importance and the things that have a lot of importance I've neglected. There's only two things on Earth that live forever people and the Word of God. Everything
else is going to perish. And so I want to challenge you as we get into the series called On Earth as it is in heaven, to ask yourself this question, are you really living for what matters? Are you wasting your time on things that really have no eternal purpose? No significance? Are you storing up treasures just on earth? Or are you? Is there anything on the other side
of heaven that you stored up? Is there anything that you're building on the other side of the grave, on the other side of death that you say, hey, this is where my treasure really is at. Not just what I can see, feel and touch. Number three. And lastly, treasure. Principle number three. You will end up serving what is of highest value in your life. Jesus finishes these couple of verses by telling us this no one can serve
two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. He says. I don't know if you've ever been in a job situation where there was lack of clarity of who was your direct supervisor. If you have ever been in a job situation where you're your direct supervisor is telling you something, and someone else that has authority is telling you something else, then you have a conversation. You say,
wait a second, you told me this. They told me that. Can we get clear? Like, what am I supposed to be doing? Are you the supervisor? Is he the supervisor? Because. And then once someone tells you no, I'm the supervisor, you need to listen to me. Then what happens is you start saying, okay, I know that person is my direct supervisor. And if the other person keeps bossing you around, you start to despise them more and more. You start to, don't talk to me. I already have my orders. Don't talk.
Please stop it! Enough! I already have, because you can only serve two masters. Jesus says you will start to love one and despise the other. But you can only serve one master. Can I tell you that even in life, sometimes good things can become bad masters? For example, anything in life that takes the top priority. Anything in life that you have set at the center of your life that has just become your God, your idol. It's great
that you have a boyfriend. But listen, if he has become the center of your life, if he trumps everything else in your life, if he becomes the priority, then you have something that has replaced God. Your boyfriend. Hey, your job is great and I hope you love it. I hope you throw yourself into it, but if that trumps everything, if that is the most important thing in your life, if everything revolves around your job. If it is the highest priority on earth, then you have just
replaced God with something other than him. Jesus said in Matthew chapter ten and I know these are tough words. Jesus said, whoever loves father and mother more than me is not worthy of me. Whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And whoever does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it. And whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. Jesus is saying there cannot be anything else at the center.
I need to be number one. Now listen to me. Look up at me. This is important. Some of us treat Christianity as though it's a part of your life. Hey, I have my trainer at the gym that helps me work out. I have my tax person that helps me do my taxes. I have a restaurant that I like to go to when I don't have time to food, and it really helps me out. And I have my group of friends there, and I have my church in Christianity, and I need a little sprinkle of religion on me.
It makes me feel good, but I don't want to be too, like radical about it. Can I tell you something? True Christianity is not sprinkle of religion. If you're going to be a follower of Jesus, he says, I want to be at the center of your life. You are not a Christian. You may be religious. You may be sympathizer. You may be a supporter, a fan of, but you're really not a Christian unless Jesus is the Lord of
your life. The Bible tells us that Jesus said, you want to come and follow me, then repent, believe and be baptized. Confess me as Lord and Savior of your life. In other words, I want to be at the center of your life. That means that I affect the way you talk, the way you walk, the way you think, your attitudes, how you marry, how you parent, how you read, what you think, what you do, your time, your money, money management. Because I am the Lord of your life
and I am the master. And so therefore, if I'm the Lord of your life, I am at the center of your life. That's Christianity. You say, well, pastor, that's pretty radical. I didn't write it. I just preach it. The Bible says that the way that leads to life is narrow, and few people find it. And the way that leads to destruction is wide, and there's a lot of people on it. Why? Because it requires that we put Jesus at the center.
That's today's bold steps with Mark job. The end of a lesson titled The Treasure Principles. Mark. This message leaves us with a really important question.
It really.
Does. Is Jesus at the center of your life? Because if he's not at the center of your life, then your treasures will not be connected to Jesus. Your your treasure will be your job, your house, your career, your sports, whatever is the other thing that's taking precedence over God. And so this is a great time to examine our priorities and ask yourself this question is my treasure really
found in Christ or am I serving something else? So, father, I pray even right now, for that person, that man or woman that realizes under conviction right.
Now that they realize that although they say that they're a follower of yours, There's something else that takes priority over everything else. Something else that's at the center. And I pray today that there would be a repentance, a reorganizing of priorities, a realization of the centrality of the relationship with you put at the center of their life. I pray this in Jesus name, Amen.
Amen. Thank you. Mark, such an important perspective to take with us as we go back into our day to day life. And wherever you're listening from right now, let me remind you that you can revisit this message or share it with someone you know by simply visiting our website. Bold steps.org. Have you subscribed to Mark's YouTube channel yet? This is a great way to get his latest video teachings and insights right on your phone or smart device.
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to Chapel Moody Bible Institute's President's Chapel. That is, to hear a message all about experiencing the presence of God. Learn how to see God for who he really is. Friday right here on Bold Steps with Mark John. Bold steps is a production of Moody Radio, a ministry of Moody Bible Institute.