Treasures
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When Pilate asked Jesus if He was a king, He replied that His kingdom “is not of this world” and it is not “from the world” (John 18:35–36). Jesus told His followers: “If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world” (John 15:19). Christians have been born again into His kingdom, which is “not of this world,” and “our citizenship is in heaven” (Philippians 3:20).
As Christians, we are called to be “in this world,” even though we are “not of it” (John 17:14–15), so that we can shine His light to those around us. Through our lives, our witness, and our actions, we want people to perceive that we are “different” so that they will be drawn to God and His love and truth shining through us (Matthew 5:16).
The greatest sermon ever preached—the Sermon on the Mount—that changed the world forever, taught truths that were contrary to the ways of the world. It was delivered to His disciples by Jesus, who would later climb His final mount—Mount Calvary at Golgotha—to die for the sins of the world. Three days later, Jesus rose from the dead and appeared to His disciples, commissioning them to preach to the people and to testify of Him sharing the good news that everyone who believes in Him will receive forgiveness of sins through His name (Acts 10:40–43).
After Jesus’ disciples heard His Sermon on the Mount, they were never the same, as they heard the voice of God teaching them truths in fulfillment of all that had been recorded in the Scriptures up until that time. Jesus’ teachings stood in stark contradiction to the world of their day under the powerful empire of the Romans, whose conquests swept their part of the world.
On the mount, Jesus taught: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3). Everyday ordinary people, at least four of whom were fishermen, heard a carpenter tell them truths of a kingdom that will be greater than the Roman Empire and will rule the universe.
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted” (Matthew 5:4). More blessed to have problems and sorrows than power and prosperity? Yes, because those who live for God’s kingdom will be comforted.
“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:5). Those who are meek and don’t retaliate with violence, but rather endure hardships in this life for their faith will be blessed in the world to come. “If we die with Him, we will also live with Him; if we endure hardship, we will also reign with him” (2 Timothy 2:11–12). The poor in spirit, the meek and those who mourn will inherit the earth.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled” (Matthew 5:6). Everyone who hungers and thirst for the truth, goodness, and justice will be filled when they seek for God, as these can only truly be found in Him. “He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich He has sent away empty” (Luke 1:53).
“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God” (Matthew 5:7–9). Jesus is the Prince of Peace, whose arrival was foretold long before His birth (Isaiah 9:6). He is our peace, and “He came and preached peace” to everyone—to “those who were far off and to those who were near” (Ephesians 2:14–17). His followers are called to share “the gospel of peace” with others (Ephesians 6:15), as “those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of righteousness” (James 3:18).
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:10). You may find that as you plant the seeds of the gospel you will face opposition and even persecution from those who reject the truth. “In this world you will face tribulation, but take heart, for I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).
So “rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven” (Matthew 5:12). You may not be rewarded in this life for being a faithful follower of Christ and a witness to your faith, but the Lord has promised that you will experience His peace and joy (John 14:27; 15:11).
Only one way
Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). Jesus made it clear that He is the only way to salvation, the only truth and path to eternal life. He also said, “Wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it: because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it” (Matthew 7:13–14).
History has shown time and again in every age man’s ability to wreak havoc and destruction on his fellow human beings and on the earth. As the German philosopher Hegel once said, one thing we learn from history is that we never learn from history. And the inhumanity, inequality, and destruction we read of throughout history continue to repeat themselves.
When those in power are exposed for their sins of corruption, deception, greed, and the oppression of the exploited, they often furiously endeavor to claim that wrong is right and attempt to shout down and drown out the voice of truth. The early Christian martyrs were vilified and executed by Nero, who proclaimed them a threat to the Roman Empire and attempted to stamp them out. But the Roman Empire eventually crumbled, while its citizens were conquered by the truth, love, and peace of the persecuted Christians, and many were converted to Christianity.
History is full of those who dared to challenge the status quo of their day, who defied the politically correct mores and values of their day, who championed an unpopular cause, or did something beyond the call of duty. They took a stance for truth and for what was right, no matter what the popular narrative or norms of their day. The Bible says, “Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever” (Daniel 12:3).
Empires rise and empires fall, and the grandeur that was once Greece will tumble into ruins and the glory that was Rome will fade into oblivion, but whoever does the will of God will abide forever (1 John 2:17). We know that “whatever God does, it shall be forever, and nothing can be added to it or taken from it,” that He who is eternal may be made manifest, and the beauty of His creation and the glory of His power will be known (Ecclesiastes 3:14).
All over the world, we see vestiges of once great buildings and structures, now in ruins, as one power rose only to fall and to be replaced by another in the ever changing face of history.—One constructing and another destroying, one building and another tearing down, one creating and another demolishing. Each new kingdom or empire has been washed away except for the vestiges of the past—the debris and wreckage of centuries, often cleared away to build a new monument. They eventually end up in the grave of oblivion, reminders of man’s transitory tenure on this earth—in stark contrast to the eternality of God and His kingdom.
Setting our eyes on the eternal
God is continually working in the universe and effecting change in every sphere of creation. He is never static, except for Himself: “I am the Lord: I do not change” (Malachi 3:6); and except for His Word: “Forever, O Lord, Your Word is settled in heaven” (Psalm 119:89); and except for the future—His promises to His children of eternal life in His presence. “For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day” (John 6:40).
No matter how much the world around us or our personal circumstances change, whether we abase or abound, in times of war and peace, in life and in death, “Jesus Christ is the same, yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). As the words of the beloved hymn express:
Abide with me, fast falls the eventide;
The darkness deepens; Lord, with me abide...
Earth’s joys grow dim; its glories pass away;
Change and decay in all around I see;
O Thou who changest not, abide with me.
—Henry Francis Lyte, 1847
The Bible tells us to set our minds and affections on things above—the kingdom of heaven—not on things on the earth (Colossians 3:2). We are called to fix our eyes “not on what is seen, but on what is unseen,” for the things which are seen are only for a time, but the things which are not seen are eternal (2 Corinthians 4:18).
Since the beginning of time, God’s children have been looking for an unseen world, a “city which has foundations”—eternal foundations—“whose builder and maker is God” (Hebrews 11:10). Not having received all that God had promised them but having seen those promises from afar, they remained strangers and pilgrims on the earth because they sought a better, that is, a heavenly country. “Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city” (Hebrews 11:13–16).
This is the hope of all ages: the kingdom of heaven where we will dwell with God forever, described in the last two chapters of the Bible, Revelation 21 and 22. Jesus instructed His followers to pray, “Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10), and we continue to look forward to the day when “the kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever” (Revelation 11:15).
Therefore, “seek first the kingdom of God” (Matthew 6:33). Not the ephemeral things of this world, but the kingdom of God whose building we are, living stones in a spiritual house not made with hands, but eternal in the heavens (1 Peter 2:5; 2 Corinthians 5:1).
The eternal creations of God—the souls of human beings—will outlast all of the empires, the world powers, the buildings, technologies, and scientific advancements of humankind. The touch of the divine in His creation, every immortal human soul ever born is His handiwork. Every Christian is “His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10). We, in turn, are called by Jesus to “go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone” and urge them to come into His kingdom (Mark 16:15; Luke 14:23).
Published on Anchor June 2025. Read by Reuben Ruchevsky.
