Many Christians miss the special blessing of God because they do not obey our Lord’s command recorded in the Gospel of Matthew:

Don’t store up treasures here on earth where they can erode away or may be stolen. Store them in heaven where they will never lose their value, and are safe from thieves. If your profits are in heaven your heart will be there too (Matthew 6:19–21 TLB).

Jesus knew that by storing up treasures on earth, we would soon take on the appearance of the world. Through selfish desires, we would cease to reflect the character of God and seek our own glory. By laying up treasures in heaven, on the other hand, we would declare the glory of his kingdom. Everything we do to bring men and women into the kingdom of God, every act of kindness, every expression of love is laying up treasure in God’s storehouse. We give out of love for God and gratitude for his love and sacrifice for us through the gift of his only begotten Son, our Savior Jesus Christ. God will hold us accountable for our motivation in giving and for our faithful obedience to our Lord’s command to help fulfill the Great Commission and so reach the world for Christ. The apostle Paul wrote:

We will all stand before God’s judgment seat. So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God (Romans 14:10, 12).

Relating the parable of the shrewd manager, Jesus said: There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions. So he called him in and asked him, “What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management…” (Luke 16:1, 2). God considers “an immortal soul beyond all price. There is no trouble too great, no humiliation too deep, no suffering too severe, no love too strong, no labor too hard, no expense too large, but that it is worth it, if it is spent in the effort to win a soul.”¹ As faithful stewards, our primary financial responsibility is to help worthy ministries reach the largest possible number of people for Christ. We are accountable to our Lord’s last command before He ascended into heaven to “Go and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19). 1 “Junk That Missionary Barrel,” Moody Monthly (September 1977), p.56