In a trendy world the best things in life are timeless! According to 2Pet 3:10-13 the earth as we know it has an expiration date. It will not last forever! It will be destroyed and God will make new heavens and a new earth, where we will begin eternity with Him. From what you know about life, and what you know about God’s Word, what can you identify as TIMELESS? The beauty of nature? It is incredible! Quality workmanship? Sincerely appreciated and very interesting! Kindness from a friend or a stranger? All lasting but perhaps not truly TIMELESS. Matt 25:31-46 remind us some kindness will resurface on judgment day. 1Cor 13:13 reminds us that faith, hope, and love abide or are truly timeless. 1Jn 4:7-8 instructs us “God is love”, and John 3:16 declares “for God so loved He gave His Son …”. This is truth that is rooted in God and will last for eternity. It is at the center of the eternal truth that can and should be our core truth for how we live as Christians.
God is a true lover of people and His generous nature is what He is growing inside His sons and daughters. There is an upside and a more challenging side to this. We are not teaching or encouraging giving to get. We believe giving is His nature, and we give because He has given so much to us. This is the basic motive behind Christian living and giving. We have likely asked or been asked “where did you get that from?”. Inventors create things, manufacturers make things, farmers grow things, etc… But did it really just come from you? Where did you get your talent from? Where did you get the seed from? 1Cor 4:7 “For who makes you differ from another? And what do you have that you did not receive? Now if you did indeed receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?” The skill I developed in school or being mentored was a gift to me from God. Yes we work to develop talents, and we do it using the gifts God has given us. Everything in our lives we enjoy is a gift to us from God.
One real acid test to our eternal faith is how we manage earthly things. God’s Word instructs us to put Him first in finances. Matt 6:19-24 we are told to “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth… lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven … where your treasure is there will your heart be also… no one can serve two masters … you cannot serve God and mammon (money).” “In God We Trust” is written on our money, but it is much easier to say it than do it. The tithe or tenth, may very well be a great test. In Malachi 3:7-10 God told His people they were robbing Him by not tithing and He challenged them to hear the command and put Him to the test. His intent was to open the windows of Heaven for them.