Your Greatest Treasure

More so than the other Gospels, it is believed that the Gospel of Luke mentions more instances of the prayer life of Jesus Christ than any of the others. In this respect, it sheds light on his human side. We know that he was both fully God and fully man, and because he is our example of everything God wanted to accomplish in humanity, it is important for us to be as familiar as possible with both sides. It is reasonable for us to consider that if there was anyone that ever existed on planet earth that didn’t need to pray, this person would have been Jesus. However, as we read and study the Gospels, it should be crystal clear to us that Jesus Christ prayed, and prayed often. So, we know that it is a very intimate relationship building practice that the Father has graced us with, but many of us are not engaging prayer nearly as much as we should. Sometimes the reasons for this is because we’re not seeing our relationship with God as the greatest treasure of our lives.

I want what I want
Jesus Christ said in Mark 11:24(NLT), “I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours.” This verse is undoubtedly one of the most quoted in the Bible. As a very young Christian learning about faith and how to walk by it, I became very excited when I heard teachings on Mark 11:24. I suppose that if you’ve had an easy time of it, and you’ve never endured a string of struggles that seem to go on and on, this verse may not be impactful. But if, like me, you’ve had times when you had to do everything humanly possible to keep your head above water and felt there were times when you actually might drown, then you are overjoyed that God has given us the faith of Jesus Christ.

As a young Christian, I saw miracles, signs, and wonders that inspired me to keep pursuing a deeper relationship with God. I always tell people that He absolutely spoiled me during those days. I would pray and things would just show up. And to be honest, I did feel a little bit like a kid in a candy store. Increasingly, it has become a ‘I want what I want when I want it’ society, and unfortunately, this attitude and mindset rubbed off on me more than I’d like to admit. My prayers became more about my wants and less about the Will of the Father. The focus on my spiritual growth in Christ took a back seat to my personal agenda, but I couldn’t see this. God was not cooperating with my plan, and I was not a happy camper at all.

What God is looking for?
1Thessalonians 5:5(NLT) says, “For you are all children of the light and of the day; we don’t belong to darkness and night.” We are God’s sons and daughters; we’re His kids, but that doesn’t mean we can remain in spiritual immaturity and inability. As children of light, we are to take on the nature of our Father so that His love can shine through us. God is looking for us to grow up into the men and women He’s called us to be. Through the Apostle Paul, God tells us this in Ephesians 4:15(NLT). It says, “Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church.” 

Many of us take a stand against growing up in Christ by refusing to increase our prayer lives, study God’s Word more, and be guided by the Holy Spirit. Instead of clinging to God, we cling to the things that make us comfortable with the emotional baggage and wounds we carry. As in my case, our prayers change. All of us desire to step into a realm of greater blessings, but we don’t want to acquire the spiritual maturity required to live and remain at that level of blessing and responsibility. That’s not going to work, because we can’t have one without the other.

1John 4:8 tells us that God is love. 1John 1:5 says that God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. He’s a powerful and loving Father, and in 1Peter 5:7, He tells us to bring all our worries and cares to Him, because He cares about us. And when we bring our burdens to Him, Hebrews 11:6 tells us that we must come in faith, believing that He exists and that He is a Rewarder to those that sincerely seek Him. The problem is that most people have more faith in other relationships, people, and things than they do in God, and this is a sin. It’s a sin that speaks to the condition of our hearts. Matthew 5:8 tells us that the pure in heart will see God. 1John 2:15(NLT) says, “Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you.” God deserves our whole heart, because He’s our Creator. He will help us to grow in the love of Christ in a way that blesses not just our lives but countless others.

There are many today that are disappointed with their lives. They feel as though they can’t catch a break. It seems every time they take one step forward, something happens to knock them two steps back. Heavenly Father doesn’t want us feeling this way. He wants to love and care for us, but our relationship with Him must be our top priority. It must be the treasure of our hearts, and when it is, we will never place a person, thing, relationship, or situation before our walk with God in Christ. ■

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

“Your Greatest Treasure” by Alexandra Copeland. Springfield Fellowship © 2020. All rights reserved. All praise and honor to God through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.