There are precious promises Jesus gives to those who follow him. Luke 12 has some of the kindest words I could read:

³² “Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. (Luke 12:32, NIV)

These are words that should take our breath away. Our Father is pleased to give us the Kingdom. There is no need to fear. No need to walk in anxiety.

But there is a response called for on our part. (Sometimes this gets missed. We just like sitting around and thinking about how much God thinks of us.)

The response is to treasure Jesus. Hold him in esteem. Not just tell him of our love… but act.

Treasuring Jesus is action. And the action is one of complete trust.

“Sell your possessions and give to the poor.”

In other words… trust him. He does indeed provide. He does indeed take care of those who are his own. So… lay it on the line. Give. Take the risk. Running this risk has its rewards. (And it’s not a billion dollar bailout from the government.)

It is treasure in heaven. It is gaining something that just won’t fade away.

Treasuring Jesus is action.

“Be dressed and ready for service and keep your lamps burning,” (Luke 12:35, NIV)

We are to take up the servant’s apron and get to work. Treasuring Jesus is labor. It is getting up, thinking of HIM instead of ourselves, and making sure Kingdom priorities are always in front of us. Trust him… He has our needs fully in view. He knows what we need for finances. He knows what we need for all of our resources. So… let HIM take care of that… and our adventure is to lock onto him and never let go.

Loving him is found in providing for others. We trust him as we let go of our possessions.

Treasuring him is what we are embarking on this summer as a church. We will be reading the New Testament together. (See the “Eat This Book” tab on this blog.) We are going to be engaging in conversation, learning from each other, and seeing what the Lord is asking of us to prepare us so we are dressed for action.

Treasuring him is what we do when we look out for those in our body when there is a need. Over the past two weeks I have watched our church step forward again in a huge way to help those in need. I have watched our churches in my city do the same thing. It is simply wonderful to watch what the Spirit will do.

Holding tight to the Lord is the challenge. Trusting him is so essential… and so difficult!

Hold on tight. It’s worth the ride!