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Most of us don’t think of ourselves as treasure-hunters, but we all have something we’re investing in. Jesus had something direct and important to say about that, and it cuts right to the heart of how we live.

What Does Matthew 6 Actually Say About Treasure?

In Matthew 6:19-21, Jesus says this: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” – Matthew 6:19-21 That last line is the one worth sitting with. Jesus doesn’t say your treasure follows your heart. He says your heart follows your treasure. That’s a significant distinction.

Why the Heart Is the Real Issue

Throughout the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus keeps going deeper into the heart. In Matthew 5, He made it clear that the kind of righteousness God is looking for isn’t outside-in, driven by rules and performance. It’s inside-out. God is after a genuine heart change. That context matters when reading Matthew 6. Giving, praying, and fasting aren’t meant to become a new checklist. They’re meant to help align your heart with God’s. The real question behind all of it is: what do you truly value?

What Counts as “Treasure”?

Treasure isn’t just money. It can be success, comfort, security, family, reputation, experiences, achievements, or possessions. None of those things are wrong on their own. The issue is when any one of them takes the top spot in your life. We naturally organize our lives around what we consider most valuable. And whatever sits in that first place shapes everything else, including our hearts.

Why Earthly Treasure Always Falls Short

Jesus isn’t condemning work, savings, or planning. He’s reminding us that everything on earth is temporary. Markets fluctuate. Technology becomes obsolete. Homes wear out. Bodies age. Circumstances shift. The writer of Ecclesiastes put it plainly: “I denied myself nothing my eyes desired. I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my labor, and this was the reward for all my toil. Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind. Nothing was gained under the sun.” – Ecclesiastes 2:10-11 When he says “under the sun,” he means here on earth. The realization is simple but sobering: if everything you’re investing in is temporary, it will eventually feel empty. Think of building a sandcastle. You can put real effort into it, and for a while it looks great. But the tide is always coming. The point isn’t that building it is wrong. It’s that you already know it’s temporary while you’re doing it.

What Does It Mean to Store Up Treasure in Heaven?

Jesus isn’t talking about collecting reward points or earning a spot in heaven through good deeds. He’s inviting us into something better. He’s talking about investing our lives in things that carry eternal value. What lasts forever? Our relationship with God, and our relationships with people who are in relationship with God. Everything else is temporary.

Things with eternal value look like this:

• Loving people well
• Acts of mercy and generosity
• Faithfulness and forgiveness
• Serving others
• Sharing the gospel
• Worship and time with God
• Becoming more like Jesus through the Holy Spirit

These are treasures that death cannot touch.

How Your Treasure Shapes Your Heart

Paul writes in Colossians 3:1-4: “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.” – Colossians 3:1-4 Our hearts naturally follow what we consistently invest in. If you keep pouring your best energy into God’s kingdom, your heart moves toward God. If you keep pouring it into status, comfort, and possessions, your heart follows those things instead.

Proverbs says it this way:

“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” – Proverbs 4:23

This is why Jesus spends so much of this sermon on the heart. When the heart is aligned with Him, that’s when we begin to experience the kind of life He has for us.

Treasure Always Leads to Worship

Whatever occupies first place in your heart becomes what you trust most, what you depend on, and ultimately what you worship. Jesus said the greatest commandment is to love God with all your heart, soul, and mind. That kind of love requires that He holds first place, not second or third. When God is in that first spot, everything else gets better. Your relationship with Him directly affects your relationships with everyone else around you.

Life Application

This week, take an honest look at where your best attention, energy, and affection are actually going. Not where you think they should go, but where they actually go. That will tell you a lot about what you’re truly treasuring right now. Then make one intentional eternal investment this week. Encourage someone who needs it. Serve someone without being asked. Spend focused, unhurried time with God. Share your faith if the door opens. Do something that will outlast you. Your heart will follow your treasure. So choose carefully what you invest in.

Ask yourself these questions as you go into the week:

• What receives my best attention, energy, and affection right now?
• Is there something competing with God for first place in my life?
• What is one thing I can invest in this week that has eternal value?
• If someone watched how I spend my time and money, what would they say I treasure most?

Steve Lawes is a Church Consultant and also provides coaching for pastors, churches, ministries and church planters.

Fasting is one of those topics that can make people uncomfortable. Unlike prayer, which most of us agree we should do more of, fasting feels like a bigger ask. But when you understand what fasting is actually about, it becomes less of a burden and more of an invitation.

Fasting Is Not Just About Skipping Meals

At its core, fasting is not simply about going without food. It is about understanding our desires. It is about what shapes us from the inside and what masters our appetites. It is entirely possible to live in a free nation and still be captive in heart. Political freedom does not automatically mean freedom from fear, anger, greed, pride, anxiety, or unhealthy desires. That is exactly why Jesus addresses fasting. Because fasting helps reveal what is actually ruling our hearts.

What Does Fasting Reveal About Your Heart?

Food is a wonderful gift from God. But every good gift can become an ultimate thing, something we depend on more than we depend on God. Fasting gently surfaces some important questions:

• What do I reach for first?
• What do I depend on most?
• What have I allowed to master me?

Think of the warning lights on a car’s dashboard. The light is not the problem itself. It reveals a problem under the hood. Hunger works the same way. When we fast, our cravings begin to surface. We discover we are not just hungry for food. We are hungry for comfort, control, distraction, or approval. Fasting does not create those desires. It reveals them.

Is Fasting About Impressing God or Other People?

Jesus is clear on this point. In Matthew 6:16-18, He says: “When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” – Matthew 6:16-18

Just as giving can be performative and prayer can be performative, fasting can be performative too. Jesus is not interested in outward displays of spirituality. He is interested in the heart. Kingdom alignment always moves us away from appearances and toward authenticity. Performative fasting does not draw us closer to the Father. The book of Isaiah makes this plain when God rebukes a people who were fasting outwardly while acting in anger and exploitation. Fasting that does not come from a sincere heart misses the point entirely.

What Was Biblical Fasting Actually Designed to Do?

In Jesus’ time, a typical fast meant eating your normal evening meal and then not eating again until the following evening. Meal preparation was extremely time-consuming back then. The time saved from not preparing meals was intentionally given over to God. The whole point was making space and time for relationship with the Father. That is where alignment starts. Not just the act of not eating, but the intentional decision to be with God. The Psalms capture this beautifully:

“As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?” – Psalm 42:1-2

Fasting reminds us that we were created for more than physical satisfaction. Every time our stomach reminds us we are hungry, we have an opportunity to turn our attention toward God. The physical hunger becomes a reminder of a deeper hunger.

What Is Our Deepest Need as Human Beings?

Jesus addresses this directly: “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” – John 6:35

Our deepest need has never simply been something physical. Our deepest need as humans is communion with God. Fasting clears the table of our hearts. When our lives become so full of lesser things, we lose our appetite for what matters most. Fasting creates the opportunity to clear that clutter and make room for what is truly nourishing.

What Does True Freedom Look Like?

Freedom is not simply the ability to do whatever we want. Biblically, freedom is becoming the kind of person who is no longer mastered by anything except Christ. Paul puts it this way: “I have the right to do anything, you say, but not everything is beneficial. I have the right to do anything, but I will not be mastered by anything.” – 1 Corinthians 6:12

Fasting helps us discover whether something besides Jesus has quietly taken first place in our hearts. True freedom is not found in getting everything you want. It is found in wanting the One who gives us life.

What Does Fasting Look Like in Everyday Life Today?

Food is far more accessible today than it was in Jesus’ time. That means fasting might look a little different for us. The goal is still the same: create time and space to be with the Father. Here are some practical ways that might look:

• A fast from your phone for a day
• A fast from a specific app or social media
• A fast from the news or constant background noise
• A traditional food fast, if your health allows

If you have medical issues, please do not skip meals without consulting a doctor. The goal is never to harm yourself. The goal is always to draw closer to God. None of these things are bad in themselves. We do not fast to earn God’s favor. We fast to align our hearts with His and to pursue Him above everything else. That is where we find real freedom.

Life Application

This week, take one practical step toward fasting. It does not have to be dramatic. Choose one thing, whether food, your phone, social media, or constant noise, and intentionally set it aside for a period of time. Use that time to be with God. Pray, read Scripture, or simply sit in silence and let Him speak. Before you do, ask yourself these questions:

• What do I reach for first when I am stressed, bored, or anxious?
• Is there anything in my life that has quietly taken first place over God?
• What would it look like for me to hunger for God the way I hunger for comfort or distraction?

What shapes your desires shapes your life. This week, ask God to reveal what your heart is truly hungering for, and then take one step toward making space for Him to fill it.

Steve Lawes is a Church Consultant and also provides coaching for pastors, churches, ministries and church planters.