I have entitled our message this morning, “Correcting Our Double Vision.” Double vision, according to Yale Medicine, is understood as being when someone sees two of the “same” image instead of one.(1) But today, I want us to think of double vision as seeing two “separate” images at the same time. You see, a lot of believers find themselves having two focuses at once; one being on the things of God, and the other being on some kind of worldly distraction; or perhaps numerous distractions. But, in our passage of Scripture, Jesus shows us that we cannot serve the Lord wholeheartedly if we have spiritual double vision. So, let us go ahead and get started with this passage.
Treasure in Earth or Heaven (vv. 19-21)
19 Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Jesus was saying here, “You can have treasure on earth or have treasure in heaven, but you cannot have them both; so, choose which one you will value!” The Greek word for “treasure” in these verses is thesaurous, from which we derive our English word “thesaurus.” A thesaurus can be viewed as a collection or “treasury of words.” Jesus said that, rather than pursuing and hoarding earthly valuables and possessions, we should be storing up a collection of spiritual treasure. The reason why is because the things of this world do not last; they are insecure, as they can be stolen or crumble away from the elements.
When Jesus mentioned how thieves could break in and steal them (v. 19), the word for “break in” literally means to “dig through.”(2) “In [ancient] Palestine the walls of many of the houses were made of nothing stronger than baked clay; and burglars [gained] entry by literally digging through the wall.”(3) This was “easy to do through the mud walls or sun-dried bricks . . . The Greeks [actually] called a burglar a ‘mud-digger’.”(4) “The reference here is to the man who had hoarded up in his house a little store of gold, only to find, when he comes home one day, that the burglars have dug through his flimsy walls and that his treasure is gone. There is no permanency about a treasure which is at the mercy of any enterprising thief.”(5)
Jesus said to “lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven” (v. 20). Commentator Adam Clark says, “The only way to render perishing goods eternal, to secure stately furniture [and clothing] from moths, and the richest metals from [rust], and precious stones from thieves, is to transmit them directly to heaven by ‘acts of charity’.”(6) So, why might Clark have connected storing up treasure in heaven with acts of charity? Well, because this was part of what the Jews believed at that time. So, let us look in to this matter further.
“The Jews were very familiar with the phrase ‘treasure in heaven.’ They identified such treasure with ‘two things’ in particular. 1.) They said that the deeds of kindness which a man did upon earth became his treasure in heaven . . . The Jewish rabbis were sure that that which is selfishly hoarded is lost, but that which is generously given away brings treasure.”(7) “2.) The Jews always connected the phrase ‘treasure in heaven’ with character,” as in the character of one who obeys the precepts of the Law. Both sentiments can be found in a statement by Rabbi Yose ben Kisma from the first century A.D. He once declared, “In the hour of man’s departure neither silver, nor gold, nor precious stones accompany him, but only his 1.) knowledge of the Law and 2.) his good works.”(8)
So, treasure in heaven was understood as doing good works and giving away money to the poor. It was also understood as having good character; but character is not “tried and proven” in isolation. I think we tend to view treasure in heaven as something we store up by spending devotional time with God through Bible study and prayer. But devotional time is normally done in isolation. It is personally rewarding and uplifting, but it does not edify others; unless we allow it to overflow in service. But we often use devotional time as a copout, because doing good works and being a good example in character requires us to spend time among people, and interacting with people can be challenging. However, we do not know true sacrifice until it hurts – until it is “tried and tested” in community – and to hit us where it hurts, it must hit “our pocket book” and “our pride” – good works and character.
When equating treasure in heaven with good works and good character, some people arrive at the faulty view of a works-based salvation; thinking they can earn their way into heaven through acts of charity and good behavior. But let us consider charity, which is the giving away of our possessions. Clark says we need to remember that everything we have in our possession is from the Lord. We are but stewards of the things that still belong to Him; therefore, even if we give away all that we have, there can be no merit attached to this act, as these goods are ultimately the Lord’s; and he poses the question: “How can we suppose to purchase anything from a man by his own property?” Clark concludes that “on this ground the doctrine of human merit is one of the most absurd that ever was published among men.”(9)
These verses have nothing to do with earning our salvation. A works-based salvation is refuted throughout the New Testament. For example, we read in Ephesians 2:8-9, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” (see also Titus 3:5). I shared earlier how Clark stated that “the only way to render perishing goods eternal . . . is to transmit them directly to heaven by acts of charity.”(10) But the spiritual concept he communicated has nothing to do with a “treasure swap.” It is about making sure that our spiritual focus, and thus our heart, lies in the right place. When we do acts of charity and exhibit godly character, we are showing that our spiritual eyes are set on the kingdom. We are seeking kingdom treasure rather than earthly treasure. For where our heart is, that is where our treasure truly lies (v. 21).
Full of Light or Darkness (vv. 22-23)
22 The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!
Jesus was saying here, “You can be full of light or be full of darkness, but you cannot be full of them both; so, choose which one you will allow!” A. T. Robertson says “that the eye, besides being the organ of vision, is the seat of expression, revealing inward dispositions.”(11) My mother used to say, “The eyes are windows to the soul.” So, one way of looking at what Jesus said is that we can know something about a person’s spiritual character by their eyes and expressions; which could simply mean that we can know something about someone by his or her fruit or outward behavior. But William Barclay shares another way of looking at what Jesus said that seems to make more sense:
“The color and state of a window decide what light gets into a room. If the window is clear, clean, and undistorted, the light will come flooding into the room, and will illuminate every corner of it. If the glass of the window is colored or frosted, distorted, dirty, or obscure, the light will be hindered, and the room will not be lit up. The amount of light which gets into any room depends on the state of the window through which it must pass. So, then, says Jesus, the light which gets into any man’s heart, and soul and being, depends on the spiritual state of the eye through which it must pass, for the eye is the window of the whole body.”(12) Therefore, it is not so much a matter of the eye “revealing” one’s spiritual condition, as it is the eye “determining” and “directing” one’s spiritual condition.
So, what did Jesus have in mind when He said, “Therefore, if your eye is good” (v. 22)? The word “good” (haplous) can be translated as “generous.” When translated with this meaning, the word “good” refers to a husband paying the dowry, or bride-price, generously and on time. The eye that is good, therefore, is understood as possessing liberality and generosity.(13) In contrast, Jesus mentioned the eye that is “bad” (v. 23); and this has nothing to do with “the stink eye!” The eye that is “bad” (ponerous) is understood as being stingy.(14) Clark says, “An evil eye was a phrase used among the ancient Jews to denote an envious, covetous man or disposition; a man who repined at his neighbor’s prosperity, loved his own money, and would do nothing in the way of charity for God’s sake.”(15)
If the eye is focused on the wrong thing and clouded over with cataracts such as coveting and envy, it will result in sinful behavior. Since the word “good” (haplous), as in the “good eye,” can be translated as “generous,” this tells us that “Jesus [was] saying, ‘There is nothing like generosity for giving you a clear and undistorted view of life and of people; and there is nothing like the grudging and un-generous spirit for distorting your view of life and of people.”(16) This means that we must be generous – generous in our judgement or others, and generous in our giving to meet the needs of others. I want to share some observations by Barclay. He says, that there are three great evils of the un-generous spirit, or the eye that is grudging:
1.) It makes it impossible to live with ourselves. If a man is forever envying another his success, grudging another his happiness, shutting his heart against another’s need . . . there grows within him a bitterness and a resentment which robs him of his happiness, and steals away his peace, and destroys his content[ment]. 2.) It makes it impossible to live with other people . . . The man who all [people] despise is the man with the miser’s heart. Charity covers a multitude of sins, but the grudging spirit makes useless a multitude of virtues . . . 3.) It makes it impossible to live with God . . . There can be no fellowship between God whose heart is afire with love, and the man whose heart is frozen with meanness.”(17)
Now, the word “good” (haplous) can also be translated as “single,” which refers to having a singular focus,(18) as opposed to seeing an object as appearing in two or more places.(19) Verses 22-23 are sandwiched right in the middle of this passage, as Jesus wanted to link the example of treasure in earth or heaven (vv. 19-21) with what we are about to see in the next verse, which speaks of serving two masters. Robertson says, “If our eyes are healthy, we see clearly and with a single focus. If the eyes are diseased, they may even be cross-eyed or cock-eyed. We see double and confuse our vision. We keep one eye on the hoarded treasures of earth and roll the other proudly up to heaven,” and he adds, “Seeing double is doublemindedness as is shown in verse 24.”(20) So, let us look at verse 24, and see if we can learn something about doublemindedness.
Serving God or Mammon (v. 24)
24 No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.
Jesus was saying here, “You can serve God or serve mammon, but you cannot serve them both; so, choose which one will be your master!” Mammon is said to be a Chaldee and Syriac word for the money-god.(21) However, there is also an Aramaic word mamona, which means, “wealth or profit,” and a Babylonian word mimma, which means, “anything at all.”(22) Jesus was saying, “You cannot serve both God and money; you cannot serve both God and possessions; and you cannot serve both God and ‘anything else’ you want.” We cannot serve our own desires and the Lord’s simultaneously, for we will idolize and prioritize our desires over His. We must have that good-eye, singular focus mentioned back in verse 22, as anything other than that is flat-out double vision.
But this verse addresses more than double vision; as it also alludes to double-mindedness. In James 1:5-8, we read, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.” James said that we must “ask in faith, with no doubting” (v. 6). The definition of “doubt” is “to stand in ‘two ways,’ implying uncertainty in which way to take.” It is also defined as “being anxious, through a distracted state of mind, and wavering between hope and fear.”(23)
Os Guinness says, “To believe is to be ‘in one mind’ about accepting something as true; to disbelieve is to be ‘in one mind’ about rejecting it. To doubt is to waver between the two, to believe and disbelieve at once and so be ‘in two minds’.”(24) When we doubt, we are divided in our mind. Does the word “insanity” ring a bell? Being divided in one’s mind is tormenting. It is a feeling of being torn apart; living simultaneously in a state of hope and despair. Doubting the Lord not only leads to unanswered prayer, but it leads to emotional and spiritual problems as well. This is also what happens on an emotional and spiritual level when we try to serve two masters at the same time.
So, what is the root cause of our failure to live a life of single devotion unto God? Well, it has to do with our focus. The eyes are not only a window to the soul, they are a window to the mind; as the images transmitted from the eye through electrical signals, enter the visual cortex of the brain, where those images are then interpreted. If we have a problem with our vision and focus, then our interpretation may be off, and thus our perception of reality, the world around us, and life in general. If we have spiritual double vision, our gaze will land on things other than God. Our sight will be drawn to distractions, which present us with choices and options other than serving the Lord.
In 1 Kings chapter 18, we read where Elijah confronted the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel. The prophets, and all others who were gathered there, had two options from which to choose. They could serve God or serve Baal; and so, Elijah asked them a question. He said, “How long will you falter between two opinions? If the Lord is God follow Him; but if Baal, follow him” (v. 21). Whenever we are faced with other choices and options, then perhaps we need to ask ourselves, “How long will I falter between numerous distractions?” The Amplified Bible renders Elijah’s question like this: “How long will you halt and limp between two opinions?” (1 Kgs 18:21). If we are walking through life distracted, we will be unable to see and navigate the spiritual obstacles in our path, and we will stumble and limp helplessly along through life spiritualty wounded and bitter.
In Mark 3:24-25, Jesus said, “If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.” Our state motto says, “United we stand, divided we fall” (Kentucky). If our spiritual double vision leads to doublemindedness, being unable to decide between serving God or following the world, and being unable to discern between right and wrong; we will not only stumble and limp helplessly along – like those riding the fence between Baal and God – but we will fall spiritually; as we will be unable to even stand. It has been said, “If you stand for nothing, you will fall for anything.” So, let us be certain to narrow down our focus and stand on what matters, which is storing up treasure in heaven by serving God and others.
Time of Reflection
In Mark 8:36-37, Jesus asked, “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” – and this is the question I leave you with today. If you want to make sure that you have a treasure waiting for you in heaven when you die, then you need to confess Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. Romans 10:9 says, “If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” If you desire the forgiveness of sins and eternal life, then I invite you to come and confess Jesus as Savior and Lord of your life.
NOTES
(1) “Diplopia (Double Vision),” Yale Medicine: https://www.yalemedicine.org/conditions/double-vision#:~:text=Double%20vision%2C%20which%20is%20also,from%20a%20serious%20medical%20condition (Accessed October 9, 2024).
(2) A. T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament, vol. 1 (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1930), p. 56.
(3) William Barclay, “The Gospel of Mathew,” The Daily Study Bible, vol. 1 (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1958), pp. 241-242.
(4) Robertson, p. 56.
(5) Barclay, p. 242.
(6) Adam Clark, Clark’s Commentary (Nashville: Abingdon Press), p. 90.
(7) Barclay, pp. 243-244.
(8) Ibid., p. 244.
(9) Clark, p. 90.
(10) Ibid., p. 90.
(11) Robertson, p. 56.
(12) Barclay, p. 245.
(13) Robertson, pp. 56-57.
(14) Ibid., pp. 56-57.
(15) Clark, p. 90.
(16) Barclay, pp. 248-249.
(17) Ibid., p. 250.
(18) Robertson, p. 57.
(19) Clark, p. 90.
(20) Robertson, p. 57.
(21) Ibid., p. 57.
(22) E. E. Ellis, “Mammon,” New Bible Dictionary (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1991), p. 730.
(23) Joyce Meyer, Battlefield of the Mind (Tulsa, OK: Harrison House, 1995), p. 105.
(24) Os Guinness, In Two Minds (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1976), pp. 24-25.
