What Are You Really Seeking? -  Matthew 6

Pastor Dan Walker, PhD, MDiv

Introduction: What We Are Really Seeking in the New Year

Today, we begin a new message series: Pray as Jesus Taught. The most important thing that we can do in the new year is to learn to pray as Jesus taught. Prayer is not simply a religious habit, it is the primary way we align our hearts with God.

This morning, our message title is a question: What Are You Really Seeking? We often begin our faith journey with sincere faith and good intentions. At the start, our desire is genuinely to follow Jesus wherever He leads.

Yet over time our hearts can drift from our first love. The pressures of providing for our families and responding to constant needs can change where we get our sense of security. Slowly, our priorities begin to shift without us noticing.

Without realizing it, earthly treasure begins to feel safer than eternal trust. That drift does not stay private. When our treasure shifts, our vision follows and our direction changes.

We become more anxious about the future and find less time for God. What once felt central becomes something we squeeze in when possible. The drift always produces spiritual distance.

Jesus calls us back to a better treasure, a clearer vision and one Master. He does not shame us, but lovingly redirects us. Let’s think about it this way.

Many people rent storage units for good reasons. A move, a season of transition, or a lack of space often makes a storage unit feel necessary. At first, everything seems reasonable and temporary.

Months pass and payments continue. Eventually, we can’t really remember what is even inside. Yet we keep paying for what once mattered, long after it has lost its value.

That storage unit represents a priority that is out of place and detrimental. Something that was meant to serve us now quietly drains us. It becomes a picture of misplaced attention.

This morning, we’re going to study what Jesus has to say about getting our priorities in order. We’ll learn about aligning our treasure, our vision and our Master with God’s kingdom. Jesus shows us how these areas are always connected.

Earthly treasure does not last, but it has a way of capturing our hearts anyway. Scripture repeatedly warns us about this danger.

Psalm 62:10 (ESV) If riches increase, set not your heart on them.

This verse does not condemn increase itself. It warns us against allowing earthly riches to capture our hearts. The issue is not possession, but affection.

Even good gifts from God can become dangerous when we put our trust in them. Blessings were never meant to replace dependence on God. They were meant to point us back to Him.

Proverbs 4:23 (ESV) Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.

Scripture treats the heart as the control center of life. What captures our hearts shapes our words, choices and relationships. Direction always flows from devotion.

Guarding our hearts requires attention and dependence on God. It does not happen accidentally. It is a daily, prayerful discipline.

Colossians 3:2 (ESV) Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.

When our hearts are focused above, then our minds must also be set on things above. Paul is calling believers to reorient their thinking. This kind of focus does not happen naturally.

Earthly things press in on us continually, so our minds must be aimed toward Christ and His kingdom. Without intentional focus, drift is inevitable.

Store Your Treasure in Heaven

What we treasure determines our vision, our direction and our allegiance. Jesus begins by showing us how treasure reveals the true direction of our hearts. What we value most always shapes how we live.

Matthew 6:19 (ESV) Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal,

Jesus gives us a clear command what not to do. Don’t store treasures for yourself on earth. He speaks plainly because the temptation is powerful.

Treasure is something that has value that we put our trust and security in. Earthly treasure is fragile and temporary. It decays, it can be lost and it doesn’t deliver lasting security.

Jesus does not want us to build our lives around something that will not last. He loves us too much to let us anchor our hope in what can fail.

Matthew 6:20 (ESV) but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.

Jesus tells us where true security is found. Heavenly treasures are eternal and of supreme value. They cannot be taken, destroyed or diminished.

Heavenly treasure is secure because it is anchored in God’s kingdom, not human control. This kind of treasure frees the heart from fear and keeps our minds on heaven.

Matthew 6:21 (ESV) For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Our hearts will follow where we put our treasure. When we invest consistently in heaven, our hopes, dreams, affections and decisions follow. Direction always follows devotion.

Application: Reordering Time, Talents, and Resources

So what is this treasure that Jesus is talking about? Our treasure is the gifts that God has given to us. These gifts reveal what we value most.

Our treasure is our time, our talents and yes, our money. Each of these are gifts from God that can be spent on ourselves or laid up for God’s kingdom. How we use them reveals our priorities.

At the beginning of this year, pray about where your time, talents and money have been going. Pray about any changes that God may be asking you to make. Invite Him to reorder what matters most.

We lay up treasure in heaven by giving our time to serve God no matter what we are doing. We lay up treasure in heaven by using our talents to serve God in our jobs, families and church. We lay up treasure in heaven by using our finances to advance God’s kingdom locally and globally.

Remember that as we sow time, talents and money into God’s kingdom, we reap a harvest both in this life and in heaven. God never wastes faithful investment.

Guard Your Eye’s Vision

Matthew 6:22 (ESV) The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light,

Jesus shifts from treasure to vision. The eye represents how we see and interpret life. Vision determines direction.

The Greek word for healthy is single. A healthy eye is focused on one thing that is full of light, which is God. A divided vision always produces confusion.

What you look at, both physically and mentally, will determine the degree of light you have in your life. When vision is aligned with God’s kingdom, the whole of life moves in the same direction.

Matthew 6:23 (ESV) but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!

The Greek word for bad is evil. When vision is focused on things apart from God, darkness spreads through the whole life. Misaligned vision always has consequences.

A bad eye leads to confusion and direction away from God. What we focus on determines the path we take.

Psalm 119:105 (ESV) Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

When we focus our vision on God’s Word, it fills our lives with light. Scripture corrects our vision and keeps it aligned with truth. It reveals what is false so we can turn away.

Scripture becomes the lens that helps us see clearly in God’s light. Without it, vision easily drifts.

Application: Choosing What Shapes Our Sight

In today’s world, we have an almost unlimited number of things we could look at. Never before has a small device given such constant access to light or darkness. Vision has never been more contested.

Many people say it doesn’t matter what they look at as long as they don’t act on it. Jesus teaches that this is not true. What you focus on will control your life.

Ask God to reveal where your vision is directed toward darkness instead of light. Make a decision not only to avoid wrong vision, but to increase right vision. Scripture reading realigns perspective.

Model healthy vision for your children. Train them to have eyes full of the light of the Gospel and to turn away from evil. What they see you value will shape them.

Choose One True Master

Matthew 6:24 (ESV) No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.

A master is who or what you serve. Your master is who you love and are devoted to. Service always follows allegiance.

Jesus says we cannot serve two masters because divided loyalty is impossible. Most people believe they can manage both. Jesus says this always leads to conflict.

The Greek word for master is kyrios, meaning Lord. In the Old Testament, Israel learned they could not serve the Lord and idols at the same time. God requires exclusive allegiance.

Matthew 6:24b (ESV) You cannot serve God and money.

Mamōnas refers to anything in which we place our trust or confidence. It may be money, success or control. Whatever we trust becomes our master.

Money becomes an idol when it provides security God alone should provide. Providing for family is not wrong, but trusting money instead of God is. When fear rises as resources fall, allegiance is exposed.

Joshua 24:15 (ESV) And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

Joshua gave Israel the same choice Jesus gives us. There were two choices then and there are two choices now. Every person must choose.

God’s call to undivided allegiance has always been clear. Choosing a master is unavoidable. The only question is where that allegiance leads.

Application: Submitting Every Allegiance to Jesus

Ask God to show you areas where you are depending on something other than Him. In daily prayer, reaffirm God’s lordship over your decisions. Invite His rule into ordinary life.

Lead your family with Joshua’s declaration, As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. Ask God to break areas of bondage not yet submitted to Jesus. Freedom follows surrender.

Conclusion: Returning to What Truly Matters

That storage unit is a simple picture. Something temporary slowly became permanent because no one questioned its value. Jesus warns the same thing can happen in the heart.

Earthly treasure shapes what we love and trust. That is why Jesus calls us to lay up treasure in heaven as a rescue for our hearts. He redirects us toward what gives life.

Vision always follows treasure. A healthy eye brings light and clarity, while a divided eye brings confusion and darkness. Focus determines peace.

We cannot serve two masters. Divided allegiance exhausts us, but freedom comes when trust is fully placed in God. Jesus calls us to seek Him above all else.

📘 Continue the Journey

Reflect deeper and apply this week’s message with the Message Study Guide — perfect for personal devotions, family discussion, or your Life Group.

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