“Open Your Account With The Bank Of Heaven!”

“Open Your Account With The Bank Of Heaven!”(Lk.12:32-34).
“Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
It is jokingly said that when you tell a lorry owner that the lorry has made an accident, his first question would be, “What is the state of the lorry?” And if you respond that there’s only slight damage to the vehicle he would say, “Thank God!”
With a mind twisted towards gain, he cares nothing about the driver.
Who or what are you without others? From the moment of your birth, right up to when you will be lowered into the grave, your life depends on others. “No man is an island;” we are all parts of the mainland!
Luke the evangelist is very much concerned with communal welfare. In his gospel he tells the “little flock,” “Sell your possessions and give to the poor.” He later reports how the first converts practiced this communal welfare where it was from each according to his means and to each according to his needs.
“The believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had…”(Acts 4:32-35). So you see why the song writer says, “Give me that old time religion…!”
Yes, the communal spirit which gave a sense of belonging and dignity to the poor is what each Christian community should promote. Unfortunately, what works for the “little flock” becomes difficult when numbers swell. Discrimination in sharing provokes grumblings that can cause disarray, like in the case where Grecian widows were overlooked in the daily distribution of food (Acts 6:1).
Dear friend, selling your possessions and giving to the poor is not a discouragement of hard work and assiduity. Rather, it is a caveat that you should not covet, hoard or make gods of material possesions. What it means is that before you go to bed with a full stomach, ask yourself whether you were fair to the poor that you know.
There is no bank in heaven. Heaven’s bank is here. You open an account when you invest on the poor and stand for the rights of the marginalized and the voiceless! This of course is not a license for idleness and slot to those who may conclude that since the others will give to us, there is no need to work. My brother, make you hustle before e pass you! Put your trust in the LORD and there wouldn’t be need to be afraid!
Prayer: LORD teach me to number my days and gain a heart of wisdom. Amen!
Have a blessed day! Peace be with you!
Rev Babila Fochang.