In the Sermon on the Mount, Christ’s teaching found in Matthew 5-7, we discover the most complete description in the New Testament of genuine Christian culture. In the first half of Matthew 6 (1-18), Jesus taught on the private life of a believer (giving, praying, fasting). In the second half of Matthew 6 (19-34), He instructs us on the Christians’ public business in the world (questions of money, possessions, food, drink, clothing, and ambition). It is this second half I want to look at more closely.
Ambition simply stated is what we seek after. Christian ambition is best described as seeking after the things that bring glory to God. Jesus, in Matthew 6:19-34, is going to address Christian ambition by sharing four alternatives: two treasures (9-12), two conditions (22-23), two masters (24), and two desires (25-34).
Let’s dig into our passage together, first looking at two treasures found in Matthew 6:9-12. These are the treasures of earth and the treasures in heaven. It is important to note that Jesus is not banning possessions. He is not forbidding saving for the future or a life insurance policy. In fact, the Bible affirms wise investments and planning for the future. We are encouraged in Scripture to enjoy the good things that God has given to us. What Jesus forbids His followers is the selfish accumulation of goods and materialism, which tethers our hearts to earth, pulling believers away from Him. Jesus teaches that your heart follows your treasure; therefore, we need to store up treasure in heaven (Deut 6:5).
Jesus continues in Matthew 6:22-23, presenting two conditions of our heart: full of light or full of darkness. He uses the eye as symbolic of our hearts (Psa 119:6, 10). As our eyes affect our whole body, our ambition determines our direction in life. When your heart is right, your path is clear (Psa 119:105), and you walk in darkness when your heart is wrong (Prov 4:19). Jesus teaches that the condition of your heart determines your path. If our spiritual vision is correctly adjusted to God and His priorities, our lives will be filled with godly purpose and drive.
Then, Jesus declares in Matthew 6:24 that there are two masters we can serve, God or money. We have a choice between God and money, that is, between our Creator or anything else of our own creation (i.e., money). We can’t serve both. No one can serve two masters. Jesus teaches that you have to choose whether you will serve God or money or anything else. If you’re attempting to divide your allegiance between God or money or anything else, you have already chosen money or whatever else you have tried to place alongside God’s “sovereignty” in your life.
Then, Jesus concludes in Matthew 6:25-34 by presenting two desires we can possess, the false ambition of our own material security and the Christian ambition of God’s rule and righteousness. He explains that pursuing a false ambition, our own material security is unnecessary, unworthy, and unproductive as a Christian. Jesus shares what John Stott calls the trinity of cares: food, drink, and clothing. It is important to note that Jesus never denies or despises the needs of the body. After all, He made it and takes care of it. It is worry Christ denounces. It is not forethought Jesus forbids, but anxious thought. Jesus instructs us to seek first [God’s] kingdom and His righteousness; in the Lord’s prayer, we take this supreme quest and make a request that it will indeed be a reality in our lives. We seek God’s kingdom or rule, which only exists where Jesus Christ is consciously acknowledged. To be in God’s kingdom is the same as enjoying His salvation. God’s righteousness includes individual and social righteousness. Because God is righteous, He desires righteousness in every human community, not just every Christian community.
As God’s people, we must understand Christ’s call. Our ambition is to know God and make Him known. Believers are to desire God’s rule in their life and cooperate with the Spirit to see such rule and salvation established in the lives of others. Christians are to desire personal righteousness while cooperating with the Spirit to see the righteousness of God established in the communities where we live. We are to be everyday missionaries in the everyday mission fields of our lives. Jesus teaches that what we desire produces specific fruit. We either pursue Christian ambition leading to peace or a false ambition leading to worry that is unnecessary, unworthy, and unproductive as a Christian.
Here are the simple truths about Christian ambition: Your treasure determines your heart. Your heart determines the course of your life. You cannot divide your heart between two masters. You will either pursue a false ambition leading to worry or Christian ambition leading to peace and heavenly provisions. You must choose whether or not you will serve God, seek His rule and His righteousness. In short, we can be ambitious either for ourselves or for God. There is no third alternative. Above all else, Christian ambition seeks first God’s glory in all things; nothing else comes close. Soli Deo Gloria (Glory to God Alone)!