Eyes on Eternity
Excerpted from The Treasure Principle: Unlocking the Secret of Joyful Giving by Randy Alcorn
The streets of Cairo were hot and dusty. Our missionary friends Pat and Rakel Thurman took us down an alley. We drove past Arabic signs to an overgrown graveyard for American missionaries.
As Nanci and I and our daughters, Karina and Angela, followed, Pat pointed to a sun-scorched tombstone that read: "William Borden 1887-1913."
Borden, a Yale graduate and heir to great wealth, rejected a life of ease in order to bring the gospel to the majority religion of that land. Refusing even to buy himself a car, Borden gave away hundreds of thousands of dollars to missions. After only four months of zealous ministry in Egypt, he contracted spinal meningitis and died at age twenty-five.
I dusted off the epitaph on Borden's grave. After describing his love for God and sacrifices for the people he served among, the inscription ended with a phrase I've never forgotten: "Apart from faith in Christ, there is no explanation for such a life."
A Striking Contrast
The Thurmans took us from Borden's grave to the Egyptian Museum. The King Tut exhibit was mind-boggling.
Tutankhamun died at age seventeen. He was buried with solid gold chariots and thousands of golden artifacts. His gold coffin was found buried within gold tombs within gold tombs.
The ancient Egyptians believed in an afterlife—one where they could take earthly treasures. But all the treasures intended for King Tut's eternal enjoyment stayed right where they were for more than three thousand years, until Howard Carter discovered the burial chamber in 1922.
I was struck by the contrast between these two graves. Borden's was obscure, dusty, and hidden off a back street littered with garbage. Tutankhamun's tomb glittered with unimaginable wealth. Yet where are these two men now? One, who lived in opulence and called himself king, is in the misery of a Christless eternity. The other, who lived a modest life in service of the one true King, is enjoying everlasting reward in his Lord's presence.
Tut's life was tragic because of an awful truth discovered too late: he couldn't take his treasures with him. William Borden's life was triumphant. Why? Because instead of leaving behind his treasures, he sent them on ahead.
If you imagine Heaven as a place where you will strum a harp in endless tedium, you probably dread it. But if you trust Scripture, you will be filled with anticipation for your heavenly home. Heaven will be a place of rest and relief from sin and suffering; but it will also be a place of great learning, activity, artistic expression, exploration, camaraderie, and service.
Worthy of Our Reward?
Jesus notices our smallest acts of kindness: "If anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward" (Matthew 10:42).
God keeps a record of all we do for Him: "A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the LORD and honored his name" (Malachi 3:16).
Imagine a scribe in Heaven recording each of your gifts. The bike you gave to the neighbor kid, the books to prisoners, the monthly donations to the church, missionaries, and pregnancy center—all are being chronicled. Scrolls are made to be read. I look forward to hearing your giving stories and meeting those touched by what you gave.
Jesus said, "If you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?" (Luke 16:11). If you handle His money faithfully, Christ will give you true, eternal riches.
Faith & Finance Perspective
We often think of the ancient earthly kings in the grandeur of their opulence; but we seldom picture them in the agony of eternal torment. In the same way, we often regard missionaries and other heroes of the faith for the humility and sacrifice that characterized their earthly service, but we seldom picture them in the mansions of glory Christ has granted them in eternity.
Keeping our eyes on eternity reminds us that the place where we dwell is not our true home. It reminds us that the world’s systems and standards of reward are far different from what we will experience in eternity. It reminds us that “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him” (1 Corinthians 2:9).
If all of the above is true, as Scripture affirms, then it should influence how we live, give, and love. Even though we may not consider ourselves heroes of the faith, wouldn’t it be great if it were said of us, "Apart from faith in Christ, there is no explanation for such a life."
For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done.
- Matthew 16:27