"Jesus, The Treasure" Devotional: Inspired By Psalm 19: 7-10; Philippians 3:7-14, Psalm 63:1-5

This devotional was created to accompany the song JESUS, THE TREASURE from Erik Nieder's Miracle Maker: Acoustic Sessions album. Miracle Maker: Devotional Edition is available now: https://lnk.to/MiracleMakerDEVOSYO Charts: http://eriknieder.com/jesus-the-treasure http://eriknieder.com   / eriknieder     / erikniedermusic   JESUS, THE TREASURE DEVOTIONAL: Inspired by Psalm 19: 7-10; Philippians 3:7-14, Psalm 63:1-5 Open up to one of the most ubiquitous and well read passages in all of Scripture — Psalm 23. Start in Verse 1 — “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.” Stop right there. It took two sentences. Nine words. I’ve already failed. “Why?” you might ask. Because I want all the time. Just like my four-year-old son asking for yet another popsicle — I want, I want, I want. And then when I’m done wanting, I soon want just a little bit more. You could say I am a professional wanter. And I’m not proud of it. As complex as life can often be, the root of this sin is simple — Every time I find myself in a perpetual state of wanting, I have forgotten what, and more importunely who, my treasure really is. In Psalm 63, David is the midst of the Judean desert. A desolate land. But beyond water, beyond food, beyond the juicy filet from the fattened calf, David’s sole desire is to be in the presence of God. Because he knew that which would ultimately satisfy. He knew whom his treasure was. "O God, You are my God; I shall seek You earnestly; My soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You, In a dry and weary land where there is no water. Thus I have seen You in the sanctuary, To see Your power and Your glory. Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, My lips will praise You.” -Psalm 63:1-3 How often we forget this truth — There is a longing in our hearts that the Father placed there. A longing for Eternity (Ecclesiastes 3:11) And he, and he alone, can satisfy it. Does this mean that all things we seek apart from Christ are sinful? Certainly not. But even the good things, when made ultimate, make terrible gods. So what is our response when the treasures of this world seem to trump our treasure that is in christ? Well here was Paul’s approach in Philippians 3:7-11 — “But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and [d]the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.” Just like David, Paul knew who would satisfy. So he fixed his eyes on Christ and Christ alone. And he considered all else, even the good things, a loss compared to knowing Jesus. The Lord’s ways are “Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb” (Psalm 19:10) as David said. And his life, though far from perfect, reflected this. So whatever blessings we gain today, let’s receive with gratitude. But let’s count it all as loss compared to knowing Jesus. He is sweeter than honey, more precious than gold, better than anything this world can offer. He is the ultimate treasure.