By Jeff Ginn
Long ago Egypt was a world power. The rulers of that ancient land had immense wealth. At their deaths, every effort was made to take their possessions with them into eternity. Huge pyramids and mausoleums were built and stocked with riches and supplies.
But as the centuries slipped by, grave robbers desecrated these sites. Some 60 years before the time of Christ, a Greek author named Diodorus Siculus visited the tombs of the Valley of the Kings [slide]. He wrote, “We found nothing there except the results of pillage and destruction.” The pharaohs had not taken their riches with them; thieves had broken in and stolen their treasures.
It was then a tremendous surprise when, in 1922, an expedition uncovered the long-lost tomb of a boy ruler—King Tut. For some 3,000 years his resting place was undisturbed. What did the archeologists discover upon entry? In actuality, Tut had taken nothing with him into eternity. Everything was still there—oils, perfumes, toys from his childhood, precious jewelry, statues of gold and ivory—thousands of items. In all, the appraisal of the treasures of his tomb are at three-quarters of a billion dollars. His solid-gold coffin alone is estimated to be worth $13 million!
One stark lesson we can learn from the pyramids is that you can’t take your treasures with you. Yet, Jesus makes it clear that, while we can’t take our treasures with us, we can send them on ahead! He said, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:19-21).
Jeff Ginn is senior pastor of Istrouma Baptist Church in Baton Rouge. This editorial first appeared on his Facebook page.
