Not-So-Secret Treasure

Rebecca Sheridan
Ash Wednesday, February 22, 2023
Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

    Apparently, the self-storage market is hot right now!  The high cost and limited availability of housing has people waiting to buy bigger or to downsize, more and more people are working from home permanently and need to make room for a home office space, AND improved technology to make self-storage units contactless, convenient, and more secure are all reasons why people are investing in self-storage units.  Tonight, Jesus tells us to “store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”  Jesus confronts our tendencies to save more stuff than we are using, or to prioritize stuff over our hearts.  In our first reading from Joel, the prophet urges us to rend our hearts and not our clothing, to return to God with all our hearts.  Every year on Ash Wednesday, we’re confronted with our bad habit of making what’s not ultimately that valuable important, and mixing up our priorities instead of placing God first.
    We are blessed (or cursed, depending on how you look at it) with an unfinished basement the length of our house which we effectively use as a self-storage unit.  One project for this coming summer is for us to try to sell or give away things we are no longer using – strollers, baby toys, the old Xbox with accompanying video games.  Meanwhile, I will fully admit that when guests come to visit, the immediate hiding place is our basement – no one will see if we put it away down there! Because NO ONE is allowed to go down to that scary, messy place of our house.  If we’re honest, sometimes we open up the storage space and discover what we thought was worth keeping we’ve learned to live without for years, or doesn’t look as great as we remember.  Jesus asks us today to think about what we hide away from God – what do we put out there for all to see, and what are we ashamed or more protective of having on display?  And why do we hide away that which is valuable to us – not just material items of value, but also the values we live by – our passions, talents, and interests?  
At first read, this passage from Matthew seemingly encourages us to hide our faith, when Jesus asks us to pray and fast and give alms in secret. Some people even refuse to put ashes on their forehead today because they are taking Jesus seriously here and don’t want to “show-off,” as Jesus criticizes the Pharisees for doing in our gospel.
    What if Jesus is less concerned about secrecy and more concerned about integrity of our actions – that we fast, give, and pray for the right reasons?  Rather, Jesus pushes us to be honest about who we really are before God and others – to wear our hearts on our sleeves rather than showing off all the stuff we have that’s so great.  Jesus doesn’t want us to be secretive about our faith; he just wants us to return to God and point others back to God.  We put ashes on our forehead to remember that we came from the dust and we will return to the dust.  We are sinners in need of a savior.  But we also put ashes on our forehead in the shape of the cross, to remind ourselves and others that we belong to Christ crucified and risen for us.  In striving to store up treasures in heaven rather than holding onto stuff that wears out, we strive to be faithful witnesses to what Christ has done for us – to serve God and not ourselves.  Return to the Lord, the prophet Joel calls us.  Bring your hearts out of hiding.  God knows we’re sinners – we know we’re sinners.  With that confession clearing the air, let our hearts shine for Christ.  Let’s not keep our love for the Lord a secret, but rather share that not-so-secret treasure we have of a relationship with him, as we seek to faithfully serve and give to those in need, pray, and fast.  We have a treasure in heaven that is easily shared, easily multiplied, that we don’t need to keep secret.  Thanks be to God.  Amen.