Your Light Comes from Where Your Eye Is Focused

David W Palmer

Jesus schooled twelve very close followers as apprentices to take over and multiply what he had been doing during his 3½ years of personally ministering on earth. He led them in on-the-job training, punctuated with short bursts of classroom teaching. That’s where we are today; we are sitting with Jesus on a mountaintop absorbing the Master’s brilliance and wisdom: 

(Matthew 6:19–21 DKJV) “Do not treasure up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and rust ruin them, and where thieves break in and steal them. {20} But treasure up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust ruin them, and where thieves do not break in or steal them. {21} For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Jesus’s use of the word “treasures” mostly applies to finance and wealth, but it can also apply to anything else we deeply treasure. The Master is again guiding our focus to the eternal, permanent spirit realm of heaven, rather than the temporary, risky, and decaying realm of this world. We note that he does not say, “Don’t treasure any treasures!” But he says to accumulate treasures; just don’t do it on earth. 

Treasure and the desire for accumulation of it is not necessarily wrong; it is a desire put in us by God. Our Master-coach is simply showing us how to do it effectively and in a way that will bring lasting security and joy. 

We note that in this life, we deal with and use many things, possessions, and money without treasuring them; they are simply necessary for everyday life—like washing machines and doormats, etc. We can quite easily distinguish between what gets into our heart as treasure, and what we simply use. For example, if the Holy Spirit prompts us to give it away, how hard do we fight to keep it?

In verse 21, Jesus gives the reason for ensuring that we keep our treasure in heaven: “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” He wants us to put our treasure into heaven so we can get our hearts locked there too. In the next verses, he further explains why this is essential if we are to succeed long-term and to enjoy an abundant eternity with him:

(Matthew 6:22–23 DKJV) “The lamp of the body is the eye; therefore if your eye is healthy (single-focused), your whole body will be fully illuminated. {23} But if your eye is diseased (bad), your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is completely dark, how great is that darkness!”

Jesus’s premise is that “the lamp of the body is the eye.” But what does he mean by this? In spiritual terms, Jesus is telling us that the locus of our focus is from where we will also be endeavoring to receive our illumination—or revelation. If we have our eye focused solely on heaven—Jesus, Father God, the Holy Spirit, God’s word, eternity, etc.—then he says, “Your whole body will be fully illuminated.” This implies that if our focus is exclusively on God’s spiritual realm of heaven instead of the earth and worldly matters, we will receive from God all the revelation we need for every area of life.

In these end times, we need all of the revelation that God is offering us. If we take our eyes off the ball, so to speak, we could miss vital insights that God is sending to keep us safe, secure, and on his path. This would be devastating, and leave us vulnerable to lies, disinformation, enemy victories, and loss. What’s worse, if our eye is focused completely on the wrong objective, we will be “full of darkness” and stumbling disastrously—Jesus said, “how great is that darkness.”

This explains why Jesus is so adamant that we deposit our treasures in heaven. He put it like this: “… for where your treasure is, there