04-26-2026 You Only Live Twice
Text: Matthew 6:19-21
We’ve all heard the phrase “You Only Live Once.” It’s catchy. And it’s been used to justify everything from reckless spending to spur of the moment decisions. But for all its hype, You Only Live Once might be one of the most misleading ideas we’ve embraced. Why is that? Because it implies that this is all there is. That the goal of life is to squeeze out as much pleasure, achievement, or comfort as possible before the clock runs out. Our text this morning is found in Matthew 6:19-21 where Jesus said: “ (19) Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust does corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal. (20) But lay up for yourselves treasures in Heaven, where neither moth nor rust does corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal. (21) For where our treasure is, there will your heart be also.”
As followers of Jesus, we believe something very different - something that changes everything: We don’t only live once. We actually live twice. That’s because there’s more to life than this life. We’re not just flesh and bones. We’re eternal souls. This means the daily choices we make have an impact now and into the near future. The way we choose to live each day ripples for eternity. Over time our choices create a lasting legacy.
God’s Word frequently tells us to have an eternal perspective. II Corinthians 4:18 reminds us that we must pay attention to the present and the future because what we experience in the present is temporary, but our experience in the future is eternal. This is what allows us to cope with terrible illnesses, persecution, or pain. We place our hope in the promise of eternal life through Jesus Christ in a place where we will be forever with God with no pain, sin or suffering. Colossians 3:1-2 tells us to set our hearts on thing above where Jesus is seated at the right hand of God instead of earthly things I John 2:17 tell us that this world and all its desires will pass away but whoever does the will of God lives forever.
Our text reminds us that our treasure reflects what’s in our heart. So, leaving an eternal legacy is a daily choice we all make. Legacy is about what we leave behind, and we will all have one. How we invest our time, attention, energy, money, and relationships determines the kind of legacy we will have. Jesus taught that our priorities reveal the true direction of our hearts.
In our text Jesus is teaching us about activities that are beyond what we sometimes consider only religious, like prayer and fasting. He wants us to look at a wider variety of daily pressures and concerns. Storing up treasures in Heaven isn’t limited to tithing, it includes all acts of service to God. Giving our money to God’s work is investing in Heaven because it helps more people hear and respond to the Gospel. We should work to please God both in our giving and in our fulfilling of God’s purposes in everything we do. Our Lord makes it clear that storing our treasures in the wrong place leads to our hearts being in the wrong place. Whether we admit it or not, what we treasure the most controls us. What we think about, talk about, or spend our money on can dominate us. If possessions or money become too important to us, we must reestablish control of our hearts. We need to get rid of the things that have become idols to us. Jesus is calling for a decision to live contentedly with whatever we have because we have chosen eternal value over temporary, earthly treasures.
When we live with eternity in mind, we begin investing our life differently. We focus less on accumulating temporary rewards and more on building a legacy that lasts beyond this life. We realize the decisions we make and actions we take today can make an eternal difference.
Legacy isn’t about headlines or accolades. It’s about impact. It’s the ripple effect of how we live, love, and lead. Legacy is built based on how we take care of all the gifts and resources God entrusts to us during our lifetime. But life doesn’t always give us clarity. It gives us choices. And how we live based on those choices over time reveals what we value most.
One day the impact of what and who we pour our life into will be made clear. On that day we’ll all have the final conversation which will be a moment before God when we give an account for the life we were given. Not just what we did, but why we did it. Not just how we behaved, but who we became. That moment doesn’t have to be something we dread. It’s something we can prepare for by not looking for applause or achievements. Instead, we can live anticipating that conversation before God because when everything is stripped away, the one thing that will matter is if we were faithful with what we were given. This makes it very everything in how we should live our lives.
When we live with eternity in mind, we start asking different questions:
Instead of “What do I want today?” we ask, “What will matter forever?” Instead of “How can I win?” we ask, “How can I serve?” Instead of “What’s next?” we ask, “What’s lasting?” Making that shift changes everything because we see the big picture. We stop trying to control everything. We hold ‘things’ more loosely. We live more generously, more purposefully, and more peacefully because we know the clock isn’t counting down to the end. It’s counting toward something far greater.
The principles guiding the choices we make each day matter because one day we’ll stand before God. And the most important question in that moment won’t be, “Were you perfect?” or, “Did you get everything right?” It will be, “Did you put your trust in Me?” God created us with purpose and intention. As imperfect human beings, however, we’ve missed the mark and often make mistakes. Paul tells us in Romans 3:23 that all of us are sinners and fall short of the glory of God. Our sinfulness isn’t just bad behavior, it’s the brokenness that separates us from God. But the good news is, God didn’t leave us there.
He sent His Son, Jesus, to do for us what we couldn’t do for ourselves.
Jesus lived a perfect life. He died a sacrificial death. And He rose again — defeating sin, death, and shame — so that anyone who puts their trust in Him can be forgiven and made right with God. All we have to do is found in Romans 10:9 which is to declare with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in our heart that God raised Him from the dead, and we will be saved.
So, you see, this isn’t about religion — it’s about our relationship with God. It’s not about being good enough. It’s about receiving a gift. Jesus didn’t come to make bad people better. He came to make dead things come alive. And following Him isn’t about earning heaven. It’s about trusting the One who already made the way. It’s about living out the purpose for which we were made. It’s about helping others discover God’s love in tangible ways that transform their lives — even after this life on earth has ended. This foundation on which we build our eternal legacy, day by day, moment by moment. Our eternal legacy is determined daily.
If we want a legacy that lasts for eternity, then we must choose to live each day as if it is the day that will determine what we are leaving behind. What we do for ourselves usually dies with us. But what we do for others lives beyond us. The way we love our family, the way we serve our team, the way we mentor that one person — those things matter and will ripple forward in ways we may never fully see.
We might be tempted at times to underestimate what we can accomplish today. We might assume that our impact isn’t going to make a difference. This is when we must remember the cumulative power of the choices we make and the habits we keep. We might not see the difference or know how it affects others but simply keep doing it and trust that it will. Mother Teresa is credited with saying, “I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples.” Don’t overlook the impact today’s stone can have on tomorrow’s ripples.
Yes, there will be days where we feel like we didn’t accomplish anything because of interruptions, distractions, and unexpected challenges causing us to become overwhelmed and frustrated by what’s left undone. But we do what we can today to pave the way for accomplishing more when we start again tomorrow. Embrace each day as the only day we can spend differently than yesterday or tomorrow.
Until we meet again, may God bless you and keep you, may He shine His light on you, show you grace, and give you peace in all the days ahead.