Store up treasures for yourselves in heaven, for where your treasure is, there also will your heart be. The message of Jesus is the message of the kingdom of heaven. He comes not only to usher in the kingdom but also to “recruit” members, so to speak. The kingdom that Jesus proclaims is not just an idea. Neither is it something that is in the near future, something that is yet to be realized. The kingdom that Jesus proclaims is in the here and now; something that is real, something that can be seen and touched (cf. 1 John 1:1). The content of that message is the salvation of creation in its entirety (cf. 1 Tim 2:4), that is, the restoration of the original order and intent of creation, the re-alignment of creatures to the creator. Salvation is attained when a creature is re-aligned in whole to the will of the creator. Applied to the human person, this means that it is not just a part of the human person that is the subject of salvation but rather the human person as a whole: in what he/she says and does, and in how he/she conducts him/herself. The human person must be saved body and soul, in this life and the next.
Re-aligned to the will of the creator, the human person will come to realize that he/she is a pilgrim whose real home is with God the Father, and this will henceforth become his real yearning. Consequently, the human person will do all that it takes to stay focused on his/her real home (heaven).