Hi bebu,
I too enjoyed this conversation very much. Thanks.
Fwiw, I used the words "materialistic" and "cynicism" in their philosophical acceptations (whence my reference to Diogenes).
What I read in this saying is that a specific spiritual condition ("the Kingdom of God," or "treasures in heaven," which of course are not material) depends on a specific material situation (actual poverty, actually giving up all one's belongings) -- and this is toned down in most uses of this text by modern-day preachers (who would never dare to suggest that their wealthy audience should, or even could, actually give up their belongings to gather "treasures in heaven"). This reminds me of one hilarious passage where Kierkegaard describes all the "career" steps a young pastor has to go through (theological studies, exams, recruitment, etc.) before he attains the status (and economical security) allowing him to preach a sermon on total dependence on God like the lilies of the fields and the birds of the air...
About Paul, perhaps it takes pathological thinking to see pathological thinking... I'm quite open to this possibility.