Matthew 6:31-33
31 Therefore do not worry, saying, "What will we eat?' or "What will we drink?' or "What will we wear?' 32 For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. (NRSV)
or
31 "Do not worry then, saying, `What will we eat?' or `What will we drink?' or `What will we wear for clothing?' 32 "For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. (NASB)
What do we seek?
Do I seek the Jesus or the kingdom of God and his righteousness?
Do I seek the the power of the Holy Spirit or the kingdom of God and his righteousness?
Do I seek biblical knowledge or the kingdom of God and his righteousness?
Do I seek helping the poor or the kingdom of God and his righteousness?
Many times we let great and noble things get in the way of the kingdom of God and his righteousness.
In seeking the kingdom of God we join Christ in his mission on earth. Luke 4:43 - But Jesus said to them, "I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other cities also; for I was sent for this purpose." Jesus was sent for the purpose, not of redeeming the world, but of proclaiming the good news of the kingdom. His redeeming the world was a necessary by-product of establishing the kingdom. Our personal redemption is just the beginning of what should be a life in the kingdom of God. Too often we focus solely on the gateway, but the gateway is never the reason for a city. It is just the gateway. The cross is the gateway. The kingdom is the city.
In seeking the kingdom of God the gifts of the Holy Spirit will be used in such a way that the body of Christ (or the earthly glimpse of the kingdom) will be used for the upbuilding of one another. The gifts of the Holy Spirit will not become an end in themselves, but they will be viewed as tools to bring about the will of God, to help us live in such a way that we are a constant glimpse of His kingdom.
In seeking the kingdom of God our education will be in its proper light. Charles Finney wrote the following in 1845. It's from an article entitled Seeking the Kingdom of God First.
"Yet let me say here that ever so much proper attention to religion can never be any loss to us. It never robs us of other things which are really better. The student who seeks first the kingdom of God rationally, will not need to neglect any useful study. He cannot lose any thing on the whole by putting each and all things in their proper places, and giving to each its due measure of attention. The wise-minded student may not know so much of Shakespeare or of Byron--may have less to do with Homer or with Virgil; but he will not therefore fail of learning the things that are most useful. I do not hesitate to say that the student who shall obey this precept will come out ahead of all his fellow-students who disobey it; he will not be an intellectual drone, a lounging idler, only half awake to the value of knowledge, and only half alive to pursue it. No, his mind will apprehend the value of truth and will press forward with quenchless longings to attain it. Hence his mind will move under such impulses and be encompassed with such an atmosphere of light that he will be a better man, will have more of all useful knowledge, and will have a better balanced mind than any of his associates who seek first something else and not God's kingdom."And finally, in seeking the kingdom of God our acts of kindness to others will not be done for selfish reasons but will become an expression of the kingdom in its fullest. As long as it depends upon us the elements of the perfect kingdom should be lived out among us in order to proclaim to the world God's intention for mankind. When we see someone hungry, we feed them because in the fully revealed kingdom there will be no hunger. When we see someone homeless, we house them because in the fully revealed kingdom their will be no homeless. When we see someone too poor to properly clothe themselves, we buy them clothes because in the fully revealed kingdom their will be no tattered clothes. As long as it depends on us, we should let the reign of the kingdom of God be now.
Our lives should be about shining the light of the kingdom of God to the world. When that is the case, everything else will be taken care of by God.
And lest I fail to mention. The other half of the equation is that we are to seek God's righteousness. Striving to be holy is almost a negative in the church today. God's righteousness is something we are to strive after. We cannot be a genuine glimpse of the kingdom if we are not righteous. Our sin will keep us from being focused on the kingdom of God.
Watch out for the potholes.
