Seek ye First
Matt 6:25-34
25 Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?
26 Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?
27 Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?28 And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:
29 And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
30 Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?
31 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?
32 for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.
33 But seek ye FIRST the kingdom of God, and HIS righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
34 Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. (N.I.V.)
It would appear as if Jesus is saying, that we as humans have a strong tendency to worry, concern ourselves with temporal things……
WHY WORRY………..
There is a saying :- “If you worry you die, if you don’t worry you also die, so why worry…”
1 ½ weeks away from Xmas, I wonder as we sit here, maybe there are some of us who has cares & concerns usually associated with this time of year???
Gifts to buy, what to wear on Xmas day, what meals to prepare, where to spend holidays, ……some of which are relevant, but to what extent…………
The words of Christ in his counsel to his disciples emphasises that we can be overly concerned about future events…………
Matt 13:18,22,23
18 Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower.
22 He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.
23 But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.
In our Christian walk, we can hear the word, but still be unfruitful……depends on our focus….
By hearing & understanding God’s word, we become fruitful, and we make ourselves available to be used by God in which ever way he sees fit.
Worldly cares are fitly compared to thorns. They came in with sin, and are a fruit of the curse. They are good in their place to stop a gap, but a man must be well armed that has much to do with them. They are entangling, scratching, and their end is to be burned. Anxiety & worry are great hinderances to our profiting by the word of God. What distinguished the good ground was it’s fruitfulness. By this, true followers of Christ are distinguished from those who profess to be followers, but are not. Christ does not say that this good ground has no stones in it, or no thorns; but none that could hinder its fruitfulness. All are not alike; we should all aim at the highest, to bring forth most fruit. The sense of hearing cannot be better employed than in hearing God’s word; and let us look to ourselves that we may know what sort of hearers we are.
In order to seek His righteousness, let us first see how we can gain an understanding by hearing the word and casting it to memory.
Firstly, a practical way of casting to memory is by action. Psychologists have analysed the human mind…..
We remember 10% of what we read, 20% of what we hear, 30% of what we see, 50% of what we see + hear,
80% of what we say and 90% of what we act upon ! ! In the light of Matt 6 & 13, we can see what can result out of reading & hearing, compared to acting upon that which we read & hear. (repeat)
Eg. Attending health seminar….
Hear presenter, read material, feel the difference???
Secondly, in order to hear and understand the word, turn to ….
Romans 12:2
2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. Two big words here….
Conform – to comply with accepted std, rules or customs; behaving / thinking like most other people rather than in an original way; following others & not being your true self. So what could be classified as an accepted norm/custom in society??? Self-gain, immorality, liars, cheats, etc…
Transform – to change completely in form / function.
Cares & anxieties of this world, leads to worry, which has its origin in the mind. It then becomes a state of mind. The way to overcome, is by renewing one’s mind, by asking daily the Holy Spirit to impart his wisdom, understanding & the mind of Christ to us. “{Let this mind be in you}, which was also in Christ Jesus” – Phil 2:5.
In book of Romans, what Paul is saying, by renewing one’s mind, we will know the will of Christ for us in our lives. Only by us allowing the Holy Spirit to lead, guide & direct our paths, moment by moment, day by day, then cares, stresses & the worries of tomorrow becomes a thing of the past.
Reminds me of the movie “The Lion King”. Disney animated movie, worldwide popularity, features wild animals set in the Jungles of Africa. One of the theme songs called “Hakuna Matata”, sung by a meerkat & warthog, which means “no worries”. Just look at animal kingdom, created by God in his wisdom to be on a lower level than that of human beings, yet there is a lot that we can learn from animals. Have you ever seen or heard of a stressed out, worried eliphant or giraffe, concerned about their wellbeing in a month’s time? The mere thought of it, is laughable.
I enjoy watching programs such as National Geographic, where we in turn can learn about the habits and instincts of wild nature. And at the end of it all, I see one basic concept, that the animals live one day at a time. And that’s an object lesson for us. That is exactly what Matt 6:33,34 says.
Summary
There is scarcely any sin against which our Lord more warns his disciples, than distracting, distrustful cares about the things of this life. But there is a carefulness about temporal things which is a duty, though we must not carry these lawful cares too far. Take no thought for your life. Not about the length of it; but refer it to God to lengthen or shorten it as he pleases. Our times are in his hand.
Not to worry about the comforts of this life; but leave it to God to make it bitter or sweet as he pleases. Food and raiment God has promised, therefore we may expect them. Be not anxious for the future, how you shall live next year, or when you are old, or what you shall leave behind you. Now this dos not mean that we should not PLAN for tomorrow. As we must not boast of tomorrow, so we must not care for to-morrow, or the events of it. God has given us life, and has given us the body. If we take care about our souls and for eternity, we may leave it to God to provide for us food and raiment. Improve this as an encouragement to trust in God. Thoughtfulness for our souls is the best cure of thoughtfulness for the world. Seek first the kingdom of God, and make a relationship with Christ your business. The conclusion of the whole matter is, that it is the will and command of our Lord Jesus, that by daily prayers we may get strength to bear us up under our daily troubles, and to arm us against the temptations that attend them. And then, let none of these things move us. Happy are those who take the Lord for their God, and make full proof of it by trusting themselves wholly to HIS wise disposal. Let the Holy Spirit convince us of sin, and take away the worldliness of our hearts.
When we are challenged everyday, have decisions to make, deadlines to meet that can cause concern, worry & cares……find answer in …
Phill 4:6,7
6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. 7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
When our cares begin to overtake us, take comfort in the text….
1 Peter 5:6,7
6 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: 7 Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.
And when fears and doubt arise, feed on these promises:-
Phil 4:13,…19
13 I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.
19 And my God will meet all your needs, according to his riches which is in Christ Jesus.
And even though we have heard statement over and over, how can we ever fear the future, when we have already experienced the Lord’s leading and blessings in the past.
33 But seek ye FIRST the kingdom of God, and HIS righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. AMEN
