First Things First
Introduction
Matthew 6:33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
The bible in different ways tells us what we need to seek for and what we should not seek.
Examples – Leviticus 19:31 “‘Do not turn to mediums or seek out spiritists, for you will be defiled by them. I am the LORD your God. (NIV)
Romans 2:8 But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger.
Lamentations 3:25 The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him;
And sometimes the Scripture imply we need to be seeking something…
Matthew 7:14But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life and only a few find it.
Some form of the word “Seek” is used in the Bible over 150 times, therefore when we encounter a verse that clearly states we are to “seek first” something, that should clearly get our attention.
Please notice the first word in…
Matthew 6:33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
“But” – a Conjunction, meaning on the contrary or contrary to expectation
Let’s back up several verses and see what is contrary to Seeking His Kingdom and His Righteousness.
Matthew 6:24"No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.
Which master will we choose to serve, God or Money?
A very good friend shared this illustration with me and I now present it to you.
Food for Thought: THE TWO WOLVES
One evening an old Indian told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people. He said, "My son, the battle is between two wolves. One is Evil. It is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego. The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith." The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather, "Which wolf wins?" The old Indian simply replied, "The one you feed."
Jesus goes on to tell us,
Do Not Worry
Matthew 6:25"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
Jesus uses the word “therefore” which bridges these statements to the previous ones about which master you choose to serve.
If Jesus truly is the Master you now serve then you should Trust Him and know that in all things he will look out for us. He doesn’t want our life to be a lifetime of worry.
You could get the impression that birds are inactive, just sitting there waiting for the next worm or insect to be dropped off in their mouth. God does provide, but laziness will not locate those provisions.
Illustration – Woodpecker
Woodpeckers tap on tree trunks in order to find insects living in crevices in the bark and to dig out nest cavities. The pointed beak is used much like a crowbar or chisel to remove bark and locate insects. It is estimated that Woodpeckers tap 8,000 to 12,000 times per day. Certainly they are willing to work for the bountiful provisions God has provided.
Man has taken note of the example of birds, expressions like;
“Getting up with the chickens”
“The early bird gets the worm”
The birds start the day realizing God has provided for them and work to enjoy the benefits they have been blessed with. Do we awaken each day knowing how much more God has provided for each of His children then the birds of the air? Or is the time spent in worry about life, food, drink, our body and what clothes we put on the body?
Jesus said we can’t add even one hour to our life by worrying about it and I can only wonder if the reverse is true. How much has your life been shortened by focus and worry about things that should have been worry free?
Matthew 6: 28"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31So do not worry, saying, ’What shall we eat?’ or ’What shall we drink?’ or ’What shall we wear?’ 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.
I can’t help but imagine what Solomon must have looked like, can you see in your mind’s eye a man all decked out in the finest and latest fashions, adorned with gold and jewelry that would choke a horse. Who in their right mind wouldn’t be envious? And then I place alongside that image a lily of the field that Jesus said is more beautiful then the best dressed day Solomon ever had. And this doesn’t make much sense to me until I apply the next verse…
Matthew 6: 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
If we would yield ourselves to the master we could be beautiful like the lily. Solomon stripped of the latest fashions and jewelry was still a man, but the man or woman who seeks first the kingdom and his righteousness is beautiful in an eternal way. Please understand that the lily was made beautiful from the inside out and it needed no further adornment, it was just the way God wanted it. When we learn to leave our worries behind and focus first on his kingdom and righteousness something will change in us, we will become beautiful from the inside out, we will be what God wants us to become and our light will truly shine. God will be able to use us in ways we can’t even imagine.
The last verse today again tells us not to worry!
Matthew 6: 34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Many have no joy this day because they spend today worrying about tomorrow. Certainly we need a plan for the future and even savings for our further benefit, but worrying about the future robs us of our joy, benefits and blessings God gave us today.
Conclusion
Everyday we face decisions about what priority’s we have for the day.
Some will choose to spend the day with the regrets of the past and the worries of the future.
My prayer is that instead of worry we start from this day and seek his kingdom and his righteousness. That we start each day by putting God 1st.
Intentionally making sure God is included and put 1st in all we do.
This means we start our day with prayer, reading His word and that our attendance when the Body meets together will be faithful, sincere, worshipful and therefore meaningful. That we don’t exclude God from our decision making process. And that when payday comes, every payday we remember to seek Gods will for our offerings.
Remember God loves you and will meet your needs and can make you beautiful from the inside out.
