"But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness,
and all these things shall be added to you."
Matthew 6:33
What is it that you want most in life? Maybe it is something internal: happiness, peace, joy, etc. Perhaps it is something external: possessions, wealth, notoriety, etc. It is a good idea to take some time to reevaluate what really matters in our lives. What things do we really need? What is most important?
In this passage Jesus was teaching His followers that, just like the rest of us, they were worried about things that really didn't matter in the light of eternity. There are many times in our life where the things of this world began to cloud our way of thinking. We get so wrapped up about areas over which we have no control. Jesus was trying to show us that He is in control and therefore our trust should be in Him alone. Some in the crowd that He is speaking to did not probably know where their next meal was going to come from. I don't know if you have ever been in this situation, but it is surely a desperate thought. Jesus chose to use the birds of the air to illustrate that He had put all things in order to supply for them. Beautifully, He tells us that we are the crowning achievement of His creation, and we are more important than the birds of the air. If we but trust Him, we will see the supply of an almighty God. Remember the children of Israel in the wilderness. Every morning they woke up with a fresh supply of food directly from the hand of God. Jesus also pointed out the ridiculousness of worrying about things that are completely out of our hands. He asked, "Which of you by worrying can add one cubit (18 inches) to his stature?" Why did He use a cubit? He wanted to show us that whether it was one inch or eighteen inches there is nothing that we can do about certain things. Leave it all in the hands of God. He then followed up this with our clothing or our material needs. He exceptionally reminded us of the wild flowers that grow in the fields. He clothed them with their beauty which is above what any man could fashion with his own hands. Their beauty however is fleeting. Here today, gone tomorrow. God has promised to never leave us nor forsake us for eternity if we follow Him.
The answer is to seek spiritual things. Seek His heart. Seek His will. In the middle of all of our asking for things, have we stopped to ask Jesus for Himself? Or is that what we really want? Would we be more satisfied with all this world has to offer than we would with Jesus? I often hear people say that you can't have both: Jesus and things. According to this verse that is not true. Understand, however, that Jesus gives us what we need not necessarily all we want. If we seek Him with all of our heart, we will have His everlasting presence as well as our daily supply. God's supply is the benefit of having His righteousness. The psalmist said that even in his old age he had not seen the righteous forsaken nor having to beg for bread. What is it that you really want from God?
May you seek God's righteousness today!
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