Skip to main content

Seek

             But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. (Mathew 6:33)

“I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” (Genesis 12:2-3)

          The other day I wrote about blessings and included the second passage above as part of the text. I want to come back to it today in terms of the first passage. Jesus told us that if we seek His kingdom and His righteousness, that food, drink, and clothing would be provided to us. I can’t help but think of the story told that when Sir Walter Raleigh tried to use his own business and property as an excuse for not doing what Queen Elizabeth 1 told him to, she told him that if he would see to her business (the kingdom,) she would see to his.

          This begs the question of what it means to seek His kingdom. Simply put, a kingdom is a place where a king rules, and where his rules are followed. The inhabitants either benefit or suffer either at the king’s choice (if he’s a bad king) or they benefit or suffer with the king, as the king benefits or suffers (if he’s a good king.) So to seek God’s kingdom involves living according to the laws, or principles, God establishes.

          This is where we tend to go wrong, because we start looking for the thou shalts and the thou shalt nots. This is where something Dallas Willard taught comes into play. It’s not about doing or not doing. It’s about becoming the sort of person who does or does not. Someone one else has said that you become like those with whom you spend time – whether in person or through reading. This suggests that seeking the kingdom has to do with spending time with God, praying, reading Scripture, and fellowshipping with saints in person or through books and letters.

          Another piece of the puzzle is not worrying. If we’re seeking the kingdom, we’ve been promised that our needs will be met. That dovetails nicely with the idea that if we are blessing others, God will bless us. And this is what takes me back to the Hurry up! Not yet! Because I’m basically in an in-between week. There’s one more piece that comes to mind that I’ll share tomorrow.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Virgin?

           Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14)           This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. (Matthew 1:18)           But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”            “How will this be,” Mary asked the...
Post a Comment
Read more

Higher Thoughts

  “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the  Lord . “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:8-9)           The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments,   for, “Who has known the mind of the Lord      so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ. (I Corinthians 2:15-16) If you read about the ancient gods of the various peoples, you’ll find that they think just like people. In fact, they think just like the sort of people we really wouldn’t want to be around. They think like the most corrupt Hollywood producer or, like hormone overloaded teens with no upbringing.   It’s embarrassing to read. I have a friend who argues that because God is not just like us, He is so vastly dif...
2 comments
Read more

Saved?

  I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” (John 10:28-30) “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, “I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ ” (Matthew 7:21-23) Not at all! Let God be true, and every human being a liar. As it is written: “So that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge.” (Romans 3:4)   What conclusion do you draw when someone who was raised in a Christian family and church, perhaps even playing a significant role in a chur...
Post a Comment
Read more