FIRST SEEK THE KINGDOM OF GOD AND HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS

PROCLAMATION

“But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”  Matthew 6:33 (NIV)

EXPLANATION

These words are from the gospel, the good news regarding Jesus, The Christ, according to the Apostle Matthew.  As Jesus continued to preach His Sermon on The Mount, He told them not to give to be seen (Matthew 6:1-4), not to use vain repetition in their prayers (Matthew 6:5-8), and He taught them the model prayer, which has been frequently referred to erroneously as “The Lord’s Prayer.” (Matthew 6:9-15)  He also taught them how to fast (Matthew 6:16-18) and He told them not to store up treasures on earth but to store up for heaven. (Matthew 6:19-24)  Then He told them not to worry about earthly concerns, but to focus on seeking the kingdom of God and His righteousness and everything else that they need would be taken care of.

APPLICATION

All too often we concern ourselves with trivial things like what we will wear, eat, or drink.  We seem to care too much about what other people think about us rather than being concerned about how we appear to The Lord God.  We should not be worried about the things of this world.  Our goal should not be the amassing of money and material things, we should be focused on living a life and doing things that would bring glory to God.  Remember, believers are the only “Bible” that some people will ever see.

PUT GOD FIRST AND HAVE A HAPPY NEW YEAR

Proclamation:

“But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”  Matthew 6:33 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words which were spoken by Jesus, The Christ, to His disciples and to the surrounding crowd during His Sermon on The Mount, as recorded under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God by the Apostle Matthew.  While teaching them not to worry about the things that they need, Jesus said that their Heavenly Father knows what they need. (Matthew 6:31-32)  He said, if they put God first, then God would supply all of their needs.

Application:

All too often we focus on, and get caught up worrying about, the unimportant worldly things.  We take our focus off of The Lord God and then we wonder why things go wrong.  Remember, the Apostle Peter walked on water towards Jesus and did not start to sink until he took his eyes off Jesus and focused on the storm. (Matthew 14:28-31)  As we begin this New Year, let us put The Lord God first.  Let us pray before we speak or take action that we may please Him.  May The Good Lord grant all of us a blessed, healthy, happy, and prosperous New Year.

REPENT THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS AT HAND

Proclamation:

"From that time on Jesus began to preach, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near."  Matthew 4:17 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words which were spoken by Jesus, The Christ, as He began His earthly ministry, after being baptized by John, the baptizer, but before He called His first disciple.  As recorded by the Apostle Matthew, under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God, Jesus preached and His message was "Repent".  Repent because judgement day in coming. 

Application:

Repentance from sin is very important.  It was the message of John, the baptizer. (Matthew 3:1-2)  It was also the message in the first sermons of Jesus, The Christ.  We need to repent from our sins.  This is the gospel, the good news about the coming kingdom. (Matthew 4:23)  We need to repent from our sins because judgement day in coming.  “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us of our sins, and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)  However, not only do we need to confess our sins, but we need to turn away from them.  The Apostle Paul said that The Lord God will hear the prayers of believers and forgive their sins if they humble themselves, and seek His face, and turn from their wicked ways. (2 Chronicles 7:14)  According to the Apostle John, by repentance we give honor to God. (Revelation 14:6-7)  So, let us repent and turn to God so that our sins will be wiped out, and so that we may enjoy the blessings of The Lord God. (Acts 3:19)

WHAT GOD REQUIRES FROM US

Proclamation:

“He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.  And what does The Lord require of you?  To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8 (NIV)

Explanation:

These words were written under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God by the prophet Micah to the people of God.  In the previous two verses (Micah 6:6-7) he makes it clear what God does not want from His people.  In the verses which follow he list the sins of Israel and then spells out the punishment which they will receive for their sins. (Micah 6:9-16)

Application:

What does man have to do to please God?  Put another way, what does God require of man?  This rhetorical question was asked by Micah because the people of Israel should have known what God wanted from them.  God wanted a spiritual commitment that was sincere and from the heart, from which right behavior would result.  That is what God wanted from them back then and that is what He wants from us today.  He wants us to believe and obey His Word.  He wants us to love our fellow man as we love ourselves.  He wants us to walk humbly in this world as we follow Him.  Our problem is not a lack of knowledge regarding what The Lord God wants for us.  Our problem is that we are so caught up in pleasing ourselves and doing what we want that we don’t do what He wants us to do.  We need to put God first. (Matthew 6:33)  We need to humble ourselves, and pray, and seek The Lord God, and stop our self-indulgent sinful ways, then we would be able to do what He requires of us and we would be blessed for doing so. (2 Chronicles 7:14)

Be Content With What We Have

"But godliness with contentment is great gain.  For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.  But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that."  
1 Timothy 6:6-8 (NIV)

While under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God, the Apostle Paul wrote these words in a letter to his protege, Timothy, the young preacher.  Paul told him that it is good to be godly and content.  He said, if they have food and clothing, they should be content with that.

There are people who have a closet full of clothes, and yet they say that they have nothing to wear.  It does not seem to matter how much we have, we still want more of it.  Most of us have not learned to be content with that which we already have.  The desire for material things can cloud our judgment, and negatively impact our priorities.  We need to be thankful and grateful for that which we have, and we need to learn godliness with contentment. (Philippians 4:11)  If we were good stewards over that which The Lord has blessed us with, maybe He would bless us with more without us having to ask for it. (Matthew 25:15-23)  We ought to be content with having the basic necessities of life, or with whatever we have.  There is nothing wrong with having lots of possessions, as long as the desire for them, or the desire for money to acquire them, does not rule us. (1 Timothy 6:10)  The problem is not the things, the problem is our desire for them.  Being self-indulgent can be problematic, if we place it above seeking The Lord God. (Matthew 6:33)  Do not put the creations above, or before, The Creator. (Romans 1:25)

For A Blessed Future Seek The Righteousness Of God

"So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'  For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.  But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.  Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.  Each day has enough trouble of its own."  Matthew 6:31-34 (NIV)

These verses are a part of The Sermon on The Mount, which Jesus spoke to His disciples and to the crowd, that were recorded by the Apostle Matthew.  Jesus told them not to worry about the future.  He said that if they would seek The Lord God and His righteousness, He would supply their needs.  He knows what they need before they ask Him.

There is nothing wrong with planning and preparing ourselves for the future, especially when we include God in our plans. (Joshua 3:5)  However, we are taught not to worry about the future, or become overly concerned about it. (Psalms 27:1 and James 4:13-14)  We do not know the future, (Ecclesiastes 8:7), but we know who controls the future.  The Lord God knows all, He even knows the day and the hour when things are going to happen. (Matthew 24:36)  If we seek His face, follow and obey Him, He will provide and supply all that we need.  We ourselves, and our futures, are in His hands, and all things are under His control, part of His permissive will. (Job 1:6-12 and John 11:19)  If we really want our future to be blessed, we need to put God first in our lives.

Repent And Turn To God

"Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from The Lord, and that He may send The Christ, who has been appointed for you, even Jesus."  Acts 3:19-20 (NIV)

These are The Holy Spirit inspired words, which were recorded by Luke, the physician, that were spoken by the Apostle Peter to the crowd that had gathered at the temple gate, after he healed the lame man.  He told the crowd that God had sent Jesus unto them, and they denied Him.  He said that they asked Pilate to release a murderer and crucify Jesus.  He said that they killed Him, but God raised Him from the dead, and he and the disciples were witnesses of His resurrection. (Acts 3:11-15)  Peter's message to them was that they should repent, and turn to God, so that their sins may be forgiven.

Christ died for the sins of the world. (John 1:29)  That means that He died for our sins, He went to the cross and died for us.  We also need to repent, to turn from our sinful ways, and to seek His face, and to follow Him. (2 Chronicles 7:14)  If we confess our sins, and ask to be forgiven, He will forgive us of our sins and cleanse us from our unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)  We must repent while we have the opportunity, and get busy working for The Lord. (Ecclesiastes 9:10)  There will come a point in time when it will be to late for our names to be recorded in The Lamb's Book of Life. (Revelation 20:12 and 20:15)   Jesus said and preached, repent, the kingdom of heaven is at hand. (Matthew 3:2 and 4:17)

Seek Holiness Not Happiness

"Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God."  2 Corinthians 7:1 (NIV)

In his letter to the believers in the church at Corinth, the Apostle Paul wrote that they should cleanse, purify, and purge themselves of every sinful thing which contaminates the body and the spirit.  He also said that they should seek and do only that which is holy, out of reverence and respect for God.

As believers, we have the same promises of God, that if we separate ourselves from the non-believers, and obey His Word, then He will be a Father to us, and we will be His sons and daughters. (2 Corinthians 6:16-18)  These promises of God are conditional.  In order to receive them we must cleanse ourselves of all sinful filthiness.  We are to be set apart from the world and we are to behave differently than non-believers. (Psalms 4:3)  We must separate ourselves from things which defile our mind and our bodies.  That includes not following false teaching, in addition to not pandering to greed, the lusts of the flesh, and the selfish pursuit of happiness.  When we accept Christ we are to die to all selfish wants. (Romans 6:1-2 and 6:11)  We are to seek Christ and do that which gives God glory. (Philippians 2:21 and Colossians 3:1)  Our goal should be to seek Godly holiness, as opposed to worldly happiness.  We are to be holy because we are His, and He is holy. (1 Peter 1:16)  If we seek Him above all else, He will give us other things that we need. (Matthew 6:33)   When we seek Christ, He will grant us His unspeakable joy. (1 Peter 1:8)

Receiving Special Conditional Blessings

"If My people, who are called by My name, will humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."  2 Chronicles 7:14 (NIV)

It was at night that The Lord God appeared in a vision to King Solomon, the son of King David, and told him that He had heard his prayer. (2 Chronicles 7:12)  He told Solomon that He would hear the prayers of His people, and He would forgive them of their sins, and He would bless them.  But, He said that He would do this if they would first humble themselves, and pray to Him, and follow His commands, and turn from their wicked sinful ways.

We are all blessed in more ways than we can count.  However, there are additional conditional blessing which we could receive if we would first satisfy the stipulations that The Lord has placed upon them.  In this case the healing of the people, the nation, and the land, would not occur and the prayers for this would not be heard or answered.  Personally, our individual and collective sins would not be forgiven unless we changed our behavior.  As believers we are His people and He wants us to act more Christ-like.  We need to be more humble when we approach Him, and when we deal with others.  We need to sincerely pray many more times each day.  We need to confess our sins, ask to be forgiven, and submit to and follow His Word.  We also need to turn from our wicked sinful ways and stop repeatedly committing our favorite sinful bad habits.  Then, and only then will He keep His promise to hear our prayers, forgive our sins, and heal us.  Again, some blessings are conditional.

Put God First

"But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.  Matthew 6:33 (NIV)

After speaking with His disciples and teaching them about prayer, fasting, treasures in heaven, and telling them not to worry about earthly concerns like their next meal, or drink, or their clothing, Jesus then told them that they should first seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and then all of their earthly needs would be provided.

If we put God first in our lives, and obey His Word, then He will supply all of our needs.  The phrase "... and all these things ..." does not refer to everything that we want.  It refers to the food, drink, and clothing, mentioned in the preceding two verses.  God knows what we need. (Matthew 6:32)  We should be more concerned about the salvation of our soul and about pleasing God, than about our earthly comfort and satisfaction.  We need to sincerely seek God,  to desire, to pursue, to strive for, to aim for that which is pleasing to God; and we need to do it  as best as we can. (Deuteronomy 6:5, Matthew 22:37, Mark 12:30, and Luke 10:27)  Pleasing God should be our number on priority. (Mark 12:30)  If we first seek to please God, He will be pleased, and we will be blessed. (Psalms 119:2)

God Is Compassionate And Merciful

"Whenever God slew them, they would seek Him; they eagerly turned to Him again.  They remembered that God was their Rock, that God Most High was their Redeemer.  But then they would flatter Him with their mouths, lying to Him with their tongues; their hearts were not loyal to Him, they were not faithful to His covenant.  Yet He was merciful; He forgave their iniquities and did not destroy them. Time after time He restrained His anger and did not stir up His full wrath.  He remembered that they were but flesh, a passing breeze that does not return."  Psalms 78:34-39 (NIV)

After reminding the people of their days in bondage in Egypt, and what God did to bring them out, and how He provided for them in the wilderness, this psalmist told them that God was compassionate and merciful.  For, even after they turned against Him again and again, God forgave them and He did not turn His full anger and wrath against them.

We need to be reminded today that as often as we sin against God (Psalm 51:4), He has offered us forgiveness of our sins.  He has shown us His compassion, mercy, and grace.  We have not gotten what we deserve (Roman 6:23), and He has blessed us with blessings that we did not deserve. (John 1:16)  God remembers that we are but flesh with a sinful human nature, and while we are alive, with a chance to repent, He holds back on His anger and wrath.  (Romans 8:8 and Galatians 5:17)  If we confess and repent of our sins, He will forgive us of our sins. (1 John 1:9)  If we do not, then judgement day is coming. (Revelation 20:15

God Is Good Seek Him

"The LORD is good to those whose hope is in Him, to the one who seeks Him;"  Lamentations 3:25 (NIV)

The Prophet Jeremiah is generally thought to be the author of the Book of Lamentations and he is given credit for writing that God is good to those who wait on Him, to those who seek Him.  This was written to a people who had just suffered very hard times.

Given those of us today who are dealing with difficulties in life, this is a message that we should take to heart.  There is never a good time to turn from God.  However, when things are going badly, and when the difficulties seem to be winning, that is the time when we need to seek God.  When the storms of life are raging, turn to The One who can calm the storm, Jesus Christ.  Seek Him, believe in Him, have faith in Him, and good things will happen.  Weeping may endure for a night, but joy is coming in the morning. (Psalms 30:5)

We All Have Become Corrupt And We Need Jesus

"The LORD looks down from heaven on the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God.  All have turned aside, they have together become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one."  Psalms 14:2-3 (NIV)

In this psalm King David talks about the sad state of man.  He states that when God looks down from heaven, He sees that all men are corrupt, all have sinned.  He ends the psalm stating that the salvation of man can only come from The Lord.

It may be hard for some people to accept this, but all of us are sinners.  There may be a difference in the nature of the sins that we have committed, but we all have sinned. (Romans 3:10 & 3:23)  However, the biggest difference between us is that some of us believe in Jesus Christ and have confessed our sins, and some have not.  The Bible states that if we confess with our mouth and believe with our heart, then we shall be saved. (Romans 10:9-10)  Those of us who confess and believe will be saved, those who don't, won't.  God gave us a free will, we can choose to accept Him, or to reject Him.  The salvation of our soul depends upon our choice.

Repent And Seek Good Not Evil

"The prudent man keeps quiet in such times, for the times are evil.  Seek good, not evil, that you may live. Then The Lord God Almighty will be with you, just as you say He is."  Amos 5:13-14 (NIV)

After he told the people that they had turned away from God, and sited several examples of this, the prophet Amos told them to repent, turn away from evil, and seek God.

Based upon how well or how poorly we follow The Word of God, our actions suggest that we have also turned away from God.  If not turned away, we do not take Him seriously.  We give Him "lip service" for a limited time on Sundays and ritualistic habitual prayers before we eat and sleep.  However, the rest of the time we are not much different from the lost souls as we imitate their worldly behaviors.  Our problem is that we are seeking everything but Him.  We need to ask God for forgiveness and repent from our sinful worldly ways.  "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you." (Matthew 6:33)   We need to pray more, thank Him more, praise Him more, read His Word more, and actively seek to be more Christ-like, and we need to do these things daily.

Come Near To God And He Will Come Near To You

"Come near to God and He will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded."  James 4:8 (NIV)

James, the half brother of Jesus, wrote this letter to the scattered believers during the time of their persecution, to encourage them to continue to seek Christ.  He told them to pursue an intimate and personal relationship with God in spite of their persecution.  Basically, he said that God will be with those who follow Him.  They needed to clean up their hearts, thoughts, minds, and actions and do His will, and not return to their worldly ways.

If we make an active effort to get closer to God, He will be pleased and we will be blessed.  We need to cleanse and purify our thoughts, deeds, and spoken words to become more Christ-like.  Reading and studying the Bible will help our minds, but we need to pray and apply that Bible knowledge to our daily lives.  How we act towards God is a conscious choice.  We must be sincere in our efforts to follow Him and to obey His Word.  We must pray, and seek Him with a clean heart and a right spirit, and that only He can create within us.  (Psalms 51:10)