Matthew 26:39
When we hear Matthew 6:33, more often than not, we focus on the “righteousness” portion of the scripture. A righteousness that doesn’t really qualify us for God’s goodness either way (a conversation for another day) yet there’s a point in a believer’s life where our faith revolves around not doing things; not fornicating, not lying, not swearing, you name it. While it is important to realize those actions are of no benefit to us and are ultimately to our destruction, we’re skipping the first part.
“Seek first his kingdom”…
The world we live in is passing away, it is only temporary but through Christ, we get to experience a world void of the death and darkness of this current world. However, Jesus tells us to look for that kingdom now.
When Jesus teaches us to pray in verse ten of the same chapter, He says “your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” We’re asking God to replicate what is in the heavenly spiritual realm into the world we live in now. Though we cannot fully experience heaven on earth because of the existence of evil here, we do get to embrace heaven bit by bit as we allow God to open His kingdom and will to us. That makes it something for us to accept even if it is something that God is granting.
Get Believe and Beyond’s stories in your inbox
Join Medium for free to get updates from this writer.
Moreover, we also know that faith without deeds is dead (James 2:17). Jesus spent His days as a man on earth living out God’s will. Not merely because He is God and knows His will, but especially to show us that as we draw closer to Him, He reveals His kingdom to us more and more, allowing us to live according to it on earth. Our reflection passage displays this with our Savior dreading that He had to be mocked, betrayed and crucified. Sorrowfully, he longs to escape that fate. Even so, He accepts the will of God and walks it out because the role He had to play was bigger than Him feeling bad about being mocked and humiliated. It was bigger than the physical pain He was to endure.
The enemy makes us look at ourselves, our faults and our shortcomings which cause us to lose sight of the kingdom. How can I improve? How can I solve my issues? How can I feel better? We think about how much we have going on and how that’s blocking us from serving the kingdom. All these things are taken care of by God. The Lord is still serving us, providing beyond our necessities in every single aspect, even in ways we don’t notice. In a generation that teaches “self-love”, we need to be investing in God’s love. We need to let go of self and embrace the Lord because once you come to terms with just how much God loves you, you lose concern over how much you need to take care of yourself. You realize there’s already someone doing that beyond whatever self-care capabilities you think you have.
But how are we serving Him? How are we working for the kingdom?
Getting caught up in how you need to work on yourself is a slippery slope into vanity. God has a track record of using the flawed. He used so many that not only had soiled pasts, but also failures that were yet to come even after receiving God into their lives. The idea that you need to get yourself together and reach some sort of criteria in order to serve the kingdom is a lie from the enemy to procrastinate. To keep you complacent, uninvolved and even ignorant. It is a lie to keep you in a box lined with broken mirrors where all you can see is yourself.
Instead, “the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid but gives us power, love and self-discipline”, all you need for serving. Notice how there are no conditions for this. Nowhere does it say you need to be a believer for 5+ years, nor does it say “oh by the way, you don’t have any power if you sinned three days ago”. Your idea of perfection does not qualify you unless that idea is Jesus. Only Jesus qualifies you. All you need is the Spirit of God.
Your service to the kingdom is fueled and completed by God Himself. Not through your own strength.
Does this mean we ought to just stop caring about our conduct and behavior? Not even in the slightest. Every day, we have to choose to live for God wholly. We have to keep Him in our hearts, remembering His love in the decisions we make and allowing the greatness of that love to compel us into better choices. But along with this, we have to remember that doing all that is not just for ourselves and it shouldn’t be. Living for God also means working for Him. Using your talents to serve, helping where you can and taking a leap of faith where you think you can’t. Allowing Him to correct you. Allowing Him to guide you. Allowing Him to redirect you. And allowing Him to use you.
Seek first His kingdom. Be a servant of the Lord and do so prayerfully.
