“But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” (v.33)
Here in chapter 6, Jesus continues with His sermon on the mount, expounding great wisdom to all who listened on many subjects; Prayer, fasting, material wealth, pleasing God, the lamp of the body, our service to God, and the subject of worry. As a type “A” personality, I have always had the tendency to, over plan, over think, and just plain over worry. Sometimes I would get so far down the road that I would freak myself out (not to mention others), especially when it came to financial matters.
This scripture has done a lot to liberate me from the obsession of financial worry. Yes, I will be the first to admit it is a good idea to have a plan, and I still do, but taking this scripture to heart has lifted a great weight off my mind, and has enabled me to live in the present and not worry (so much) about the future.
For the Christian, this must be the rule of our life when ordering our priorities. Yet it is wrong to think that this is just another priority to fit onto our list of priorities – and to put at the top. Instead, in everything we do, we seek first the kingdom of God. If you put God’s kingdom first, and do not think that your physical well-being is a worthy object to live your life for, you then will enjoy His promises of heavenly treasure, rest in divine provision, and fulfillment of God’s highest purpose for man – fellowship with Him, and being part of His kingdom.
This choice – to seek first the kingdom of God – is the fundamental choice everyone makes when they first repent and are converted. Yet every day after that, our Christian life will either reinforce that decision or deny it. However, if one must worry, we are told in verse 34 to, "worry only for the things of today."
Most of our worry is over things that we have absolutely no control over anyway, and is therefore foolish as well as harmful. Jesus reminds us of the importance of living for the present day. It isn’t wrong to remember the past or plan for the future; to some degree both of those are good. Yet it is easy to become too focused on either the past or the future and to let the day and its own trouble be ignored.
I believe God wants us to remember the past, plan for the future, but live in the present.
The Truth: “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” (Matthew 6:34)
