Who is First in your life? In the first and last analysis – who’s #1. And when you look at your behavior… does that support, reinforce who’s first, or call your words into account? How would anyone know what and who is your First?
“Therefore do not worry or be anxious (perpetually uneasy, distracted), saying, ‘What are we going to eat?’ or ‘What are we going to drink?’ or ‘What are we going to wear?’ For the [pagan] Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; [but do not worry,] for your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But first and most importantly seek (aim at, strive after) His kingdom and His righteousness [His way of doing and being right—the attitude and character of God], and all these things will be given to you also. “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” (Matthew 6:31-34, AMP)
First and most importantly… His kingdom and His righteousness. If you say you are a Christian, would anyone (including yourself) know what is your ‘first’ and ‘most importantly’? Are you seeking His kingdom, His righteousness? Do you know what His kingdom is? Are you living in His righteousness? I’ve said it before and repeat – being a Christian is never for the faint hearted. We are called to be warriors for the Lord but not in the traditional sense we perceive what a warrior does. We are ‘tasked’ with the greatest opportunity as warriors… leading/sharing the Lord (The Great Commission) with others.
Kingdom of God: there are countless verses that talk about this… actually, there could be an argument made that the entire Bible is talking about the Kingdom in some way. But is this a concept that is so far in the future or out of the realm of your understanding. that you really don’t comprehend this? I think we begin discovering and understanding His Kingdom with our level of trust, our faith. What is the Kingdom to you? A place? A mindset? A person? And how do you get there?
Let me share some of the attributes of ‘first’ as I have come to discover. First is not an idle thought, it is a prevailing one… never far from the corners of your mind. You seek, as diligently as you know how, to discover more so that you can become more and do what would be pleasing. Your conversations are laced with your understanding of how important ‘first’ is in your life. And those are only the tips of the iceberg of ‘first’. An obsession? Perhaps, but I tend to think of first as a passion that you can never get enough of.
Remember the Lord’s Prayer: “… Your kingdom come, Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven…”? That phrase, to me, focuses what your actions about ‘first’ are, can be. You want His will to be in evidence. And where do you find His Will? In His Word of course. Look again at the scripture… it talks about His Kingdom and Righteousness. Isaiah tells us:
“For we all have become like one who is [ceremonially] unclean [like a leper], And all our deeds of righteousness are like filthy rags; We all wither and decay like a leaf, And our wickedness [our sin, our injustice, our wrongdoing], like the wind, takes us away [carrying us far from God’s favor, toward destruction].
Yet , O Lord, You are our Father; We are the clay, You our potter; And we all are the work of your hands.” (64: 6, 8 AMP)
[As an aside… though that might be read as a slap in the face, it really is only a statement of fact. However, I’ve never read a scripture of chastisement, ‘punishment’, correction, direction that isn’t followed by a statement of God’s love and care for us – to help us understand the gravity and importance of our decisions and actions but holding out the hand of redemption.]
Perhaps the question isn’t so much about agreeing with what’s been said as it is with knowing what your part is in making His Kingdom … First. I would suggest that studying and talking about, learning and understanding, sharing and discussing are the foundations of discovering His Will. He really isn’t hiding it and He does repeat Himself. Doing His Will is the path to His kingdom. And it isn’t difficult. Sometimes I wonder if the problem isn’t that this approach is foreign to what we’ve experienced in the world, that acting this way is a learned behavior.
Though I’ve offered some ‘food for thought’ regarding First, Kingdom of God, His Righteousness… I’ve basically left the reader with questions. But they are personal and incredibly important questions. Primarily… you need to know not only His answers but yours. What is it you know? What is it you believe about these concepts that are essential and eternal? What is it you do?
