What does this mean? Do you know? I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase… but WHAT does it mean to and for you? Not just a definition, but definitely a definition too, but how does this impact your day? Or… doesn’t it?
“If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don’t you think he’ll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met. Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.” [Matthew 6:30-34. MSG]
Read how the Amplified, verse 33 is said:
“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]”
But first and most importantly… Any time that scripture uses those kinds of words, we should stop and reread and then study what the Word is telling us. The Institute for Creation Research (https://www.icr.org/) says:
“… the tense of the verb “seek” in Greek implies a command to establish an ongoing habit or lifestyle of “seeking” the things of the kingdom …“seeking,” to do so by the power of His Spirit living in us.
Theologyofwork.org explains the Kingdom of God as:
“In a nutshell, the kingdom is not a place where God reigns so much as the actual reign, rule, and authority of God. The kingdom of God is not heaven, though God does reign fully there. The kingdom of God is not a feeling or some ethereal spiritual reality. Rather, it is the presence and power of the sovereign God, who is King of kings and Lord of lords. Thus, when Jesus tells us to “Seek the ;kingdom of God” above all else (12:31), he is saying: “Let God be King over your whole life. Follow God’s direction and live for God’s glory. Wherever you are, whatever you do, seek God’s purpose and walk in his ways.” The tense of the Greek verb translated as “seek” emphasizes the ongoing character of Jesus’ imperative. We are to seek and keep on seeking God’s reign over our lives.”
Do these ‘interpretations’/explanations help us understand? I’m still mulling the concept of the kingdom not being a place but the presence and power of the sovereign God in us… in ME. This makes sense to me. Thus ‘Let God be King over your whole life’ is a choice, a decision we make. We ARE to seek and keep on seeking God’s reign over our lives.’ This is a noble ‘quest’.
And…
