The things that matter

“Seek first His kingdom and righteousness, all these things will be given to you.” Matthew 6:33

Getting things motivates people to work, and most of our decisions are influenced by this. It is human nature to seek both purpose and power, namely the meaning of our existence as well as the power to control our lives and circumstances.  As a result, money is a common goal for humankind since it gives us a sense of purpose and power.

But Jesus clearly states that we have both worldly and true riches. Chapter 6 of Matthew discusses the issue of human worries, as we tend to worry about our food, and material things on earth, so today’s key verse mentions that God promises to give true riches, including everything we need in this world when we do the right thing. 

In order to fulfill the promises, we must seek first, “seek” means to pursue, and “first” means to set the top priority in our lives.  We are basically chasing the wrong things if we seek first this world, not His kingdom.

The word Kingdom means God's dominion over the world, and which means how we can bring God's heavenly influence to earth. In addition, Jesus asked us to seek His righteousness, which is having right relationships with God or His governing authority.  It is then that we will receive all these true riches, not just our financial needs, but also our emotional needs, spiritual needs such as peace, joy and contentment that no money can buy.

In other words, God has given us two priorities, His kingdom and righteousness, and with these priorities, we already know the purpose of our lives is to bring God's influence into our lives, and the power of God covers us.

Let us seek God's kingdom and hunger for His righteousness and we will be filled with true riches.

Blessing prayer: Help us seek first your Kingdom and righteousness so that we may receive the promises and true riches for you, for you are our real purpose and power. In Jesus’ name, Amen.