Continuing from our previous post (Seek First The Kingdom), let’s aim to further unfold why it is that in the order of all things, Jesus placed ‘seeking the Kingdom’, first. As with everything, the best place to start is at the beginning.
Genesis 3:7 (NIV).
‘Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.’
Genesis 3:17-19 (NIV).
To Adam He said, “…….Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.”
At the fall of man, the first thing Adam did was (cover) clothe himself. God then says to Adam, he would provide food for himself by toiling for it, through hard work and sweat. Adam had now become self-reliant, dependent on the work of his hands, and the sweat of his brow for what he would eat, drink and ‘wear’. The significance here is that this was not the original intent of God. It was never in God’s grand design to have man toil for his daily provision.
Genesis 1:29; Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And Genesis 2:9; “The LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food..” These verses reveal that God caused the very earth to produce food to sustain Adam and Eve. There is absolutely no evidence of the requirement to toil or the need for them to provide anything for themselves. God was the very source of their sustenance and provision.
Adam and Eve were in the garden (a version of the Kingdom), lacking nothing. That is, until the enemy came and robbed them of that position. This is why Colossians 1:13 says; “For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves.” God removes us from the control and functioning of the economy of the enemy, and restores us back to His original intent.
Seek The Kingdom First.
There’s an order in the Kingdom of God. We’re told, because we’ve been translated into His Kingdom, we no longer need to worry about these matters. He, as King, will take care of the citizens of His Kingdom. This is such a powerful, yet challenging verse and concept to grasp.
Jesus tells us to no longer be like the world, who toil, work and strive for what we consider as the necessities of life. For they (the world) seek to supply for themselves by the labor of their own hands. He encourages us that when we seek the Kingdom first, He will supply and provide the things we need, and not through painful and tiresome toil. This is not to say we do not need to work, or not work hard. It’s simply saying, do not work, chasing to accumulate and provide worldly possessions and wealth for ourselves. We work knowing that it is God who gives us the strength to do our work, and it is He who blesses and provides us with all we need. When we structure these things, our “necessities and priorities”, according to an accurately divine order, it’s secondary to seeking God’s Kingdom.
Satan, the prince of the kingdom of darkness, misleads us in believing that accumulating wealth and possessions are evidence of the presence, blessing and favor of God in our lives. That having these things are a means by which we are honoring God. So we work harder, in hope of achieving more, gaining more, possessing more. We then only trust God to ‘breakthrough’ for us and ‘bless’ us with the “more”. Because the “more” is the evidence of His presence in our lives and confirmation that we living righteously before Him. It’s the fulfillment of “He has plans to prosper us”(Jeremiah 29:11). So we seek God for what He can give us and not to know Him and the order of His Kingdom.
These are the strategic schemes and tactics the enemy uses to keep us from truly fulfilling the desire of God, to seek His Kingdom first. Many, I repeat, many believers are still under the rule of satan, under the control of the dominion of darkness. Repentance needs to come!
Psalms 37:16 (AMP).
Better is the little of the righteous [who seek the will of God] Than the abundance (riches) of many wicked (godless).
1 Timothy 6:6 (AMP).
But godliness actually is a source of great gain when accompanied by contentment [that contentment which comes from a sense of inner confidence based on the sufficiency of God].
With those who seem to have less, we look at as less. The enemy is successful in the traps and snares he has set out for man, even the believer. That’s why seeking the kingdom is so important, it’s a result of repentance, which comes from a pure heart. It’s a heart that has set seeking God and His Kingdom above seeking ‘things’. And God wants to know the intentions of the heart. Do we seek God for His blessings? Or do we seek His Kingdom and His righteousness?
Do we truly desire to know and please Him? Or are we seeking Him, unaware that deep in our hearts it’s for our own pleasure, for the acknowledgement of men. Not to know the desires of our King!
Citizens in the Kingdom of God function completely different to those in and of this world. Kingdom citizens understand there’s no value in earthly possessions.
Worldly riches, wealth, and possessions are of little to no value in the Kingdom of God. Man seeks to accumulate these things for himself, because by that, he wants to be honored and acknowledged by other men. This foolishness is well established among believers, who still function by the lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, the pride of life (1 John 2:16).
When the Lord Jesus made the statement concerning His Father’s Kingdom, He removed every deceptive, distracting, misleading and misplaced priority. Jesus was encouraging us to get our priorities in order. And that the things of this world were NOT a priority. Not to Him or His Kingdom, and neither should it be a priority to us. He left us with one thing to focus on—seeking the Kingdom of the Lord God and His righteousness! In doing so, He empowered us with the key to a simpler and fulfilling life. Not being distracted and occupied by the things which brings pleasure to our flesh.
Apostle Paul said: For I have told you often before, and I say it again with tears in my eyes, that there are many whose conduct shows they are really enemies of the cross of Christ. They are headed for destruction. Their god is their appetite, they brag about shameful things, and they think only about this life here on earth. But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for Him to return as our Savior. Philippians 3:18-20.
Kingdom citizens don’t just live on this earth to simply make a living or receive that paycheck. They have an assignment from the King and work for the Kingdom. Always remember that no matter where our resources come from, as a citizen of the Kingdom, our Lord and King is our (only) source.
Luke 12-22-23 (NKJV); Then He said to His disciples, “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; nor about the body, what you will put on. Life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing.”
We want to accumulate wealth, live in the abundance, the overflow of provision and material possessions. We want to be admired and acknowledged by men, respected and applauded. If only wealth, prominence, education, or possessions could glorify God or truly satisfy us. Only God can truly satisfy! Hence He instructs us to seek Him, His Kingdom and His righteousness above all things. In His infinite wisdom God knew, chasing and seeking after the most basic of things would never satisfy us, only seeking and finding Him would completely bring us pleasure and wholeness.
Luke 12-31-32 (NKJV); “But seek the Kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you. Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom.“
This Kingdom, is all sufficient. It contains everything we will ever need, to enable us to live the lives He has purposed for us, and fulfill that to which He has called us. This Kingdom lacks nothing, and as citizens in this Kingdom we will likewise, lack nothing.
God is aiming to bring us to the point Adam was before he sinned. A place where he had absolutely no concern as to what he will eat, drink or be clothed with. All Adam did was cultivate the garden and fellowship with the ‘Tree of Life’, and the Lord God provided everything he needed. To this end the Lord God instructs us to ‘seek His Kingdom and righteousness, and all we need He will provide’.
Psalms 37:25 (NIV).
“I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread.”
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