I’m pretty sure most of us have done this at one time or another, and probably on more than one occasion. You know...where you are trying out a new recipe for the first time, or maybe assembling a new piece of ‘simple’ furniture, or a grill, etc. And towards the end of the process you realize you missed a key part or ingredient back at the start which leaves you frustrated and feeling like a fool. It happens, right?

We can do that when reading our Bibles as well...where you come across a particular verse that you thought...you knew by heart, and then much later, something jumps off the page that you swear you have ‘never seen before’. Funny how that happens. Those ‘oversights’ can be painful and costly in some situations; others, maybe not so much. So you left out adding the cinnamon to those homemade cinnamon rolls...nobody dies from that.

One verse in particular comes to mind for me, personally. It’s found in Matt. 6:33 and one that really stood out to me early on in my faith-walk, as I was bound and determined to make this my life goal and passion where I ‘seek first...the kingdom of God....’ That came with a pretty good promise as well when it comes to God’s provision given He ‘already knows what I need’. (32). But somehow...I missed the other ‘small part’ that was included there as to what I need to be ‘seeking first’. You may already know how it reads, but go look and see if you have any added emphasis under it in your Bible.

“Seek first...the kingdom of God....AND...HIS... righteousness...”

Wait, ....what? “His righteousness”? What does that even mean and how does one seek or pursue ‘God’s righteousness’? A great way to evaluate your own understanding of something would be to imagine how you might answer a young person or new convert in explaining that statement. So...what would you tell them? And is it scripturally based?

For me, ‘seeking God’s kingdom’ was easier to wrap my head around as I just automatically assumed it meant centering everything about my life- around ‘church’. I even threw running off to Bible College into the mix; I mean...if you are going ‘all in’, why wouldn’t everyone do this? And when I say centering my life ‘around church’...you know those types- they are there every time the doors are open and the first to volunteer for anything and everything that needs tending. That. Was. Me. 

It's easy to be convinced that the busier you are, and more committed to some local body of ‘believers’...that one must surely be ‘abiding in Christ’ (along with seeking first the kingdom) and gaining favor from God. It can be a subtle deception too...where you are not necessarily of the mindset that you are ‘saved because you are doing all this activity’...but you can’t help but ask yourself...’shouldn’t all saved people be busy like me doing all this’?

And then there is that pesky little ‘other tidbit’ about seeking first God’s ‘righteousness’. I mean, Jesus included it in the same breath so obviously if I am attending church and doing all these ‘wonderful things in His Name’ (Matt. 7:22) I have to be seeking this as well, right? Well...maybe not; and I would suggest we take a closer look at this...tomorrow. But for now, let me offer you up a simple definition we can work with here when it comes to talking about ‘God’s righteousness’. Simply put, it means ‘doing what is right in God’s eyes’. And we know from scripture that ‘when there is no king’ ...we tend to ‘do what is right in our own eyes’. (Judges 17:6; 21:25). That might explain the warning we find in Proverbs 14:12. You should go finish up by reading that now and then meet me back here tomorrow.