The verse “But seek first the kingdom of God” from the book of Matthew 6:33 of the Bible, tells us that we have to have our Lord as a priority over the things of the world. Which means that we must first keep in mind the salvation that will allow us to access the kingdom of heaven, and this has more value than any material wealth.
I invite you to read:
In this sense, we must keep in mind the spiritual things referring to God as our fundamental purpose, following the will of our Heavenly Father and proclaiming his word in all nations and in every creature. We can appreciate this in the word:
Do not worry, therefore, saying: What shall we eat, or what shall we drink, or what shall we wear? Because the Gentiles seek all these things; but your heavenly Father knows that you have need of all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. So, do not worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will bring its worry. Enough for each day its own evil” (Matthew 6:31-34)
Analysis of the verse “But seek first the kingdom of God”
To understand this verse we must first know the context of the so-called Sermon on the Mount where the Lord Jesus Christ proclaims this teaching so full of wisdom. Here he spoke to us about the eagerness and anxiety that people feel on a day-to-day basis, especially related to food and clothing, since they are fundamental needs in the lives of men. The desire to have these things can make us sick if they are not controlled, and if we do not fully trust God.
Above all, clothing and food. Basic needs that concern anyone, much more these days. These two elements are factors that if not controlled can make anyone sick. Before which the word tells us: “Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?” (Matthew 6:25)
In this way we must put everything under God’s control and trust that he will never abandon us. If we look for him first, we can be sure that we lack nothing because he takes care of us.
On the other hand, the figure of the prophet John the Baptist is key to understanding this teaching, since after a prophetic silence of more than 400 years, he appears to us in the desert speaking about the Kingdom of God. As can be seen in the word:
“In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the desert of Judea, and saying, Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 3:1-2)
Here the prophet makes known the good news about the purpose of Jesus on earth and that we must seek repentance in order to reach the kingdom of heaven, which is carried out through the divine covenant through the perfect sacrifice of Christ.
In this sense, when the prophet John proclaimed that the Kingdom of heaven was near, he was affirming that the Messiah already existed and had a divine plan for our salvation, and this was manifesting itself through his actions, which were based in healing the sick, in giving sight to the blind, in giving good news to the poor, and in proclaiming liberty to captives. So John began to announce access to the Kingdom of heaven, to eternal life.
In this sense, God has promised us to meet all our needs and take care of us, but for this we must seek him first and put aside the eagerness and anxiety that hurts us. However, we must understand that at times we can see our needs from a material point of view.
Which is a mistake, since God sees differently what we really need and works accordingly. That is why it is important to understand that God works differently from what we carnally think. Hence, we must strengthen the spiritual aspects and focus on doing the will of God, which is perfect.
On the other hand, God knows perfectly well what we need at a given moment, and perhaps we need to go through difficult times, of scarcity to appreciate what we have, just as Job lost everything. But this biblical character was going through a very difficult test where God had a specific plan for him. So we should only ask God for direction, leave everything in his hands.
Why we must first seek the Kingdom of God
This is one of the questions that can be presented to us to decipher God’s purpose in our life. The answer is simple, and it is that man cannot govern effectively, and this is demonstrated throughout history, since in the end they all fail.
You can read:
That is why we need to reach the kingdom of heaven that is eternal. This can be evidenced in the book of proverbs 14:12, where Solomon wrote the following: “There is a path that seems right to a man; but its end is the way of death”
In this way, humans have demonstrated every form of government, but they all come to an end. When referring to the events that will lead us to the end of the era, in which man governs himself and the beginning of God’s government over this world, our Lord Jesus Christ affirmed: “For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, nor will there be. And if those days were not shortened, no one would be saved.” (Matthew 24:21-22).
In this regard, it can be affirmed that man requires a better government that has the capacity to generate peace and prosperity forever. The Bible makes us a promise that there will be an improved government that will come to this earth to replace all human governments:
“And in the days of these kings the God of heaven will raise up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will the kingdom be left to another people; he will crumble and consume all these kingdoms, but he will remain forever ” (Daniel 2:44).
How can we seek the Kingdom and the justice of God?
Jesus Christ taught us in his gospels about the way in which we can seek the kingdom of God, where he said: “The time has come, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:15). Repentance and faith are two essential aspects to be able to access the Kingdom of heaven, where we must access without any stain.
And the main reason why we should repent and show our devotion to God is because we are all sinners. In the book of Romans 6:23 we can see it in the following quote: “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
In this sense, when we repent we must change our natural way of thinking, which is contradictory to God’s teachings. In this regard, the Bible states: “the carnal mind is enmity against God; because they are not subject to the law of God, nor can they” (Romans 8:7).
For this reason, we need to make a real change in our way of thinking and acting, and obey the will of God, since if we do not do so, we will not be able to achieve salvation: “If you want to enter life, keep the commandments” (Matthew 19:17).
The Lord’s plan for us in the Kingdom of Heaven
God created man in his own image and likeness, gave him inferior abilities in order to train him to rule with him in eternity. The purpose of the Lord when he says “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness” is to exhort us so that we can develop a holy and righteous character and qualify ourselves to rule as kings and priests on this earth. As revealed in his word:
“And you have made us to our God kings and priests, and we will reign on the earth. And I looked, and heard the voice of many angels around the throne, and of the living creatures, and of the elders; And their number was millions upon millions, saying with a loud voice: The Lamb that was slain is worthy to receive power, riches, wisdom, strength, honor, glory, and praise. (Revelation 5:10-12).
In this sense it is important to consider faith and repentance in order to have access to eternal life to rule together with our Lord in the kingdom of heaven. For this it is important to recognize that we must make a significant change in our lifestyle, and not live according to the things of the flesh but live for Christ, who through the perfect sacrifice we are justified before God for the abolition of sins.
It should also be considered that we are all sinners and that in order to clean our clothes we have to be born again and have a life according to God’s will. Leave the past behind and begin the ways of Christ. As the word shows:
“Jesus answered and said to him, Truly, truly, I tell you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus said to him: How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb, and be born? Jesus answered: Truly, truly, I tell you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. What is born of the flesh, flesh is; and what is born of the Spirit is spirit.” (John 3:3-6)
Here Jesus exhorts us that to achieve the Glory of God we must be born again as a new creature and under the grace of God. For this reason we must die for the world and live for Christ, have a life pleasing to God, where we glorify our Lord with our actions, being kind as Jesus was here on earth, helping others at all times and loving one another. others, obeying this mandate with sincerity and dedication. Otherwise our name will not be written in the book of life.
How to combat eagerness and anxiety to reach the Kingdom of God
In order to seek the Kingdom of heaven and the justice of God, we must leave behind the desire and do the will of God. When we read the word and pray constantly, we are opening the doors to the blessings that God has for each one of us, not letting ourselves be intimidated by tomorrow, since God is aware of our needs.
In the same way we must try to be similar to our Father, doing what the Messiah taught us here on earth, feeling compassion for our neighbor and praying and freeing them, since God teaches us that we will do greater things than what he did: “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me, the works that I do he will also do; and greater than he will do these; because I am going to the Father” (John 14:12)
Jesus Christ teaches us that people who have not known the Father feel eager for basic needs such as clothing, food, shelter, among others. But those people who focus their lives on seeking the kingdom of heaven, do not have to worry about anything because their life is in the hands of God and all the burdens are lightened, their tears are wiped away and their material needs are covered in a supernatural way and abundant.
You may be interested in reading:
As the word exhorts us: “So do not worry about tomorrow, because the…