Is God First?

I continue to see it all the time. People just don’t get it. Either do the will of God or go find something else to do altogether. There just isn’t any peace, fulfillment, or satisfaction of soul in being religious and “having God in your life.” It is also certain that there is no salvation in that formula. Either God is fully in charge of your life, and you are letting him work everything out for your good, or you are fooling yourself (Psm. 42:8; Rom. 8:28). Friend, there truly is a reality to these powerful words of Jesus: “Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you” (Mat. 6:31-33). In fact this saying is what is at the very heart and soul of true faith in God. That is the real test, the fact that we are living in this world, and we can choose to either fully trust God and keep this commandment that Jesus gave us, or we can “lean on [our] own understanding” and be overcome by “the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches” (Prov. 3:5; Mat. 13:22). As Jesus said, God knows that we have need of things and situations to be worked out in this life; but as Jesus also said, we fail miserably if we make those things our priority. Of course no one wants to acknowledge that they are preferring this present life over the kingdom of God, but whatever it is that routinely is coming out of the mouth is what really tells the tale. Jesus said, “for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh” (Mat. 12:34). Someone may SAY that “the kingdom of God, and his righteousness” is what they are “seeking first,” but given time to speak what is really on their mind, they will usually tell a different story, unbeknownst to themselves.

We really need to consider the admonition and exhortation of Peter and keep it in our hearts and minds: “Cast all your care upon him; for he careth for you” (I Pet. 5:7). The apostle Paul echoed this instruction with just a bit more detail: “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Philip. 4:6,7). The word ‘careful’ in this passage means 'worrisome,’ and that is what Jesus referred to in the quoted passage above as “the care of this world.” So if we do NOT “cast all our care upon him,” and if we do NOT make our needs known to God with supplication and prayer, along with giving thanks sincerely; we will NOT have peace, and we WILL be overcome by sin and by the spirits of this world. Plain and simple. Either “the peace of God, which passeth all understanding” is “keeping [our] hearts and minds,” or it is not. If we are seeking first the things of this life, and trying to let God be added to our lives, then it will be worry, fear, anxiety, doubt, and insecurity that keeps our hearts and minds. There is a saying that “any job that is worth doing is worth doing right.” With stakes bigger than life and death hanging in the balance, surely the real faith and service of Christ is worth doing right with this one short, uncertain time that we have to do it with. So what is the key to doing just that? I believe Jesus said it best: “But that on the good ground are they, which in an HONEST and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience” (LK. 8:15). That is right my friend, as long as we remain honest with ourselves about where we are really at, we can always depend on the mercy and grace of God to help us get things right (Heb. 4:15,16). He truly wants to save us more than our ability to want to be saved. Amen.