Friday, 17th September 2021
By Chow Ee-Tan 赵一丹

Seek Ye First

But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you – Matthew 6:33 (ESV)

This is one of the most well-known verses in the New Testament. We are also familiar with the song Seek Ye First the Kingdom of God’ that consists of the catchyHallelujah chorus’.

Personally, this verse speaks volumes to me. There had been times in my life that I asked God for something and I believed that He would fulfill my wish. Sometimes I got so desperate and prayed earnestly for it, as I thought that only He can and He will make it possible. Looking back, I think there were times when I had inadvertently treated God as a Genie.

A few years ago when I was again praying for something, this verse popped into mind. The Holy Spirit reminded me that instead of seeking after the things of my heart’s desire, I should be seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. And when I truly seek God first then things will fall into place, by His mercy and grace.

What does it mean by seeking God’s kingdom first? According to a devotion on this verse from devotableapp.com, it can mean at least three things:

Seek first the kingdom of God means trusting that He will take care of your needs, despite how things look. When Jesus talks about how the birds and the flowers are taken care of, how much more we can trust that God will take care of us – His children. We don’t need to worry about our cares or strive too hard to make something work according to our wishes. We simply need to trust that He will come through for us because He has said he would.

Seek first the kingdom of God means worshipping God in the middle places. Anxiety stems out of concern for the future, a form of control that says we need to have all the answers in order to feel safe. But true security lies in the middle place – before we see God come through and before we see the provision. We can worship God right where we are. If we approach God and believe that no matter what, He is God and we want to see His Kingdom come to earth, we can worship Him.

Seek first the kingdom of God means noticing the work that God is doing in our midst and partnering with Him. We should turn our attention outwards. Stop focusing on our needs and fear that God won’t provide (like I once did). We can take our eyes off that need and instead, look up and look around. And we will notice that God is already at work in us, in our family, in our community. We should ask Him how we can partner with Him to bring His Kingdom to the people around us.

When Jesus spoke this verse during the Sermon on the Mount, it was after telling His disciples not to worry and be anxious about anything in life, for God provides. Indeed, God is our loving Father. When we seek His Kingdom first, He promises that `all these things will be added to us’. “All these things’ do not mean our own personal desires but whatever that we need in this life, and whatever God knows that is good for us.

Now, whenever I have a desire in my heart, or an uncertainty in the future that I want to bring to the Lord, I am reminded of this verse. It also reminds me to keep the right perspective, that there is nothing on earth more important than seeking first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. After all, our Heavenly Father knows us better than ourselves. So we can submit everything unto God and trust that He will provide, according to His will and His timing.

Prayer: Father God, I have sometimes magnified my worldly concerns and worries, and I have prayed and asked for things out of my own personal desires. Forgive me for my short-sightedness, and forgive me for my little faith. I want to commit myself to You again and I want to seek first Your kingdom and Your righteousness. For I know that You love me and have my best interest in heart. Help me Holy Spirit to always put God first in my life, and the rest I will leave it to Him. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

每日靈糧
星期五，2021年9月17日
标题：先寻求祂
作者：赵一丹
翻译：陈月妃

你们要先求他的国、和他的义这些东西都要加给你们了。（马太6：33）

这是新约圣经中最广为人知的经文之一。我们也熟悉这首由朗朗上口的“哈利路亚大合唱”所组成的歌曲“你们要先求他的国”。

就我个人而言，这节经文对我来说意义重大。在我的一生中，我曾多次向上帝祈求一些东西，我相信祂会实现我的愿望。有时我会非常绝望地为它恳切祈祷，因为我认为只有祂才能成就这事，而且祂会让这变为可能。回想起来，我想有时候我不经意间将上帝视为一个精灵。

几年前，当我再次为某事祈祷时，这节经文突然浮现在我的脑海中。圣灵提醒我，与其追求自己心中所渴望的，不如先寻求神的国和神的义。而当我真正首先寻求上帝时，事情就会因祂的怜悯和恩典而水到渠成。

先寻求神的国是什么意思？根据 devotableapp.com 对这节经文的解释，它至少可以意味着三件事：

先寻求神的国意味着相信祂会顾念你的需要，不管事情看起来如何。当耶稣谈到天父如何看顾飞鸟和野花时，我们更加相信上帝会看顾我们——祂的孩子们。我们不需要过于忧虑我们所需用的，也不需要致力使某些事情按照我们的意愿行事。我们只需要相信祂会来帮助我们渡过难关，因为祂说过祂会的。

先求神的国，就是在中心位置敬拜神。焦虑源于对未来的担忧，这是一种控制形式，表明我们需要掌握所有的答案才能感到安全。但真正的安全在于中心位置——在我们看到上帝带领我们渡过难关之前，在我们看到神的供应之前。我们可以就地敬拜上帝。如果我们亲近上帝并相信无论境况如何，祂就是上帝，我们希望看到祂的国度降临，我们就可以敬拜他。

先求神的国意味着留意神在我们当中所行的事并与祂同工。我们应该把注意力转向外面。不要再专注于我们的需要，也不要害怕上帝不会供应（就像我曾经做过的那样）。我们可以将目光从这种需求上移开，而是抬头环顾四周。我们会注意到上帝已经在我们身上、在我们的家庭、在我们的社区中工作。我们应该问祂，我们如何与祂同工，将祂的国度带给我们周围的人。

当耶稣在登山宝训期间讲解这节经文时，是在告诉祂的门徒不要为生活中的任何事情担忧和焦虑，因为上帝会供应。的确，上帝是我们慈爱的父亲。当我们先寻求祂的国时，祂应许“这些东西都要加给我们了”。 “这些东西”并不是指我们个人的欲望，而是指我们今生所需用的一切，以及上帝所知道对我们有益的一切。

现在，每当我心中有一个愿望，或是对未来的不确定性，我想带到主面前时，我就会想起这节经文。这也提醒我要保持正确的观点，世上没有什么比先寻求神的国和祂的义更为重要的了。毕竟，我们的天父比我们自己更了解我们。因此，我们可以将一切交给上帝，并相信祂会按着祂的旨意和时间来供应。

祷告：父神，我有时会放大我对世俗的担忧和焦虑，我也为着我的私欲向你祷告和祈求。原谅我的短视，赦免我的小信。我想再次委身于你，我想先寻求你的国和你的义。因为我知道你爱我，并且对我最关心。祈求圣灵帮助我，让我经常把上帝放在我生命的首位，其余的我将交托给祂。我奉耶稣的名祷告，阿门。