Jesus tells us to repent and believe the good news that the Reign of God is breaking in upon us (Mark 1:14 – 15).  Is there any other way we should respond to this truth?  Let’s find out what Jesus says.

I am sure most of you are familiar with Matthew 6:33 where Jesus says,

“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

Here Jesus outlines how we are to respond now that God is taking charge. Let’s break it down and look at it.

An Intense Pursuit

When Jesus tells us to seek the Kingdom, He is not talking about a casual inquiry.  This is not something for curious dabblers.  What He is referring to is an intense pursuit.  In order to get the picture, think about what happens when you are late for an appointment and cannot find your car keys.  Remember how the house was turned upside down in your ardent search?  You will stop at nothing to find those keys!  That’s the way Jesus wants us to seek the Kingdom.

Our Chief Priority

While Jesus does not say we should only seek the Kingdom, He does say that we should seek it first.  In  other words, we should earnestly pursue the Kingdom above everything else we pursue.  God’s Reign should be the chief priority in our lives.

Why is this?  Because the Kingdom is God’s chief priority.  From the beginning of time until the end of time He is working to bring all things under the Headship of His Son.  We can see this in Isaiah 9:6 – 7.

For a child is born to us,
a son is given to us.
The government will rest on his shoulders.
And he will be called:
Wonderful Counselor,Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

His government and its peace will never end.
He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity.
The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies
will make this happen!  NLT (emphasis added)

All God’s energies are channeled toward causing all things to bow to the Lordship of Jesus Christ, and He will not rest until this is accomplished.  By seeking His Reign above everything else we align ourselves with the priority of God.  This causes all our other priorities to fall into their proper place.

How Do We Do This?

Pursuing God’s Reign as our chief priority means seeking to bring every facet of our lives under the Lordship of Christ.  To do this, we need to ask some searching questions.

• What is God’s primary agenda for our lives?
• What is God’s agenda for our family?
• What is God’s agenda for our job?
• What is God’s agenda for our church?

If we will bring these questions before the Lord, He will be faithful to bring each area into line with His Kingdom agenda.

What Are You Chasing?

What is your chief pursuit?  What is it that you chase above all else?  I would like to challenge you to align yourself with God’s priorities and see how it affects your life.  It is the one way to guarantee you are living in the Reign.

M

“Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright ©2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.”