Do not worry then, saying, 'What will we eat?' or 'What will we drink?'
or 'What will we wear for clothing?' For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these
things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek
first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to
you.[1]
Seek
- If we restrict our enquiry to passages with a religious reference, we find
that in these instances the term denote man's general philosophical search or
quest. The root of this concept is to be found in the frequent LXX use of
ζητειv for the Hebrew word. and also
in the use of the term in secular literature, where it is a technical term for
philosophical investigation … If the heathen are primarily concerned about food
and clothes, Christians are to seek first the kingdom of God and His
righteousness (Mt. 6:32 f.; cf. Lk. 13:24), They are to seek those things which are above (Col. 3:1) … In Philo the
philosophical enquiry of the mind is combined in a unique way with the heart's
seeking after God.[2]
First
- the sense "above all" occurs … at Mt. 6:33. The meaning here
cannot be that one must first seek after God's kingdom and then after other
things. "Above all" is the only meaning which corresponds to the
central position which orientation to the kingdom of God has in the
proclamation of Jesus.[3]
First of all we have to understand that Jesus was talking to
Jews. He obviously was not speaking to Christians, since that movement didn’t
begin until after his death. The term Gentile to Jews was pejorative. “ἔθνος - eth'nos, a race … specifically a foreign
(non-Jewish) one (usually by implication pagan): - Gentile, heathen, nation,
people.”[4] A Jewish concept of the
kingdom of God includes:
Reign or sovereignty of God as
contrasted with the kingdom of the worldly powers. The hope that God will be
King over all the earth … The Kingdom of God, however, in order to be
established on earth, requires recognition by man; that is, to use the Hasidæan
phrase borrowed from Babylonia or Persia, man must ‘take upon himself the yoke
of the Kingdom of God’. The yoke of God's Kingdom—the yoke of the Torah—grants
freedom from other yokes. Especially was it the principle of one party of the
Hasidæans, the Zealots, not to recognize as king any one except God, and the
prayer Abinu Malkenu—‘Our Father, our King, we have no King except Thee!’[5]
Since scriptural references accompany relevant points, it is
likely that this portrayal of the kingdom would have been close to first
century concepts. Jews expected an earthly theocracy. The kingdom was
distinctly Jewish being based on interpretation of prophecy and teaching of
early rabbis. Jesus’ teaching in Matthew’s gospel, chapters 5, 6, 7, could be
called kingdom attitudes. The teaching of Jesus was different from what is
found in the Torah. Jesus was concerned about attitudes as well as behaviours. Anxiety
over daily necessities was to be quelled by the transcendent pursuit of God’s
kingdom, and his righteousness. Discipleship to Jesus was demanding; it wasn’t
a simple pastime, it was a complete life commitment. In the three chapters in
Matthew there are around thirty admonitions, each one a life altering attitude.
In one of those Jesus said, “…unless your righteousness exceeds that of the
scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”[6] The
self-righteousness paraded by the Pharisees, was not what Jesus had in mind, he
was speaking of the righteousness of God. Paul wrote, concerning that
righteousness, “…not having a righteousness of my own that
comes from the law, but one that comes through faith in Christ, the
righteousness from God based on faith.[7]
In another place it is written, “Abraham ‘believed God, and it was
reckoned to him as righteousness…’”[8] I
don’t know how many Jews listening to Jesus would have grasped what he was
teaching. However, they might have recognized the superficiality of the
Pharisees’ display of pomp. They certainly noticed a difference in Jesus, “…he
taught them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.[9]
In the gospels there are over two dozen references made by
Jesus in which he inserted an attitude or behaviour demonstrated by people of
the kingdom. There is no mention of any institutional aspect of the kingdom.
The Jewish desire for an earthly kingdom ruled by God, was material. Still
today numerous religious denominations are waiting for the return of Christ,
and the establishment of his kingdom. According to them, that will happen at
the second coming of Christ. Very clever religious people have concocted
doctrines addressing the kingdom. People have gone through prophecies
calculating the time of Jesus’ return. Theories abound on the kingdom and what
it will be like. Some suggest that Jesus failed his mission to establish his
kingdom, and instead started the Church. What does Jesus say on the matter? How
about, “Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a
little child will never enter it.”[10]
No higher education needed, no particular ability to decipher prophecy, no
great intelligence, and not even special piety. What is required, is to have
the attitude of children –being child-like. That in no way suggests
childishness. I don’t know what specific child-like characteristics Jesus had
in mind, but here are a few that one author suggests adults should maintain in
order to have a better life:
Curiosity
– Children are incredibly curious.
Excitement
– Kids can get excited about….anything.
Faith
– We tell our children that if they put their minds to it they can do and
achieve anything.
Trust
– Children trust their parents fully.
Wonder
– Children are seemingly amazed by something new every five minutes.
Short
memory – A child can go from having a face with tears streaming down their
face one minute, to having an ear-to-ear grin the next.
Persistence
– Kids don’t give up easily.[11]
Notice that this list does not include any of the abilities
utilized by people who design doctrines and theories about the kingdom of God. It
becomes obvious why Jesus said, “…unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the
kingdom of heaven.”[12] It took, and it takes, faith and trust
to accept that Jesus meant what he said…
“For the Son of Man is to come with his angels in the glory of his
Father, and then he will repay everyone for what has been done. Truly I tell
you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the
Son of Man coming in his kingdom."[13]
If you don’t believe that Jesus returned in the lifetime of
some of those who listened to him, you need to change and become like children,
because the faculties you are using to relate to God are not those he wants people
to use.
Jesus spoke to people about things they knew, and were
familiar with. His parables were common place. Their simplicity excited the
common people, “At that same hour Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said,
"I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden
these things from the wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to
infants…[14] In teaching people Jesus
stated in parables, that seeking the kingdom was an all-consuming priority. Jesus
reflected on the Jewish understanding of reward for service when saying, their
food, drink, and clothing would be supplied by God. Israel’s history recorded
that God’s blessing would be given those who obeyed. Moses told the people
about to enter the land that Mount
Gerizim represented blessings, and Mount Ebal represented curses.[15]
If you obey the commandments of the LORD your God that I am commanding
you today, by loving the LORD your God, walking in his ways, and observing his
commandments, decrees, and ordinances, then you shall live and become numerous,
and the LORD your God will bless you in the land that you are entering to
possess.[16]
Moses made the statement in a long summation of the
activities of Israel during their wandering, at the time Israel was poised to
enter the Promised Land. Jesus said that God’s providence would be given to those
whose overall objective was to seek God’s kingdom, and his righteousness. Jesus
emphasized the need for disciples to give all of their time and attention to
searching for God’s kingdom. If they did that, God would supply their needs.
Perhaps, and I don’t know; that may have been a move on Jesus’ part suggesting
that the kingdom of Israel as they knew it was about to give way to the
spiritual kingdom. The time in which Jesus and his disciples taught, was the
end of times. Some of his audience would live to see a time of suffering, a
time of war, and a time of destruction. The period between Jesus saying he
would return, and when he did return, was a time of transition. “In speaking of "a new covenant,"
he has made the first one obsolete. And what is obsolete and growing old will
soon disappear.”[17] The
first covenant passed away with the destruction of the temple. The material
kingdom of Israel ended with the destruction of Jerusalem. Through the period
of transition the kingdom of Israel was waxing old, the kingdom of heaven was
taking root. The return of Jesus completed the phase in of the kingdom of
heaven. Unlike the first, the new covenant is spiritual, God’s presence resided
in the old temple. In the kingdom of God, he resides in the temple of our
hearts. “The law indeed was given through Moses; grace
and truth came through Jesus Christ.”[18] The kingdom to be sought is not
material, we do not live a period of transition. The kingdom of God is
spiritual, his word is in our hearts. We do not wait for an appearance of
Jesus. That took place when he said it would. Our task is not to build institutions,
our task is to be filled with God’s love and grace. We do live in a system of reciprocity
whereby God blesses those who behave according to some edict, the blessings of
God are given as gifts. We live by faith in God’s grace.
[2]
Theological Dictionary of the New Testament
[3]
Ibid
[4]
Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries
[5]
Jewish Encyclopedia
[6]
Mat 5:20
[11]
7 Childlike Traits We Should Recapture To Live A Happier Life, By Ayodeji
Awosika
[15]
Deu 27:12, 13
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