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"The
first and foremost thing"
Matthew 6:33
"But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness,
and all these things shall be added to you."
After his fall and
dispossession from the Garden of Eden, man, with increased the
feeling of self-preservation, pursued to subdue the earth that
was now under the curse of God (Genesis 3:17-19 and 23-24). In
those early years, all his thoughts and acts was towards his
survival in a now hostile land. Till this day, men, despite the
progress and the culture development, are still moving in the
same direction. For all, the first and foremost seems to be the
perseverance of life and its adornment with the glory and the
riches of this world.
However, the apostle Paul addressing
those that were called to come out of the spirit of this world to
do the will of God, wrote:
"do not be conformed to this world but be
transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what
is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God" (Romans
12:2)
When the apostle wrote
these things, he certainly had in mind the great and difficult
work that the genuine followers of Christ would have to
accomplish; a selfless work based on a will fully subjected to
the will of God. The Lord promises that if this is done, the
reward of the one that sows in the spirit will be much greater
than the reward of the one that sows in the flesh and which of
course is death.
A basic requirement
In Mark 14 we find the record of Jesus
speaking with a rich young man, who was interested in inheriting
the eternal life. After they discussed about the Mosaic law, and
it became evident the positive response of the young man, the
Lord told him of something additional that was required for
eternal life. Mark 10:21 tells us:
"Go your way, sell whatever you have and
give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come,
take up the cross, and follow Me." (Mark 10:21)
In this way, our Lord
presented the principle of a perfect and unreserved devotion, as
a basic requirement for obtaining the prize of life that this
young man was seeking. Seeing the great obstacle that was hidden
in his circumstances, the Lord asked him to give away his earthly
property, abandon the way of life to which he was accustomed, and
take up his cross and follow Him. In other words, He showed him
to dedicate his life in the service of the Lord, the truth and
the brethren and in fact to do it without any pressure, with his
own will and with gladness.
Actually, this is what He requires of
those that follow His steps, during this time of calling and
choosing of His church: to put everything on the great altar
of God!!! Though it is justifiable that a believer is also
occupied in the covering of the needs of the present life, it is
however necessary that his heart and disposition be coordinated
in a way so that first and foremost in his heart is the Lord and
His work.
The failure of many
The Lord also spoke about the obstacles
that cause many to fail putting themselves fully into His
service. As He said:
"Then Jesus looked around and said to His
disciples, "How hard it is for those who have riches to
enter the kingdom of God!" And the disciples were astonished
at His words. But Jesus answered again and said to them,
"Children, how hard it is for those who trust in riches to
enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through
the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of
God." (Mark 10:23-25)
The disciples were
surprised. To such a mind as the one they had before Pentecost,
the terms of discipline and devotion seemed to be hard and nearly
unachievable. That’s why they asked him:
"Who then can be saved?" But Jesus
looked at them and said, "With men it is impossible,
but not with God; for with God all things are possible."
(Mark 10:26-27)
And truly, the devoted
believer is made able to fulfill the terms of discipline, not by
his own power and determination, but through the power of God
that works in his heart and mind through His Holy Spirit.
Peter that, together with the other
disciples, had left their jobs, properties and houses to follow
the Lord, questioned what could be the result of such a life with
sacrifices. The Lord rushed to answer him and said:
"Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one
who has left house or brothers or sisters or father or mother or
wife or children or lands, for My sake and the gospel’s, who
shall not receive a hundredfold now in this time houses and
brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with
persecutions and in the age to come, eternal life." (Mark
10:29-30)
The thought is that the
people of God will at the end receive an incomparable prize of
spiritual glory and life for their faithfulness and the keeping
of the foremost thing in the first and foremost position. Thus,
let us "seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness,
and all ...shall be added to (us)" (Matthew 6:33)
George Vlantis
(from the "Light" (Greek) magazine)
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