SEEK FIRST HIS KINGDOM
(This is a 6-minute read)
Take a look at your smartphone and the number of applications you have downloaded. Studies have shown that an average person uses about ten mobile apps a day1 and the trend is set to continue through 2022 and beyond. This is because people are constantly looking for something in life, whether it’s for convenience, connections, entertainment, consuming or creating some kind of content on social media.
In the kingdom of apps, there is an app for every kind of service supplied by different resource owners. We can swipe left, right, up and down to search for anything we want: anything except God. In the Kingdom of God, He alone is the resource owner who owns and controls everything and makes it accessible to those who earnestly seek Him.
As we enter a new year, the question for believers is this: what are we chasing after – is it the Kingdom of God or the kingdom of something else of the world? They are diametrically different in terms of values, costs and outcomes. However, we can’t straddle between the two: Christian living is a game-changer.
Matthew 6:33 offers us a fundamental truth, “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” If there is a log-in password to access Kingdom resources, this is it. However, this verse is not a standalone truism; it is the sum and substance of the Beatitudes and a good chunk of Jesus’ teachings from chapters 5 and 6 in the book of Matthew covering many aspects of Christian living. Do look them up!
Of course, when we seek the kingdom of God, we must also know that He who rules in that Kingdom will not let anything that is not in His plan to take place in our lives. This is not a provision for us to cop-out of taking responsibility for healthy relationships and our personal growth but it is a reminder for Christians not to mistakenly think that an easy life is a sign that all is well in our lives. All human life comes with its fair share of failures and disappointments that create the conditions necessary for us to have an adversity-proof relationship with God and to have faith in Him. This includes a global pandemic that turns life upside down for many!
For that reason, the Bible tells us in Matthew 6:34, “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” In short, deal with it. Even when life throws us curveballs, those who seek the Kingdom of God can draw on His resources – the Holy Spirit, the Word of God, the ability to pray and intercede – for help.
So, while we are living with the pandemic, there are many important lessons we can draw from it.
Lesson 1 Personal Hygiene
Never before has mankind fought a virus with such extensive use of PPEs for mitigating the spread. As a result, we have become so familiar with new health-promoting habits like wearing face masks, cleaning our hands with sanitizers, getting vaccinated and observing safe distancing that most of us don’t think twice about them.
We need the same vigilance when it comes to our spiritual hygiene and the kind of thinking and self-talk that dominate our minds. Unguarded, we will let spiritual viruses attack the kingdom of God through the voice of anxiety and worry that creep into our minds, making it so natural to react to everything with a heightened sense of dread. Instead of quietly turning to God to nip these anxiety attacks, we react to minor setbacks as though all hell has broken loose.
But God has not left us to deal spiritual viruses alone. Psalm 139:23-24 prescribes a habit to maintain our spiritual hygiene and to keep our thoughts in check: “Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”
In addition, Proverbs 4:23-27 advised us to guard our heart, our mouth, our lips, our eyes, our feet and our walk. These instructions are not meant to stifle us into zombie-like existence. Rather, they empower us so that the promises of the Kingdom of God will be evident and expressed through our reaction and response to situations.
Can things get worse? Sure, but God’s promises will also come through in a more forceful way against all odds!
Lesson 2 Contamination in the home and church
Today, we live with many forms of restrictions such as home quarantine, closed borders, mandatory quarantine for travellers, restricted dine-in at restaurants, and limited capacity for in-person gatherings and live events. These are necessary to limit the spread of COVID-19 within the community and its migration from external sources.
At home, we, who are followers of Jesus Christ, are God’s ambassadors. It is our responsibility to keep the spiritual environment in our homes healthy and to be on guard against spiritual contamination. We do this by being mindful of the kind of conversations we have at home, and practising a standard of hygiene for the type of online content being streamed into our living rooms and bedrooms. We can also choose to stay out of gossips and character-assassination (even when we have been hurt), teach our children about responsible living, and be careful not to perpetuate misinformation and conspiracy theories.
In short, we cannot allow double standards in our homes and expect our families to thrive. In the same way that we remain passive in keeping out contaminants at home, we will bring the same laissez-faire attitude to the church we attend.
Deuteronomy 6:6 reminds us to demonstrate our commitment to God’s command - to love Him with all our heart, soul and strength - so that it promotes health in every aspect of our lives, just like how the heart pumps blood to all our major organs to keep them thriving and healthy. In addition, we are to inspire our children and talk to them about godliness and the importance of living a life that pleases the Lord.
Lesson 3 Familiarity with God
The ubiquity of mobile devices and the risk of exposure to COVID-19 have made video conferencing and live streaming of services the default for many churches. The danger is when we transfer our familiarity with media platforms and the way we consume online content to our behaviour during online church services. We log in not to attend a church service with reverence and in quietness but to watch the service with the same detachment as we watch most things on YouTube.
While safety concerns make remote church attendance practical for all the right reasons, we must not let our relationship with God be premised on the convenience of tuning in whenever we can and wherever we are. To be sure, corporate worship is not less sacred when it is live-streamed so we should participate with our lips, our hearts and our whole posture just like we do when attending service in person. Even when we gather virtually with other believers, it is still a sacred time.
Whether onsite or online, God is not interested in religious charades. Isaiah 1:12-15 reserved harsh words from God about meaningless celebrative parades. We see this again in Amos 5:21-23: “I despise your religious festivals; your assemblies are a stench to Me.”
Strong words indeed! Can you imagine if God goes online and say this to you: “Your incense is detestable to Me.” (Isaiah 1:13). Ouch!
If living with COVID-19 over the past two years has taught us anything, let it be these three lessons on spiritual health and hygiene for our lives, our homes and our churches, as well as our relationship with God.
To do so, seek first His Kingdom!
This is a summary and reflection based on a virtual BIR session held on 8 Jan 2022.
Footnote:
1 https://buildfire.com/app-statistics/
