More Than Enough
“But seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness
and all these things will be added to you as well.” (Matthew 6:33)
If you had to answer the question about what most often derails your faith journey, what would it be? A visceral answer might be “life!” And on a lot of days that is just how it feels. I get it!
If we unpack our answer a little more, we might see that the pressures of life tap into areas deeper within us that challenge our beliefs, including our belief in a good and all-sufficient God. Who among us hasn’t doubted that God would just provide food when we need it, or clothes when our kids ruin theirs, or that shelter, transportation, and heat will appear at exactly the right time. Our world disciples us to live in a mindset of scarcity, and it truly challenges our understanding of and trust in God.
Sometimes it’s necessary to step back and ask ourselves what is influencing our reading of the bible. You might resonate with something like this: God could provide, but that’s not the normal course of events. He’s trying to get me to think about something important, but of course there’s got to be more because stuff isn’t going to pop out of thin air. Before you know it, you’ve intellectualized, and even spiritualized the ideas, and we may not wrestle with how Jesus might actually have meant what he said.
In fact, in Matthew 6 when Jesus is talking about you being more important than birds, and flowers, and how he cares for them, many scholars believe that what was in His mind was the manna that fell from heaven during the time of Exodus. It was a miracle of provision. They had no other source of food, but they had enough. And the Bible also says their shoes did not wear out for 40 years. That’s a good pair of shoes!
When we don’t see the Bible as being in sync with our lives, we find other ways to make sense of it all. This leads many to substitute our trust in God with other things. In Matthew 6 Jesus confronts two of those things that are fundamental “go-to” substitutes.
He points out in the first half of Matthew 6 a tendency to trust in our reputation. Think about how hard you try to make a name for yourself, either at work, among friends, or in your community. A good reputation goes a long way in this world, and opens doors. A good reputation is a good thing. But examine that drive for establishing that reputation and see if it is in any way connected to your need to trust in your own ability to get what you need and ultimately what you want out of this life. You might find, as Jesus pointed out to the religious folk of his day, that their pursuits were more about trusting themselves than God.
In a very bold challenge to the religious leaders of the day, Jesus pointed out how their need for and pursuit of a good reputation had become a dead end in their faith journey. It served it’s own purpose. It did not bring them closer to God. It only served to elevate them in the eyes of their peers. One could argue that based on what we know of human nature, many saw right through it. Even today you can tell when people are faking it. But, in some cases, you still give people the benefit of the doubt, and more so if they walk in religious circles. God doesn’t though. He sees right through it and knows that when you care more about your reputation than you do about your relationship with him, you’re on a dead-end path.
Jesus shifts gears and adds in a second warning. Another substitute for trust in God is our trust in money and wealth. We think that money can take care of us. Sure, money can do a lot. And managed properly and held loosely and wisely, it is a great resource. But, wealth that becomes a substitute for trusting in God is another dead end. It, and all the good things it can buy, will waste away and be lost eventually. Maybe not in one generation, but eventually. It is a distraction that distorts faith and growth as a disciple. It can become one's source of trust. In fact, in chapter 13 of Matthew Jesus even equates the deceitfulness of wealth as a primary “choke” point on the journey of discipleship. He equates it to seed that fell among thorns (Matt. 13:22).
The distractions from pursuing wealth come in many forms. Certainly, the pursuit of wealth can simply lead to overwork. But, a more common distraction is worry. People with a lot of stuff worry a lot; at least if that stuff is what they believe they need for happiness and a good life. As Tevye from Fiddler on the Rood would say, “Lord, smite me with it!” Some people with a lot are still happy, no doubt, and some don’t worry. But, of course, Jesus was well aware of what was more common, and that is that people who trust in wealth don’t trust in God at the level of a true disciple.
“You cannot serve both God and money.” (Matt. 6:24)
The reality is that you cannot find stability and grow in faith if you are pursuing a good reputation and/or striving to be financially secure. You could have both, but as per Jesus - prioritize your pursuit. Seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness, and all the rest will be added unto you.
Remember how we framed our ultimate goal when we started our journey through this Sermon? Jesus is shaping us to be the kind of people that could be trusted at any time to do whatever we want because we have the character of people who put His Kingdom first. If we could be trusted like that, then you better believe he could give us all kinds of money and reputation because we would never be enticed to just use it for our own purposes. We would always be looking for how to use it to advance His Kingdom and bless His people. This is the anti-prosperity doctrine of the scriptures.
The antidotes to these two substitutes are spelled out. Intimacy, discipline, and generosity. It starts by pursuing His Kingdom first. We need to know God and pursue Him through prayer, fasting, and giving. We need His help to put to death our propensity to place our trust in the things of this world.
It starts by recognizing that God can and will take care of us. We might have to let go of the American dream. We might have to let go of all the gadgets and the things the world says will make us happy. But, just think about the beauty and delicacy of a lily. Or a tulip. Or a daffodil? Or the combination in spring of those with the Hyacinth? Flowers are beautiful and even the birds are cared for. And elsewhere Jesus even says, “are you not much more valuable than they?”
And here we can come back to the idea that Jesus was not just saying some really nice things to get us to think about how good God is. Jesus actually lived like this. Jesus actually believed that His Father would care for him. Jesus actually said what he said in belief that we could too. In full view for Jesus was God’s provision for the Israelites in the wilderness with manna every day, and shoes that did not wear out for 40 years. God continually helped them find water. Even in times of famine, people found a way to survive.
To do justice to this idea I’d need to go deeper into the idea that this passage is not speaking against working hard, and providing for your family, and all the other ideals that go into living as stewards in this Kingdom. Nothing about what Jesus is saying contradicts the need to work hard. Everything that Jesus is saying is related to where we place our trust, and how easily we can substitute our trust in God for worldly things; namely reputation and wealth in this case.
I would encourage you to do the following upon reading this post:
Examine if you believe that Jesus actually meant what he said and whether his prescription for life is livable?
If you don’t, why?
Take inventory of where you might be elevating a promotion at work or an opportunity for recognition above your trust that God sees and knows what you need?
Take inventory of how much faith you put in money and possessions? What control do they hold over you? What are you worried about in the background or foreground of your mind that is related to your money or possessions?
Assess the degree to which you are pursuing His Kingdom first.
Jesus is telling us how to live the Kingdom life. We live it by changing our ways and learning to live in love with each other, even our enemies. We work hard to escape the gravitational pull of trusting in reputation and money. We recognize that not only can God be trusted, but he also provides abundantly for those that love Him and for those He created. He invites us to rightly prioritize our efforts. Seeking first His kingdom, and then working toward all these other things, will cause us to have eyes that are full of light. That means generous, forgiving, loving people that don’t have to worry, but fully trust in a God who loves them and provides for all they need.
Pastor Scott