Matthew 6:33
AMP
But seek for (aim at and strive after) first of all His kingdom and His righteousness [His way of doing and being right], and then all these things taken together will be given you besides.
But seek for (aim at and strive after)
This is no small thing. Whatever it is I’m seeking, I’m to aim carefully for my goal. Someone told me once that in the earliest archery targets there was nothing but a mark in the center of a plain field that was called ‘sin.’ If you “hit the mark” you did well, but if you fell outside the mark you were “in sin.” I don’t know if this story is true or not, but it does illustrate the importance of proper aim. The fact is that in anything we do “hitting the mark” is the only fully acceptable result.
And then there’s the word “strive.” According to Webster’s 1828 dictionary, it means, “To make efforts; to use exertions; to endeavor with earnestness; to labor hard.” This is a meaty word, one that implies the necessity of WORK on our part.
first of all
Before anything else!
His kingdom and His righteousness [His way of doing and being right]
So here is what we are to work so hard to attain.
His kingdom
His righteousness
His way of doing and being right
I’m told that one translation says we are to seek first the expansion of His kingdom and that makes sense too, considering Jesus’ command to go into the world and preach the Gospel to every creature. (Mark 16:15)
And if we do this, then…
all these things taken together will be given you besides.
“All these things” would be the things He talked about in verses 25 through 31, the things the Gentiles seek and the things that He commands us not to worry about. He is, after all, our heavenly Father who knows we need them. If we just do things His way, those other ‘things’ are automatically ours.
Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C