But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Matthew 6:33, TLV

“All these things …” What was Jesus speaking of when He instructed the crowds — and us — to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness?

“So I say to you, do not worry about your life—what you will eat or drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothing?” (vs. 25, TLV)

Yeshua was asking us to trust that if we redirect our focus to serving the Father and seek after righteousness, then our life concerns would be nothing to worry about.

Most likely, these were just beautiful words to His followers. For many of us, it is the same. Somehow today’s verse has turned into, “If I give God what I think He wants, then He’ll give me what I want.” That’s not what Jesus was saying.

He was concerned for the masses — and us — that the worries of life would eclipse our pursuits of righteousness. And His reminder that His Father would provide. Their neediness — our neediness — will always be there, because we live in a fallen world. It’s a black hole that seeks to suck the joy and faith out of our life.

Rather than trying to fill that hole, why not seek after the things of righteousness — seek after our Father’s Kingdom. That’s not a hopeless pursuit, it is lifegiving.

Shabbat shalom!