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A window Into God’s Way
By William R. Cunningham
But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. (Matthew 6:33-34)
- Seek first the Kingdom of God
- Do not worry about tomorrow
One of the most important things that we can do as Christians is to seek the kingdom of God and to make that the number one priority in our lives.
- What is the Kingdom of God?
- The Kingdom of God is the realm over which God rules
- The Kingdom of God is the realm that operates according to God’s way
- Jesus Christ revealed to us the Kingdom of God throughout his ministry. For example, Matthew chapters five through seven, the Sermon on the Mount, reveal the characteristics of those who are members of the kingdom of God.
- The entire Bible reveals God’s kingdom in that it contains the revelation of God to us concerning our interaction with him and each other, how we should conduct ourselves, worship, etc.
Many tend to think of the Bible as a manual filled with rules that we can follow to guide our lives. However, I believe that the Bible should not be thought of as a mere list of rules to follow, but rather as a window into the way that God wants us to live. The Old Testament, for example, is not something that we can discard because we don’t live in those times or because we are under the new covenant. The Old Testament still reveals the way of God as we look at it as a window instead of rules to live by.
All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’” (Matthew 4:4)
So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord. (Deuteronomy 8:3)
Seek to receive the revelation of God instead of rules from the Bible
Seeking the Kingdom of God is not an exercise in mere knowledge, but requires relationship.
Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. (John 3:3-5)
Being part of God’s Kingdom is not a matter of just viewing the Bible as a window as I said earlier. You have to really be a part of His Kingdom and that means that you have to be reconciled to God—you have to be born again.
After you are born again then you can look into the “window” to see what you should look like. Now we can mold our lives to the revelation of God’s kingdom
God can also reveal himself to you personally with regards to the direction of your life. You won’t find a scripture, but you will find direction as you become closer to God in relationship.
The righteousness of God
For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.” (Romans 1:17)
But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference; (Romans 3:21-22)
for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. (Romans 14:17)
Righteousness means to be in right standing. In order for us to be in right standing with God, we must be in right relations with him.
We grow in righteousness like a child grows to maturity. The righteousness of god is revealed to us through Jesus Christ and therefore through our Bible. We grow into the righteousness of God through Christ.
Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. (1 John 3:2)
These things will be added to you
What if we did not consider the Bible to be divided into two sections, one being the old covenant and the other being the new? What if we just looked at the Bible as one big message and revelation from God?
What if the provisions of God are not magical? What if there is a whole lot that we can do with regards to the direction of our lives—like those spoken about in the Bible?
It then becomes evident that the Bible isn’t a scholarly book to master, but rather a window into the Way of God for us to use to mold our own lives.
We are free will beings and as such are not forced to obey God or even to love God. The dedication that we give to God is our choice, even though God gives us good reason to trust him and obey him.
What if what we have today is due to what we did yesterday? What if our success today is related to the degree of following God yesterday?
Jesus said to seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness first (as a priority). If we do that then we will have the things that we need today. It’s not through magic. God has revealed to us how to get the things that we need. God has revealed to us how to succeed and fulfill our destiny (purpose). God has revealed his kingdom to us, but we have to be the ones to pursue it so that we would hit the mark, so to speak.
What if we looked at the Bible differently? Instead of looking at it as if it is a book of rules and principles; let’s look at it as a book of insight and guidance. The Bible is the window to the way of God. The Bible is the revelation of God to us. Let’s take it in as we mature in our faith and able to understand more and more—from faith to faith.
No Need to Worry
If we follow Christ then we don’t need to worry about what tomorrow holds.
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; (Philippians 4:6)
The only way that we can not be anxious is if something more dominant overrides our anxiety. We worry because we don’t know what the future holds and we see the worse. We fear the unknown so we become anxious. However, if we were truly followers of Christ and trusted that God takes care of us then there would be no need to worry.
Many things happen because we do not abide by the Kingdom.
Many things befall us because we operate outside of what God told us or revealed to us. If we would only obey God then we would be better off. However, we attempt to do our own thing and find ourselves in trouble.
It is important to note that Paul didn’t say to not be anxious because God will make it all better. Sometimes it doesn’t get better (at least what we would call better). Sometimes things go south, so to speak. God would protect our hearts and mind through Christ Jesus. God will be with us in times of trouble and times of joy.
Why can’t God just make it all better by clicking his finger so to speak? He just doesn’t do it that way. The Bible plainly shows us that. The best we can do is to obey God and have the confidence that he is with us at all times. See Ecclesiastes 12:13.
We do have a guide. It’s not magical or sensational. God has provided us with a window into his world, so to speak. He has revealed to us his way and it is up to us to use that revelation to guide our lives and mature in our faith.