09/06/2022
YOUR DAILY E-VOTION
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THINGS TO PURSUE
Thursday 9th June 2022.
The life you, me or anyone for that matter would live or experience is going to be defined not by government policies, nor economic situations, neither by family traditions nor social standings; the life we all would experience and live would be an expression of our pursuits.
It begs repeating; the life we would all experience and are experiencing is defined by our pursuits and what we are seeking.
By this understanding the Lord Jesus stated:
Luke 10:15
And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.
The Lord is showing here that possessions don’t define real life, for real life is marked not just in what happens on the earth but by what eternity would record.
You see, living may begin on earth, but it continues into eternity. The amount of time you’d spend on earth is infinitesimal in comparison to that which would be spent in eternity.
So the Lord advises here that you should not spend time in the fashionable way the world does, rather He admonishes:
Luke 12:29 & 31
AND SEEK NOT YE WHAT YE SHALL EAT, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind. BUT RATHER SEEK YE THE KINGDOM OF GOD; and all these things shall be added unto you.
The Lord unequivocally tells us not to seek or pursue even the basic things that are essential to survival, because He does not want us pursuing things, no matter the kind of things.
So what does He want us to pursue? He states it clearly, He said instead of pursuing things pursue the kingdom of God.
Why is this the case? Is it because the Lord does not want us to survive or have nice things? Certainly not; if anything the Lord wants us to have better than the best of natural can offer.
The context of the passage shows to us that God does not want us to live motivated by our needs, because God our Father knows about them and has made provision for them in our lives.
Hear Jesus our Lord:
Matthew 6:31-32
…take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) FOR YOUR HEAVENLY FATHER KNOWETH THAT YE HAVE NEED OF ALL THESE THINGS.
If you know God knows, you would not be bothered, you would rather be in peace.
But when you live worried or and motivated on how to survive, you actually are telling God that you don’t believe He can or will take care of you – ONLY PEOPLE WHO DON’T KNOW GOD DO THIS.
There is a law in scriptures: if you know He knows, then you have your requests granted (1 John 5:15).
The Lord tells us to be driven not by a desire to meet our needs but by a desire to have His kingdom.
The kingdom is His dominion – we should be driven by a desire to have His dominion, His life, His word established and increased wherever we are at.
This does not mean that we should become demagogues or obnoxious people, but that our light should shine extremely. While the people of this world can live with such a low motivation for life, the Lord wants us to live with a higher mission - the mission of the resurrected life.
The Lord puts it this way:
Colossians 3:1 (Message translation)
So if you're serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. PURSUE THE THINGS OVER WHICH CHRIST PRESIDES.
The Lord is saying here, if you truly are serious of living this resurrected life in Christ, if you truly want your life to be an expression of what the Lord has done in you, then what you pursue is vital; He says act like it. How are you to act like it?
He said, pursue the things over which Christ presides, or like the traditional translation puts it, SEEK those things which are above.
Unfortunately many are not serious about living the resurrected life, that is why they pursue the same things the people of this world pursue.
The distinction between a believer and a non-believer is their pursuit; what they are pursuing not how they are pursuing it. Those who are serious about the life of God, pursue the things over which Christ presides. These things are things that He has made provision for; these are kingdom issues.
We must understand that since the Lord has made provision for something, it is imperative on us to insist on them; it is imperative for us to seek to live by them and insist on nothing less than those provisions for our lives.
We are not to insist on them to God, for He is on our side and He made the provision; we are to therefore insist in life by acting incessantly motivated the word.
The scripture shows this to us clearly, it says:
Hebrews 13:5-6
(Message translation)
Don't be obsessed with getting more material things. Be relaxed with what you have. Since God assured us, "I'll never let you down, never walk off and leave you," we can boldly say, God is there, ready to help; I'm fearless no matter what. Who or what can get to me?
The provision of God should elicit a bold and confident response in life – that is how to pursue the things over which Christ presides.
*QUESTIONS*
1. What did the Lord Jesus say we should not seek in Luke 12:29
2. What are we as believers to seek instead?
3. If the pursuit of my life as a believer is the same as that of an unbeliever, would you say I am saved?
4. What are the things over which Christ presides?
CONFESSIONS & PRAYER:
Father I thank you because you know what I need and therefore you have made provision for them. I am confident and thankful that I know that you know and because I know that you know, I my desires are accomplished. Amen!!!
(Brought to you by House of Grace Written by Rev. OMAR PELA)
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