Your Father has chosen gladly to give you the kingdom.

Luke 12:8-34 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

“And I say to you, everyone who confesses Me before men, the Son of Man will confess him also before the angels of God; ⁹ but he who denies Me before men will be denied before the angels of God. ¹⁰ And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him. ¹¹ When they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not worry about how or what you are to speak in your defense, or what you are to say; ¹² for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”

¹³ Someone in the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.” ¹⁴ But He said to him, “Man, who appointed Me a judge or arbitrator over you?” ¹⁵ Then He said to them, “Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions.” ¹⁶ And He told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man was very productive. ¹⁷ And he began reasoning to himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place to store my crops?’ ¹⁸ Then he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. ¹⁹ And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry.”’ ²⁰ But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?’ ²¹ So is the man who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”

²² And He said to His disciples, “For this reason I say to you, do not worry about your life, as to what you will eat; nor for your body, as to what you will put on.²³ For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. ²⁴ Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap; they have no storeroom nor barn, and yet God feeds them; how much more valuable you are than the birds! ²⁵ And which of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life’s span? ²⁶ If then you cannot do even a very little thing, why do you worry about other matters? ²⁷ Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; but I tell you, not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. ²⁸ But if God so clothes the grass in the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, how much more will He clothe you? You men of little faith! ²⁹ And do not seek what you will eat and what you will drink, and do not keep worrying. ³⁰ For all these things the nations of the world eagerly seek; but your Father knows that you need these things. ³¹ But seek His kingdom, and these things will be added to you. ³² Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has chosen gladly to give you the kingdom.

³³ “Sell your possessions and give to charity; make yourselves money belts which do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near nor moth destroys. ³⁴ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

In today’s text Jesus says:  “Do not worry about your life, as to what you will eat; nor for your body, as to what you will put on… which of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life’s span?... do not keep worrying… Do not be afraid, little flock.”     Judging by the condition of our society, we might say that we do not heed Jesus exhortation very well.  Fear and anxiety effect people at epidemic levels. The numbers of people, from children up to seniors and across every ethnic group and demographic, who take some form of medication or do some form of self medication are high and growing. The medical and pharmaceutical industries do not have the answer. If it were not so frightening, it would be funny to hear the side effects of the medications they prescribe and provide. What they pose as a solution can cause every problem you already have and more.  Jesus not only exhorts us not to worry or be afraid, He has the prescription with the cure. He says:    “Your Father knows that you need these things...  But seek His kingdom…   for your Father has chosen gladly to give you the kingdom.”

In the same way, we can not find the answer to our satisfaction through material gain in and of the world. It too, like the medications for anxiety, has it own side effects. Jesus says: “Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions.”   It seems that having abundance does not equate to having enough in the world. Like the rich man in the parable, people tend to just keep building bigger barns. We have houses with attics and basements; garages and sheds and we still see storage facillities across our land. The same is true of our finanaces, because we are unsure of the future, we seemingly can never have enough to be secure and satisfied. How much is enough to live on, one million, two, ten, fifty? What if…?  Jesus says: “make yourselves money belts which do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near nor moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”    In Psalm 37:3-6 the psalmist says:  Trust in the Lord and do good; Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness. Delight yourself in the Lord; And He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, and He will do it. He will bring forth your righteousness as the light And your judgment as the noonday.

Jesus says:  “I say to you, everyone who confesses Me before men, the Son of Man will confess him also before the angels of God; but he who denies Me before men will be denied before the angels of God. And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him. When they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not worry about how or what you are to speak in your defense, or what you are to say; for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”   We cannot seek or have the peace and the satisfaction of the provision of the kingdom which the Father has gladly chosen to give us, if we do not confess Jesus as Lord. In John 14:6, Jesus says:  “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”  We cannot be forgiven if we do not acknowledge the Holy Spirit. In John 16:8 Jesus says: “He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment.”   We cannot attain or possess all the promises and provision of the kingdom, which the Father has gladly chosen to give us, if we do not allow the Holy Spirit to convict us concerning sin and righteousness. In today’s text Jesus says: “seek His kingdom” In the parallel text from Matthew 6:33 Jesus says:  “Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” There is no one or nothing in this world that can offer everything we need. Satisfaction can only be found in the kingdom and the kingdom can only be found in Christ and righteousness.

Thank You Heavenly Father, Lord Jesus Christ and precious Holy Spirit; thank You for the kingdom which You have gladly chosen to give us. May I never seek the answers from the world but rather may I seek Your kingdom; Your righteousness; may I delight in You, that I would have the desires of my heart. Amen.