KINGDOM PRIORITIES

Kingdom Priorities (Matthew 6:19-34)

We all have priorities,
but how do they align with God’s priorities for us.
Are we driven by what we want, or by what He wants?

Question:
What are some factors that influence how we prioritize things?
     – Reacting to immediate needs.
     – Depends on our goals.
     – How much we can get done in the length of time we have.

Question:
How do you think Jesus set His priorities?
     – Responded to the needs of others.
     – Whatever honors the Father.

MATTHEW 6:

VERSES 19-21:
Jesus was not:
     – Saying we should not own property.
        Note:
             In order to give to others (Ephesians 4:28),
             we need ownership.

     – Warning against making plans for the future.
        Note:
             The Bible commends
              the ant for planning ahead. (Proverbs 6:6-8)

     – Saying we should not enjoy
        the good things God gave us to enjoy.
        Note:
             Enjoying and sharing God’s gifts
             are acts of faith and stewardship.

He was warning about being selfishly motivated
and overlooking the heavenly rewards available.

Question:
How would you describe treasures on Earth?
     – Money?
     – Fame?
     – Power?
     – Material possessions?

Question:
How would you describe heavenly treasures?
     – Rewards for having the right attitudes while on Earth?
             – Care and concern for others.
             – Money will be left behind,
                but we can develop a kind and generous nature.
             – Time can be invested in helping others.

“moth”
     – The forces of nature.

“rust”
     – Reduction in value through the passing of time
        (Example: Value of the dollar).

“thieves”
     – We could lose our possessions at any moment.

Jesus says our treasure and our heart are linked together.
     Note:
          The reverse of this statement is true,
          “Our heart determines where we place our priorities”.

Summary:
     – Our priorities should be God-centered, and not self-centered.
     – Earthly treasures will not last.
     – Our treasures show the priorities of our hearts.

VERSES 22-24:
Jesus says we should be totally devoted to God.
He was talking about masters, not employers
(many people have two jobs and two bosses).

Question:
What is the problem with more than one master?
     – Which one would give us direction?
     – Obedience to one, means disobedience to the other.

“mammon”
     – Material things (some translations use the word “money”).
             – Some people make a god of money and what it will buy.
             – They don’t see a contradiction between
                their materialistic lifestyle and their faith in God.
             – They think that faith is flexible enough
                that they can do as they please.
             – Worshiping and serving two gods
                is a rejection of God Himself.
             – He will share first place with no other god.

2 Kings 17:33
     – Describes the early Samaritans; fits many people today.
             – Some people want enough religion to be accepted
                in the church, but the Lord is not their first priority.

This verse forces a decision.

We are free to choose our masters (or gods),
but we are not free not to choose.
     – Remaining neutral is the same as choosing mammon.

1 Kings 18:21
     – Look at the challenge Elijah gave to the people
        on Mount Carmel; this is similar to the theme of this verse.

Summary:
     – Those who live in the light, see things from God’s perspective.
     – We cannot worship the Lord God and any other god.
     – When we choose not to choose, we are making a choice.

VERSES 25-26:
“therefore”
     – Shows the close relationship
        between verses 19-24 and verses 25-34.

Jesus challenged us,
     Verses 19-21: To lay up treasures in heaven, not on Earth.
     Verses 22-23: To see life in relationship to the Lord.
     Verse 24: To choose to serve God, not mammon.

He continues His theme
of kingdom priorities versus worldly priorities.

“take no thought”
     – Anxious thought (anxiety);
        the kind of anxiety that paralyzes a person
        with fears about an unknown future.

Up to now, Jesus discussed:
     (Verses 19-21)
          – Our treasures are a reflection our heart
             (the two are closely aligned).

     (Verses 22-23)
          – How we perceive things.
          – We can see things as good or bad.
             Example: Promotion
                  Bad – Will be able to boss and control people.
                  Good – Opportunity to Support and encourage
                               people; we can express and live our faith.

     (Verse 24)
          – Cannot serve two masters.
          – Obeying one is disobedience to the other.
          – Whose orders would we obey?
          – God will not share 1st place with another god.
          – Remaining neutral is the same as NOT choosing God,

Now he discusses worry (verses 25-34)
     Verse 25:
          He moves from the greater to the lesser.
               – Life is greater than the food we eat.
               – The body is more important than the clothes we wear.

     Verse 26:
          He moves from the lesser to the greater.
          Question:
          How would you summarize verse 26?
               – If God cares for the birds,
                  why don’t we trust Him to provide food for us?
                  Note:
                       – Birds are not idle creatures waiting for God to feed them.
                       – They constantly look for food.
                       – God feeds them by providing a world with food
                          and giving them the ability to find it.
                       – Jesus wasn’t saying we should fold our hands
                         and wait for Him to feed us.
                               – Idleness is condemned.
                                 (Proverbs 19:15, 2 Thessalonians 3:11-12)
                       – The birds are not examples of idleness,
                          but of the absence of anxiety.

VERSES 27-32:
Verse 27:
     Jesus says that worry is useless;
     we have nothing to gain through worrying.

Verses 28-30:
     “lilies”
          – Again He points to living things without anxiety.

Question:
How would you paraphrase these 3 verses?
     – If God clothes the flowers,
        we should trust Him to clothe us.

Verse 30:
      “you of little faith”
             – Worry reveals a lack of faith.

Verses 31-32:
     “things”..”the Gentiles seek”
          – Worldly anxiety is a pagan practice.
          – When we become anxious, we act like pagans.
          – We forget about trusting in God
             to provide for our needs.
     Note:
          We are constantly bombarded to adopt the world’s values.

Verse 32:
     Reminds us to put our faith and trust in God.

VERSES 33-34:
Verse 33:
     Sums up what should be the ambition of believers.

“first”
     – Shows the importance of having this type of ambition.

“all these things”
     – Points back to the last part of verse 32.
       God knows our needs and when we put His
       kingdom first, we can trust Him to meet those needs.

Verse 34:
     Worry is directed toward the future.

Many of the things we worry about never happen.
Question:
So what impact does worry have on us?
     – It preoccupies our mind.
     – It drains our time and energy.
     – It reduces the time we can spend
        thinking about good things.

     Note:
          We aren’t promised freedom from trouble.

     This verse reminds us that sometimes
     we worry about things and they do happen.
          Question:
                In this case, how did worry help us?
                     – It didn’t.

     Jesus says we should focus on letting God help
     us with today’s problems and trust that He will
     be with us tomorrow.

     Since none of us know what will happen tomorrow,
     we should not spend our time and energy worrying
     about the possibilities.

     Question:
           Can you think of any examples of worrying about
           something bad happening the next day, and finding
           out that something good actually happened?
               Note:
                    This is the epitome of wasting time worrying.

Summary:
     – Believers should not have selfish anxiety about material things.
     – Worldly anxiety is useless.
     – Trusting God to supply our needs
        does not mean we become idle.
     – Trust in God is the opposite
        of the anxieties non-believers experience.
     – Believers should seek God’s kingdom first
        and know that He will supply our needs.
     – We should let God help us with today’s problems,
        and trust Him to help us with future problems.
     – Ambition is not a bad thing, unless we focus on our selfish desires.

Prayer:
     “Lord, help me to make Your priorities, my priorities.”