Good morning, church! How many of you are blessed this morning coming here, even though it is just a few of us? The time of worship and the presence of God here is truly wonderful. It is always wonderful when we can pray wherever we are—as individuals, in small groups, as couples, or as families coming together. But when the people of God come together on a Sunday morning, it is a special celebration! We gather to edify and encourage one another in the Lord. We gather to sing a little louder with instruments and to praise our God.
One of the essential things we must do regularly is to look at God for who He is through His Word and by the revelation of His Spirit so that we may truly know Him.
Let us pray: Father in Heaven, we pray that You will reveal Yourself to us. Unless You reveal Yourself, the words of man cannot describe You. We pray that through the Spirit of God, Jesus Christ would be shown to us so that we may see the glory, beauty, and wonder of the Lord, and have a longing in our heart to follow hard after You. In Jesus' name, Amen.
The Motive of Seeking: "Stuff" vs. Seeking the Kingdom
Our message today centers on Matthew 6:33, a verse most of us know by heart:
"But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." (NASB 1995)
Jesus spoke this right after telling us not to worry about what we will eat, what we will drink, or what clothes we will wear. The Gentiles seek after all these worldly things, but we are called not to worry and instead to prioritize God.
Often, the depth of a person's walk with God determines which part of this verse they focus on. If someone turns to God primarily to receive material things, they fixate on the end: "all these things shall be added unto you". They cry out to God purely as a provider. We sang about Jehovah Jireh, and He is our provider, but seeking God merely to get "stuff" is the wrong motive.
As we mature, we move from seeking stuff to seeking His kingdom. Seeking His kingdom means asking for His direct rule over your life—confessing that everything you own belongs to Him and asking Him to truly be Lord and God over your entire existence.
Consider the common example of driving a car. Often, we want to hold the steering wheel because we want to choose our own direction, but we pray, "Lord, hit the accelerator pedal down faster because I want more speed and results!" But the Lord responds, "If I am not holding the steering wheel, then I am not Lord of your life". God wants to hold the steering wheel of our lives.
Defining God’s Righteousness
Beyond seeking His kingdom, Jesus commands us to seek His righteousness. Since there are just a few of us here today, it feels like a small group meeting, so feel free to shout out—what is God's righteousness? Some might say God's goodness, and that is true. If we don't have a clear idea of what His righteousness is, we cannot seek it effectively.
At its root, the word begins with "right". Righteousness is the divine quality by which God is perfectly right in everything He does—He is good, moral, and perfectly just.
Theologically, there is imputed righteousness. This is the standing given to us when we become Christians; God credits us as righteous through our faith in Him, just as Abraham believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness. As we recognized earlier, the new is in the old concealed, and the old is in the new revealed. God has not changed. Like Stebby shared in song about Jehovah Nissi, Jesus was lifted up on the cross like a banner—what human terms saw as defeat was the greatest victory won forever.
When Jesus told us to seek both His kingdom and His righteousness, He distinguished two related concepts. We ask for His rule in our lives so that His righteousness will spring forth and emanate through the body of Christ. While imputed righteousness gives us right standing, seeking His righteousness daily means allowing His perfect nature to be lived out under His rule.
(By the way, I notice the clock behind me says 9:45—it's been stuck at 9:45 for a week, so it sounds like I have plenty of time today!)
Human Righteousness vs. God's Internal Standard
When we lack a direct revelation of God's righteousness, we default to human standards. Where do human concepts of right and wrong come from?
Upbringing and Environment: Children learn right and wrong from parents and household practices. A child raised in a lawless environment develops a distorted sense of morality. Modern worldly teaching even claims there are no moral absolutes or objective truths, reducing morality to "your truth versus my truth".
Societal Rules: Environment shapes external behavior. For example, spitting on the street is strictly forbidden in Western countries, Dubai, or Singapore, but common in parts of India. Society establishes laws to maintain order.
Conscience and Natural Law: God has placed an inner conscience inside every human being. Through general revelation, people instinctively recognize that God exists, that murder and adultery are wrong, and that preserving life and practicing faithfulness are good.
Human Role Models: People adopt moral standards by looking up to sports figures (like during the World Cup), public personalities, preachers, or leaders.
All of these piece together "man's righteousness". But scripture warns that human righteousness is like "filthy rags" before God. Why? Because human standards merely attempt to manage external behavior without addressing the fallen nature of mankind.
If you put a person alone on an island with no fear of getting caught and no consequences, their true nature emerges. Most human righteousness is driven by two motives: fear of punishment or promise of reward. People often align with God like a business deal—fearing losses or seeking blessings. This is merely controlling external actions.
In the New Covenant, God promised something entirely different:
"I will write My law in their hearts..." (cf. Jeremiah 31:33)
He transforms us from the inside so that we are not driven by fear or lured by rewards. Jesus brought this internal standard to light in the Sermon on the Mount. He explained that suppressing the urge to murder is not enough; if you harbour anger or call your brother a fool or an idiot, you have committed murder in your heart. External behavior can be modified by pressure, but our motives and attitudes remain evil unless our hearts are renewed by God.
Three Warnings: Misunderstanding God's Righteousness
If we fail to understand and seek God’s righteousness, three serious issues occur:
1. Falling into a Religion of Works
Every worldly religion works on a balance scale—trying to perform enough good works to outweigh bad deeds at judgment. Christianity is completely different: we are accepted solely because God transforms us through Christ's finished work.
Apostle Paul highlights this danger when speaking about Israel in Romans 10:1–4:
"Brethren, my heart’s desire and my prayer to God for them is for their salvation. For I testify about them that they have a zeal for God, but not in accordance with knowledge. For not knowing about God’s righteousness and seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes." (NASB 1995)
When we try to please God by counting our prayer hours or church attendance to earn standing, we are attempting to establish our own righteousness. We should not pray out of fear that God will cause an accident or sickness if we don't; we pray because we love Him and desire His presence above all else!
2. Targeting the Wrong Standard
We often lower our standard by striving to emulate human leaders. Do not aim to become like me, or a famous pastor, or a 1500s Puritan teacher, or a 1900s missionary, or even David, Joseph, or Paul. We only follow human leaders as they follow Christ.
There is only one true Light and standard of righteousness given to us: Jesus of Nazareth. Any other target falls short. As Jesus said in Matthew 5:6:
"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied." (NASB 1995)
As Paul reminds us in Romans 3:20, 22–23:
"Because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight... even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." (NASB 1995)
3. Judging Others Unmercifully
When we lack a revelation of God's supreme righteousness, we become self-righteous and judge others without mercy.
Consider this: God’s righteousness is like 100,000 kilograms. If you are standing at 35 grams, what right do you have to judge someone at 16 grams? Yet we invent excuses for our own mistakes (calling them "real reasons") while severely condemning others for theirs. A true revelation of God's righteousness breaks our self-justification and fills us with humility and mercy.
How to Receive and Grow in God's Righteousness
How do we walk in this divine righteousness? Remember these three principles:
It is Revealed in Jesus: Jesus demonstrated God's righteousness through His life, words, actions, and sacrificial sacrifice.
It is Reminded by the Holy Spirit: In John 16:8, 10, Jesus explains the Spirit’s work:
"And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment... concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me;" (NASB 1995) The Holy Spirit dwells within us to continuously bring to mind everything Jesus taught and guide us in His righteousness.
It is Received by Faith: Apostle Paul writes in Romans 1:16–17:
"For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, 'BUT THE RIGHTEOUS MAN SHALL LIVE BY FAITH.'" (NASB 1995)
We do not generate righteousness through religious performance, good works, or ministry. God alone is Jehovah Tzidkenu—the Lord our Righteousness. It is received from faith to faith when we trust in the finished work of Jesus Christ.
Closing Prayer
Let us bow our heads together in prayer:
Father in Heaven, we pray that You will show forth Your righteousness in our lives today. The gospel of Jesus Christ is the power of God unto salvation for everyone who believes. Open our hearts to a fresh revelation of the righteousness revealed in Jesus Christ, and show us our deep need for Him.
Lord God, deliver us from legalism, self-righteousness, and human standards. Stir our hearts to hunger and thirst not after the righteousness of a preacher, a holy person, or a good person, but after the righteousness of Jesus Christ—who has become for us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. Fill our lives with Your grace and truth today. In Jesus' precious name we pray, Amen.