Drippings from the Honeycomb
More to be desired are [the rules of the Lord] than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb. (Psalm 19:10)
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These famous words come in the Sermon on the Mount where Jesus is addressing worry (litt. To be divided between two opinions vs. a singular trust in the Lord). If we trust and seek Him and His Kingdom and righteousness, we’ll have no reason to worry and can trust the promise of the Lord to provide. When Jesus admonishes to ‘Seek Ye First’ He is commanding us in something foundational, which in my experience, is a lesson that perennially speaks volumes to the non-Christian and Christian alike. What does it mean to seek? It means to intently strive or search for something with the intent of finding it (picture someone seeking for the perfect house to buy). The world seeks advancement, prestige, material things, wisdom, religious favour, relationships, etc. Jesus calls us to seek something even greater. What does it mean to seek ye first? Something that is first occupies the first place, is a priority of importance (picture someone with OCD having to have a clean car). Philosophy, politics, empire, family life and certain virtues are all things that people put first, and so seek. People don’t only seek (and so worry) about food and clothing but all kinds of bigger things in life too. But what should we seek first? Jesus identified two things: His Kingdom and His Righteousness. This applies differently to unbelievers (crowd- Mt 5:1) and believers (disciples- Mt 5:1). Unbelievers Unbelievers are naturally separated from God, His enemies and outside of His Kingdom because of their unrighteousness. They need righteousness and entry into the Kingdom more than anything else. By renouncing the world and repenting of their sin and turning to and trusting in Christ, the unbeliever is counted just or righteous by faith. They are declared legally right with God and given the gift of the Spirit to actually impart righteousness in their daily living. Upon being born anew they are adopted into God’s family, or brought into God’s Kingdom. What a glorious salvation to be transferred from the kingdom of darkness and brought into the Kingdom of His glorious light! If we seek and obtain these two things, food and clothing will pail in comparison and, by faith, be provided. It is a wonderful irony. Believers However, believers ought to seek first God’s Kingdom and righteousness but in a different sense. We ought to pursue personal righteousness by taking hold of the means of grace (prayer, ordinances, Lord’s Day, Scripture, fellowship and service, etc) and reliance upon the Spirit. This is how we grow in righteousness and become more like Christ. We ought also to seek His Kingdom, not entrance into it but its expansion. We do this through the means of course but more overtly through fulfilling the Great Commission, being members and serving in the local church’s ministries, personal evangelism, supporting foreign missionaries, etc. If we seek these two things as believer’s the Lord we can be assured that the Lord will take care of our other concerns. We don’t simply seek salvation from the penalty of sin and then stop seeking after our conversion. We go on seeking! Seek ye first can be helpfully demonstrated in this illustration:
May this be a lesson to us, seek ye first the Kingdom of God!  A recent Church of England Synod, UK (the flagship of the worldwide Anglican communion), debated whether to bless same sex unions. Advocates said this was not a change to church doctrine, which upholds marriage as between a man and a woman. Many evangelical/conservative/traditional Anglicans raised an alarm, including a lay leader by the name of Benjamin John (who also works for the UK Christian legal ministry Christian Concern). His short speech is a brilliant example of Peter and John boldness we’ve been reading about in Acts: Subsequently the Synod tragically, though not astonishingly, voted in favour of blessing same-sex unions. There has been Anglican drift for decades. They have exchanged orthodoxy for cultural compromise. Numerous Anglican bloggers and Youtubers have expressed their grave concern. Many individuals and congregations will leave, some joining groups like the Free Anglican Church (The Anglican Network was similarly formed in Canada out of the Anglican Church in Canada). The worldwide Anglican communion, which has given Christianity so much good, is fracturing along biblical lines. Those who naively and foolishly remain will, almost inevitably, drift toward further compromise. As one Anglican commentator put it, you can’t say you’re a vegan and eat sausages. You cannot say church teaching is that marriage is heterosexual and bless same-sex unions. The Lord is patient with the bride He is sanctifying but when it so openly apostatizes (departs from the faith), well, He denies those who deny Him (2 Ti 2:12b). Church history is full of such examples.
Ichabod- Hebrew for the glory of the Lord has departed (1 Sam 4:22). May the faithful take heed and remain true to the Lord in faith and practice.
Our world is obsessed with itself (yet “God opposes the proud,” Ja 4:6). Think of how vain we can be when we shamelessly draw attention to ourselves[1]:
Think of how Jesus commanded his followers to pray in secret (Mt 6:5–6), fast without flaunting it (Mt 6:16–18), give in secret (Lk 21:1) and take the less prestigious seats at gatherings (Lk 14:10). Listen to how Jesus described vanity in His own words on the subject of giving to the needy and how seriously he condemns it (Mt 6:1–4): 6 “Beware of practising your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. 2 “Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. There is no place for vanity amongst Christ’s followers. We do not make a spectacle of self but live to give all glory to Christ. Let us not live empty lives but full lives that centre upon Him. [1] It is not wrong to speak of oneself discretely, but what is our motive? That is always the most important question. We can appropriately share in natural conversation with others about our lives when we’re mutually interested in others and when what we share is in the pursuit of sharing wholesome truths (e.g. come see the birds at my feeder, I think you’ll really be interested vs. I’ve got a new feeder, come see how nice it is). Why do people pursue vanity? For some it is sheer pride, the desire to be God. For others it comes for competition's sake. Still others do it to meet some unmet need in their life (relational affirmation). On the latter, they ought to find affirmation through knowing the love of Christ through faith in Him, which of course is what all three ultimately need. In my short life I’ve moved five times prior to being married and eight times since being married. This has meant living in four distinct areas of the province of Ontario and also a five year period overseas.
Two locations, more than the others, helped me to know what it meant to be an exile, and also the Christian’s call not to be of or love the world. Living in England, as similar as it is to historic Canada, and as much as I fit within its culture, there was also, as a resident, the reminder that I was an exile. Every time I spoke was enough to indicate that I wasn’t from there (though the more time I spent there the more my accent did change, then people thought I was Irish or Botswanan!) and the privileges of a citizen that were not available to a resident meant that no matter how much I felt a part of the culture I didn’t belong. Second, having spent time overseas and then moving back to my native province, yet after considerable and rapid liberalization, the very province I returned to didn’t feel like the province I had known. Through these experience I’ve learned a lot about living as an exile and how worldliness is sin. 1 Peter is addressed to the “elect exiles” (v. 1). Election is a reminder to these believers of their assurance in Christ; exile that this world is not their home, their citizenship is in heaven (Phil 3). Christians are aliens, living in this world but not of it, instead ambassadors of Christ’s heavenly kingdom, to be captivated by our allegiance to its King and His values. The tension we feel between our heavenly values and the world’s values serve as an ever present reminder of our other-worldliness. All of Scripture resounds with the call for the Christian to fix their eyes on Jesus (Heb 12:2; Mt 5:6, 6:33; Col 3:1–4). We are to cling lightly to this world and highly esteem instead eternal things. If we love the world we will be sorely disappointed. If we love the world too much we may indeed show we’re not of Christ but it: 15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions—is not from the Father but is from the world. 17 And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides for ever. (1 Jn 2:15–17). So, may we remember that we are exiles and aliens and love our Kingdom and King vs the age in which we presently live. |
