THE NEEDFUL THING

Dearly Beloved, THE NEEDFUL THING “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:33 NKJV). Abraham Maslow gave the basic needs of life as physiological needs, safety needs, social belonging, self-esteem, self-actualization, and wholeness. The human tendency is to worry about these basic earthly things. However, instead of worrying about earthly things, Jesus Christ gave what is needful that everyone should care about: the kingdom of heaven and its righteousness. Apostle Paul put it in another words: “If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth” (Colossians 3:1-2 NKJV). The kingdom of heaven is another form of the kingdom of God. Essentially, to seek the kingdom of heaven means to seek the salvation that is fundamental to it because it is of greater value than all the world’s possessions. This does not mean that one should neglect the reasonable and daily duties that help sustain one’s life. For the Christian, there should be a difference in attitude toward these basic needs of life. If a Christian is taking care of God’s business as a priority by seeking His salvation, living in obedience to Him, and sharing the good news of the kingdom with others, then God will take care of that person’s needs as He promised (see Philippians 4:19). There is then no need to worry if that is the arrangement. This is in contrast with the people of the world that centre their lives on things of this world. They do not know God, and they cannot please Him. Their priority is how to please themselves. So, they worry about what God should ordinarily provide for them. No wonder, Jesus Christ said that after seeking the kingdom of heaven and its righteousness that the things of the world that the Christian does not care about will be added unto him. It then means that what we worry about are additional things that God intends to give us after we have focused our attention on Him and chosen to please Him. This is the needful thing! Seek the kingdom of heaven today. You will have all other things as addition. In His service, Bayo Afolaranmi (Pastor). Prayer Point: Heavenly Father, help me to always submit to Your will and live by it by seeking Your kingdom above any other thing.