All These Things

Matthew 6:33 reads, "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. " (NASB)  Most of us are familiar with this passage.  In context, the "things" Jesus is referring to are the daily needs that for many of us can be a source of anxiety.  Things like food, drink, clothing, shelter, etc.  Jesus is explaining to the crowd that has gathered to hear Him preach that such anxieties are ultimately symptoms of a lack of faith in God The Father, Who loves us more than anything else in all of Creation.  Like any loving father, our Heavenly Father wants to meet our needs, and we can trust Him to do so.

Beyond just a lack of faith, anxiety can come from a lack of understanding who God is.  If we don't know Him as "father" or "provider," or we do not understand that His very nature is love, then how can we trust Him in those ways?

Of course the Jews who were listening to Jesus preach understood what the Scriptures said about God, or at least they thought they did.  They knew the stories of God's love and provision for their ancestors.  But there were none alive who had experienced those events firsthand, and it had been 400 years since the last Prophet of God had walked among them.  Their land was occupied by a harsh, corrupt and godless enemy.  It must have been tough to have faith.  But there was evidence of God's character all around, and this is what Jesus exhorted them to see anew with fresh eyes: the birds of the air.  The lilies of the field.

A few days ago a good friend shared the following quote from Paul Washer on Facebook:

"A church ought to be seeker friendly, but the church ought to recognize there is only one Seeker. His name is God! - and if you want to be friendly to someone, if you want to accommodate someone, accommodate Him and His glory, even if it is rejected by everyone else."

After reading this, it occurred to me that the simple concept of seeking God first -- and His righteousness and His Kingdom -- while trusting Him to provide for all of the secondary needs can apply to more than just our anxieties about our daily physical needs.  It can be applied directly to our services of worship.

As church leaders, myself included, we are often so focused on and concerned about things that should be secondary, that we forget to put first things first.  So many congregations around the world, and especially in the U.S., strive to be "seeker friendly."  There are dozens if not scores of books and articles written on "seeker sensitivity" and how to build a "seeker service."  Essentially the "seeker service" makes the worship service an evangelism activity, a mission field within the walls of the church building.  The flip side of that coin is the "feed the flock" approach.  The idea here is that worship services are for church members, or at least for those who already have a relationship with God, and that evangelism -- reaching "seekers" -- should happen outside of that context.  We should always be polite and welcoming, the "feed the flock" proponent would say, but the focus is on those who already believe, teaching them and encouraging them; empowering them for the week ahead.

I respectfully submit to you that both of these approaches miss the mark.  We call our services "worship" services. Who is our worship for?  It's not for me.  It's not for you.  It's not even for someone "seeking" for God, truth, or some sort of greater meaning in life.  Our worship is for God.  Our services of worship should be for God.  Our focus should be on Him.  He alone deserves our praise, and worship.  All honor and glory are His.

Does this mean the flock goes unfed?  Of course not!  As we worship God in Spirit and in Truth (John 4:23-24), and we enter into His presence, how can we not be "fed?"  As we sing the very Words of Scripture, recite them together, hear them preached and expounded upon, how could we not be Spiritually nourished?  We're nourished out of the abundant overflow of our worship of our Living God!

When we focus on worshiping God, will the seeker fail to find what he's looking for?  Of course not!  He'll find exactly what his heart has been longing for all along: the palpable presence of a living God who inhabits the praises of His people (Psalm 22:3)!  He'll find love, acceptance, and fellowship in a body united in one purpose, the purpose for which we were all created: to worship the One True God.

If we focus on seekers, then God is not our primary our focus.  The flock goes unfed and God is robbed of at least a portion of the worship He is due.

If we focus on the flock, then God is not our primary focus.  The seeker feels like an alien: out of place, tolerated, but not quite welcome.  And God is robbed of at least a portion of the worship He is due.

But if we focus first on worshiping God (I would even suggest we focus only on worshiping God), God receives the full measure of worship that He is due (at least as much as we can give Him hindered by this flesh as we're spinning on this fallen globe).   And as we worship, the Spirit responds.  The flock is fed.  Seekers find what they are looking for.

When we seek Him first, all of the other "things" are added.