Riches without the Reign
“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” Matthew 6:33
Can you picture it? We’re invited to move into a royal palace, to move into a glorious castle, to partake of endless riches, abundant living, sumptuous meals, servants galore, luxury to no end, views from the massive bay windows unimaginable, wealth beyond imagination, to live in a kingdom in which there is a never-ending supply of blessings unfathomable. We don’t hesitate to pack our bags and move in. There’s only one problem once we arrive. It never crossed our minds a kingdom has a king, and those who live in kingdoms are meant to live under the reign of the king. We forgot that part, didn’t we? We wanted the riches without the reign. This isn’t just some random scenario. This is what lots of us are doing with our lives when it comes to professing Christ as Lord and receiving the promise of everlasting life in God’s forever Kingdom. Some of us want God’s riches without yielding our hearts and lives to His reign both now here on earth and for forever. We want the riches without His reign. We want to live OUR lives OUR way for OUR glory – while seeking God for His goods rather than for His reign and His glory.
In Matthew 6:33, the Greek Word translated into kingdom also means reign per the concordance. God wants us to seek Him and His reign in our lives above all else, and to love, worship, serve, and follow Him forever. He wants to reign in our hearts and lives. Yet how many of us are seeking His riches and refusing His reign in our lives? And how many of us are seeking worldly riches from the Lord instead of receiving and rejoicing in the heavenly treasures He offers believers in Christ this very day and eternally? Worldly treasures are temporal; His riches are eternal. His love, mercy, forgiveness, peace, compassion, comfort, grace, hope, joy, the promise of eternity with Him, above all else a breathtakingly beautiful relationship with Him now and forever, and countless other spiritual riches, are available to those of us who repent of our sins, place our faith in Christ and devote our lives daily to God and His magnificent ways.
Have you yielded your life to the reign of the Lord? Are you partaking of His endless heavenly riches?