Kingdom Alignment Part 13

At Keys Vineyard Church, we are presenting a series called ‘Kingdom Alignment,’ which we post here on Online Bible Institute.

Last week in our Kingdom Alignment series, we talked about recognizing the Father’s faithfulness. We were reminded that our lives are held by a Father who has been faithful in the past, is faithful in the present, and will continue to be faithful in the future. This week, Jesus shows us what a life that trusts the Father begins to look like.

Matthew 6:31–33 (NIV)
31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

For the last couple of weeks, Jesus has been talking about worry. He has told us: Look at the birds. Consider the flowers. Remember your value. Trust the Father. And now He brings everything together with one clear invitation: Seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness.”

Jesus is not simply telling us to stop worrying. He is giving our hearts somewhere better to go. Because worry is rarely just about circumstances. Worry is often connected to pursuit. What am I chasing? What am I trying to secure? What do I believe I must have in order to be okay?

Jesus says the answer is not to pursue all those things more desperately. The answer is to seek something greater—the Kingdom of God.

In Matthew 6:32, Jesus says that the world “runs after all these things.” That phrase paints a powerful picture of restless pursuit—chasing, striving, grasping, and organizing our lives around getting enough. Enough money. Enough security. Enough approval. Enough comfort. Enough control.

Jesus is not criticizing us for having needs. In fact, He immediately says, “Your heavenly Father knows that you need them.” The problem is not having needs. The problem begins when meeting those needs becomes the organizing center of our lives. Think about a treadmill. You can run hard. You can increase the speed. You can sweat more and exhaust yourself. But after all that effort, you are still standing in essentially the same place.

That is what life can become when we organize it around anxious pursuit. We run after security. We run after success. We run after control. We tell ourselves, “If I can just get this settled, then I can rest.” But something else always appears that needs to be secured.

Jesus offers another way. He invites us to step off the treadmill of anxious striving and learn to walk with the Father. We do not have to spend our lives desperately trying to secure life for ourselves. Our Father already knows what we need. Our invitation is to trust Him, seek His Kingdom, and receive our lives from His hand.

This weekend at Keys Vineyard Church, we will discuss all this and more, so be sure to join us in person or online.

Steve Lawes is a pastor at Keys Vineyard Church and also the founder of the Online Bible Institute Network.