"But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be provided for you."

How Much Do I Need Jesus?

It can be easy to say I need Jesus, but do I really believe that I do? It is easy to say all the things in the 6th chapter leading up to verse 33, but have I really lived by them? Do all these verses really have an influence on how I live each day? These are hard questions, but I truly believe Jesus placed them in this chapter knowing that I had to face them before I could face verse 33.

I believe that I am no different than most people - I live for significance, success, and self. That is not all bad. God wants us to strive for significance in our life - to achieve something worth while and to discover a sense of significance in our life in that we have made a difference. He also wants to bless us with success, provided it is success that matters rather than success that scatters. God builds in all of us a sense of pride in what we have accomplished. We get some self gratification in what we do. Take for instance when God created the world. Was what He created significant? You bet. Did He have a sense of significance in what he had created? I believe so. Was it a success? Look around us. And did He get some self satisfaction in what He had done?   

So, why do I need Jesus?

There is a difference in loving money and having money. There is a difference in driven for significance and having significance, a difference in driven for success and having success, a difference in being driven for self gratification and having self gratification. The answer is Jesus. It is only by seeking, surrendering, and standing with Him that we can find these paths. The key is in verse 18 where Jesus tells us that He rewards us for those things that are done in secret. In other words, those things that are hidden from observation of others. People do not see them as our main drive in life. When God is first, we can discover all these blessings but love Him above all. That was, and still is today, my challenge.    

The real answer is in the next verse, 19. "Don't collect for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. But collect for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves don't break in and steal." Here is the big deal. Does God expect me to not save, invest, and gather for my security? Am I just to depend on, or need Him, for each days needs? The more treasures I have on earth the more secure I am in myself; therefore, the less I need Jesus. And there again, if I am not careful, I may become to dependent on God's blessings. The key, I believe is neither. I cannot depend on my security nor on God's blessings, but on Jesus himself. The key is to enjoy the blessings God gives while I am driven to depend totally on Him. 

The questions that came to me in my journey was to ask myself how much did I depend on my treasures? On what was I most anxious about, my treasures or God blessing me? Several years ago, our church went through a capital campaign for building a new sanctuary. There was a young couple in our church who had just started a new business. With all the cost, anxiety and dependence on the business being a success so their needs could be met, this couple gave their home as their gift to the campaign. To this day, I am awestruck at their generosity. Or should I say, their dependence not on their treasure or God blessing, but on Jesus himself. How much do I need Jesus? Without question, every second of the day and on every circumstance that comes my way. This is the only way I can truly reach the reward at the end of my journey.