Mysterious Blessings: The "All Else" Principle
February 29, 2004
The Rev. Dr. Anthony
J. Godlefski, Pastor
Brothers and sisters in Christ, good morning! I want to talk to you about one of the most famous passages in the Bible today. This has been knocking at the door of my heart, and I hope it's a blessing to you. From the Sermon on the Mount, St. Matthew, Chapter 6, verses 28-33:
"Jesus said, "So why do you worry about clothing?
Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow.
They neither toil nor spin, and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
Now if God so clothes the grass of the field which today is here and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
Therefore, do not worry, saying 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'
For after all these things the Gentiles seek, and your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.
But, seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all else will be added unto you."
The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Amen.
Friends, I'd like to talk with you today about mysterious blessings, the "all else" principle. Jesus said, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these other things, all else, will be added unto you." There's a phrase in there that just leaps out at me, and it's the phrase "all else." The Lord knows you need these things. I find it an assurance that's almost scary, and amazing.
You'd think that seeking the kingdom of God was reward in itself – and it is! Seeking righteousness – what does that mean? It means doing the right thing. That's what righteousness is. And it's reward in itself. But then Jesus goes on to say that all else will be added unto you. That's what I want to invite you to think about today, not just the spiritual reward that comes from doing the right thing, but Jesus is promising us blessings in abundance, mysterious blessings. It seems to me that He is saying that if you put God first, all else will be added to you.
There are mysterious blessings in store when we put God first. Putting God first often asks some sacrifices of us. Going the extra mile, doing the fair thing, going beyond the call of duty to put God first takes sacrifice sometimes. It takes a decision. It takes doing something you might otherwise not be inclined to do, for God's sake.
But, there are mysterious rewards that come with that. I wouldn't be telling you this if I didn't find it to be true in my own life, over and over again, 26 years in the pulpit, and some years before that. It seems to me that when we make a decision to do it God's way, to put God first, remarkable, mysterious rewards come our way. Some things, maybe, that we hoped for, some things that maybe we needed and didn't know we needed – remarkably come our way.
Now, this is not a mathematical equation, one thing for another. It's not like that. These are mysterious blessings that flow to us unexplainably, often unanticipated, that God gives to us. And I believe it is the demonstration of the scripture that says, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all else will be added unto you."
What does it mean to seek the kingdom of God? Do things God's way. Put God first. Do you remember that series, "The Five Stars in the Cross"? These are things of God. Go to worship on Sunday morning. Grow. Read your Bible, pray, and study. Care about people, and do the kind thing. Share in stewardship. Welcome and invite people to the Lord. These are all things of the kingdom of God. These are all putting God first.
And when we do, remarkable things happen. It's happened to me, and I bet can tell me instances where it's happened to you. I invite you to simply put it into practice and watch what happens.
It seems to me that one way we can put God first is to let go and let God. Make a fist, and then let it go. Think about "Let go, and let God." Sometimes we need to do that. You've heard me talk about this before. Those of us who are detail people and are conscientious, we want to have everything in order, everything lined up. We want to make sure all the hymn numbers are printed in the bulletin, and sometimes they're not. That used to drive me crazy – it was all my fault, and still it drove me crazy. But sometimes things are beyond our control. Isn't there liberation in just admitting that? Sometimes we just have to let go and let God.
God has a remarkable way of presenting us with what we need, on time and enough. I picture a little clock and a full glass of water. Have you ever found it happen that there was something you really needed in your life, and you found it was there, on time, and there was enough? God's way is that way. Let go, and let God.
And the other thing to remember is that blessings have a way of bouncing back. I need two volunteers. (Pastor Tony throws one a ball. He throws it back. Pastor Tony throws a ball to the second volunteer, who throws it back to Pastor Tony.) Blessings bounce back. We don't do blessings because they bounce back; they just do. Have you experienced that in your own life? They don't always bounce back in the way we send them out, but God has a way of bouncing them back to us.
Maybe you decided some morning you could have slept in instead of coming to church, but you didn't. You went to church even though it was inconvenient. And you found there was something there for you. Or you met someone that you really needed to make contact with. Blessings bounce back. Maybe you know of someone who needed a call. You were tired and you wanted to watch TV, but you made the call anyway. And there was a spiritual uplift in you after making that call, knowing that you'd done the right thing. Blessings bounce back.
God has wonderful things in store for you. Won't you open your eyes, your inner eyes, through the week and observe how God is not just blessing you spiritually, but by all other things? What things? Health, relationships, insight, prosperity, peace of mind, joy. Oh, friend, mysterious blessings are in store for you when you put God first.
God loves you. I do, too. Have a wonderful week. Amen.