"The First Work"

"But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." Matthew 6:33

What are you seeking-- the work of the Lord, or the Lord of the work? Are you focused on His plan or Him? Are you concerned more about what "ministry" you have been called to, or the One who called you?

God created you with a plan and purpose in mind. If He didn't have a purpose for you, He would not have created you (it is He who has made us and not we ourselves). After all, God never does anything just for the sake of doing it. He never says anything just to hear Himself say it. So you should seek Him to discover what it is He has for you to do and you should not be negligent in doing it. When He reveals a specific plan or assignment that He has for you, you should do it with all your might and with excellence for His glory. So don't misunderstand what I am saying.

But our first and highest call is to "know Him". The whole reason Jesus came to earth and gave His life on the cross was to reconcile us back to the Father so that we could have a relationship with Him-- not so that we could do some great work for Him. Jesus taught us that on the day when we stand before Him, some would make declarations of all the great things they had done for Him but His reply to them will be, "I never knew you". He didn't accuse them of lying about the fact that they had done these great works. But that was not what He was concerned about. His point of interest was not their works for Him but whether they knew Him- or still yet, did He know them.

Don't confuse the work that you are doing for Him with knowing Him. They are not the same thing. You can work for your employer and not know him. You can be in a marriage and do all the "marriage works" and still not know your spouse. You can work to provide for your children, and not know them. We can get so busy working for the Lord that we think we know the One we are working for, but really don't. Is that you? If so, don't neglect the work that He has called you to do, but make your "first work" and priority that of knowing Him.

Have a great day. Doing the work of the Lord and knowing the Lord of the work are not the same thing-- the latter has to be the first priority.

For further reading:
Matthew 7:22,23
Revelation 2:4,5
Psalm 100:3
Colossians 1:19-22
1 John 3:1

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell
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