SERMON V. SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD. MATT. vi. 33. "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness." THE passage which I have just read, occurs in that part of our Saviour's Sermon on the Mount, in which he warns his hearers against excessive carefulness and anxiety for the supply of their bodily necessities. Upon the reference which it bears to this subject, it is not my intention, at present, to insist. I shall consider the words of the text, as standing by themselves, unconnected either with what precedes or what follows, and shall endeavour to impress. upon your minds the very important truths which they convey. Upon the meaning of these words there is little necessity for enlarging. You readily understand, that by "the kingdom of "God" is meant that state of happiness, to which the true servants of God will, through the merits of Christ, be admitted after death, that blessedness eternal in the heavens, which God hath prepared for them that love him. With no greater difficulty, you will comprehend, that by "His righteousness," in this passage, that is, the righteousness of God, is meant that righteousness, that holiness of heart and conduct which he requires from us, and which is represented in the Scriptures as the only means of being, through Christ, received into heaven. I would here remark, by the way, that this expression, "His righteousness," can by no means be applied to an obedience, intentionally partial and limited, an obedience confined to some few instances of conduct only, while in other instances it is wilfully withheld; an obedience, perhaps, in some particulars, of more easy performance, attended by an habitual neglect of many of the weightier matters of the law. The expression implies an obedience extending, without exception, to all our thoughts, words, and actions. This obedience, it is true, even in the best men, will ever be full of weakness, infirmity, and imperfection, accompanied too, it may be, by many actual transgressions; but still these imperfections and transgressions are not the fruits of deliberate choice, are not wilfully persisted in, but are lamented and bewailed, and a deliverance from them earnestly endeavoured and prayed for. Even this obedience, sincere ast it is, would of itself be unavailing to carry us to heaven, for we still should remain guilty before God. He, however, is graciously pleased to accept our imperfect endeavours, and heartfelt desires to attain unto holiness, through the merits and atonement of his Son, who, for our sakes, fulfilled all righteousness, and through Him alone it is, that we can be accounted righteous in the sight of God. But though it is only through the merits and sufferings of our Redeemer that we can hope to attain unto the kingdom of heaven, and though our personal righteousness must be ever imperfect, and can merit no reward at the hand of God, yet in innumerable passages of the Holy Scriptures, it is represented as, generally speaking, a necessary qualification, in order to our being received into that state of blessedness. What we are directed to seek, then, is the happiness of heaven, and universal holiness as the means, through Christ, of attaining to it; and these we are to seek in the first place, with greater zeal and earnestness than any other object whatsoever. Many other things, those things especially which are important for the sustenance of the body, we are permitted, and even commanded to seek, but we must seek them with moderation, and never on any account permit them to draw off our attention from, or in any way to interfere with, the kingdom of God and his righteousness. However desirable many of the things of this world may be in themselves, though they be even necessary to the support of our mortal life, yet they must be given up if they cannot be acquired without the commission of sin, or the neglect or violation of a plain and absolute duty. If, in short, we give to any thing earthly, the first and best place in our thoughts and affections, and engage in the pursuit of it so diligently, as to neglect the care of our souls, and to forget to seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness, in the first place; that thing, whatever it may be, however good and important itself, becomes the occasion of sin, the occasion of a decided disobedience to the injunction of the text. I shall now go on to lay before you the reasons on which this injunction is founded, to state why it is, that in the sense above given, we must seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness, in the first place. This, it is confessed, can hardly be necessary, but still, by dwelling a little longer on this important subject, it may, perhaps, make a deeper and more lasting impres sion. And, first, we ought thus to seek the |