Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1885-07-10
A Definite
''Seek First the Kingdom of God and His
Righteousness"-What This Command
Implies and Requires-The PROMISE.

'Seek First the Kingdom of God and His
Righteousness"-What This Command
Implies and Isequires-The PROMISE.
Nothing can be of more importance
to a mansthan to have fixed principles.
No man would think of doing business
with any hope of success whose aim,
principles and methods we're not well
defined, fixed and settled upon. The
man who goes through life at hap-haz-
ard is never a success at anything, and
can not be. This is equally true con-
cernlng the personal life. A life with
out definite aim as to character, and
without fixed purposes and principles
OF living, a never come to any good.
This is prc-eminently 81 with the Chris
tan life. No professor of the faith of
Christ, who has not a definite aim and
fixed purposes and principles to guide
him, both in life and service, may ever
hope either to come into experimental
possession of the best joys of faith on
earth, or to hear the ''well done, good
and faithful servant" from the lips of
the Master in Heaven.
The Lord has left us some verv i'm
portant principles, coupled with loving
commandments, to guide and help us in
reaching and realizing all that is best
and truest in the Christian life. The
Sermon OF the Mount contains the ideal
law of the Christian life. 1t is for us to
get the principles of that sermon thor
oughly worked into our hearts. In that
ease, there will be no trouble in work
ing out an ideal life and rendering ideal
service. In Matthew vi, 81, we are
told not to take anxious thought con
corning the necessaries of this life; for
the Lord has assured us that we are
much more the special objects of his
providential love and care than the
fowls of the air and the lilies of the
field; and these are both fed and
clothed.
1t is very evident, if our lives are
numbered with anxieties about the
things Of this life, that we shall be him
dered in seeking after the higher,
spiritual things of life, and from giving
ourselves to his service; for the reason
that our minds will be distracted with
anxiety for temporal things, and oc-
cupied with fears for the morrow, which
will leave us neither place nor time for
spiritual things. or the free service of
God. The question will arise in the
minds of the anxious ones: '.How am
L to get rid OF these anxieties connected
with temporal things and the to-mor-
row?" The Master answers this by
telling us, in Matthew vi, 80, what we
are to do. "Seek first the Kingdom of
God and His righteousness" At the
same time He assures us that, if we are
found SO doing. ''all these things" on
account of which we are so anxious.
"shall be added unto u.s. If we would
only keep the promise as fully before
us as We do the command, we would he
encouraged to launch out into the deep
OF this word, and, no doubt, inclose a
great net full of blessings. There can
be no doubt of the literal and
full meaning of this saying of our Lord.
Nor is there any doubt of the lack Of
faith and courage on the part of the
great bulk of His protested discin]cs
regarding this commandment and
promise.
Surprising that some of our readers
are really anxious to know and to do
this commandment and prove this prom
lse' we attempt to set its import before
them. If q sinner should ask US how
this promise commandment applied TO
him, we would say that the Kingdom of
t!od, the object of search, is the saliva
ton OF his Soul and the regeneration Of
his character, that this endi is of the first
Importance to him, and that he ouoht
to set himself about securing it before
anything else. We would say to him
that wealth and pleasure were not to
be compared with salvation in imnor.
tance, for a single moment; and that.
therefore. rs TO time, this matter should
also have the first place. If the Lord
be God, serve Him." and begin to serve
Him aow, at once. No n doubts tho
sonndness Of this advice, or the practi.
cal correctness Of this cxegcsis. as far
as the sinner is concerned. Now let
us apply this same rule of interpre.
tatlon to ourselves as Christians
The Kingdom of God is the canse
OF God in the world. 1t is and oncht
to be of the first importance ~
us: We are His servants as we'll "a He
children. The great business Of the