“Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness,

and all these things shall be added to you.“

“Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness,

and all these things shall be added to you.”

Jesus tells us that we must seek. Seeking is a painful process. When someone loses something precious, it brings a certain pain, and they search especially in the places where they think they might find it. Jesus says that above all we are to seek the kingdom of God. It is within us like a hidden treasure.

What is the kingdom of God? It is God’s reign and God’s presence in the souls of the baptized. This treasure lies somewhere deep within us, yet we must search for it. Sometimes it can be found quickly.

What does His righteousness mean? It was fulfilled in our Lord Jesus Christ through His redemptive sacrifice for us. He offered a just satisfaction for the sins of humanity – and for all my sins. I find that righteousness beneath Christ’s cross; there, through the act of repentance, my sins are forgiven, and the devil has no right to demand justice – that is, the punishment that sin brings. Jesus completed this righteousness on the cross.

“Therefore do not be unwise,

but understand what the will of the Lord is.“

“Therefore do not be unwise,

but understand what the will of the Lord is.”

For the next two weeks, during our seven prayer stops, we will reflect on and remember this Bible verse. The Apostle exhorts us: “Do not be unwise.” What does it mean to be unwise? It means to be unable to think self-critically or to see the objective truth, clinging blindly to one’s first impression. The Apostle then continues: “But understand what the will of God is” – in your life, today, in the situation you are living through. You are to live it with God, in faith.

Small acts of self-denial that humble our hidden pride and foolishness allow us to understand what God’s will is. Therefore, let us be self-critical and humble. Let us not take offence when someone points out our mistake or shows us that our decision may not be wise.

As Christians, we too have our own plans, desires, and ideas, and we often ask ourselves what God’s will truly is. Sometimes it may seem to you that God’s will is hidden in a buried treasure chest and you have only small portions of the map to find it. But is this true? Is God keeping His plans from you as some hidden secret? Or does He want you to follow Him, and lead you step by step?

“If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you,

you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.“

If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you,

you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.

Jesus, at the Last Supper, speaks about our spiritual unity with Him. Through baptism we share in His redemptive death and in His new life, which is inseparably linked with His glorious resurrection. Yet baptism alone is not enough. For God’s life to remain within us – and even more, to grow in us – faith is needed, faith in the word of Jesus. This faith is accompanied by acts of humility and by trials of fidelity. In this context, we need to recall the essence of the parable of the vine and the branches. From the vine flows the life-giving sap into the branches – that is, the same Spirit who dwells in Jesus Christ also works in us, the baptized, as long as we remain united with Jesus through faith. Jesus repeatedly emphasizes that without Him we can do nothing, and He gives His branches this promise: “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.” The condition for anything to work for our true good – not only temporal but also eternal – is that we remain united with Jesus through faith. His word helps us to maintain this unity; we are called to abide in His word. We are not only to hear it, but to live it!

Sometimes we have too much work and no time for prayer. But if we take it into account, then if we have at least some time for prayer, we try to make the most of it. However, we must think of God in work as well: “Lord, this is for You.” Simply, we need to rely on God in everything we do. Unless we stop, we run astray. But if we stop, God gives us the light for our work, for what to do. All things of the Lord and all divine inspirations are born on knees. If we do not pray, we get nothing.

He who prays has power because God works through him. It is a fight with the realm of darkness.

If we pray in earnest and give our problems to God, He really solves them. We do not seek advice from fortune-tellers who are inspired by the devil. It is not good to seek advice from them because their advice is the devil’s lie.

That is why we pray 7 times a day: “Shema, Israel, you shall love God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your strength. Lord Jesus, I love You with all my heart, with all my soul and with all my strength. Now I lose my soul for Your sake and the Gospel’s.”

When we will pray so this week, let us realize at least once what we are saying. Be aware that Jesus hears you. And when you say to Him: “I love You”, let it really be with all your heart. “I lose my soul” – this is a concrete act of love. Love does not lie in emotions. Pure love is the sign of the will – I want to love even if I do not feel that I give Jesus the first place in my life.

“… by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises,

that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature,

having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.“

… by which have been given to us exceedingly great

and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers

of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is

in the world through lust.

Our life is short; in essence, it is only a time of testing, during which our eternity is decided. That eternity will be either happy or unhappy forever. An unhappy future – eternal ruin – awaits those who, in proud unbelief, reject the salvation in Jesus Christ. In Him, God has given us the greatest gift: that through Him we may receive a new nature! We must therefore put aside that nature which is infected by original sin and in which our human spirit is, as it were, clothed. Through this, our inner being has been darkened – our intellect struggles to recognize truth, our will tends toward evil, and our heart is filled with a perverted desire that unites with the spirit of the world, driving humanity toward temporal and eternal destruction. How can we escape this destruction? We must, through faith, accept the Saviour, Jesus Christ. Then the following applies to us: “To those who did accept Him He gave power to become children of God. They were born not of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” (cf. Jn 1:12) Thus, by accepting Christ, we already now – though original sin still remains within us – receive the divine nature.

Victory begins with the name of Jesus on our lips but cannot be achieved until the nature of Jesus Christ is in our hearts. The question is: And how can this happen and through whom? Jesus possesses two natures: one divine and the other human, and these two are united without division or separation. He assumed a human nature through the Virgin Mary, through her obedience of faith, through her “yes” to God! How did it happen? Through the Holy Spirit. And this is the answer for us too: The nature of Jesus can be rooted in us through Mary and through the Holy Spirit. We should not only receive the Holy Spirit like the Apostles on the day of Pentecost but we should also be guided by the Holy Spirit, walk in the Holy Spirit, i.e. our minds should be guided by Him so that we may have the mind of Jesus. The Holy Scripture commands: “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus.” (Phi 2:5) So the Holy Spirit will inspire us and make us think in the same way Jesus does. But we need a sound foundation, which is the foundation of humility and faith in relation to God, and this foundation is not stable in the old Eve’s heart.

“So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God. For assuredly,

I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’

and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done,

he will have whatever he says.“

So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God.

For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain,

‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt

in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done,

he will have whatever he says.

What is human faith and what is God’s faith?

Human faith is necessary in everyday life. We have to believe people’s testimonies about Antarctica, for example, even though we have never been there ourselves. We believe that there is snow there, even though we have never seen it. This is natural faith, which can be proven materially.

What is faith in God or God’s faith? It is faith that is bound to the promises God has given us. It is faith in God’s omnipotence. By His almighty power, God created everything that exists; He created this world and cares for it. He created it for a purpose. We believe in God the Creator. We also believe in God the Saviour; we believe that the Son of God became man and died for our sins, and we also believe God’s word. Furthermore, in order to have God’s faith that works miracles, we need to receive grace so that God will show us that He wants to be glorified in this situation and that He requires us to stand in faith and not doubt. Everyone will face a test of faith, so we must overcome the doubt in our hearts. God’s faith is a gift that we must ask for.

“The work of God is this: to believe in the One He has sent.“

“The work of God is this: to believe in the One He has sent.”

A group of people once asked Jesus how they could do the work of God. Jesus replied, “The work of God is this: to believe in the One He has sent.” (Jn 6:29) God desires belief and faith from us, for “without faith it is impossible to please God” (Heb 11:6).

The word of life we now repeat during our prayer stops also tells us that if we believe in the One whom the Father has sent, that is, Jesus, in a specific situation or problem, God responds to our faith by acting.

The following verses give a deeper insight into this truth related to faith.

“Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God,

that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him,

for He cares for you.“