Christ's clear expectations for all of us are laid down in Matthew 6.33. But we need to think about that. I copied it out of my Bible and added big, druck wide. That's the font, the yellow one there. But, and here's what we're looking at, seek first the kingdom of God, the rule of God. The kingship, actually the word is basileia, the kingdom of God, he's the king of it. Seek that first, and his righteousness and everything else in life will fall in place. That's my paraphrase. So let's look at 2024. And I just thought, hmm, what's going on in our world? Well, we live in the midst of confusion and deception. I mean, famous pastors, are saying bizarre things these days when it comes to this whole gender dysphoria, when it comes to everything. And some of them are either so political, it's terrible, or they're so secular, it's terrible. And there's just confusion and deception like never before in Christ's church. And then the most diagnosed ailment in America right now, do you see it? Depression. I mean, the richest country in the world, the wealthiest country in the world, the most militarily powerful country, we've got more of everything. In fact, our generation, I guess if I'm a boomer, but I don't know, but our generation is giving away $90 trillion to our children. That's what Bloomberg announced last week. 90 trillion? That's an incomprehensible amount of money. And we're depressed. Our country is, our people are. Then we have the cultural disintegration. I mean, movie stars that transition from male to female and back and forth and everything in between. We have cultural disintegration. We have the legalization of drugs that's gone awry up in, where is it, Portland, Oregon, where it's just destroying So many people, and then we have stress. New York Times recently wrote a piece, one of their big writers, I don't know which one, said, why are we always in a hurry? I'm in a hurry. And they talked about we live under this compulsive something. stress. That's 2024. And then we have health care fears. I mean, we're running out of Adderall. Now, none of you take that, but your grandchildren or children might have. We have health care fears. We're afraid that something's going to happen to our health care system, or CVS's system was down with the solar flare, and people couldn't get their prescriptions. It's really hard in 2024. And then we've got this whole saber rattling. Well, it's not a saber. Putin is shaking the Sarmat missile. The Sarmat missile travels six and a half times faster than a bullet, and it goes into multiple independent re-entry vehicles. One Sarmat missile can wipe out the entire country of France, every square inch of it, incinerate it, and they've got those Sarmats deployed all the way across the largest country in the world, Russia. Amazing. Then we've got financial uncertainties, you know, the Bank of New York or Community Bank of New York or whichever one it is is starting to fail and the mid-range banks are starting to fail because of the real estate, you know, office vacancy thing and people aren't paying their bills and that's just starting and it's going to roll into 2025 and all the big banks, I mean even European banks, are divesting their real estate holdings because of In fact, the central bank of Germany last week sold a $50 million tower for $1 to the creditors. They sold it back for $1. Ooh, that tidal wave is gonna pick up speed. So we're facing, in 2024, financial uncertainties and kind of like countrywide depression and stress and healthcare fears, and we're all witnessing the cultural disintegration. And I mean, China is encroaching on America, Russia is rattling their nuclear saber, and we've got the Houthis sinking British boats today. Wow. And then in the people they're supposed to be talking about the truth, there's confusion and deception. Wow. Well, the good news is we know what's going to happen, right? And that's what I get to teach. I mean, all of April is Revelation month for me. I do two weeks in New York going through the book of Revelation, then I do two weeks back here. And I love it, it's the best 40 hours of my whole year. And you know that that's the book of Revelation. Revelation is the simplest book in the Bible. The final book, it's the book that God gave us so we would know his plan. and he personally delivered it through Jesus Christ, and his angel brought it to John and Patmos, and they sent it out. And look, we're in Revelation 1 to 3, we're the church on earth, soon we're gonna be the church in heaven, when either Christ comes or calls, and then God is gonna pour out his tribulation, the tribulation ends with Christ's second coming, Christ himself literally rules on earth, for a thousand years. That's what 20% of the Old Testament is about. It's amazing. The whole earth, after Jesus rules over them perfectly for a thousand years, rebels. Almost everybody rebels, and you know the ending, the great white throne, and then we get to dwell in the house of the Lord forever. So, you know, the good news is, no matter what's going on in 2024, we know how it ends, and we know God's plan. But this takes us back to our verse. If we're supposed to seek first the kingdom of God, the ultimate expression of the kingdom of God is when the king himself comes to earth. That's the second coming of Christ. That's the climax of the whole seven year period. But for us, before that happens, as we await it happening, how are we supposed to constantly seek first God's rule and righteousness? How are we supposed to do that when we live in the most distracted world? I remember when the iPhones came out, it used to just be the kids that were distracted by it, but now? I mean, there are more people at Barnes & Noble that are older than there are younger, and they're all on their iPads. I mean, everybody is, everything is just distracted by this world we live in, electronica. So how do we stay on track? I mean, tonight. How do we stay on track? How do we know that we're seeking first God's rule in our life, God's righteousness through our life, to live as the saints of God in this world? Well, wouldn't you know it, in the same chapter, comes the most well-known passage in the Bible. In fact, there are more people that have Matthew 6, 9-13 memorized than any other verse in the Bible. There are probably two Two billion, maybe, people on earth that know that. I mean, if you put all of the Roman Catholics together and all the Orthodox together and all the Evangelicals together and then everybody else that has been Christianized or Churchized, did you know that that's the most widely quoted section of the whole Bible? And yet, it's the least understood. So what I say is, we need to unleash the best known, most widely quoted verses in the whole Bible Matthew 6, 9 to 13. Now, by the way, I do this with my classes, my Word of Life Bible Institute classes, wherever I am. I mean, Bonnie and I were just in the Philippines with Don and May, and of course we're gonna be in New York and Florida, and in Word of Life Hungary, and Word of Life Korea, and on and on and on. I always have them stand and do this, but I'm not gonna have you stand. because some of you just got comfortable, and it wouldn't be kind to do it. But why don't we do this? Let's quote this. There are 73 words that Jesus inspired in the Greek language. Let's say them together, okay? You ready? Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day and forgive us our, as we forgive those who, against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever, amen. By the way, how do you like that, trespass and debts? By the way, why do we even know the Lord's Prayer so well in English? It became part of the Book of Common Prayer in the English language, way back in the 17th century, right after the King James Version was made. And that's how we got the form that we know today, that people, even that use other versions, know that form we just quoted. But how do we unleash it in our life? you