TRUSTING GOD FOR LIFE’S NEEDS
Matthew 6:25-34
To survey a list of some of our recent best-selling popular books, is an exercise in analyzing our culture’s psychology. The best sellers list is an informative mirror on the soul of America. You should try it sometime if you have not lately. If you browse through either an online bookstore or a physical one, many of the leading best-sellers are organized around a central theme: Coping with stress. There are myriads of paperbacks and seminars and products telling us how to avoid stress or anxiety.
One author sounds like he knows me or a lot of Christians when he says “Have you ever noticed how uptight you feel when you’re caught up in your thinking? And, to top it off, the more absorbed you get in the details of whatever is upsetting you, the worse you feel. One thought leads to another, and yet another, until at some point, you become incredibly agitated. For example, you might wake up in the middle of the night and remember a phone call that needs to be made the following day. Then, rather than feeling relieved that you remembered such an important call, you start thinking about everything else you have to do tomorrow. . . . Pretty soon you think to yourself, ‘I can’t believe how busy I am.’ (13-14) When a Christian does that, and we all do from time to time, we are not trusting God—we are worrying.
I’ve heard the voice of God more than once recently in the final words of v. 30: “O you little faith!” Of course, we will never accomplish all that we wish to do, and there will always be some things waiting for our attention, and some project screaming for attention. Do we fear and worry or … Trust and Obey?
Stress or Worry may be our society’s number one mental illness, along with ulcers & heart attacks in the physical area. Why at this very church, in the past week, we’ve had people worry about Children, PCA, music, missionaries, and money. The disease has even infiltrated us. As we note this, we’re led to ask, “What causes so much stress or anxiety in our society”? Many answers are given, such as: fear of crime, debt problems, job insecurity, or the state of the economy. What do these answers have in common? They all involve our view of material security in one form or another.
By our excessive preoccupation with stress, Americans, including the American church, show that we are very anxious about securing or keeping our material pos-sessions. We wrongly think that life’s needs can only be secured by our efforts. Then, when a problem factor (such as failing economy, job insecurity, family crisis, etc.) enters the equation and disrupts our plans, we are left as a bundle of nerves. We are anxious, scared, doubtful, or manic. Some of you have felt this, as have I at times.
A remedy for that is given here in this passage from Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. He essentially tells us not to worry about how we can secure the wherewithal for life’s needs. Jesus teaches here that, “God will take care of our life’s needs, & we can trust him for that.
Earlier in this chapter Jesus had spoken and warned against materialism. He said, “Don’t store up for yourselves treasures on earth (6:19), but in heaven.” You can’t serve two masters (6:24). In sum he taught that his true disciples would not be stockpiling their riches as a means of security. Their only security, spiritual or material, would rest in the ability of God to care for them. This was their uncompromised trust in God for life’s needs. They were neither practical nor closet materialists who were disciples on the side. They were disciples only. Such stress concerning materialism had no approval in their Master’s teaching.
“Jesus has been minimizing the ultimate significance of material possessions; and no doubt not a few among his hearers find themselves as we do today, wondering, ‘But what about necessities? It’s all very well to turn your back on wealth when you’re rich; but I’ve got a wife and children, and I can barely provide them with food, clothing, and shelter. What are you saying to me?’ In effect, Jesus answers that just as earthly possessions can become an idol which deposes God by becoming disproportionately important, so also can earthly needs become a source of worry which deposes God by fostering distrust. Loyalty to kingdom values rejects all subservience to temporal things.” (Carson p. 82)
Let’s look at Jesus’ teaching here that is so very relevant to us.
I. First, let it be clearly established in our minds that worry is wrong and not to be justified. Christ’s disciples are given a clear command DO NOT WORRY.
A. This prohibition is in fact repeated three times.
· v. 25 says, ‘Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food and the body more important than clothes.” Because of the foregone futility, our Master tells us not to worry about three basic areas (Spurgeon called these) -- “the world’s Trinity of Cares.” These are:
1. Life—which is general, all encompassing, lit. “soul.”
2. Food—eat or drink.
3. Body—what you’ll wear.
· v. 31 repeats (a second time): “So do not worry” about what to eat, drink, wear.” Note: these are needs, not wants or luxuries. So here we’re commanded positively:
“Trust God for the very needs of your existence. Don’t worry about them. Live in faith.
· v. 34 reiterates a 3rd time, “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow.”
B. Meaning of word for anxious/worry—is to be overly anxious. The root of the word means to be distracted in circles of thought or to remember again & again in circles. To worry, thus, means to go over the same thing, again & again, getting nowhere & changing nothing; only exciting one’s own emotions (usually fear) more. Worry is mental agitation, spinning our mind’s wheels in the mud while not helping any problem.
In Jesus’ teaching this word is translated “cares of this world.” He taught that we are not to get distracted in cares (Mt. 13:22) of this world; and in Luke 10:41 to Martha as she was scurrying, Jesus said: “Martha, Martha, you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed.” The warning is against the danger of being distracted from the main objective in life by worry. Elsewhere the New Testament commands us not to worry. Phil. 4:6 — “Be anxious about nothing.”
The first word in this passage is “Therefore.” “It is a logical connective directing attention to what has preceded: Because transient earthly treasures do not satisfy (6:19-21), because a choice must be made between God and Money (6:24), because the kingdom of God demands unswerving allegiance to its values (6:19-24), therefore do not worry, and in particular do not worry about mere things.”
Let’s clarify this and have a balanced view. To not worry does not mean to be irresponsible. Jesus does not prohibit planning, prudence and initiative or hard work. What he prohibits is worry. Jesus is not advocating a shiftless, thriftless, reckless, thoughtless, improvident attitude to life; he is forbidding a care-worn, worried fear.” (Barclay). The follower of Jesus should be properly concerned about being faithful to his Lord and a servant in the Master’s service.
There is a difference between proper concern and worry. In fact, this word, translated worry or care (merimnao) is used positively and properly in other NT contexts to designate the care we should have for our spouse (1 Cor. 7:33), of the care we should have to satisfy the Lord (1 Cor. 7:32); of the care we should have for other Christians (1 Cor. 12:25) and for the godly care of ministers for their flock (Phil. 2:20). That kind of care is a legitimate activity of sanctification. But, this word never signifies a godly attitude toward things or situations. It is only proper in God-approved relationships. We should be concerned about certain things that God commands; in those cases, the absence of concern is irresponsible. But, worrying about things or problems is never sanctioned by God, and its presence signifies unbelief and disobedience.
So the type of worry to be avoided is the type that takes our faith away from God. This type of worry is the kind that is self-interested and self-trusting. Hence, when Jesus says do not worry, he means — Do not worry about:
· Things which you cannot change.
· Things which only God is supposed to provide.
Those 2 areas are key to know. If you cannot alter a situation, or if you’ve done all you reasonably can; or if only God can provide ultimately, then you should turn off your worry engine. I first heard the following prayer from a fine Christian basket-ball coach (John Wooden): “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the strength to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”
“Most, if not all, illicit worries indicate an acute shortage of confidence in God; there-fore to some extent they are self-centered. Most are bound to temporal categories.”
“Worry,” Vance Havner said, “is like sitting in a rocking chair. It will give you something to do, but it won’t get you anywhere.” (from Pulpit Helps, April 1997)
Worry is the number one emotional health disorder & the #1 cause of heart trouble. Physicians say that 70% of all illnesses are imaginary, caused by mental distress or worry. The world is filled with worry. We have all heard people say, ‘I’m worried sick’ or ‘I’m worried to death.’ Worry is a negative habit that is not easily broken.