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SERMON SUMMARY If anxiety comes as a result of having been distracted from the things of the Lord, we must make our minds singular in their focus again. In this message we'll continue to zero in on those truths which provide the remedy. |
Message begins at approx. the 30 min mark.
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As we start today, let me just remind you how much more superior Scripture is in its dealing with this topic of anxiety. Google gave me some quotes from various people on dealing with anxiety. And I want to set these out here so you can see just how blessed we are to have the teaching of our Lord.
Thich Nhat Hanh, a Buddist guru — “Smile, breathe, and go slowly.”
I’m not quite sure how that is supposed to solve anxiety because you can do all those things and still be anxious.
Grenville Kleiser, an author who wrote quite a few inspirational books — Good humor is a tonic for mind and body. It is the best antidote for anxiety and depression. It is a business asset. It attracts and keeps friends. It lightens human burdens. It is the direct route to serenity and contentment.
In other words, just laugh your way through it. Now, we know that a joyful heart is good medicine. That’s definitely biblical. But Mr. Kleiser’s advice is not that. He’s saying that we should just put on a happy face and pretend like nothing is wrong. That really doesn’t help, and you can just ask Robin Williams about it. Actually, you can’t ask Robin Williams. He committed suicide a couple years ago. If ever there was a person who tried to laugh through life, it was him. And you see where that got him.
Meditation & Breathing - There are a number of places that recommend meditation techniques, something akin to yoga practices. These say you are supposed to get in a comfortable position and focus on your breathing. The idea is that you are basically taking a physical and mental time out for 20-30 minutes. The only problem there is that, even if you can un-cloud your mind from all the thoughts crowding in upon it for that amount of time, you have to get up and face them again at some point.
Therapy Dog - Well, of course, if all else fails, you can go to therapypet.org and get yourself an emotional support animal. It’s actually interesting how prominent emotional support pets have become in recent years. And of course, the idea here is that if life has got you overwhelmed, all you need to do is pet your furry friend and that will give you loads of relief.
Don’t get me wrong. Pets are a great thing. But if you are going to a dog or a cat for emotional support, then what you really have is a living idol. It’s nothing different than a little statue of Buddha in your home.
What’s more, your pet can only give you so much relief. It certainly can’t give you any meaningful and lasting deliverance from your worrisome misery.
So once again we see the impoverished help that the world offers. There are many other methodologies that the world offers. These are some of the extremes, of course. But all of them fail in one way or another.
The good news is that we do have a remedy for anxiety. And, as we’ve said before, we don’t just have to cope with anxiety. Through the Spirit of God (and through the proper discipline of our hearts and minds that the Spirit requires) we can find redemption from the bondage of anxiety. If we train our minds on what Jesus says and diligently seek to correct our wandering hearts to trust what He has said, we can gain the all surpassing peace he promises.
So, let’s get into it. And we can begin with a little review of what we have seen so far. There are 7 reasons why we ought not to worry. To put it another way, there are seven truths that we should orient our hearts and minds around. And it is appropriate to run through these again so that they are further solidified in our minds.
We ought not to worry because of …
I. How important our existence is
We looked at verse 25, which says, “Is not life more than food.” And we saw how God values our existence. He created us; we are direct products of his will. And since our life has such importance, shouldn’t we be reassured that he will provide the food which will support that life?
II. How particular God’s care is
We looked at the birds of the air and how God provides for these seemingly insignificant creatures. Everyday God places a bug and a worm out just so these birds can continue to be fed and enjoy life. And we drew the corollary, how much more will he then provide for us since we are his children? Should we not trust that he will make ends meet and sustain us all the days he has appointed for us?
III. How utterly foolish anxiety is
Jesus tells us that worry will not add a single hour to our life. And we went a little further to say that just the opposite is true. It is actually deleterous to our livelihood. You may remember that we applied this specifically to the fear of man too. And we showed how our anxiety over other people’s thoughts was nothing but folly.
So, since it is unproductive at best, and most likely counterproductive to anything we hope to accomplish, we should lay aside our fretting. The best thing we can do is simply concentrate on what the Lord thinks of us and what he calls us to do in life.
IV. How incredibly thorough God’s provision is
This is where we took up some theological botany. Jesus wanted us to look at the grass and the flowers that grow in our back yards. These things cannot move. But yet, despite how short their lifespan may be their beauty is unparalleled. God is pleased to lavish upon these little plants the fullness of his provision.
And again we say, “If that is what God does for the vegetation around us, then what concern should we have for our own well being?” Will he not see fit to use his all powerful providence to ensure that we are properly supported and supplied for in this world?
With that we come to our message for today and are ready to look at the last three reasons why we ought not to worry. The fifth reason why we ought not worry is found in verses 31-32. In verse 31 Jesus talks about how unbecoming our anxiety is.
V. How unbecoming our anxiety is [31-32]
Earlier Jesus said that anxiety was foolish. Here He’s pointing out that it is pagan.
He says, “Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things.”
What’s Jesus saying? He’s saying this kind of attitude that is consumed with these basic necessities and frets and worries over them is not Christian. It’s heathen. It’s how Gentiles or unbelievers act.
Now, Jesus mentions our worldly goods, such as our cloths, our food, and how we will obtain them. But recognize that he’s just dealing with basic necessities here. And it stands for anything that has to do with our future.
When you are anxious about the future, you are not acting like a Christian. You are acting like someone who does not know God and is not antiquated with the sovereign power he has over time and creation.
That’s why it is unbecoming of a Christian. Unbelievers are ones who don’t understand that there is a divine being in complete control over every event that ever happens in this world. For them there is no plan, there is no providence. For the God denier tomorrow is always hanging in the balance of chance and chaos.
And so one of the reasons why we need to not worry is because it is simply incompatible with our identity. We are people who are supposed to know that our future is safely in the hands of God.
As a Christian, we should know that even in the mist of our failure, God is still sovereign. We have the sure consolation that our Lord is constantly working all things for the good of those who love him and are called according to his purpose. Everything that happens in this world is being coordinated by the Almighty and it is specifically designed for our advancement, growth, and further establishment in this world and the next.
So, are you worried about your kids. Will they be healthy? Will they be successful? Will they walk with the Lord when they are older? Will they get into some kind of mischief? What’s going to happen to them?
This is why you get helicopter moms & dads. They become control freaks and are overly protective. They cannot allow their children to face any kind of risk. Because, so they think, what will happen? There’s no safety net beyond the fence I’ve erected for them.
This is the real joy that Christian Parenting offers. When it comes to our kids, we don’t need to have the Gentile heart. We can trust that the God who loves us will take care of our families as well. We trust that God will be sovereign over our failure and our lack of expertise. Their safety is not guaranteed by our pains and feeble attempts to rear them. Praise God!
What is there about our future that should scare us or give us any pain of concern? Every detail of our lives, from beginning to end, has already been planned out. And if we are not living in light of that fact, then we will be just as miserable as an unbeliever.
Thank God we don’t though!
Verse 32 is ripe with truth. Because it not only tells us how unbecoming anxiety is, but it also tells us how great our God is.
VI. How Great God is
And this is the sixth reason why we ought not to worry: Our God is simply grand.
Look at what Jesus says. He says, “Don’t be anxious about what you will eat or drink or wear, because your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.”
I believe that John Gill sums it up best in his commentary. He says, “Every word [here], carries in it an argument, to strengthen the faith of God's children, to encourage them to believe, that he will bestow upon them, whatever is needful:
Now that is a whole sermon in and of itself. But it all boils down to one thing. It boils down to who our God is. And when you understand who God is you understand how great he is. Because there’s none like him. There’s no one else who is as loving. There’s no one else who has the supreme degree of knowledge that he does. There’s no one who can even begin to match the power he has over the heavens and the earth under it.
And the reason why people get anxious and worry is because they make God out to be too cruel and too small.
You know, this is why one of the greatest things you can do when you are anxious (or tempted to be anxious) is to sing. Pull out an old hymnal or put on your headphones and crank up some music that lifts up God. Because there’s no possible way to be anxious when you are reveling in the fact that the God of the universe is your father. When you are contemplating the utter extents of his love for you, there’s not room for any kind of worry.
And when you are singing about how awesome God is as he sits upon his heavenly throne room, it is really impossible to be unsettled about how this or that detail of life is going to work out.
I’m not sure that I know any songs that magnify the knowledge of God. But at least you can think that his understanding is unsearchable. And since he knows us so intimately, we can praise him that every detail of our life is, as it were, his highest concern.
With that we come to the seventh and last reason that Jesus gives us. He not only has shown us how unbecoming our anxiety is (befitting only of unbelievers) and how great our God is, but he ends his argumentation by telling us how full today is.
VII. How full today is
Look at verse 34. It says, “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”
Jesus is laying out here how much we really could worry about. We could spend our time worrying about what is going to happen tomorrow. Of course, most of what we come up with probably won’t come true. As a matter of fact, we might not even live til tomorrow. So why would you bother about it?
The idea is that today is the day that God has given us. Today has enough trouble to worry about. Why borrow trouble, as they say?
I actually like the older versions better on this verse. The ESV and many other more contemporary versions say, “Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” But the older versions are probably a little more accurate in their rendering of the passage. They will say something like, “Sufficient unto today is the evil thereof.” The Greek word is technically “badness.”
Of course, that can mean trouble. I’m not saying there is a mis-translation. I’m simply saying that a lot of our concerns can revolve around evil.
Isn’t that one of the main things that troubles us? Why did he do that? What made her say that? What’s going to happen now that this person has sinned against me in this way?
Now you can go further and think about how all of it is going to spill over into tomorrow or the next week. Or you can add in all the sins and evils that might come along tomorrow. Or you can simply dwell in the here and now.
Again, this is the beauty of being a Christian. God calls us to be the supreme existentialist. We are to live in this moment. Sure we are to plan for the future and be wise about what things need our attention. But our main concern is on what God requires of me at this moment.
So, if there is some evil or trouble that is impending, how must I respond to it? Does it require me to act and what action should I take if it does? Do I need to confront someone? Or is it something that needs overlooked? Should I not bother with it or let it bother me? If there’s nothing that can be actively done about it right at this moment, I’m going to turn my attention to something else. I’m going to do these math problems and finish my homework. I’m going to get the living room picked up. This math homework is to be my current concentration. Tidying up this living room, that is what God wants me to occupy my mind with at this moment.
Do you see what the Lord is talking about? Today is the day that demands your attention. What at this moment are you required to do? It certainly isn’t sitting there and stewing on the problems. You either act to solve the problem or you put it in God’s hands until that time when you are able to take action.
So that’s what you need to tell yourself. I am thinking about things that are out of my control. Lord, forgive me for dwelling too much upon the things of tomorrow. Help me to focus upon (whatever it is at this time that needs my attention).
Conclusion
And that begins to get us into what we are going to tackle next time. We still have one verse left to look at. It’s verse 33, which says “Seek first the kingdom of God and all these things will be added unto you.” And we are going to look at that as the answer to our third and final question in regards to anxiety: How do we prevent ourselves from lapsing? How is it that we can keep ourselves from becoming anxious or falling into the temptation to be anxious?
Here today we have sought to answer the question: Why should we not worry? And I hope you see that Jesus has given us many sound reasons. And they, of course, are more than just arguments telling us to stop being anxious. These are the things that we are to put in mind.
As we have seen, anxiety occurs when our minds are distracted and our hearts are divided. And the information we have is the baseline for our thought life. These truths are set before you to help you become singular in your focus. As we’ve said before, Is. 26:3 is the guide for all that Jesus has set forward here. He keeps him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed upon Jehovah.
When your mind is stayed upon his greatness as an omnipotent and loving Father who knows all about you, and when you heart is fixed on the fact that He is the one who governs and sustains all creation by his almighty hand--Most of all, when you concatenate all those grand ideas upon this day, you will have incredible peace.
Thich Nhat Hanh, a Buddist guru — “Smile, breathe, and go slowly.”
I’m not quite sure how that is supposed to solve anxiety because you can do all those things and still be anxious.
Grenville Kleiser, an author who wrote quite a few inspirational books — Good humor is a tonic for mind and body. It is the best antidote for anxiety and depression. It is a business asset. It attracts and keeps friends. It lightens human burdens. It is the direct route to serenity and contentment.
In other words, just laugh your way through it. Now, we know that a joyful heart is good medicine. That’s definitely biblical. But Mr. Kleiser’s advice is not that. He’s saying that we should just put on a happy face and pretend like nothing is wrong. That really doesn’t help, and you can just ask Robin Williams about it. Actually, you can’t ask Robin Williams. He committed suicide a couple years ago. If ever there was a person who tried to laugh through life, it was him. And you see where that got him.
Meditation & Breathing - There are a number of places that recommend meditation techniques, something akin to yoga practices. These say you are supposed to get in a comfortable position and focus on your breathing. The idea is that you are basically taking a physical and mental time out for 20-30 minutes. The only problem there is that, even if you can un-cloud your mind from all the thoughts crowding in upon it for that amount of time, you have to get up and face them again at some point.
Therapy Dog - Well, of course, if all else fails, you can go to therapypet.org and get yourself an emotional support animal. It’s actually interesting how prominent emotional support pets have become in recent years. And of course, the idea here is that if life has got you overwhelmed, all you need to do is pet your furry friend and that will give you loads of relief.
Don’t get me wrong. Pets are a great thing. But if you are going to a dog or a cat for emotional support, then what you really have is a living idol. It’s nothing different than a little statue of Buddha in your home.
What’s more, your pet can only give you so much relief. It certainly can’t give you any meaningful and lasting deliverance from your worrisome misery.
So once again we see the impoverished help that the world offers. There are many other methodologies that the world offers. These are some of the extremes, of course. But all of them fail in one way or another.
The good news is that we do have a remedy for anxiety. And, as we’ve said before, we don’t just have to cope with anxiety. Through the Spirit of God (and through the proper discipline of our hearts and minds that the Spirit requires) we can find redemption from the bondage of anxiety. If we train our minds on what Jesus says and diligently seek to correct our wandering hearts to trust what He has said, we can gain the all surpassing peace he promises.
So, let’s get into it. And we can begin with a little review of what we have seen so far. There are 7 reasons why we ought not to worry. To put it another way, there are seven truths that we should orient our hearts and minds around. And it is appropriate to run through these again so that they are further solidified in our minds.
We ought not to worry because of …
I. How important our existence is
We looked at verse 25, which says, “Is not life more than food.” And we saw how God values our existence. He created us; we are direct products of his will. And since our life has such importance, shouldn’t we be reassured that he will provide the food which will support that life?
II. How particular God’s care is
We looked at the birds of the air and how God provides for these seemingly insignificant creatures. Everyday God places a bug and a worm out just so these birds can continue to be fed and enjoy life. And we drew the corollary, how much more will he then provide for us since we are his children? Should we not trust that he will make ends meet and sustain us all the days he has appointed for us?
III. How utterly foolish anxiety is
Jesus tells us that worry will not add a single hour to our life. And we went a little further to say that just the opposite is true. It is actually deleterous to our livelihood. You may remember that we applied this specifically to the fear of man too. And we showed how our anxiety over other people’s thoughts was nothing but folly.
So, since it is unproductive at best, and most likely counterproductive to anything we hope to accomplish, we should lay aside our fretting. The best thing we can do is simply concentrate on what the Lord thinks of us and what he calls us to do in life.
IV. How incredibly thorough God’s provision is
This is where we took up some theological botany. Jesus wanted us to look at the grass and the flowers that grow in our back yards. These things cannot move. But yet, despite how short their lifespan may be their beauty is unparalleled. God is pleased to lavish upon these little plants the fullness of his provision.
And again we say, “If that is what God does for the vegetation around us, then what concern should we have for our own well being?” Will he not see fit to use his all powerful providence to ensure that we are properly supported and supplied for in this world?
With that we come to our message for today and are ready to look at the last three reasons why we ought not to worry. The fifth reason why we ought not worry is found in verses 31-32. In verse 31 Jesus talks about how unbecoming our anxiety is.
V. How unbecoming our anxiety is [31-32]
Earlier Jesus said that anxiety was foolish. Here He’s pointing out that it is pagan.
He says, “Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things.”
What’s Jesus saying? He’s saying this kind of attitude that is consumed with these basic necessities and frets and worries over them is not Christian. It’s heathen. It’s how Gentiles or unbelievers act.
Now, Jesus mentions our worldly goods, such as our cloths, our food, and how we will obtain them. But recognize that he’s just dealing with basic necessities here. And it stands for anything that has to do with our future.
When you are anxious about the future, you are not acting like a Christian. You are acting like someone who does not know God and is not antiquated with the sovereign power he has over time and creation.
That’s why it is unbecoming of a Christian. Unbelievers are ones who don’t understand that there is a divine being in complete control over every event that ever happens in this world. For them there is no plan, there is no providence. For the God denier tomorrow is always hanging in the balance of chance and chaos.
And so one of the reasons why we need to not worry is because it is simply incompatible with our identity. We are people who are supposed to know that our future is safely in the hands of God.
As a Christian, we should know that even in the mist of our failure, God is still sovereign. We have the sure consolation that our Lord is constantly working all things for the good of those who love him and are called according to his purpose. Everything that happens in this world is being coordinated by the Almighty and it is specifically designed for our advancement, growth, and further establishment in this world and the next.
So, are you worried about your kids. Will they be healthy? Will they be successful? Will they walk with the Lord when they are older? Will they get into some kind of mischief? What’s going to happen to them?
This is why you get helicopter moms & dads. They become control freaks and are overly protective. They cannot allow their children to face any kind of risk. Because, so they think, what will happen? There’s no safety net beyond the fence I’ve erected for them.
This is the real joy that Christian Parenting offers. When it comes to our kids, we don’t need to have the Gentile heart. We can trust that the God who loves us will take care of our families as well. We trust that God will be sovereign over our failure and our lack of expertise. Their safety is not guaranteed by our pains and feeble attempts to rear them. Praise God!
What is there about our future that should scare us or give us any pain of concern? Every detail of our lives, from beginning to end, has already been planned out. And if we are not living in light of that fact, then we will be just as miserable as an unbeliever.
Thank God we don’t though!
Verse 32 is ripe with truth. Because it not only tells us how unbecoming anxiety is, but it also tells us how great our God is.
VI. How Great God is
And this is the sixth reason why we ought not to worry: Our God is simply grand.
Look at what Jesus says. He says, “Don’t be anxious about what you will eat or drink or wear, because your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.”
I believe that John Gill sums it up best in his commentary. He says, “Every word [here], carries in it an argument, to strengthen the faith of God's children, to encourage them to believe, that he will bestow upon them, whatever is needful:
- he is a "father", and will take care of his children;
- He is "your father"; thus they have interest in him, being related to him, and need not doubt of his paternal care, and affectionate regard to them:
- He is our "heavenly" Father, or their Father in heaven; who has all things at his command, who sits there, and does whatever he pleaseth on earth:
- He also "knows that we have need"; he knows all things, all our straits, difficulties, wants and necessities; he knows our need every day, "all these things", food and raiment, and cannot do without them: and therefore we may depend upon it, that as it is in his power to relieve us.
Now that is a whole sermon in and of itself. But it all boils down to one thing. It boils down to who our God is. And when you understand who God is you understand how great he is. Because there’s none like him. There’s no one else who is as loving. There’s no one else who has the supreme degree of knowledge that he does. There’s no one who can even begin to match the power he has over the heavens and the earth under it.
And the reason why people get anxious and worry is because they make God out to be too cruel and too small.
You know, this is why one of the greatest things you can do when you are anxious (or tempted to be anxious) is to sing. Pull out an old hymnal or put on your headphones and crank up some music that lifts up God. Because there’s no possible way to be anxious when you are reveling in the fact that the God of the universe is your father. When you are contemplating the utter extents of his love for you, there’s not room for any kind of worry.
And when you are singing about how awesome God is as he sits upon his heavenly throne room, it is really impossible to be unsettled about how this or that detail of life is going to work out.
I’m not sure that I know any songs that magnify the knowledge of God. But at least you can think that his understanding is unsearchable. And since he knows us so intimately, we can praise him that every detail of our life is, as it were, his highest concern.
With that we come to the seventh and last reason that Jesus gives us. He not only has shown us how unbecoming our anxiety is (befitting only of unbelievers) and how great our God is, but he ends his argumentation by telling us how full today is.
VII. How full today is
Look at verse 34. It says, “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”
Jesus is laying out here how much we really could worry about. We could spend our time worrying about what is going to happen tomorrow. Of course, most of what we come up with probably won’t come true. As a matter of fact, we might not even live til tomorrow. So why would you bother about it?
The idea is that today is the day that God has given us. Today has enough trouble to worry about. Why borrow trouble, as they say?
I actually like the older versions better on this verse. The ESV and many other more contemporary versions say, “Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” But the older versions are probably a little more accurate in their rendering of the passage. They will say something like, “Sufficient unto today is the evil thereof.” The Greek word is technically “badness.”
Of course, that can mean trouble. I’m not saying there is a mis-translation. I’m simply saying that a lot of our concerns can revolve around evil.
Isn’t that one of the main things that troubles us? Why did he do that? What made her say that? What’s going to happen now that this person has sinned against me in this way?
Now you can go further and think about how all of it is going to spill over into tomorrow or the next week. Or you can add in all the sins and evils that might come along tomorrow. Or you can simply dwell in the here and now.
Again, this is the beauty of being a Christian. God calls us to be the supreme existentialist. We are to live in this moment. Sure we are to plan for the future and be wise about what things need our attention. But our main concern is on what God requires of me at this moment.
So, if there is some evil or trouble that is impending, how must I respond to it? Does it require me to act and what action should I take if it does? Do I need to confront someone? Or is it something that needs overlooked? Should I not bother with it or let it bother me? If there’s nothing that can be actively done about it right at this moment, I’m going to turn my attention to something else. I’m going to do these math problems and finish my homework. I’m going to get the living room picked up. This math homework is to be my current concentration. Tidying up this living room, that is what God wants me to occupy my mind with at this moment.
Do you see what the Lord is talking about? Today is the day that demands your attention. What at this moment are you required to do? It certainly isn’t sitting there and stewing on the problems. You either act to solve the problem or you put it in God’s hands until that time when you are able to take action.
So that’s what you need to tell yourself. I am thinking about things that are out of my control. Lord, forgive me for dwelling too much upon the things of tomorrow. Help me to focus upon (whatever it is at this time that needs my attention).
Conclusion
And that begins to get us into what we are going to tackle next time. We still have one verse left to look at. It’s verse 33, which says “Seek first the kingdom of God and all these things will be added unto you.” And we are going to look at that as the answer to our third and final question in regards to anxiety: How do we prevent ourselves from lapsing? How is it that we can keep ourselves from becoming anxious or falling into the temptation to be anxious?
Here today we have sought to answer the question: Why should we not worry? And I hope you see that Jesus has given us many sound reasons. And they, of course, are more than just arguments telling us to stop being anxious. These are the things that we are to put in mind.
As we have seen, anxiety occurs when our minds are distracted and our hearts are divided. And the information we have is the baseline for our thought life. These truths are set before you to help you become singular in your focus. As we’ve said before, Is. 26:3 is the guide for all that Jesus has set forward here. He keeps him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed upon Jehovah.
When your mind is stayed upon his greatness as an omnipotent and loving Father who knows all about you, and when you heart is fixed on the fact that He is the one who governs and sustains all creation by his almighty hand--Most of all, when you concatenate all those grand ideas upon this day, you will have incredible peace.