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A passage in the book of Job reads, "Man is born for trouble, as sparks fly upward." Trouble is certain and trouble is relentless. Life is dangerous. The only certain thing about life is that we are all going to die.
Life is a terminal illness. Life is a fatal disease. Life is a deadly disease. One hundred years from now, none of us will be around; that's inevitable. But there are other things beside impending death that can frighten us in life, such as terrorist attacks, mass shootings and escalating tensions. Do you know that over a billion people have died in wars? Sixty million people will die this year; 15 million from heart disease, 10 million from cancer. Fifteen thousand children die every day. Four thousand people die every day from accidents on highways. If you think the COVID pandemic is bad, in the Black Death, 75 million people died.
John Kelly wrote a book titled, "The Great Mortality: An Intimate History of the Black Death, the Most Devastating Plague of all time." In it he writes, "Corpses were packed like lasagna in municipal plague pits, collection carts were winding through early morning streets to pick up the previous day's dead, husbands abandoned dying wives and parents abandoning dying children for fear of contagion. Knots of people crouched over latrines and sewers inhaling the noxious fumes in hopes of inoculating themselves against the plague. Dusty roads were packed with panicked refugees. Ghost ships crewed by corpses. For a moment, in the middle of the 14th century, millions of people across Eurasia began to contemplate the end of civilization, and with it, perhaps, the end of the human race."
Thank God that in his providence, we have not experienced that kind of plague again. What we face today is pale to that. For those who do not know the Lord Jesus Christ, for those who have no hope after death, it is reasonable to fear. It is reasonable to be concerned about death.
But what about those who belong to the family of God? How do we respond to these things? What is our perspective to be? The word of God says the Lord is a stronghold in the day of trouble. God lifts me up like a rock. He is my hiding place. He preserves me from trouble. I sought the Lord and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears. The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, and rescues them. The Lord saves those who are brokenhearted and those crushed in spirit. He is our strength in times of trouble. Cast your burden upon the Lord and he will sustain you. Such protection is promised to God's people. He promises to care for us as we live out the rest of our days as God has ordained.
When you come to the N.T. the Lord is gathering his people and promises blessings. Part of those promises are found in Matthew 6:25-34. Three times in that passage Jesus says don't worry, don't worry, don't worry. He actually says, don't worry, stop worrying, and don't start worrying, by changing the form of the verb. If you are worrying, stop. If you're not yet worrying, don't start. And generally, don't worry, don't be anxious. The term has the idea of excessive concern. Don't be concerned for your life. Why would you worry about your life if you belong to God? Don't be concerned about your temporal life meaning what you eat or drink or wear. Don't be concerned about the necessities of life. You belong to God. You are a child of God and He will make sure you have all you need. For most of us, this is simply a choice of what we will eat or drink or wear out of all the options we have available to us. In the morning we run up and down the closet to make a choice. We root through the freezer looking for what we want for dinner. But in the ancient world, food and drink and clothing were of deep concern for people. Many had to wait for the next day to see if they had enough to eat. Whether you were rich or poor, food was a worrying preoccupation. Even in the summer heat, streams would dry up and water would be of grave concern. But even in that environment, our Lord says, don't worry. Why? Don't worry because of who your Father is. Don't worry because of your family. And don't worry because of your future.
First, don't worry because who your Father is. Life is more than food and the body is more than clothing. We have to see the bigger picture. We have to get beyond the physical. We all show we are a bit afraid because we all hoard. Have we forgotten who our Lord is?
Palestine and Israel are full of birds. A book called, "All the birds of the Bible" calls Galilee the crossroads of bird migration. I am sure Jesus was looking up in the sky when he said, look at the birds; they don't store up goods for the future. Job 38:41 says, God provides for the ravens his food when his young ones cry to him. Psalm 104 says, so in this great and wide sea wherein are things creeping, innumerable both small and great beasts, they wait upon you, and you give them their food in due season. Psalm 147:9, He gives to the beast his food and to the young ravens which cry.
A.W.Pink writes, "These creatures better understand the order of creation than man does; for they seek only for that which God has provided for them, and when they receive it they are content. But man is more corrupt then these creatures for they are never content. Now I don't think this is an excuse for idleness. We are not to sit by and let the Lord deliver food to us. Even the birds don't just sit on the branches waiting for God to deliver food; they search for food constantly and continually. God provides but they have to work to acquire it. If God so cares for the birds, do you think he cares less for us? Do we really have to stockpile and hoard and in doing so forfeit a carefree heart? Life is a gift from God. If God gives it, he will sustain it. You didn't create yourself; you didn't plan to come into the world. You didn't put yourself where you are. The providence of God put you where you are and gave you life and will sustain your life for his own purposes.
Every Sunday morning our church prays, "Give us this day our daily bread." All we need to do is ask and then thank him daily. Martin Luther wrote, "God wants nothing to do with the lazy gluttonous bellies who are neither concerned nor busy. They act as if they just had to sit and wait for God to drop a roasted goose into their mouth." Yes God provides but does so by giving us the power to work. God has filled the earth with good things and they are accessible to those who are diligent. So say no to self-indulgence, say no to self-security, say no to hoarding, and say yes to God's provisions with confidence. But what about our health concerns?
V.27: Can worry add a cubit to your life? One cubit is 18 inches. People are almost obsessed in our culture with sustaining life and health. Never has there ever been a culture so bent on exercise for the sheer fact of exercise alone. People want to shape up because they fear death.
People are making incredible investments in natural drugs and concoctions to sustain their lives. I am all for quality of life but in doing so, I am reminded that I cannot add a cubit to my span of life nor can I grow another 18 inches except around my middle. Jesus is saying you can't worry yourself into a longer life. In fact you can worry yourself into a shorter life. Worry affects circulation, the heart, the glands and the whole nervous system. I never met anyone who died of overwork but some people have died as a result of worry.
What about my clothing? V.28-30: Look at the lilies. Through a microscope they have an incredible texture and beauty and color that exceeds the most expensive garment you can buy. That flower has an exquisite weaving from God. If God is going to take care of the flowers, don't you think he will take care of you? Flowers don't live very long, do they? If God cares for something that doesn't live long, will he not much more clothe you? These arguments are from the lessor to the greater. If God cares for the insignificant things, will he not take care of you? The sum of it is clear. God is your Father, your heavenly Father and like any faithful father he will feed and clothe his beloved children. To doubt that is to express the sin of unbelief. It is a sin to have a lack of faith. Not trusting God is a sin. Learn to believe his love, his care, his power, his abilities and his promises.
Second, don't worry because of your family v.31. The word Gentile is key. You're not a heathen. You're not a pagan. You are not part of the kingdom of darkness. You're not an outsider. It is thus useless to worry. You haven't rejected your heavenly Father. People outside the kingdom live for what they eat, drink and wear. They have reason to worry about their supply because they are on their own. They have no promise of a protector or a provider. V.32 says they seek it with all their energy. But we are to be different. We are in God's family and God assures us a full supply of everything we need. The world makes their choice, they won't serve God but they will serve money. Money is their ultimate god and they pursue it with all their power. Are the sons of the King to conduct themselves like the devil's beggar? Do I face life like a Christian, like a member of the family of God or like a pagan? When things get difficult, how do I react, by fear and doubt as if it all depended on me, or with joy and confidence because I know it is in God's hands?
Our Father rules the universe and he has loaded our planet with amazing wealth and life. Even a virus can't stop God from providing. Worry assumes God is not there, or that God doesn't care, or that God is there but doesn't care or that God is there but can't do anything about it because he lacks the power. But v.32 says, God knows you need these things and v.33 says, all these things will be added to you.
So don't worry because of who your Father is and don't worry because of your family and lastly, Third, don't worry about your future v.34. This is the third time our Lord said don't worry. Don't worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Don't start worrying about tomorrow. It is wise to prepare for the future but unwise to worry about the future. How many times have you sung, Great is thy Faithfulness? It comes from Lamentations 3, "The Lord's loving kindnesses indeed never cease, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. The Lord is my portion says my soul therefore I have hope in him." Worry is a powerful force. It can steal your joy. It can rob you of contentment. It can destroy your testimony with others. It can fill you with anxiety and fear. It can even cause panic attacks. Some of us don't have anything to worry about today so we start looking in the future to find something to worry about. Tomorrow will take care of itself. God but gives us strength for the present day. To anticipate trouble is to face it without the grace to endure it, because you're not there yet. You don't have tomorrow's grace today. Fear is a liar. Fear tells you your future is not under control. Don't cripple the present by worrying about the future. So worry is a forbidden sin. It is incompatible with the fact that God is your Father, that you are a member of his family, and that he will care for your future. V.33 says, seek first His kingdom. Like the prayer, your kingdom come, your will be done. Use your energy to seek His kingdom, not the temporal things of the world. In this text, you have three negative commands and one positive command. Don't worry, don't worry, don't worry and seek His kingdom. This is a time for believers to rise above the fray and the panic. This is the time for all believers to demonstrate our trust in the Lord and to thank him for being our Father, making us part of his family and for the promises He made us about our future.
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The Rev. Dr. James Barnes is currently the pastor of White Memorial Church in Milroy.