Wednesday Worship

WHY YOU DON’T HAVE TO WORRY

Posted 5/20/2011 | By: R W Glenn (our pastor)

In Matt 6:25-34, Jesus commands us not to worry. A command! This is why I've said elsewhere that worry is a sin. If Jesus commands us not to worry, then to worry is to break his commandment.

But this doesn't mean that you should understand Jesus to be irritated with you over your worry, as if he's saying, "Why don't you worry warts get with the program?! Instead, the command not to worry is what I call a "comfort command," like, "Don't cry," or "Feel better," or "Be safe."

So Jesus is commanding us not to worry. Worry is a sin. It is the fruit of misplaced values and hidden pride. But Jesus is also saying, "You don't have to worry. You don't have to be afraid." Jesus is saying that once you see what God is like and all he is for you through the gospel, your worry will evaporate.

And I've chosen the word "evaporate" very carefully. I had originally written "vanish," but vanish carries the connotation of something that takes place instantaneously. Overcoming worry doesn't work like that. Worry is overcome (like most of the sin in our lives) through a process. As you see all that God is for you in the gospel, slowly but surely your anxiety will dry up. Get clear on this, and you'll begin to make a dent in your worry.

This, incidentally, is why so many other methods we use to comfort ourselves and others come up short: (1) thoughtless optimism, a kind of carelessness: "Don't worry. Be happy. Everything's gonna be alright."; (2) logic and the stasticial improbability of such-and-such a thing happening to you; (3) distraction: "You've got to do something to get your mind off it." (4) Planning and scheming to show that you have things more under control than you thought; (5) tell others you'll always be there for them no matter what happens (you don't know this for sure).

None of these approaches provide real encouragement because none of them directs us to the gospel. But Jesus, the master teacher and gospel preacher knows better. He gives us two reasons, rooted firmly in all God is for us in the gospel, for why we don't have to worry.

1. God is in control of all of life...which includes your life.

Verse 25 says he gave you your life. And if he gave you this big thing (life itself), won't he also give you the small things (food and clothing)?

Verse 26 says he takes care of the birds; therefore, he'll take care of you.

Verse 27 says that he ordains the number of your days. You are invincible until God takes you out.

And vv 28-30 says that he clothes the grass of the field; therefore, he'll clothe you.

And I would argue that deep down, we all have a sense of this - of God's care for us. Nature tells it to us. We see it every day, if we're looking, as Jesus is so quick to point out with birds and grass.

2. The God who is in control of your life is your heavenly Father.

This is even more significant than the first point because if we don't join the sovereignty of God with his other attributes - his compassion, mercy, grace, and love - then we will fear that the things he's bringing into our lives are happening to hurt or destroy us. But when we know that the God who is in control of our lives is also our loving, merciful, compassionate heavenly Father, everything changes.

Pagans (the Gentiles Jesus is talking about) don't have this assurance. They don't have a heavenly father. They are orphans, subject to the whims of capricious gods who make Pagans cut themselves and ultimately destroy themselves...for nothing. And because they are orphans, they are anxious about what they will eat and drink and wear, looking for security in providing for themselves because they know that nobody else will.

But Christians are not orphans! We are the children of the heavenly Father - a father who knows what we need before we ask him.

Now this doesn't mean that we will never face adversity, but what it does mean is that whatever difficulties we face come with the consent and knowledge of a father who deeply loves us.

The root of our fear is that we do not believe that we are beloved to the heavenly Father. You worry because you don't believe you are his child; because you do not see him as your daddy. Want proof? Look to the cross! And there you will see the Father's costly love ever and always demonstrating his commitment to you as his child. "You are more valuable than many sparrows," Jesus said. In fact, you are so valuable to the Father that he paid the ultimate price to rescue you. That's love you can count on!