Choose Worry or God
Matthew 6:25-34
Once there was a man who worried
a lot. One day he thought he solved this problem. He gave a visit to his friend and said:
“Well, as you know I have
always been one to worry. I have decided
that this is both unwise and unhealthy, so I have hired someone to do my
worrying for me.”
“But how much does this
cost?” asked his friend.
“Oh, about $1000 a week.” the
man replied.
“But how can you afford to
pay to this man who worries for you?” asked his friend.
“That’s his worry,” was the
answer.
I wish we could solve the problem
of worry in this simple way. We cannot.
We all go through this,
worrying. We worry about big things and
little things; we worry about the future and about the past, “I wish I did not
do this or that.” We worry about the
economy these days: jobs, home payments.
When we were poor, we worried about finances. As we became richer, we are still worrying
about finances.
In SF, we worry about earthquakes.
We worry about our future, our
children’s future. Some worry almost about
anything.
Jesus knew that we constantly
fall in this trap, and therefore challenged his disciples. Life is full of surprises. Everyday something new will happen. Worry will not change the circumstances.
Things will happen; the problem is in us, in our
minds, inside us.
So the first things we need
understand is that worry is not based on external
circumstances, but is an inner condition. Last week I said that the Holy Spirit
comes and gives us a new mind—the mind of Christ. It seems when we are too worried, we do not
allow God’s Spirit to keep us focused on Jesus. This is destructive and not good for our
Christian growth.
Let us look at the Biblical passage.
It has a wonderful outline:
It starts with the word therefore
meaning that this passage is related with the previous one. The previous passage says that one cannot
serve God and money; one cannot have two masters. Jesus is not talking against money. No, Jesus is saying, “Enough with serving
money. Enough with collecting
treasures on earth which rust and moth will destroy. Prioritize your life. Seek something more than
the material.”
1- God, who gave us life,
will take care of us.
The word of worry in Greek is
merimnan, which means to worry anxiously. The same word is used by Paul in a positive
way when he writes to the
Therefore, trust God. IF God gave us life, surely we can trust Him
for our food, clothing and everything. Trust
God.
Please notice, that people
were poor when these things were said. Jesus
is not addressing disciples who were wealthy. Jesus is telling even the poor who are struggling
for everyday survival to focus on more important things in life.
2- We can learn from
nature
Jesus gives the example of
birds. They work but they do not
worry. Birds work hard. They plan a nest for their eggs, they make
their nests and they go find the food to feed their chicks. So Jesus is not against working or planning. Yet, Jesus is saying, “Trust God.” Birds are doing their part, but God is the one
who feeds them. God is the Provider. If God does this to the small creatures like the
birds, how about us humans? We are the
crown and ruler of creation (Psalm 8:3-8); God will surely take care of us. Do your part, and God is faithful to do His
part. Trust him.
One more notice about
worrying. Worrying cannot add more days
to your life. NIV translation is the right one: “Who of you by worrying can add a single hour
to his life?”
We will continue in English.