Grace to you and abiding peace
from God the Father and Jesus Christ our redeeming Lord. Amen.
Matthew 6:24–34
24“No one can serve two
masters. Either he will hate the one and
love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon. 25“For this reason 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 than food and the body more
than clothing? 26Look at the
birds of the air. They do not sow or
reap or gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? 27“Which of you can add a single
moment to his lifespan by worrying? 28Why
do you worry about clothing? Consider
how the lilies of the field grow. They
do not labor or spin, 29but I tell you that not even Solomon in all
his glory was dressed like one of these.
30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is
alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will he not clothe you
even more, you of little faith? 31“So
do not worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What
will we wear?’ 32For the
unbelievers chase after all these things.
Certainly your heavenly Father knows that you need all these
things. 33But seek first the
kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you
as well. 34So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will care for
itself. Each day has enough trouble of
its own.” (EHV)
Dear
friends in Christ,
About thirty years ago, Bobby McFerrin had a big hit with
the little ditty, “Don’t worry; be happy!”
In the song, he tells his listeners not to worry but to stay happy no
matter what troubles might come their way because troubles come to everyone. But, while it was a catchy tune, it really
offered nothing to help anyone be happy. It just tells you to ignore your troubles and be
blissfully, mindlessly happy.
Our Lord
Jesus also tells us not to worry, but He doesn’t ask us to mindlessly ignore
our problems and just go on our way. No,
Jesus points out that there are good reasons for us never to worry about
anything. In fact, Jesus points out the
idolatry of worry, and then you might say He teaches that For
real peace, seek the kingdom of God.
In our readings
this morning, we are confronted with two sins that are one and the same
coin. In our Old Testament lesson, we
heard about Ahab’s covetousness which led to deceit, false testimony, and
murder in order to satisfy his wicked heart. Here, in our Gospel reading, Jesus teaches us
about the evil of worry. When you look
closely, you realize that both coveting and worry are really forms of
idolatry. Both make our selfish desires
our god. Both assume that our heavenly
Father isn’t providing for us as we think He should. That’s why Jesus says, “No one can serve
two masters. Either he will hate the one
and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon.” If our attentions are too firmly fixed on
piling up money and goods, we won’t treasure the marvelous riches our God has
in store for us. And, if all we care
about are the things this world might offer, we will be enslaving ourselves in
idolatrous pursuit of money and possessions.
Now, I
don’t know if any of you were ever so disheartened about not being able to
rent, or buy, a piece of your neighbor’s ground that you pouted in bed like
Ahab and wouldn’t talk or eat your supper, but how many of us have wondered if
we wouldn’t be richer if we just had a little more something? A little more land? A little better price for our crops? A little more money in the bank? A little more food in the freezer or pantry
before winter sets in? A little better
health? A little better job?
As you
listen to the news these days, gloom and imminent disaster is about all you
hear. If we don’t make this or that
change, our civilization will surely come to an end in just a few months or years. If only we would stop driving cars, or
burning coal, or having babies, or raising cattle, or whatever else they are
against, then we will have a better life—according to what the alarmists want
us to believe. Yet, every one of those
worries indicates a lack of trust in the God who created this universe and
everything in it with only the command of His voice.
Now, we
could go on and on listing all the ways we find to worry, and believe me, I am
not without fault in this, but listen to what Jesus has to say: “For this
reason 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 than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air. They do not sow or reap or gather into barns,
and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.
Are you not worth much more than they?”
Of course,
Jesus isn’t telling us not to plant our crops, and He isn’t telling us to park
the combine and sit in the shade when the harvest is ready. Certainly, good stewardship of our time and
resources requires us to do our work diligently, and being faithful to the
Father in heaven who puts us in these positions of responsibility includes being
faithful in our vocations.
But, instead
of telling us to ignore our work, Jesus is telling us that while we go about
our everyday lives of work and leisure, we should keep our hearts and minds
focused on the loving mercy of our Father in heaven. There is not an animal, bug, fish, or bird on
this planet that God does not take care of.
There is not a person on earth that God doesn’t see, not one that He
doesn’t love and have a plan to provide for.
Of course, what is certainly true is that many times the vast majority
of people let worries about finances dictate who, or whether, they will help
someone in need. Yet, God has not
forgotten those who lack. Even when we
who trust Him might have to suffer need, it isn’t because God doesn’t see
us.
Jesus
said, “Which of you can add a single moment to his lifespan by
worrying? Why do you worry about
clothing? Consider how the lilies of the
field grow. They do not labor or spin,
but I tell you that not even Solomon in all his glory was dressed like one of
these. If that is how God clothes the grass
of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace,
will he not clothe you even more, you of little faith?” Look at the beauty that surrounds us in
nature. Would a God who provides so
richly for even the plants of the fields and hills allow you, who are so
precious to Him, to go naked and cold?
Preposterous! Jesus’ question
answers itself. When we worry about
anything, we are really testifying that we don’t trust God. It is as good as saying we don’t think He
loves us.
I skipped
one little question in the middle of what Jesus said—“Are you not worth much
more than they?” Seriously, how
valuable do you think you are to God?
Little old me out here in the sticks, how much could God really care
about me? Is that what we think?
The world
doesn’t care. The world barely
recognizes my existence, much less counts me as worth its time. Is that really what God thinks of us?
Hardly. The Triune God who created all things has a
few things to say in His defense. He
says, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give
you rest.” (Matthew 11:28) He says, “Bring
the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the LORD
Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and
pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.” (Malachi
3:10) He says, “Whoever believes and
is baptized will be saved.” (Mark 16:16)
God says, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well
pleased. Listen to him!" (Matthew
17:5) And the Son, in concert with the
Father above, tells us, “Certainly your heavenly Father knows that you need
all these things. But seek first the
kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you
as well.”
St. Paul
wrote, “If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave
him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all
things?” (Romans 8:31-32) If you
want to know how much God loves and cares for you, don’t look at the car in
your garage, or the grain in your bin, or the money in your accounts. Look, instead, to the cross. Look to God’s Son being sacrificed there for
you, so that you can live in glory—dying for sins He didn’t commit—dying there
so that the Father in heaven could count you as having never sinned at
all—giving up the very life He took up to live for you so that you could be
holy in God’s eyes.
Remember
how Jesus lived for you—walking this earth confident in His Father’s care even
though He never owned a house, or a bed to sleep in, possessed only the clothes
on His back, often went hungry and cold, and in His ministry faced neighbors
and enemies who wanted to kill Him, and then, knowing that His Father would
turn His face away from Him, Jesus went willingly to be beaten and abused and
nailed to the cross and to have His blood-drained corpse lie in the grave, but
confident, on your behalf, that His Father in heaven would not abandon Him
there.
Jesus
said, “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these
things will be given to you as well.”
Seek first means to seek God and His righteousness as the primary thing
in your life. Let that be your
confidence and joy—that Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection gives your life
meaning. Cling to the love and mercy God
showed to you at your baptism when He washed away every sin, doubt, worry, and
fear that has ever troubled you, where He drowned your old flesh but raised up
a new life of faith by implanting in you a new heart of faith where before was
only stone.
Jesus
said, “So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will care for
itself. Each day has enough trouble of
its own.” Remember what Jesus told
His disciples before He went up to Jerusalem to die, “In this world you will
have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." (John 16:33)
Trouble
comes naturally in this world. The world
is cursed because of sin. This world is also
passing away—nothing you or anyone else can do will save it. The world also hates those who follow Jesus,
so expect to have trouble in this world, but expect also, the fulfillment of
Jesus’ promise, “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow
me. I give them eternal life, and they
shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand.” (John 10:27-28) God’s promise is what gives you true
riches. He gives you eternal life in
heaven, a place described as having streets of gold, a place where there is no
more trouble, sorrow, weeping, or pain.
A place where you will never again be separated from the glory of God
and the holiness of His Son. That, my
friends, is real peace. That is what we
have to look forward to, because God loves you so much that He willingly sacrificed
His own beloved Son, Jesus, so that you could live forever with Him in glory
and peace. Therefore, For real peace,
seek the kingdom of God. Amen.
Glory be
to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit; as it was in the
beginning, is now, and ever shall be, forevermore. Amen.
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