Sermon on the
(Sermon points from Feb. 7, 2010)
Matt. 6: 25-34
“Dealing with anxiety”
Jesus
comes now to the climax of what he has been teaching about the way that his
followers are to deal with material possession. The word ‘therefore’ calls
attention to what he about to say. And, what he is about to say is based upon
the arguments he has just presented.
The arguments
There
are only two directions that your life can be headed in:
1. you can focus you life around the
material/physical
2. you can focus you life around the spiritual/eternal
You
cannot be focused on both. To focus on one is to make the other secondary.
‘therefore’
Therefore,
Jesus tells us that we are not to be anxious about the physical, but put our
focus upon the spiritual/eternal, and God will provide all that we need in the
way of material/physical things.
anxiety
Since
all creation witnesses to the faithful providence of God toward his creation,
we should be assured that God will certainly provide for our needs.
To
be overly anxious is to doubt God and to question the faithfulness of God.
Those who truly know God put their trust in him. (Psalm 9:10)
‘Seek first’
Jesus
assures us that if we seek first the kingdom and the righteousness of God, then
God will take care of the rest. God certainly knows our needs. Therefore, we
are to put our trust and faith in the Lord. Worry and anxiety are indications
that we don’t really trust God; that we don’t believe his promises. This is a
sin against the Lord.
When
our focus is upon the kingdom of heaven, the other concerns and struggles of
life are covered by the faithfulness of God.
Pastor Dave