What to Do When You Are Worried
1 Peter 5:5-11
Sermon by Rick Crandall
McClendon Baptist Church - Oct. 8, 2008
*What are you worried about the most?
-The economy? -The election? -Or something else going on in your life?
*We know as Christians that we are not supposed to worry. Jesus tells us not to worry four times in Matthew 6 -- but we do worry. God knew that we were going to have worries in life, so in 1 Peter 5 He tells us what to do about them.
1. First: Put on a submissive, serving heart.
*As Peter said in vs. 5&6, “You younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for ‘God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.’ Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time.”
*God wants His followers to put on a servant heart with a deep sense of humility. As Peter said in vs. 5, “Be clothed with humility.” A. T. Robertson suggested that when Peter wrote those words, he may have been thinking back to the night before Jesus died on the cross. The Lord wrapped Himself in a servant’s towel and began to wash His disciples’ feet. (1)
*God wants us to have that same kind of humble attitude, and one reason why is because a humble, serving spirit will help take our mind off our worries. At least for a while we will stop being the center of our world, as we focus on the needs of others.
*Many times church members have told me about visiting someone who was homebound or sick. These servants made their visits wanting to help the people they visited, but they came away saying they got a whole lot more than they gave. When you are worried, start serving someone else. It will almost certainly help take your mind off your own problems.
2. Whenever you are worried, put on a submissive, serving heart. But also cast your cares on the Lord.
*In vs. 7 Peter tells believers to “cast all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.” The idea there is to do it quickly. Don’t wait around. Throw your cares on the Lord.
*John Piper tells us:
-This word "casting" occurs one other time in the New Testament--in Luke 19:35, in exactly the same form. It’s Palm Sunday and the disciples have been sent to get the donkey for Jesus to ride on. Then verse 35 says, "They brought it to Jesus, and casting their garments on the colt, they set Jesus on it."
-So the meaning is simple and straight forward: if you have a garment on and you want an animal to carry it for you, you "cast" the garment on the animal. In this way you don’t carry it anymore. It’s on the animal not on you. The donkey works for you and lifts your load.
-Well, God is willing to carry your anxieties the same way a donkey carries your baggage. One of the greatest things about the God of the Bible is that he commands us to let him work for us before commanding us to work for him.
-In Matt 11:28 Jesus said, "Come to me all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest" Psalm 55:22 says, "Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you." And in Isaiah 46:4 the Lord tells us, “Even to your old age I am He, and to gray hairs I will carry you. I have made, and I will bear; I will carry and will save" (2)
-“Cast all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.” Sometimes when your world is crashing in, you may be tempted to think that the Lord doesn’t care for you. But always look back to the cross! God has done a million good things for us. But if He never did another thing, the cross would be enough! Jesus died on the cross to take the full punishment for our sins. And He rose again to give eternal life to all who will trust in Him. The cross of Christ forever proves God’s care for you! “Cast all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.”
*Most of you know that our daughter Katie is a student at LSU. Katie said something last year that really inspired me. She called to tell me about how much she had been stressing out about things in her life. (You know how stressful it is to be 22!) Anyway, Katie was stressed -- but then she told me that she was praying about it. As she prayed, Katie told the Lord that she was going to imagine a box. Then she was going to put all her worries in that box and give them to Him. A little while later she caught herself worrying again, and she said, “Oh -- that goes in the box.”
*Job trouble -- that goes in the box. Financial trouble -- that goes in the box. Crumbling economy -- that goes in the box. Election worries -- they go in the box. Family problems, health issues, struggles with sin: Put them all in the box.
3. When you are worried, cast all your cares on the Lord. But also be determined to resist the devil.
*We must remember that we have a terrible, evil enemy. Peter talked about him in vs. 8&9:
8. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.
9. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.
*The devil is the reason why we have so many cares! But sadly, the truth is that a lot of people don’t even believe he’s real. Christopher Roberts told about a survey some years ago in the New York Times. At that time two thirds of Americans did not believe in the devil as a living being. Rather, they thought that he was just a “symbol of evil.” Over 150 million Americans believe that Satan is just a symbol of evil. (3)
*As believers, we should know that Satan is real. He is the number one enemy of believers in Jesus Christ. And so, we have to resist him! D.W. Whittle told about a man who came to Charles Finney and said, “I don’t believe in the existence of a devil.” The preacher replied, “Don’t you? -Well, you resist him for a while and you will believe.” (4)
*We must be determined to resist the devil. As Peter said in vs. 8, “Be sober and vigilant.” “Be self-controlled and alert,” the NIV says. And the Amplified Bible says, “Be vigilant and cautious at all times.” “Be on the alert!” Peter says. And then he tells us why.
1-First it’s because we have a determined enemy. “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.” Christian: The devil is your adversary. There are no neutrals in this war. Do not fool yourself into thinking you can somehow sit it out on the sidelines. Satan is your enemy.
2-Be on the alert because we have a determined enemy. -- And because he is a destructive enemy. Jesus said that the devil comes to steal, kill and destroy. Peter tells us that our enemy is like a lion. Lions are huge and powerful -- up to 500 pounds and 8 feet long!
*Years ago I stopped at a little country store in Georgia. Out in the parking lot they had a bobcat in a cage. -- Cute little thing. -- Only 2 or 3 times bigger than a cat. I walked over to that cage. And when I got about 3 feet away, it was like a bomb went off! That cute little cat turned into a raging monster. It was like there was a tornado in that cage. That thing was mean, vicious and wild. I wasn’t about to stick my finger in that cage and say, “Here Kitty, Kitty.”
*But a lion is 20 times bigger than a bobcat. And the devil is immeasurably more dangerous and destructive.
3-Be on the alert because we have a destructive enemy. -- And because we are in a dangerous place -- his place. We are in enemy territory tonight. Peter points us to this truth when he tells us that the devil is a roaring lion. You see, lions do not roar when they are hunting. They roar for several other reasons. But one of the main reasons they roar is to protect their territory. And this world is the devil’s territory.
*Sometimes we sing “This Is My Father’s World,” and of course that’s true. But Jesus called the devil the Prince of this world. And in a very real way he is -- at least for now. Kidnappings and murders, bombs blowing up babies, pornography crime and corruption: None of these things belong to God. The world is filled with evil. And when we see that, there should be no doubt that we are in the enemy’s territory. That’s why the Bible says that we are ambassadors for Christ, -- ambassadors serving the Lord in the devil’s territory. He does not want us here, so like a lion, he roars to scare us away.
4-Christians: Be on the alert because we are in a dangerous place. -- And because we have a deceptive enemy. Peter said that the devil is walking around seeking whom he may devour. But how does a lion hunt? Well have you ever seen a cat stalking something? That’s how a lion hunts. Most of the animals that lions eat are faster than the lion, so he must surprise his prey. Moving slowly, close to the ground, a lion stalks, creeping closer and closer. Then it rushes forward, grabs its prey and pulls it down.
*The devil is not going to walk up, tap you on the shoulder and say, “I want to devour you, if that’s O.K.” No! If he wants to devour your marriage, he will build walls between you and your spouse. And he will put you in the office with an attractive, friendly co-worker, who sympathizes about your trouble at home. One thing can lead to another. Friendship can cross over the line to attraction, and then one day, Bam! -- The trap slams shut. And he’s got you.
*If the devil wants to devour your life with alcohol. He is going to do it with slick ads showing beautiful people having a great time drinking. If he wants to devour your life from Christian service, he will stir up trouble in the church or try to discourage you or try to distract you with something else that seems perfectly harmless or even good.
*So we must stay alert! But we also must take action. As Peter said in vs. 9, “Resist (the devil), steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.” We must resist the devil. That word means to stand against. God wants us to take a stand! But how can we do that? First we stand in the faith. We can never do the work of the Lord in the strength of our flesh. It must be in the faith, as we are trusting in the Lord
*It must be in the faith, and it must be in the family, as we take a stand together. No one is singled out in vs. 9 All of us are called on to resist the devil. Peter mentions our brotherhood as believers, and that includes all Christians. We all have to resist the devil, but we never have to resist him alone.
*And God has some more great news for us in James 4:7. “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”
4. When you are worried, be determined to resist the devil. But also let God use your cares to help you grow.
*Rom 8:28 tells us that “all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” One of the good things that come from our cares is this: God can use our cares to help us grow in our faith. God can use our cares to help us be more like Jesus. So in vs. 10, Peter said, “May the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.”
*This goes along with something Peter told believers earlier in this letter:
-You “are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:5-7)
*James said, “My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.” (James 1:2-3)
*Paul said:
1. Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
2. through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
3. And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance;
4. and perseverance, character; and character, hope.
5. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us. (Rom 5:1-5)
*God can certainly use our troubles to help us grow spiritually. This is one of the best things Tim has seen over the last six months. Did you hear that in his testimony Sunday? Yes, Tim’s cancer has been the biggest battle of his life, but the Lord has used this trouble to help Tim see what really matters in life.
5. When you are worried, let God use your cares to help you grow. And take comfort that God is in control.
*Bear in mind that God is always in control! As Peter said in vs. 11, “To (God) be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.” God is in control, yesterday, today and forever!
*One day D.L. Moody was walking down the street when he came to a little girl who terrified by an approaching storm. The sky was dark and black. And the little girl said, “Brother Moody, the world is coming to an end!”
*D.L. Moody replied, “That’s all right honey. -- We can live without it. For this is not our home. We are just passing through to a better world.”
*We may get worried, but we don’t have to stay worried. God is in control.
(1) “Word Pictures in the New Testament” by A.T. Robertson - 1 Peter 5:5
(2) Adapted from SermonCentral sermon “Anxieties: To Be Cast Not Carried” by John Piper - 1 Pet 5:1-11 - June 13, 1993
(3) SermonCentral illustration Contributed by: Christopher Roberts
(4) SermonCentral illustration Contributed by: Evie Megginson
(5) SermonCentral sermon “What a Difference Easter Makes” by Evie Megginson - Acts 10:39-43
