Casting Worry Goodbye. Matthew 6:24AMP
During World War 1, A French soldier used to carry this writing to help him overcome worry: Of two things, one is certain. Either you are at the front, or you are behind the lines. If you are at the front, of two things one is certain. Either you are exposed to danger, or you are in a safe place. If you are exposed to danger, of two things, one is certain. Either you are wounded, or you are not wounded. If you are wounded, two things, one is certain. Either you recover or you die. If you recover, there is no need to worry. If you die, you cannot worry. So why- worry?
This was Jesus's perspective on worry. -Why worry?
Jesus asked his disciples, “How can we cast worry goodbye?”
Worry is an anxious or fearful state of mind. Worry causes increased muscle tension, upset stomach, anxiety, and depression, which leads to more serious health problems.
Matthew 6:24AMP “No one can serve two masters; for 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 God and mammon [money, possessions, fame, status, or whatever is valued more than the Lord].
MSG “You can’t worship two gods at once. Loving one god, you’ll end up hating the other. Adoration of one feeds contempt for the other. You can’t worship God and Money both.
Chronic worriers often suffer low self-esteem. The Greek word for worry means to be inwardly divided or distracted. Worry is a divided mind vacillating between doubt and faith.
Hear this, The English word worry comes from an Anglo-Saxon word meaning, to choke or strangle.
Personally, I like the beatitude, that says, blessed is the man who is too busy to worry during the day, and too sleepy to worry at night.
Jesus is about to make a profound statements that if applied, has the ability to dramatically change your life! -So let’s look farther at the next verse.
Matthew 6:25AMP “Therefore I tell you, stop being worried or anxious (perpetually uneasy, distracted) about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, as to what you will wear. Is life not more than food, and the body more than clothing?
I believe Jesus is stating, I Am more than... I Am more than what you need...I Am word, I Am Spirit, I Am Life...I Am real life, I Am Eternal life, and it flows from Me!
John 6:63NIV The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life.
Charlie Brown and Linus were sitting around talking one day. Charlie said to Linus, “I worry about school a lot.” He thought a little longer, and then said, “I worry about worrying so much about school.” And upon further reflection, he concluded, “my anxieties have anxiety!”
In Matthew 6:25, Jesus says, therefore, I tell you, do not worry.
He doesn’t mean, we shouldn't have a normal sense of duty, pressure, and concern that makes us strive for excellence and keeps us from being careless.
He doesn't mean to have a carefree attitude that makes no plans for the future. The old English translation of this phrase “take no thought for tomorrow” can be misunderstood.
Jesus means we are not to be obsessed with fear about physical provisions, because worry reduces our entire lives down to the “things” we possess. Life is more than the material. Life is “more”, Jesus says, more than food and clothes.
Matthew 6:26...Jesus then tells us to “look at the birds of the air...
Worry is conquered when we learn from nature. Creation testifies to two things, God's eternal power, and his divine nature and, Romans 1:20.
-The point is not that we don't need to work. Work is a fundamental part of life. P.H Even birds go out every day and gather food, they build nest, and they migrate during inclement weather.
Birds don't wait for God to drop food in their beaks! But they don't fret about provisions. In a sense, they trust God's providence as a matter of instant. Birds don’t store away food in barns.
In Matthew 6, time and time again through out the, Sermon On The Mount, Chapter 5-7. Jesus emphasizes, a greater relationship God has with us, then with the birds of the air, or any other created being!
Jesus stresses, Are you not much more valuable than they?
Then Jesus states, “Who of you by worrying, can add a single hour to his life?
The fact is worry is more likely to lessen one's lifespan, then extend it. -To trust God is enough!
Here are three lessons Jesus gave us, to kick the worry habit:
Sort out you worry.
We worry about 3 things:
Treasures.
That’s what this evenings text points out. “Serve God, not money.”
B. We worry about time.
Every day, God deposits into our lives, 24 hours, or 1,440 minutes, or 86,400 seconds.
Ecclesiastes 3:1, Teaches us that there is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven.
Ephesians 5:16 states, “we are to redeem the time...for the days are evil.”
Once a lonely frog consulted a fortune-teller, he was told not to worry. “You are going to meet a beautiful young girl,” she said, “and she will want to know everything about you.”
“That's great!” said the excited frog. “When will I meet her?“
“Next semester,” said the psychic, “In the biology class!”
One more thinking on time:
A Couple in their 90s went to a restaurant and were told they would have to wait for one hour. “Young man, we’re 90 years old, we may not have an hour.” -They were seated immediately!
C. We worry about transitions.
Life moves in seasons. We grow through the seasons of childhood, adolescence, young adulthood, middle-age, and finally our senior years.
“This I know, worry will keep you from doing what God has for you to do, and from moving through those transitions.” P.H
Some people get stuck in the stage and fail to move on. Others worry about whether they will be able to handle a futures transition, so their fear keeps them from taking the challenge.
2. See the futility of worry.
You have to know three things about worry.
Worry is an exercise in futility.
Worry won’t pay the bills, secure a job promotion, restore a marriage, control your children, heal sickness, or make you happy.
Here are the facts about what we worry about:
40 percent on things that will never happen.
30 percent on things about the past that can’t be changes.
12 percent on criticism by others, mostly untrue.
10 percent on health, which gets worse with stress.
8 percent about real problems that we will figure out how to handle.
2. Worry is a luxury you can’t afford.
Worry is a contributing factor in high blood pressure, arthritis, heart disease, and ulcers.
Luke 21:34 Be careful, Jesus cautioned, or your hearts will be weighted down with dissipation, drunkenness, and the anxieties of life...
3. Worry neutralizes your faith.
1 John 5:4 proclaims that, Faith overcomes the world...
Hudson Taylor was one of the earliest missionaries to China. He gave this excellent advice to those who were excepting the challenge of missionary work:
“Let us give up our work, our thoughts, our plans, ourselves, our lives, our loved ones, our influence, our all, right into God's hand, and then, when we will have given all over to him, there will be nothing left for us to be troubled about.”
3. Surrender your worry.
Again, Worry stops the hand of God, Worry slips faith in the face. -Worry is an insult to faith. Worry is contempt to faith -Worry is a negative way for some money soul to get attention.
1 Peter 5:7 Peter tells us, “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”
Picture yourself throwing the entire of your worries all the way to heaven, and letting God take care of them.
Benediction. “Lord, I cannot carry the weight of this worry, and I don't know what to do about the situation. I've done everything I know to do and everything that is in my power. Now I surrender the situation to you. I will rest in you and stand back in amazement as I watch you work out all things for my good.”
“Lord, you alone are able to do more than I ask or even think possible. I'll trust you with my life. In Jesus' name, amen.”
