The Hidden Sin of Worry
Matthew 6:25-34
Sunday, May 28th, 2006
Spring looks like it may finally be here and that means that we’re getting into wedding season. We have a couple of weddings happening soon in our church family, Kevin and Kelly and Kurt and Sarah will all be taking that step towards the rest of their lives together. I have the privilege of performing a wedding for one of my teens and I’ll be involved in two others. Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to be in or perform many weddings, and for the most part, they’re a lot of fun and it’s a great day for everyone. There is one wedding, besides my own, that really sticks out in my mind. My cousin was married shortly after Erin and I were married and he asked me to be a groomsman. The reason this wedding stands out in my mind is the conversation that we had the night before his big day. I remember sitting with him on the eve of his wedding and having a few moments to ourselves. I asked how he was doing, he was looking a little pale, which under the circumstances, was not unusual. He said fine, and then after a brief pause, he began to unload. What if this happens, what if I forget what I’m supposed to say, what if the singers forget the words, what if she doesn’t like my vows, what if my tux isn’t right, what if I faint, what if…and on and on he went. He was picturing in his mind all of the possibilities of what could go wrong on the biggest day of his life. In my mind I’m thinking that he should just be content that he convinced someone to love him, but being the wise and compassionate older cousin that I was, I told him that he needed to focus on one thing. He had a wonderful woman who had agreed to spend the rest of her life with him and even if everything that could go wrong did, at the end of the day, they would be husband and wife, and that was all that mattered.
He finally calmed down to the point where he could function and the next day went perfectly smooth, not a single bump in the road. All of the anxiety, all of the fears had been for nothing.
How often is that the case in our lives? This morning we are going to be looking at an area that affects each and every one of us. Worry. Most of us are pretty good at this. We worry about people, money, jobs, and possessions…Constantly asking what if?...
To worry is to dwell on a past or future event over which you have little or no control and to allow feelings of uneasiness and uncertainty to affect other areas of your life.
It’s when we focus our thoughts and attention on something that has not even happened, and that probably won’t even happen. Yet, it consumes our minds and keeps us from living the kind of life that God calls us to in our relationship with Him through Jesus. Worry can rob a believer of their joy.
In the parable of the sower that’s found in Mark chapter 4, Jesus is telling the story of a farmer who went out to plant some seeds. The seeds fell in many different places and that affected whether or not it grew and produced a crop. One of the places that the seeds fell was among thorns and listen to what Jesus said happened to that seed.
18 Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; 19 but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful.
Jesus likens our worries to thorns that attack something good and healthy and choke the life right out of it. In fact, the word that we get our word worry from, in the old English, meant to strangle, or to choke. And that’s what worry can do in our lives. Worry will have an effect on every area of our lives and when it comes to your relationship with God, worry keeps us from being fruitful in our walk. It distracts and detracts from the work that God wants to do in us and it can keep us from the work that He wants to do through us.
Jesus now, turns his attention to this issue and he lets the listener know in no uncertain terms that worry is not only futile, it’s wrong, and it’s a sin in the life of a Christian. It’s an issue that can be easy to hide, for most, it’s a hidden sin, but for everyone sitting within the sound of my voice, worry has played some role in your life.
Read 6:25-34
Jesus begins this section with the word therefore. Now, the first rule of Bible reading and study, that I’m sure may of you have heard, is that if there’s a therefore, you need to see what it’s there for. This is a word that always connects two thoughts. The following is being said because of what was just said previously. The “therefore” in verse 25 refers back to the three decision issues that Jesus has just pointed out in the previous paragraph. Where we decide to store our treasure; here or in heaven. What we decide to put before our eyes, and who we decide to serve, God or men. Now, assuming that you have made the right choice in these three matters, you are focused on heaven, striving for purity, and seeking to serve God, then you need to understand that God is going to take care of you and you need to trust Him in your life and set aside your needless worrying.
PS 37:23 If the LORD delights in a man’s way, he makes his steps firm; PS 37:24 though he stumble, he will not fall, for the LORD upholds him with his hand.
If you make right choices in who you live your life for, God will lead and guide and protect and so Jesus says, “Do not worry about your life.”
Now, we have to be careful here to take this passage as Jesus intended it to be taken, as a wonderful reminder of God’s provision and faithfulness and not as an excuse to just sit back and let whatever may happen to you happen. A number of years ago there was a popular song, don’t worry, be happy. The premise was that you could sit back and let life happen to you and just take what comes and be happy. In this song, if you had no money, couldn’t pay rent, had no job, eh who cares, just smile and it will all work out in the end. For the Christian, the call not to worry encompasses those times when you lose your job and when money is tight, but it is not a call to sit by and wait to see what happens. Gary is looking for a job. I know that he is trusting God to provide, but that doesn’t mean that he sits around and does nothing and expects God to move a company to call him out of the blue. Could God do that? Absolutely. Will He? Most likely not. God will provide, but it will probably be through contacts that Gary goes out and makes. Most of the time he will work through your efforts. We’re to do what we can and trust God for the results, not worrying about what is out of our control.
There are two things that Jesus is not saying in this passage.
1) Don’t worry does not mean don’t plan.
There will come a day when I will retire. Most likely. Now, I know people who worry on a daily basis about what their retirement will be like and if they will have enough to survive. I also know people on the opposite end who have made no plans and have saved nothing and get by with the mantra, God will provide. He will provide, but he may be providing now and if you don’t plan and save and invest wisely, then you have squandered his provision. Trusting God does not mean that we don’t do those things that He has given us the ability to do to provide and plan for the future. Trusting God means doing what we can, planning as well as we can and trusting Him to honor and bless that.
PR 6:6 Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise! PR 6:7 It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, PR 6:8 yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest.
The ant plans ahead and because of that, it has what it needs when it needs it. We should do the same.
2) Don’t worry does not mean don’t be concerned.
When you leave on a trip, you lock your door. If you have a security system, you arm it. You may even ask a neighbor to keep an eye on your house while you are gone. You are concerned about protecting your things. That’s legitimate. Some of you wait up for your children when they are out at night. You are concerned for their safety, that’s a legitimate concern and part of your job as a parent. Now if your whole vacation you sit inside and worry if the house is alright, or if you lock your child in the basement because something could happen to them out there, that moves beyond concern into the realm of needless worry. Dwelling on something that is out of your control and allowing it to eat at you and consume your thoughts to the point that it effects every area of your life.
So, Jesus’ command is not a call to laziness or apathy or carelessness or indifference. We still do what we can do, we plan, and we act on those things that are legitimate concerns in our lives. What it is, is a command to keep the sin of worry out of your life by giving to God those things that you can’t control and by focusing on kingdom priorities and not things that are of no benefit to us in the long run.
So, we know that worry is not a good thing, we know we’re not supposed to do it, but what is it that makes worry a sin.
I. It’s Irreverent
The issue of worry in our lives reveals that we don’t have a proper understanding of who God is and what He is capable of, or we simply don’t have the faith to put that belief into practice. Read the first few chapters of Genesis, what picture do you get of God? You see the power of God, to speak things into existence, to create with a word. You see also, the provision of God as he makes man in His image and walks with him in the garden pointing out all of the things that he has created just for his pleasure and well-being. The earliest picture we see of God encompasses both his power and his provision. How easy it is to forget these things as we go through out lives. Worry shows that we don’t understand His power and that we aren’t trusting His provision. It’s irreverent.
Look at the examples that Jesus uses of God’s power to provide. He says that the birds don’t worry about what they will eat because God provides for them. The flowers don’t worry about how they look because God provides for them. In Luke 12:6-7 Jesus picks up on this theme and says.
6 Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. 7 Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
God is so sovereign over the universe that even the feeding of a bird falls within his concern. If God cares for these creatures and for all of his creation, how much more will he provide for those who bear his very likeness, for those whom he loved enough to send His Son to the cross for. Jesus says that we are far more valuable to God than these things. When worry begins, we need to remember who this God is that we serve. He has the hairs on our head numbered. It’s easier to do that with some people than it is for others! Why would Christ put it this way? Is it significant that he knows how many hairs are on my head? You bet it is. This says to me that God know every intimate detail of who I am, both inside and out right down to the number of hairs on my head. This is a detail that no one else could ever know but the Father who made me, who created me, who knit me together. And not only does he have that power to create, but he has made a promise to provide.
Phil 4:19 And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
Can we trust these promises?
Psalm 145:13 The LORD is faithful to all his promises and loving toward all he has made.
1 Samuel 15:29 He who is the Glory of Israel does not lie or change his mind; for he is not a man, that he should change his mind."
What God says that He will do, is already done, you can count on it. As Christians, we cannot doubt His power or His provision in our lives. Jesus says in verse 30,
If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
Worry comes down to a faith issue. Do we trust God enough to rest in Him and to surrender our problems to Him. Or will we worry about what we cannot change saying that we believe but betraying our hearts with our thoughts and actions. We need to trust. We need to cry out to God like the father of the demon possessed boy in Mark 9:24, I do believe! Lord, help me overcome my unbelief.
Trusting doesn’t leave room for worry. Jesus says not to do it because it’s irreverent.
The second reason that worry is a sin in our lives is because:
II. It’s Irrelevant
Not only does worry reveal our lack of faith and trust in God, but it does not accomplish anything for us. It is worthless in our lives.
Jesus puts it this way in verse 27 Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
There is no benefit for us. Why do it? Worry is not going to change things, it will only wreak havoc in our lives and keep us from concentrating on the things that could benefit us.
If you have a sickness in the family, worrying will not change the outcome. If you are hearing rumors about downsizing at work, worrying will not change the outcome. If you have a child who is straying from god and living for their own pleasures, worrying will not change the outcome. Worry does not change anything, it does nothing for us but it can do plenty to us. While you can’t add a moment to your life through worry, there’s the old expression that you can worry yourself to death. Worry has been linked to all sorts of health issues. Sleep problems, hair loss, ulcers, high blood pressure, all of these can be physical effects seen in a life that worries about what it cannot control.
So, Jesus says in verse 34: do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Charles Spurgeon wrote: “Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows but only empties today of its strength.”
We do not accomplish anything good through the practice of worrying in our lives. It’s irrelevant, it changes nothing. Concentrate on the things at hand, concentrate on the things that you can control and that you can plan for and leave the rest to God.
Finally, the third reason that worry is sin is that:
III. It’s Irresponsible
We have been given a charge by God. We have been given a responsibility. He tells us to go into this world and preach the gospel. We are to be advancing God’s Kingdom here on Earth. That’s why we exist. When we allow worry to become a problem in our lives, it is irresponsible because it turns us from what God has called us to do.
LK 9:62 Jesus replied, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God."
When you look back, you can’t plow straight and things don’t get done right. Worry cause us to look back, worry cause us to look all around at all of the things that could happen in our lives instead of looking straight ahead towards what God promises will happen in our lives.
Extreme skiing has become very popular in the last few years. This is where skiers will ski down slopes that were thought to be impossible to ski. The November 1999 issue of Outside magazine, in an article entitled “The Trees: Lovely, Dark, and Deep,” says that one of the favorite extremes of skiers is running through a stand of trees after a fresh, deep snow. It is obviously extremely dangerous. Tim Etchells, the writer of the article says, “What you focus your eyes on becomes critical in the woods. Look at the spaces between the trees — the exits where you hope to be traveling.” Kim Reichelm, the world champion extreme skier says, “The secret is not to stare at what you don’t want to hit.”
If you stare at the trees, if that’s your focus, you’re much more likely to hit the trees and that would be the end of your extreme skiing career. The same is true of worry in our lives. When you worry, you’re focusing on the what if’s, the things that may happen down the road or on consequences that may come from things in your past. When you’re looking at those, when you’re focusing on those, you’re missing the path between the trees. You’re missing the way out, the exits, the promises that God makes concerning you and your life. You’re much more likely to crash. Keep your eyes on god, give him your worries and learn to trust him. Don’t turn from the responsibility that He has set before to fall in to the irresponsibility of worry.
As Jesus concludes this section, he tells us what our concern should be. He tells us the path that our eyes need to be focused on. He says:
33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
The word “seek” (zeteo) means to go after; to strive; to pursue; The believer’s life is not to be preoccupied with material things, as necessary as some things are. We are not to be worrying about things that other people worry about.
Do not worry about what people think.
Do not worry about what people say.
Do not worry about what you’ll wear or what you’ll eat.
But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness. Seek to live a life that pleases God in everything that you do. When that describes your life, worry is going to be a thing of the past and it will be replaced with a peace that can only come from the knowledge, not just a head knowledge but a deep abiding belief, that God is in control and God will provide.
Concern yourself only with the things that God desires and with pleasing Him, understanding that worry is irreverent, it’s irrelevant, and it’s irresponsible, and see the difference that will make in your life as you tackle the sin of worry.
Most of us know the promises that God makes. We’ve read them, we’ve memorized many of them, but we fail to trust them, to believe them, and to let them truly impact our lives.
We had someone mow the lawn for us this week. I told Alex that I wouldn’t use him as an illustration this week so, I’m not going to tell you that it was him. Anyways, he mowed the entire lawn, spent about an hour and a half on the tractor riding all around and singing, loudly and off-key to his walkman. The next day, Tom mowed the church yard and when you looked at our yard compared to the freshly mowed church, something just didn’t look right. See, Alex forgot to drop the blade. It was there, it was spinning, but it was useless because was never put in the right position to mow. He basically spun His wheels for an afternoon and accomplished nothing.
When we worry, we’re mowing the grass with the blade up. God’s power is available, the power is there, but we’ve been distracted from engaging the blade and what God wants to accomplish in our life fails to get done. I want to close this morning by giving you just a few of God’s promises that if we believe, and trust, and take Him at his word, would eliminate the hidden sin of worry in our lives. We’ve already seen that He is faithful and that He does not lie and these are four areas that He gives us promises in that can help us fight worry in our lives.
1) Power
Exodus 14:14 The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still."
ISA 40:29 He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. ISA 40:30 Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall;
ISA 40:31 but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
2 Thes 3:3 But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.
2) Provision
2 Cor 9:88 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.
2PE 1:3 His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises,
Phil 4:19 And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
3) Protection
PS 91:14 "Because he loves me," says the LORD, "I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. PS 91:15 He will call upon me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.
And because we believe that He will give us these three things that He promises, we can be assured that we will have this last thing.
4) Peace
John 14:27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
Phil 4:7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus.
When worry begins to creep in, engage the blade, claim these promises and let God work in your life and change your life as you trust in Him.
