How Does Jesus Deal With Our Worry?
Text: Luke 12:22-34 Speaker: Pastor Matthew Ude Passages: Luke 12:22-34
Audio Sermon
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Luke 12:22-34
Do Not Be Anxious (Listen)
22 And he said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. 23 For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. 24 Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! 25 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?1 26 If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest? 27 Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin,2 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 28 But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! 29 And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. 30 For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. 31 Instead, seek his3 kingdom, and these things will be added to you.
32 “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. 34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
Footnotes
[1] 12:25
[2] 12:27
[3] 12:31
(ESV)
I went to visit a member once and the whole time I was at his house he had the TV on and was watching it. It was very frustrating to try and talk to this man. He obviously wasn’t paying attention to anything I was saying. How could he when he was so distracted by the TV? I’m sure there are lots of spouses out there that know how difficult it is to speak to someone who is distracted by watching the TV.
Jesus wishes to speak to us, but He knows that we are distracted by the worries of this world. Even right now at this very moment, how many of you are distracted with other thoughts? Maybe your thinking about your cows, or your cooking, or some other thing you have going on in your life. Jesus wants us to turn off the world and pay attention to His word and His kingdom.
Luke 12:32 32 “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
Of all the sins we commit against God there is none that we commit so regularly so often and so grievously as the sin of simply refusing to believe His promises. The first commandment tells us to worship the Lord our God. Luther teaches us this mean that we should fear love and trust in God above all things. But we don’t trust God’s promises. God promises to provide food and clothing. We do not believe him. God promises that we do not need to worry about money. We do not believe him. God promises that we will rise for the dead. We do not believe Him. This was the very first sin. God promised Adam and Eve that they would be better off if they did not eat from the tree. They did not believe him.
This lack of faith in God causes worry, anxiety, and fear in our life. This anxiety distracts us from what God wants us to hear. It does a far better job of distracting us than the TV. It keeps us from giving our time our energy and out attention to God and His word and the kingdom to come.
Yet Jesus knows that this sin of worry is so ingrained in our hearts than simply telling us not to do it isn’t going to do any good. I’m sure some of you are thinking that right now. “I can’t just stop being worried.” It’s like telling water to run up hill. Or like telling a rooster not to crow so early in the morning. Worry is just what we do.
So what does Jesus do? Instead of lecturing, instead of commanding, instead of yelling at us, what does Jesus do? He gives us promise after promise after promise after promise, until we learn the truth that He is our good and gracious Father in heaven, that He is our Good Shepherd, that He gave His life for us, and He will do all that He has promised.
Luke 12:32 32 “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
What is Jesus’ Goal? His goal is to remove from our hearts fear and worry about earthly things so that no longer being distracted we can focus on His kingdom and the work of His Kingdom. This is something He does for us because He knows how bad we are at doing it for ourselves. It is a thing He does with His promises.
How does Jesus deal with our worry?
One thing He reminds us in our text is:
Examine, carefully observe, take note of the lilies and the ravens. These things will teach you that you have nothing to worry about. They will prove that God is going to take care of you.
As a Pastor I’m always searching stories, examining things people say, thinking about books, and tv shows, looking for ways to use them to teach God’s word. What can we learn about God from this or that? This is exactly what Jesus is suggesting that you do in this text. Except that you don’t have to write them down into a sermon form.
The Wright brothers carefully examine the birds to learn how to fly. God wants you to just as carefully examine your surroundings for a different lesson. He wants you to see all the evidence of His gracious love and care.
Look around you. All around you are examples of God’s care and God’s love. The world is filled with example of His care and His love. Your life is filled with examples of His care and His love. See how He takes care of the ravens. See how He takes care of the lilies.
The ravens and the lilies are two examples that were easily at hand for Jesus to point to. But we don’t need to use those examples. We can search our own life for examples, constant reminders of His grace and His love.
In my own life I can think of the time a sheet of steel maybe 15 feet wide by 60 feet long went sailing inches over my car, yet I walked away uninjured, times when men with guns tried to kidnap me but couldn’t get past an unlocked door, or how much God done for Kaylee. What can you find in your life.
Luke 12:32 32 “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
When you look around in your life there are abundant examples of his goodness.
How does Jesus deal with our worry?
One of the best things you can do is to have someone you can speak to who’s simply going to listen, and reassure you in a loving and comforting way. There is no one better at listening and reassuring you in a loving and comforting way then God you’re heavenly Father.
Paul reminds us:
Phi 4:6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;
And Peter reminds us:
1 Peter 5:7 7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.
Remember the parable of the persistent neighbor, who kept on knocking on his friend door until his friend opened his door and gave him bread. Most of us would probably get annoyed and angry if someone kept pounding on our door at midnight just for a loaf of bread. Similarly, our humans friends, spouses, and family are not always patient enough to listen all the time to all our worries and fears. Yet God promises us that He is happy to listen no matter how long we pound on his door.
Psa 34:4 I sought the LORD, and He heard me, And delivered me from all my fears.
Jesus is happy to hear all our worries and gives us comfort in our fears.
How does Jesus deal with our worry?
Finally, and most importantly Jesus removes our worry by reminding us that the one thing that we never have to fear is our salvation. The one thing that we never have to fear is that we are not good enough to get into heaven.
Luke 12:32 “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
Of course, we are not good enough to get into heaven but it is God’s good and gracious will to freely give us salvation anyway.
“Fear not, do not be afraid.” This is what God says to humans. This is what the angels said to the shepherds. “Do not be afraid.” In our sinfulness we are always afraid we have not come to bring condemnation upon you but the good news that God has a plan to restore His kingdom to you. We are afraid and worried when God speaks to us because we expect Him to condemn our sins. But God reminds us not to be afraid, I did not come to condemn your sins but to promise you forgiveness through My death and resurrection.
Fear not! – In our sinfulness we are always afraid. We are afraid that God isn’t going to take care of us. We are afraid that God isn’t going to forgive us. We are afraid that God isn’t even going to listen to us. Jesus deals with our fear and our worry with the constant unending promises that He is our Good Shepherd, and we are His beloved sheep. Jesus removes our fears and builds our trust in His promises
Luke 12:32 32 “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
Amen