A Sermon by Nate Wilson for Christ the Redeemer Church, 16 October 2011
6:25 On account of this, I’m telling y’all, stop caring [so much]
about your life (What might you eat? and What might you drink?)
and about your body (How might you clothe yourselves?).
Isn’t life about more than food and the body than clothing?
6:26 Start looking at the birds of the sky,
that are not sowing seeds neither are they reaping harvests, nor are they gathering into storage, yet your heavenly Father feeds them.
Aren’t you yourselves more valuable than them?
6:27 And who among y’all, by being careful, is able to add one cubit onto his stature?
6:28 Also concerning clothing, why are y’all caring [so much]?
Start studying the lillies of the field;
how is their growth? Theirs is neither to labor nor to spin [threads].
6:29 Yet, I tell you, not even Solomon in all his glory wrapped himself like one of these!
6:30 Now, if God thus dresses the grass of the field,
being [here] today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow,
won’t He rather more you, you barely-trusting ones?
6:31 Therefore, don’t start caring [too much],
saying, ‘What might we eat,’ or ‘What might we drink?’ or ‘What might we wrap up in?’,
6:32 for all these things are what the nations are eagerly seeking,
and your heavenly Father sees that you are in need of every one of these.
6:33 But continue seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness,
and all these things will be added onto you.
6:34 Therefore don’t start caring [too much] concerning tomorrow,
for tomorrow will care for itself.
The bad stuff in each day is enough on it’s [own].
We saw that this word μεριμνᾶτε, which is translated “worryNAS,NIV,NKJ/take thoughtKJV/be anxiousESV,” has a spectrum of meaning throughout scripture, from being properly careful with responsibilities God has given us, to being improperly anxious about things that are not our responsibility at the time.
· I want to do a little psychological experiment: I am going to tell you not to do something, and I want to see how successful you are at not doing it, O.K.?
1. Now, do not think about donuts. Do not think about the warm, sweet smell of donuts when they come out of the bakery. Don’t think about it!
2. Don’t think about the sticky sugar glaze that has just a hint of nutmeg in it and makes the golden brown surface of those donuts shiny to look at and so chewy when you bite into them. Don’t think about donuts!
3. Well, how are you doing about not thinking about donuts? It’s hard to help, isn’t it?
· Now, think about salt. You know how salt makes your skin feel kinda dry and powdery when it’s in your hand, and then if you put some in your mouth, it crunches when you bite down on the crystals and the salty flavor explodes on your taste buds, but if you put too much in your mouth at once, it starts to have a burning sensation. One time I was gargling with salt water and had to sneeze, and it went out my nose, and boy did that burn!
· Now, as you’ve been thinking about salt, what happened to the donuts? I expect you forgot about the donuts – until I mentioned them to you again!
· “Nature abhors a vacuum” and God has wired our minds the same way. It is generally ineffective to stop doing one thing unless we can actively replace it with another thing. You weren’t able to stop thinking about donuts when I told you to stop thinking about them, but you were able to stop thinking about donuts when I replaced talking about donuts with talking about salt.
· Last week, at the risk of asking you to do this impossible feat, I focused on Jesus’ command to stop worrying, and I didn’t talk much about what to replace worry with. I apologize for not covering Jesus’ teaching on what to replace worry with. I hope, however, that you will readily forgive me for not delivering a 90 minute sermon last week. I’ll try to deliver the second 45 minutes this week!
· Jesus “knows our frame,” and He knew that we needed something to replace worrying with, and so, for each of the three times Jesus commands us not to worry in this passage, He gives us a positive command about what to think about instead!
1. In v. 26, He commands us to take up bird-watching,
2. in v. 28, He commands us to visit the botanical gardens,
3. and in v. 33, He tells us to go find us a king.
Let’s look at these three things Jesus commanded us to do instead of worrying:
Mat 6:26 ἐμβλέψατε εἰς τὰ πετεινὰ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, ὅτι οὐ σπείρουσιν οὐδὲ θερίζουσιν οὐδὲ συνάγουσιν εἰς [ταςא,L] ἀποθήκας, καὶ ὁ πατὴρ ὑμῶν ὁ οὐράνιος τρέφει αὐτά· οὐχ ὑμεῖς μᾶλλον διαφέρετε αὐτῶν;
6:26 Start looking at the birds of the sky, that are not sowing seeds neither are they reaping harvests, nor are they gathering into storage, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you yourselves more valuable than them?
s At the same time that Jesus commands us to stop worrying, he also commands us to “Start looking at the birds”!
s What birds? “The birds of the sky” – the wild ones, not the tame turtledoves that are fed by humans, but the wild birds that live off of whatever they can find from one day to the next.
s Why? So that we can learn a lesson from them. The lesson is that birds rely upon God’s daily provision and therefore we can too.
o Birds don’t worry about where their next meal is going to come from.
o Have you ever seen birds building barns? Have you ever seen birds making piles of worms in their nests to eat over the winter? No! It’s seems so strange it’s funny!
o But Jesus is saying, “Learn a lesson from this and whenever you see a wild bird, stop and look at it, and remember the implicit trust it has in God’s provision, then reset your thinking to trust God to provide for you… You are more valuable than those [birds].”
o “…He has [also] said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you.’ So we can confidently say, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not fear…’” (Heb. 13:5-6, quoting Dt. 31:6-8 & Ps. 118:6)
o “…He that feeds His birds surely will not starve His babes. They trust your Father’s providence, and will not you trust it? In dependence upon that, they are careless for the morrow; and being so, they live the merriest lives of all creatures; they sing among the branches and, to the best of their power, they praise their Creator. If we were, by faith, so unconcerned about the morrow as they are, we would sing as cheerfully as they do, for it is worldly care that mars our mirth and damps our joy, and silences our praise, as much as any thing.” ~Matthew Henry
s This is not an excuse for laziness:
o When you watch birds, what do you see? Do they stand on a branch all day long with their beaks open waiting for God to drop food into their mouths? No, they have to do the work of digging the worms up out of the ground or digging the grubs out of the tree bark, or finding seeds in the grass. They are not lazy or presumptuous upon God’s provision, and neither should we be. There is work for us to do.
o But birds were not given the role or ability by God to preserve food for the future whereas God has given humans both the role and the ability to do so, therefore God will hold us accountable to our duty to make provision for the future, unlike the birds.
o Nevertheless, we can still learn from the fact that billions of birds which can make no provision for the future are still provided for by God on a daily basis, and therefore God can provide for the needs we have in any area where we are unable to secure provision for ourselves in the future.
o I believe there will come a time when that role of laboring for food will be lifted off of us and we will be literally able to “eat like birds.” Sweaty labor was imposed upon man after Adam and Eve’s sin, and that labour keeps us from corrupting ourselves as much by rebellion against God as we might otherwise do if we had nothing better to occupy our time. But I believe that role will be lifted in heaven, and God will feed us without us having to do the hard labor. There may still be work to do in heaven, but it won’t be toilsome.
Mat 6:28 καὶ περὶ ἐνδύματος τί μεριμνᾶτε; καταμάθετε τὰ κρίνα τοῦ ἀγροῦ πῶς αὐξάνει1· οὐ κοπιᾷ1 οὐδὲ νήθει[1]· 29λέγω δὲ ὑμῖν ὅτι οὐδὲ Σολομὼν ἐν πάσῃ τῇ δόξῃ αὐτοῦ περιεβάλετο ὡς ἓν τούτων.
6:28 Also concerning clothing, why are y’all caring [so much]? Start studying the lilies of the field; how is their growth? Theirs is neither to labor nor to spin [threads]. 29 Yet, I tell you, not even Solomon in all his glory wrapped himself like one of these! 30 Now, if God thus dresses the grass of the field, being [here] today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, won’t He rather more you, you barely-trusting ones?
s
Jesus’ 2nd positive command is the word καταμανθάνω
(katamanthanō)
“Kata” = “down” + “manthanw”
= learn, Thayer Def: 1) to learn thoroughly, examine carefully 2) to consider
well
ConsiderKJV/ObserveNASB/SeeNIV
s This word (and also the word for “lilly”) occurs nowhere else in the NT, but καταμανθάνω is found in the O.T. Septuagint in 4 places, such as translated as follows by Brenton:
§ Job 35:5 [Elihu tried to humiliate Job by saying,] “Look up to the sky and see; and consider the clouds, how high they are above thee.”
§ Gen. 24:21 And the man [Abraham’s servant, looking for a wife for Isaac] took great notice of her [Rebecca], and remained silent to know whether the Lord had made his way prosperous or not.
§ Gen. 34:1 And Dina, the daughter of Lea, whom she bore to Jacob, went forth to observe the daughters of the inhabitants.
§ Lev. 14:36 {concerning what to do if you find mold growing on the wall of your house} … the priest shall go in to examine the house.
s Here in the sermon on the Mount, Jesus tells us to study carefully these wildflowers because much is at stake; it is in our great interest to do this.
s “Diligently consider this… lay it earnestly to heart, and let your confidence be unshaken in the God of infinite bounty and love.” ~Adam Clarke
s People in the Bible “toiled” at childbirth, farming, fishing, herding cattle, travelling, fighting in the army, making tents, and at being an elder, but flowers don’t have to work up a sweat.
s People in the Bible had to “spin” goat hair or linen fibers into thread in order to simply have thread to sew with or make into cloth. The making of clothes involved a lot of work and time-consuming labor. But flowers don’t have to worry about making clothes. They don’t even need to go to the store to buy clothes; God created them with “clothing” that is not only ready-made, but also stunningly beautiful! [Show picture of spinning wheel and loom.]
s They surpass Solomon in clothing. What was Solomon’s clothing like? I couldn’t find any descriptions in the Bible, but I did find a description of his throne, which should give some idea of how fine his clothes probably were: 2Chron. 9:17-22 “…the king made a great throne of ivory and overlaid it with pure gold. There were six steps to the throne and a footstool in gold attached to the throne, and arms on each side of the seat, and two lions standing beside the arms. Twelve lions were standing there on the six steps on the one side and on the other; nothing like it was made for any other kingdom. All King Solomon's drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon were of pure gold; silver was not considered valuable in the days of Solomon… once every three years the ships of Tarshish came bringing gold and silver, ivory and apes and peacocks. So King Solomon became greater than all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom.” (NASB) And yet a little wildflower clothed by God beats him out.
s A little wildflower that would die in a matter of days and then its dry stalk would be gathered up by children to be used for kindling in their bake oven at home. [Show picture of Middle Eastern bake ovens]
s And God cares more for you than He does for flowers. In the book of Jonah, it says that God cared more about the pagan people of Nineveh than He cared for the kiki plant that shaded Jonah. How much more would God care for His own covenant children!
s Jesus asks “How do lilies grow?” Do they set up growth committees that map out what minerals need to be imported from the soil and hire architects to figure out how to build new growth? No, it just happens according to God’s design!
s Throughout my life, I have seen God provide clothes for me and my family. I grew up next to Mountain Brook Alabama, one of the top 20 wealthiest communities in the nation, I’m given to understand. I attended a Christian school, and a lot of “Brookies” also went there because it was a private prep school. My mom worried about being able to keep me dressed in clothes that would not look too shabby next to all those rich kids, but God had it all figured out. He made it so that for an entire decade only one outfit was popular among those wealthy boys: a pair of faded blue jeans and an Izod brand pullover shirt. Now, blue jeans were easy enough for my parents to purchase on a pastor’s salary, so all I needed was a stack of Izod shirts, but that was out of price range for my parents. But it wasn’t a problem for God, you see, since those shirts were in style for a whole decade, all those rich boys had plenty of time to grow out of their Izod shirts, and since my Dad was a pastor, lots of people in the church gave their hand-me-down Izod shirts to us. So I wore the height of fashion through my school years, thanks to God’s provision!
s And when I had children of my own, God still provided. The pants and shirts for our boys were easy to come by with all the hand-me-downs we got. But I remember one time when we had no money to spend on clothes for our four little boys, and the problem was that the boys needed underwear. Now, if you are not familiar with hand-me-down culture, people don’t give away their used underwear, it’s just too weird. So, my wife and I decided that we were just going to have to bite the bullet and go buy some underwear at Sears. But God decided to have a little fun with us. Grandmama called on the phone from her home on the other side of the United States and said, “Do your kids need underwear and socks?” I don’t recall her offering to do that before or since; I think God prompted her just to prove that He could provide anything we needed!
s Again, this does not condone laziness.
§ It is simply not a role given by God to flowers to cultivate plants or animals and make threads out of their fibers to sew clothes. It is, however, a role given to humans – Adam was told to sweat in the field to grow crops, and the good woman in Prov. 31 spun thread and made clothes for her household.
§ We probably won’t need to create our own thread and fabric like they did in the old days, but there is a certain amount of reasonable effort we need to put out in order to be decently dressed, whether it’s buying fabric and using a sewing machine, or sorting through the racks at Goodwill, or finding good buys at the mall.
s But there are things which are not the role of humans which end up creating anxiety for ourselves because we step outside of our God-given roles to do what we are not built to do.
§ It’s not your responsibility to look like the models in the magazines.
§ It’s not your responsibility to wear things that God has not given you the means to buy.
§ It’s not your responsibility to cover all the bases for what you will need to wear a year from now.
§ Don’t worry about what you might need to wear, go to the botanical gardens and study the lilies whenever you are tempted to do that. Seriously.
s Should it be any wonder that the Book of Revelation talks about clothing more than any other book in the Bible? God clothes His people in Heaven, and God cares about providing clothes for you on earth as well. He dresses the grass of the field; and He’ll all the more dress you.
So… 1) Don’t worry, See the birds; 2) Don’t worry, Study the lilies, and now 3) Don’t worry…
Mat 6:33 ζητεῖτε δὲ πρῶτον τὴν βασιλείαν [τοῦ Θεοῦ]-א,B,sa,bo καὶ τὴν δικαιοσύνην αὐτοῦ, καὶ ταῦτα πάντα προστεθήσεται ὑμῖν.
6:33 But continue seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness,
and all these things will be added onto you.
· This is the first time that the phrase “kingdom of God” appears in Matthew’s book.
1. Some people question whether it is legitimate because Matthew’s standard phrase is “the kingdom of heaven,” instead of “the kingdom of God.” If you’re reading an NASB or NIV, you’ll see it says simply “His kingdom.”
2. It’s true that Matthew mostly uses the phrase “kingdom of heaven” but the phrase “kingdom of God” does appear in Matthew 4 more times, and almost nobody disputes those 4 occurrences. I think it’s legitimate to say that this is “the kingdom of God” here.
3. Why would Matthew use “kingdom of God” at this point? Perhaps it follows up on the concept of not being able to serve two masters. God is the master that we are to focus on, and thus perhaps Matthew uses the more personal “kingdom of God” instead of the less personal “kingdom of heaven” at this point.
·
What is the Kingdom of God?
Geerhardaus Vos was a
professor at Princeton Seminary from 1893-1932. My favorite book in seminary
was Vos’ classic book, Biblical Theology. He
treats the meaning of the Kingdom of God extensively at the end of this book.
1. He wrote that the emphasis is on God, and he rearranged the English words to emphasize God: “’Of God, the kingdom’ then means the actual exercise of the divine supremacy in the interest of the divine glory.”
2. This “kingdom” includes both the abstract concept of the rulership of God as well as the concrete concept of those things and people which are ruled by God – not only “His abstract right to rule – His sovereignty – it is the actual realization of His sway.”
3. The kingdom is also something which is both “now” and “not yet.” It currently exists – and for the last couple thousand years has been in the process of growing and being built, and yet it will be completed in the future – and we call that eschatological realization of the ideal “heaven.” So sometimes the kingdom of God is spoken of as here-and-now, since Christ came, and sometimes it is spoken of in terms of heaven which is yet-to-be-realized in the future.
The kingdom is now:
§ Mark 1:14 Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, 15 and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel."
§ Luke 10:9 And heal the sick there, and say to them, 'The kingdom of God has come near to you.'
§ Luke 17:20 Now when He was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, He answered them and said, "The kingdom of God does not come with observation; 21 nor will they say, 'See here!' or 'See there!' For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you."
The kingdom is not yet:
§ Luke 19:11 …He spoke another parable, because He was near Jerusalem and because they thought the kingdom of God would appear immediately.
§ Luke 13:28 There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves thrust out. 29 They will come from the east and the west, from the north and the south, and sit down in the kingdom of God.
§ Luke 21:31 So you also, when you see these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near.
§ Luke 22:16 for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God. … 18 for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes."
§ Mar 15:43 Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent council member, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, coming and taking courage, went in to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.
· Vos mentioned three things associated with the kingdom of God throughout the New Testament, and these are Power, Righteousness, and Blessedness: (NKJV is quoted in this section)
1. Briefly, the kingdom was proclaimed in power
a. Outwardly by miracles through Jesus and the apostles:
i. Luke 9:11 …He spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who had need of healing.
ii. Mat 12:28 But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.
iii. 1Co 4:20 For the kingdom of God is not in word but in power.
b. But the primary engine of supernatural power was actually the power of God to save helpless sinners.
c. Faith is our response to acknowledge that this divine power works to save us. Part of seeking the kingdom is to grow beyond being people of “little faith” and instead trust in the power of God, the sovereign King who will save us.
i. Mark 10:24 …Jesus… said…, "Children, how hard it is for those who trust in riches to enter the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."
ii. Mar 10:14 Jesus…said, "Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God. 15 Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it."
iii. Act 14:22 …exhorting them to continue in the faith, [Paul said,] "We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God."
2. The second thing associated with the kingdom, according to Vos is “righteousness”
a. “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.”
b. Unlike our modern state of America where the executive, legislative, and judicial branches are separated, in God’s kingdom, all three aspects of government are combined in His person. He, as King of the Universe decides what is right and what is wrong.
c. And so being part of His kingdom means we seek through the Bible to find out what is righteous and align ourselves with what is pleasing to Him.
d. This inevitably means we will realize that we have failed to follow all of His laws perfectly and that we stand in need of His forgiveness.
e. This forgiveness is provided through the righteousness of Jesus who obeyed God perfectly and who took our sins upon Himself to be punished for them in our stead and who placed upon us His righteousness so that when God looks at us, He sees the righteousness of Christ instead of seeing our offensiveness.
f. So not only do we seek the righteousness which comes from God and is imputed to us by Christ, we also seek to uphold His righteousness in our actions by repenting of the ways we act out of accord with His standards of righteousness and by obeying Him as our King.
i. Mark 9:47 And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, rather than having two eyes, to be cast into hell fire—
ii. Matt. 21:31-32 "Assuredly, I say to you that tax collectors and harlots enter the kingdom of God before you, For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him; but the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe him…. 43 Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it.
3. Vos also spoke of blessedness being another thing associated with the kingdom of God, and he relates this primarily to the church, since the church is equated with the kingdom several times in the New Testament.
a. This aspect is indirectly addressed in Matthew 6 by the use of the plural form of “you.” All three commands in this passage address are 2nd person plural: Y’all Look at the birds… y’all study the lilies… Seek ye first the kingdom. These are things we are to do together corporately as a church, not merely as autonomous individuals.
b. also found in Mar 4:11, Act 8:12, Col 4:11
· Another way of looking at the meaning of “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness” is to replace the word “God” with the alternatives:
o It means “do not seek first your kingdom and your righteousness” – do not try to control the world as though it were your kingdom, and do not try to decide for yourself what is good enough and imagine you can get by with that.
o It also means “do not seek first the kingdom of this world and its righteousness” – don’t slavishly follow after whatever the commercials and advertisements and media personalities tell you to do and use them as your basis for what is good and worthwhile, and don’t follow the man-made righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees.
o By contrast, it means “seek first to be governed by God, and keep seeking to do what He says is good and trust that His goodness will be enough for you.”
o Rom 14:17 for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
o “We must mind heaven as our end and holiness as our way… What a blessed change would it make in our hearts and lives did we but firmly believe this truth, that the best way to be comfortable in this world is to be intent upon another world. We begin at the right end of our work when we begin with God.” ~Matthew Henry
· ζητεῖτε δὲ πρῶτον How do we go about seeking it first?
1. Chronologically: What is the first thing you do each day? Can you make a little praying the first thing you do while you’re waking up and getting ready for the day? Can you do your Bible reading before you check email or read the newspaper?
2. In priority: “Whoever puts God’s Kingdom in first place, will only exercise himself over the provision of his food with moderate energy. And nothing was ever better suited to put a brake upon the appetite of the flesh, to stop it making a riot of this present life, than meditation upon the life of heaven.” ~John Calvin
· And just as a reminder, Jesus assures us that if we do seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, “all these things will be added to you” – when we attend to the things God wants us to attend to, God will attend to all the things that we need. It is an amazing and counterintuitive maxim in God’s economy that when we get preoccupied with the things of the earth, we become losers, but when we get right with God, the things of earth get right with us as a side-benefit.
· So when you are tempted to grow anxious and worry over things, go bird-watching and study wildflowers to remind yourself of God’s care for you, and seek first and foremost His kingdom and righteousness, you’ll see Him work to take care of your needs then.