Your Father’s Good Pleasure

Thank you for reading this sermon from Christ Fellowship. I hope and pray that this sermon will be a blessing of grace and truth to you. With that said, let me encourage you not to use this sermon as a replacement for your local church. Christ Jesus did not establish his Church simply for us to consume content. Instead, He calls us to be part of a real, covenant family. 

We are living in what many academics call the “age of anxiety”. Americans today are far more anxious than we were 100 years ago – and that’s not just because of awareness and reporting.

Two separate studies involving thousands of children show that normal children today report more anxiety than psychiatric patients in the 1950s. In fact, each new generation reports more anxiety than the previous generation.

There are many possible factors. For instance, there has been a decline in social connection fueled by higher divorce rates, more people living alone, and a lack of trust in people and institutions. There are also more perceived threats being perpetuated by constant media coverage.

When people don’t feel connected and safe, they tend to feel anxiety. And that makes sense. It certainly explains a lot of my own struggles with anxiety.

But there is a spiritual component as well. The Bible talks about anxiety many times. And you might be surprised to hear the way that Jesus addresses our anxiety.

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.

The context here is important. Last week, we read about a man in a legal dispute with his brother over an inheritance. Jesus responded with a parable – a story about a rich man hoarding up more and more riches for himself, not realizing he was going to die without enjoying them.

“Therefore” Jesus says, connecting this statement to the parable… because your life and your possessions belong to God and because you are meant to value God and other people above everything else… do not be anxious about the future. About food… about clothing…

It’s easy to say something like this to rich people, but most of the people following Jesus were not rich. Most of these people were working poor. Jesus said this even to people who were struggling to get by.

He says to everyone “do not be anxious” because “life is more than food, and the body more than clothing”.

Notice he says, “more than”. Our life is not less than food and clothing… we can’t survive without those things. But we need something else, something we may not see or realize, that we also can’t live without.

What is it? Let’s keep reading to find out.

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! 

God feeds the birds, and you are more valuable to God than the birds. But not just any birds… ravens!

Ravens were unclean birds, known for eating the flesh of dead animals and even people. Throughout history, ravens have been associated with death in literature and poetry. That’s the bird Jesus chose to represent God’s care and concern for US!

There is, perhaps, an element of grace here. Jesus may be saying, “Cheer Up!” God even takes care of carrion birds! But there’s probably another lesson as well. I’m reminded of something C.S. Lewis wrote.

To paraphrase, he said that our problem is not that our sinful desires are too strong but that our desires for God are too weak. We spend our time fooling around with food and drink, sex, and ambition when infinite joy is available to us!

I think this is closer to the point. Jesus pleads with us – don’t you know that there are more important things in life than the stuff you’re getting anxious about? He continues:

²⁵ And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 

²⁶ If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest?

Medically speaking, anxiety is reducing our life span. Nothing is gained by our constant worry. Much is lost.

²⁷ Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, 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! 

Compared to us, birds have short lives. Grass and flowers have even shorter lives. But for the time they are meant to live, God provides everything they need. By comparison, Jesus is saying the same thing to us. For the time we are meant to live, God will keep us alive. For that reason, our anxiety about the future demonstrates a lack of faith.

As I said earlier, anxiety is a complex problem, but there is always a spiritual component. Jesus says quite clearly it is a faith problem. But we should be careful to define the word “faith”, or we can quickly damage people’s faith instead of encouraging it.

Most people think the opposite of faith is doubt, but it’s probably more accurate to think of it as self-sufficiency. Rather than trusting and depending on God, we believe it is our job to get what we need. We are running out of time or resources or energy and that’s why we worry.

That makes sense when you consider what research is telling us about anxiety. Underneath anxiety is very often a lack of connection and feelings of safety. People are learning to cope through self-sufficiency. But it doesn’t work, because we weren’t created to be self-sufficient.

And this is exactly where Jesus takes us next.

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. 

How does Jesus confront our anxiety? By telling us about a relationship of safety and provision… by telling us that we are not orphans scavenging the streets for leftovers… we are children loved by a perfect Father!

³¹ Instead, seek his 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. 

More good news. More connection. More safety. More provision. Do I believe this is my Father’s world? That I’m a child of God? That I have an inheritance that will last forever? And now comes the test of faith.

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.

Jesus says, “sell your possessions and give to the needy”. He doesn’t say “sell ALL your possessions and give it ALL to the needy.” But, nonetheless, it is still a test of faith. How will I know if the kingdom of God has really captured my heart unless I’m willing to let go of my self-sufficiency? How will I know if I trust my Father when I continue to be worried about temporary things?

Having said that, this is a difficult passage to apply faithfully. If I ended the sermon here, different people would have different responses.

Some of you are free spirits who never worry about anything. Some of you are giving yourselves ulcers because you worry so much. And some of you have some really difficult circumstances you’re dealing with.

And so, when Jesus says to you, “Do not be anxious about your life,” it hits differently depending on the person.

And so, I want to put up some Biblical guard rails in how we apply this to our lives.

First, there is a type of worry that is evil, but there is a type of worry that is good and right. Jesus Himself sweat drops of blood the night before He went to the cross. What was He so concerned about? Doing the will of His Father! I think that proves that God created us with the capacity to experience anxiety of some kind and that it’s not all bad. The question is, WHAT are we anxious about?

Second, we should care for our bodies. We should think about what we put in our bodies and what we keep out. But there is a difference between caring for the body God gave us and being obsessed with it. It’s possible to live a healthy life without being obsessed about fitness and dieting. And remember, we are not promised tomorrow. In Christ, we are promised eternity – but this body is still going to die.

Third, Jesus is not giving us a license to be lazy. Able-bodied Christians are expected to work for a living. Birds aren’t fed by a miracle while sitting lazily in a tree. Birds work hard for their food. Paul commands the church in Thessalonica, “If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat.”

Fourth, Jesus is not prohibiting us from planning ahead. How do birds eat in the winter? Most of them migrate hundreds or thousands of miles! Proverbs 6 encourages us to consider the way ants store up food for themselves. It’s a good idea to save and plan.

Fifth, Jesus is not exempting us from times of trouble. He commands us not to worry, but He doesn’t promise an easy life. God feeds the birds, but birds sometimes get eaten or fly into windows. Grass withers. Flowers fade. He provides for them until, in His good providence, it is time for them to die.

Finally, Jesus is not exempting us from taking care of other people. In the end, God promises to provide for His children. Very often, the Church is how God feeds and clothes people who are unable to do so. God’s church has always been known by this. The early Christians gained a reputation in the Roman empire for supporting not only their own poor but anyone in need.

This is an important point. Jesus could command His disciples not to worry about having their needs met, even widows and orphans, because God would be using the Church to meet those needs!

So, with those guard rails in place, what IS Jesus asking us to do? Some of you are worried that I’m not being clear enough about what Jesus is telling us to do as His disciples – so here it is.

And it’s simple and clear. And we need to resist the temptation to add to it, or make it prescriptive.

He’s telling us to trust His Father. The Father knows what you need and when you need it, including the path of suffering. Trust Him. That’s it.

And know that the Son of God walked a difficult path before you. Even when you struggle to trust God, remember that Jesus trusted Him perfectly in your place.

When this sinks in, and not before, will you begin to live a simple life focused on the kingdom of God. You will start to give generously. You will find gratitude in your heart. You will stop comparing yourself to other people. And you will become better stewards of God’s provision.