Have you ever found yourself lying awake at night, running through an endless list of what-ifs? What if I don't meet the deadline? What if my finances fall short? What if my health takes a turn for the worse? These questions are universal, crossing cultures, professions, and stages of life. Worry and anxiety sneak into our thoughts, steal our peace, and leave us drained of energy, and worse, hope. The crazy part about the things we stress and worry about is that most of them never come to fruition. There was a study completed at Cornell University where subjects were asked to write down their worries over an extended period of time. Then, they were asked to identify which of their imagined misfortunes actually came true. Lo and behold, it turned out that 85% of what subjects worried about never happened.
And with the 15% that did happen, 79% of subjects discovered either they could handle the difficulty better than they expected, or the difficulty taught them a lesson worth learning. This study highlights how much of our worry stems from a distorted view of reality, causing unnecessary mental and even physical strain. That being said, some anxieties are valid. In the first century, people faced legitimate anxieties about how to acquire food, clothing, and shelter, but they too were often consumed by frivolous worries that were beyond their control. It's this environment that God sent his son, Jesus, to speak directly to these universal concerns, providing a pathway to peace by trusting in God's provision.
We're in week four of our series, That Thing Jesus Said. We've been exploring some of the most challenging and transformative teachings of Jesus. And today we're diving into his command to not be anxious, found in Matthew 6. We'll be unpacking Jesus' teachings, speaking directly to the worries that plague our lives, and offering us a pathway to peace. But first, allow me to welcome you to Mountain View Church. My name is Jeremy. Whether you're here in person or joining us online, we are so glad that you're with us. If this is your first time, we'd love to connect with you.
visit mountainview.church slash connect or text connect to the number on the screen, which is 867-322-8001. For parents out there, our Basecamp Children's Program is offered every Sunday morning at 9, 30, and 11, or you can download the video lessons and activities at mountainview.church slash Basecamp. Lastly, for our teens out there, our youth program runs every Sunday evening between 6 and 8 p.m. For more info, visit mountainview.church slash youth. Now, as we prepare to learn, let's open our Bibles to Matthew 6, verses 25 to 34.
Hello, my name is Jude, and today I'll be reading from Matthew 6, 25-34. Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air. They neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your Heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you, by being anxious, can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the fields, 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.
But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, we will not much more clothe you, O you of little faith. Therefore, do not be anxious, saying, What shall we eat, or what shall we drink, or what shall we wear? For the Gentiles seek after all of these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Therefore, do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
In this passage, Jesus addresses one of the most common struggles, worry. Some call it stress or anxiety. Others describe it as a feeling of being overworked or overwhelmed. Jesus challenges us to think differently about it. He calls us to trust in God's faithful provision. Now, in our key verse for today's message, Matthew 634, Jesus says, therefore, do not be anxious about tomorrow. And I want to focus in on that therefore. Whenever we see a therefore in scripture, it's a signal that a conclusion is coming.
But we can't treat it like a standalone thought. A therefore always points us back to what came before. And if we want to understand the full meaning of the final thought, we have to dig deeper. Well, dig deeper into what was already stated. Did you catch all that? We're going to move from verse 34 to 33, and then all the way up. Jesus said, but seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
Here, Jesus is asking us to put God first. When we make his kingdom our priority, he promises to take care of the rest. It's not about being passive, but about trusting God to meet our needs as we pursue him. Now, as we continue up this passage, we run into another therefore. That's two therefores now, which means there's another connection point of what's previously stated. Are you seeing a chain here? We read, therefore, do not be anxious, saying, what shall we eat? Or what shall we drink? Or what shall we wear? For the Gentiles seek after all these things. And your heavenly father knows that you need them all.
At this point, Jesus is laying out the evidence that worry reflects a lack of trust in God. In the context of the original audience, Gentiles were non-Jewish people, and in particular, the Romans who were oppressing them. For us, we might consider those around us, the world around us, those who reject the idea of God and trust alone in their own skills and abilities. But for us who follow Jesus, Jesus is calling us to rest in the fact that God knows exactly what we need. Now, if we continue to work our way up through these verses, we see a group of verses where Jesus paints a picture using the created order. He says, Look at the birds of the air. They neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Then he adds, Consider the lilies of the field, 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.
Jesus is inviting us here. He's inviting us to pay attention to how God provides for his creation. Birds, they don't stress about their next meal. And flowers, they're not working hard to look beautiful. Nevertheless, God takes care of them. And if he cares for birds and flowers, Jesus is saying, how much more would he care for us, the pinnacle of his creation? But now we've worked our way from verse 34 all the way up to Matthew 6, 25. And we're seeing the connection points. And we've reached the top of this passage dealing with anxiety.
But then we have another problem. It starts with a therefore. We read, therefore, I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. This again is a great example of how section titles in our Bibles, in our English Bibles, they can lead us astray because those titles have separated things, specifically passages for us, which can be helpful sometimes to see the theme. But this therefore that's at the top of a section, it tells us something important that when Jesus originally taught all this, when he gave this teaching, it was connected to what came before. There wasn't a separation. So this third therefore that we found as we've worked our way up, it links to the teaching above it or it links the teaching on anxiety.
to the preceding passage in verses 19 to 24 about laying up treasures in heaven. These two things are connected. And so all of a sudden, this teaching has taken a fascinating turn. Okay, for the sake of time, I'm going to unpack this previous section of verses rather quickly, but I would encourage you, you can go back and study all of this on your own. Study the whole chapter of Matthew 6. Don't just watch or listen and walk away. You need to keep digging to uncover the nuggets of gold that Jesus has in store just for you. With that being said, let's get into it. Jesus highlights three core principles that lead into his teaching on not being anxious. Here they are. The first is placing your heart in heaven. In verses 19 to 21, he says, do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth.
He says, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven. Adding at the end, for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Our heart is important. Heart condition is very important. A heart set on earthly treasures won't last. Instead, we should set our hearts on eternal treasures. They can't be destroyed, can't be stolen. Next, we move on to verses 22 and 23 with the concept of opening your eyes. Jesus says, the eye is the lamp of the body. So if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light.
In contrast, later on, he says, if then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness? A focus on material things is actually a life of darkness. Our eyes are wide open when they're focused on the things God is concerned with. Now let's move on to this last verse before the anxiety section, verse 24, and focusing on choosing one master. Jesus says, no one can serve two masters. And then later he says, you cannot serve God and money. Allow me to repeat that. You cannot serve God and money.
This is the last sentence Jesus states before moving on to teaching about anxiousness, stress, and worry. This isn't a mistake. So much of our anxiety comes down to money and possessions. Stuff. And if we're to sum up the connection between these two passages, Jesus is saying divided loyalties will always lead to anxiety, right? Trying to choose between God and money, trying to have one foot in the world, one foot in heaven, you're divided. And it will lead to anxiety through an outflow of all sorts of things. We can't be chasing the world's wealth and prosperity and be at peace. In fact, the more we focus on chasing wealth and prosperity, the more we'll be consumed with worry and anxiety. These things are connected.
It's not that money is bad or possessions are bad, but Jesus is showing us that a focus on them is a key factor in a stress-filled life. Instead, he's calling us to fix our eyes on eternity, to build up treasures in heaven. Those treasures pay dividends of peace and rest here on earth, but more so in eternity. Okay, that was a long journey through scripture. I get it. So let's just sum up what we've learned when we connect these two passages, the treasure piece, the anxiety piece, and we patch them together.
By examining this passage step by step, we see that Jesus' teaching on anxiety is rooted in a much deeper truth. Our hearts and our focus shape how we live. And they determine whether we experience peace or anxiety. Each therefore that we saw, three of them, serve as connection points. And they kind of unlock the next component. And they're building toward a greater theme. And the entire bigger theme is trusting in God's provision.
As a powerful demonstration, consider the life of George Mueller, who trusted completely in God's provision for the orphans he cared for. One famous account tells how one day, when the food at the orphanage had completely run out, there was nothing for breakfast. Mr. Mueller and the children prayed for God's provision. The children are dressed and ready for school, but there is no food for them to eat, the house mother of the orphanage informed George Mueller. George asked her to take the 300 children into the dining room and have them sit at the tables. He thanked God for the food and waited.
George knew God would provide food for the children as he always did. Within minutes, a baker knocked on the door. Mr. Mueller, he said, last night I could not sleep. Somehow I knew that you would need bread this morning. I got up and baked three batches for you. I will bring it in. Soon there was another knock at the door. It was the milkman. His cart had broken down in front of the orphanage. The milk would spoil by the time the wheel was fixed. He asked George if he could use some free milk. George smiled as the milkman brought in 10 large cans of milk. It was just enough for 300 thirsty children.
You see, if God can meet the needs of 300 orphans within minutes, he can definitely meet your needs today and tomorrow when needs be. This is the big picture of Jesus' call to not be anxious. He's not just giving us advice to manage stress. He's inviting us into a new way of thinking, which leads to a new way of living. By making a shift of our heart condition and our perspective, we start trusting in God's faithfulness, not in our own abilities. This in turn frees us from those divided loyalties and allow us a closer relationship with him.
The theologian Leon Morris captures this entire concept perfectly. He writes, This, of course, doesn't mean that we ignore life's challenges. but it does shift how we deal with them. We face them with confidence in God's provision, knowing that his care is unchanging and his promises are secure. And the ultimate proof of this, well, it was witnessed at the cross of Christ. When worry weighs us down, we can remember and celebrate that Jesus has already carried the heaviest burden on our behalf. His sacrifice on the cross is the ultimate demonstration of God's provision for us. Through his death and resurrection, we have the assurance of eternal security and peace, no matter the challenges we face in this life.
In this gospel foundation, Jesus invites us to cast all our anxieties on him and trust fully in the grace he offers. With the cross in our mind's eye, we're going to take a moment now and we're going to have communion together. If you'd like to participate, simply pause the video or pause the audio here and go get some juice or wine and crackers and bread and then hit play and we'll continue together as soon as you're ready. As we prepare our hearts for communion, let's reflect on the sacrifice of Jesus within that lens of the ultimate proof of God's provision. Through his body that was broken and his blood that was shed, followed by his death and resurrection, we've been given the gift of eternal life, eternal peace and hope, but peace and hope every day. For our communion passage, we're going to be moving from our study verses in Matthew 6, 20 chapters forward to Matthew 26, verses 26 and 29.
And we're going to be reading the account of the very first communion as introduced to the disciples by Jesus as they had gathered for Passover. For our process of taking communion today, we'll begin by praying for the bread. Then we'll read the passage associated with the bread. Then we'll take the bread together. Then we'll repeat the same process for the cup. So let's begin by praying for the bread. Dear Father, we thank you for this time of communion. And we thank you for this bread, which represents the body of your son, which was a gift of grace to us, that he would take the punishment for our sins.
And though it's difficult for us to see in our mind's eye, we choose to in remembrance his body whipped and beaten and nailed to the cross. And we understand why you chose to give him up and why, Jesus, you chose to be nailed to that cross for us. I thank you for the love and grace you showed us at the cross. And we take this bread in remembrance of that moment, in remembrance of the sacrifice of you, Jesus. In your name we pray. Amen. Matthew 26, 26.
Now, as they were eating, Jesus took bread and after blessing it, broke it and gave it to the disciples and said, take, eat, this is my body. Now let's continue by praying for the cup. Dear Father, we now turn to the cup and its crimson color, the juice or wine representative of your son's blood that was shed for the remission of sins. We're reminded of the atonement that was given to us, the everlasting atonement that our sins were completely removed and that the wrath of judgment was also paid.
and appeased. Jesus, we thank you for the wounds you endured, the death you endured. And as we take this cup, we remember your blood that was shed for us. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Verses 27 to 29. And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, Drink of it, all of you. For this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you, I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.
As we close out our time of communion and close out today's message, I felt it was important to leave you with some practical steps based on the teachings that we've explored today on stress and anxiety and treasures and overall God's provision. And so these steps, five of them, I want them to serve as tangible things that you can take with you this week or maybe in this season of life. And they're not complex, but they're based on what Jesus taught us today. And Lord willing, they'll keep you grounded and keep you moving forward and keep you stress-free. Let's get started. Number one, start with trust each morning. Begin your day by surrendering your worries to God in prayer. Ask him to provide for your needs today and to give you peace about what lies ahead. Next, look at God's creation. Take time each day to notice the birds and flowers around you. Reflect on how God provides for them without their worry or toil and remind yourself that you are even greater. You're of far greater value to Jesus, to God, than them. Third, practice gratitude for provision.
End each day by writing down specific ways God has provided for you. This could include answered prayers, unexpected blessings, or even a sense of peace in the middle of an uncertain time. Four, set healthy boundaries. Identify habits that increase your worry. This will help you focus on God's kingdom and his provision instead of worldly concerns. And lastly, when in doubt, come back to trust.
because trust transforms us. When we trust in God's provision, it changes how we live. It breaks the grip of worry and fills our hearts with his peace and joy, even in life's uncertainties. By focusing on today and relying on God's faithfulness, we can find strength and hope to face whatever comes. Let's close in one more prayer. Dear Father, some of us come to you today with many things weighing on our hearts. Thank you for reminding us through your Son that you see us, care for us, and provide for us.
Help us to trust you with what we need today and not get caught up in the worries of tomorrow. Open our eyes to see your hand in the world around us and in our own lives. Teach us to walk in faith, resting in your love and provision. And thank you for Jesus, who carried the burden of our sin and gave us the hope of eternal peace. We pray all this in his name. Amen. Thank you so much for watching or listening today. Please stick around for a few more minutes because we do have some updates for you.
And the first one is that I'll be taking some vacation time with my family over the next couple weeks. Thankfully, we have an amazing pastoral team. Herber, our children's pastor, Aaron, our associate pastor, and Byron, our Filipino pastor. These three men will be guiding you through the next three tough teachings of Jesus. It's going to be amazing. Our final announcement is for an upcoming event directly related to today's study topic, Addressing Stress and Anxiety. It's designed to equip you with practical tools and spiritual insights so that you can experience God's peace and his rest. Mark your calendars. I'd like to invite you to join us on Saturday, March 1st for a very special event.
The Sabbath Rhythms of Rest Conference. In 2020, I experienced a complete burnout, compounded by a series of anxiety attacks. Thankfully, our church leadership gave me a leave of absence, which included a personal spiritual retreat. During my recovery, God began to reveal what had gone wrong in my life and ministry. More importantly, he started to reveal how to prevent it from happening again.
Two years later, in 2022, I took a three-month sabbatical. During that time, I studied the concept of biblical Sabbath and explored a variety of Sabbath practices. That journey not only refreshed my soul, but changed my perspective on how God has designed us to live and how to thrive. Fast forward to today, and I have just completed my master's project for seminary titled Sabbath Rhythms for Sustainable Ministry. Through my personal experiences, both the painful outcomes of abandoning rest and the blessings of experiencing it, and through my recent theological studies, I've become somewhat of an expert on Sabbath. I've come to see it as an essential rhythm for human existence.
seeking a balanced and God-honoring life. Now, I'm eager to share what I've learned with you. I believe it can help you experience the peace, renewal, and freedom that God offers through the gift of Sabbath rest. This conference is for anyone feeling overwhelmed, burned out, or simply curious about what it means to live in the rhythms of rest that God intended. Whether you're in ministry or juggling work and family responsibilities, or you're just looking for a deeper sense of peace in your daily life, this conference is for you.
Registration will be open this week at mountainview.church slash conferences. Take the first step toward reclaiming the rest and renewal that your soul is longing for. Now it's time for today's discussion and prayer focus. Discussion question. Ask someone who you're with or drop an answer or further comment in the feed below. Where in your life do you need to shift from worrying about tomorrow to trusting it to God? Where in your life do you need to shift from worrying about tomorrow to trusting it to God? And then after you've hashed that out, spend some time in prayer. Pray for God's peace and provision for today and his trust for tomorrow. Pray for God's peace and provision for today and his trust for tomorrow.
Next week, Pastor Herber will be sitting right here continuing our series, That Thing Jesus Said. He'll be unpacking a very tough teaching of Jesus when he said, seek first the kingdom of God from Matthew 6. What does that mean? How do we do it? Herber's going to explain it for us. So come back and why not invite a friend to join you?
If you prayed to receive Jesus today or would like to connect with our church community, visit mountainview.church and click the connect link. If this podcast and radio ministry has been a blessing to you, please consider partnering with us or making a tax-deductible donation at mountainview.church. Thanks for listening to Mountain View Church Audio. Join us next week for more Christ-centered teaching from the Wilderness City of Whitehorse Seat Park.