Grace, mercy, and peace to you from
God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
Worries. Anxieties.
Stresses. Do you have them? Who
among us hasn’t been kept up at night with anxious thoughts and fears of this
life? What keeps you up at night? Don’t know how the mortgage is going to get
paid? When are the medical bills going
to stop piling up? Are the fields going
to get planted? Will the crops be able
to be harvested or will the rain prevent that too? With the weather lately, will there be an
early frost? Is there a loved one who’s
sick? Is there a loved one who’s
dying?
This
week’s Gospel text comes right after last week when Jesus told the Parable of
the Rich Fool. Last week we heard Jesus
bid us to “Take care, and be on your
guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the
abundance of his possessions.” This
week he tells us why we don’t need to be covetousness for earthly
treasures: God knows what we need and He
provides, even though we worry and fret about these things.
There’s
no doubt that this world if full of worries, anxieties, and stresses. They’re all around us, they happen each and
every day; they prevent countless hours of sleep. It seems that we have a disposition toward
them. How many hours are spent worrying
about this or that when 95% of the time the thing for which we spent all those
hours worrying never happens anyway. We
speak the language of fear very well and it usually begins with the words,
“What if…” “What if I don’t get enough
money to pay the bills?” “What if the
rain continues and I don’t get the crops in?”
“What if my mom dies?” We speak
the voice of fear very well, but the voice of faith… Not so much.
Worry
and anxiety flows from our sinful nature, which doesn’t exactly trust God with
providing for all our needs, though He’s seen to it that our needs were met
yesterday, the month before, the year before, and the decade before that. I don’t know about you, but I still find
myself worrying and fretting over tomorrow; what will happen in the
future. My sinful nature just doesn’t seem
to trust that Jesus has my back, knows what I need, and will provide everything. Does that sound like you?
Yet,
in the midst of financial troubles, poor farming weather, in the midst of
sickness and even death; in the midst of all our worries, frets, anxieties, and
stresses, Jesus tells us, “I tell you,
do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what
you will put on. For life is more than
food, and the body more than clothing.”
“But hasn’t Jesus seen the economy lately? Hasn’t He looked out the window and seen the
weather? Doesn’t He see the bills piled
up on the kitchen table? Doesn’t He
notice that the children are sick? Has
He even bothered to notice that my mom is dying? What do you mean, ‘Don’t be anxious?’ “ Ah,
there’s the voice of fear we speak so fluently.
The voice of faith, that’s what we need to learn.
Jesus
does, indeed, have your back, He
knows what you need and will provide.
After all, the birds don’t have a place to store up for tomorrow, they
don’t have tracts of land to grow their own food, yet, God sees to it that they
receive their daily bread. How much more
will He provide for you who are of much more value than birds? Our Lord sees to it that the grass is
clothed, even though it’s mowed down and burned, or cut up into little bits of
mulch, how much more will He clothe you?
“Fear not, little flock.” That’s what He says. He’s our Good Shepherd who faithfully tends
to His flock. You needn’t worry or fret
or be anxious. Why? Because the Kingdom is Yours, it’s your
Father’s good pleasure to give it to you.
Jesus has, on the cross, reconciled the world to the Father. And since the world and God are reconciled,
the things like food, clothing, and home; your daily bread, have all been added
to you.
Jesus
has seen to it that your first need – eternal life has been taken care of. Your ultimate need is a done deal; the
Kingdom has been given to you and since the ultimate is sure and certain, the
penultimate, that is, this life, is far less scary.
You
don’t need to worry even if you sold all your possessions and gave the money to
the church, the poor, or charity. Jesus
has your back, He’ll see to it that you’re cared for. Now, that’s doesn’t mean you can be lazy or
slothful, or act foolishly with what you’ve been given, but that you can trust
your Father in Heaven. The birds are
fed, the lilies and grass are clothed, He’ll care for you too.
“But
I still have bills piled up.” “The
weather’s doing a number on my crops.” “My mom is still sick.” Do not fear little flock. Your father knows. He’ll provide for you. You may not be given to always live the lifestyle
you’re living now, but He’ll provide; your daily bread will still come. God promises to give you what you need. He never promised a 3-bedroom house and a
2-car garage but He’ll daily and richly provide for all you need to support
this body and life. And even if you do
go bankrupt, lose the farm, you can still say, “You know what, I still have a
greater treasure anyway and the Lord will provide somehow.” What if your mom does pass away? You can still say, “Thank the Lord that He
has baptized and kept her in faith all the days of her life. Thanks be to God.” Now, that’s the voice of faith.
The
president of the synod, Matthew Harrison, once said, “Courage is fear that’s
been baptized.” He’s right. You’re baptized, the
Kingdom’s yours. You’ll face many things
in this life, some financial, some medical, and some things that you can’t even
imagine; there’s no doubt we live in a fallen and broken world. But it’s a world that’s been over come. Fear not.
Have courage. It’s your Father’s
pleasure to give you everything that you need for your body and your soul, for
the things you need in this life and for the next. And all of it, food, drink, clothing, shoes,
house, and home, as well as forgiveness, salvation, eternal life, all flow from
the cross where Jesus reconciled you to the Father. He toiled for you that you would be harvested
into the heavenly storehouse. He labors
for you on the cross where you’ve been given the Kingdom. And because the Kingdom is given to you,
because the ultimate is certain, the things of this life are also taken care
of.
He
loves you like a loving father loves and cares for his children and sees to it
that they’re fed, nourished, and clothed.
How much more will our gracious Heavenly Father care for all your
needs? Fear not, little flock, the
kingdom is yours and He will make sure that you have all you need for today,
tomorrow, and even into eternity. Amen.
The
peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in
Christ Jesus unto life everlasting.
Amen.
