God's Faithfulness Releases Us From Worry And Anxiety

Text: Matthew 6:30

Worry locks up people in the darkroom of unbelief but faith opens the windows to let in the light of positive thinking and logical reasoning. Anxiety casts the shadow of frustration and despair on us and keeps us from meditating on the provision and promise of our freedom.

Many people, even some dear Christians are prevented from enjoying a fuller and happier life because they are imprisoned by worry and anxiety. The unrenewed mind breeds worry and anxiety and walks by sight in a world of uncertainty. The truth taught by Christ and applied by the Holy Spirit sets us free. Even when we know the truth in our head, unbelief and worry can keep us from experiencing the joy and liberty of the children of God. "Seeing many things, but thou observest not" and "therefore my people are gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge; and their honourable men are famished, and their multitude dried up with thirst" (Isaiah 42:20; 5:13).

Our Saviour, Lord, Master and Teacher Jesus Christ, said: "Behold the fowls of the air". "Consider the lilies of the field". The Scriptures command, "Ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee" (Job 12:7,8). "Go to the ant, consider her ways, and be wise" (Proverbs 6:6). "The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib: but my people doth not consider" (Isaiah 1:3).

God's revelation and God's creation join their voices together, teaching us to live by faith and banish worry and anxiety from our hearts. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, still commands us today: "Have faith in God"; "Take no thought". Trust in the Lord and be free from worry and anxiety.

1. GOD'S FAITHFULNESS OUTLAWS ALL WORRY AND ANXIETY

Text: Matthew 6:30; Luke 12:24,28; 2 Chronicles 25:9; Matthew 7:11; Luke 11:13; Romans 5:9,10,15,17; Romans 8:32; Lamentations 3:23-25; 2 Timothy 2:7,13; Psalm 36:5-10; Hebrews 10:22,23; 1 Thessalonians 5:24.

Our Lord uses the words "much more" to remind us of the certainty of God's faithfulness. Every time He uses those words, He makes a simple and logical comparison. Our heavenly Father feeds the birds - He has never failed in this responsibility. The least of the birds are faithfully fed. We know this, as a matter of fact. This also we should know without a shadow of doubt: He will feed us. Our heavenly Father is always faithful.

Christ also uses the words "much more" in comparing us with the grass of the field. God, our Creator and Father, clothes the grass, the lilies and the flowers. We see the evidence of this everywhere. It is a fact no one can argue against. "Thou openest thine hand and thou renewest the face of the earth" (Psalm 104:28,30).

Every year we see the renewal of the face of the earth with the beauty of the grass, the lilies and the flowers. What lesson does Christ draw from this? "How much more will He clothe you." God's faithfulness to all His children in every generation is guaranteed.

The words "much more" appear again in Christ's teaching in the family setting. Earthly parents feed their children. No one doubts this. Generally, children do not worry about the next meal. Generally, children do not need great faith in order to expect to be fed by their parents. From this obvious fact, our Lord leads us to expect the full care of our heavenly Father.

We have no reason to worry. Our Father is always faithful to His promises. He does not change and cannot fail. "Behold, I will perform that good thing which I have promised. If ye can break my covenant of the day, and my covenant of the night, and that there should not be day and night in their season; then may also my covenant be broken" (Jeremiah 33:14,20,21). How can we ever worry as children of such a faithful God? Rest in God and be free from all worry and anxiety.

2. GROWING FAITH OVERCOMES ALL WORRY AND ANXIETY

Text: Matthew 6:30; Luke 8:22-25; John 20:26-31; Hebrews 10:35-38; Romans 4:19,20; Hebrews 11:8-10,17-19; 2 Thessalonians 1:3; Luke 17:5,6; Mark 11:22-24; Colossians 2:5-7; Isaiah 26:3,4; Philippians 4:6-8,13,19.

"O ye of little faith" accounts for the reason for our needless worry. Faith is the key that opens the door to a life of joy, fullness and fulfillment. "O ye of little faith" is the reason for all our needless fears. Our needless FEAR:

False Experiences Appearing Real (2 Kings 3:21-24; 7:5-15),

Falsified Evidence Affecting Reasoning (Matthew 14:24-33),

Frequent Exaggerations Altering Reality (Numbers 13:28-33; 14:1-4)

Feeble Enemies Arousing Restlessness (1 Samuel 4:5-7; 5:1-9; 6:19,20),

Fictitious Expectation Anticipating Rejection (Judges 13:8-23),

Frightening Eloquence Announcing Retaliation (2 Chronicles 32:9-22),

Fierce Egyptians Approaching Ruin (Exodus 14:9-30) --

These needless fears cause unnecessary worry because of lack of faith or little faith. Saving faith makes us believe in Christ for our salvation. We believe that Christ died for our sins and paid the full price for our redemption, that He has borne all the penalty of our sins. Repenting of all our sins and believing in Christ's death and resurrection, all our sins are forgiven and the Holy Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God. Now we believe that God is our heavenly Father. That is what it means to have saving faith.

All who have saving faith but who do not go further to believe that God will take care of their day-to-day needs, who are worried and anxious, not believing God for the temporal needs of life have just little faith. Saving faith keeps them in God's family but the little faith robs them of so much blessings in this life. The lack of family faith or the faith of a child in the family may make their earthly life disturbed or distracted by worry and anxiety.

3. GUARANTEED FREEDOM OVERLOOKS ALL WORRY AND ANXIETY

Text: Matthew 6:30; Psalm 112:6-8; Acts 12:5-11; Psalm 125:1-3; Judges 13:8-23; Psalms 46:5-11; 55:22; 62:1,2,5-8; Habakkuk 3:17-19; Acts 16:23-26; Psalms 16:8,9; 121:1-8.

"And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. If the Son shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed. The Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free. Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free" (John 8:32,36; Romans 8:2; Galatians 5:1). Glorious freedom - freedom from sin - "being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness" (Romans 6:18,22). Guaranteed freedom - freedom from all worry and anxiety.

"Therefore take no thought, for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things" (Matthew 6:31,32). Just as we cannot serve two masters, we cannot concentrate our thoughts on two different objects in two different places at the same time. We cannot meditate on God's promises and our problems at the same time. Meditating on God's promises, considering God's providence and trusting in God's power, we shall forget the problems, leaving them in God's hands.

The bigger and greater our God is in our hearts, the smaller our problems become. When the Most High God becomes all in all to our faith, our problems diminish and become nothing. Putting God in His place, on the throne of our heart, worry and anxiety will have no place. A heart full of love and faith towards God has no room for worry and anxiety. We are free and free indeed.

=== Culled from DCLM Bible Study Outline ===

Trust in the Lord always for He alone is able to make all your fears and anxieties fade away. May the grace of the Lord be with you.

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