Finding Your Security
in Wealth
When we
speak of people who seek ultimate satisfaction in wealth, we may describe them
as materialistic. Truly, one form of materialism is spending too much on
yourself, but another, more subtle form of materialism is saving too much for
yourself. Saving wisely is a good thing, but saving obsessively is a sign of
trusting in wealth rather than God. So one form of materialism is finding
satisfaction in riches, another form of materialism is finding security in
riches. Both forms are encouraged in our culture. We are always told that we
need more stuff (the bigger and better thing that has just come along), and we
need more financial protection (to make sure our lifestyle is secure). Jesus
has already hit on the issue of spending on ourselves; now He deals with our
tendency to worry about security.
“Therefore I say to
you, do not worry 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, for they neither
sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are
you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can
add one cubit to his stature?
“So why do you
worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they
neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his
glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass
of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will
He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
“Therefore do not
worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we
wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly
Father knows that you need all these things. (Jesus, Matthew 6:25–32)
Americans,
by and large, have plenty to supply for their needs. Still, it is common for us
to be worried. This is a human tendency, and it is exacerbated by scores of books,
newscasts, and documentaries feeding us with more to be worried about: Will the
food we eat or the water we drink harm us? Will an economic disaster occur? Will
the earth be destroyed by human activity? Though there may seem to be
legitimate reasons for worry, Jesus tells us not to and provides logical
reasons for support. First, worry makes too much out of certain things, “Is not
life more than food and the body more than clothing?” He asks. When you look at
what you worry about, often it involves fixating on something relatively minor at
the expense of enjoying or appreciating what is most important. We worry about
how a particular event will turn out, when in reality, there are more important
things we can focus on, such as family and meeting the needs of others.
Second,
worry is unable to produce what it craves. Worry is actually an attempt to
control what happens, as if thinking about it will somehow help. Jesus shrewdly
points out, “Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?” Or, as
it can also be translated, “which of you by being anxious can add a single hour
to his span of life?” (Matt. 6:27, ESV) Obviously, worrying cannot actually produce a longer
life. If anything, it can actually shorten your life. Dr. Charles Mayo said, “Worry
affects the circulation, the heart, the glands, and the whole nervous system. I
have never met a man or known a man to die of overwork, but I have known a lot
who died of worry” (MacArthur, 423). We should not worry because it does not
help us.
Third, Jesus encourages His hearers
by pointing to the tender care of God the Father. God feeds the birds, which do
not even know how to farm. God clothes flowers with incredible beauty, and they
are merely short-lived plants. So certainly He can make sure to clothe you,
feed you, and provide you with all that you need. When we don’t trust God to
take care of us, we are demonstrating “little faith,” Jesus says.
Finally,
Jesus points out that worrying about our needs being met is acting like “Gentiles,”
which basically means acting as if we do not have a heavenly Father. Believers,
of all people, should go through life knowing that Someone is taking care of
them. My children do not worry about their needs because they have a father who
works and provides for them. Ultimately, I do not have to worry because I have a
Father in heaven who provides for me.
Works Cited:
John F. MacArthur, The
MacArthur New Testament Commentary: Matthew 1–7 (Chicago: Moody Press,
1985).
Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken
from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1979, 1980,
1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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