Worry Results in a Lack of Trust in God - Genesis 20-22 and Matthew 6:19-34
God does not want us to worry about things. He wants us to trust Him to provide for us and to protect us. When we worry we fail to trust Him. There are several examples of this in these chapters. I know that all of us can profit from reflecting on the results of worry.
In Genesis 20 Abraham lied about Sarah being his sister, again. Why did he commit the same sin again? He was still worried about what men would do to him, and he had not come to be able to trust God with his life. His worry had paralyzed his faith. In Genesis 21 the same thing happened to Sarah. Once she had Isaac, she was worried that Ishmael would detract from her son's inheritance. Her worry kept her from trusting God's promise that He would make a great nation from Isaac. Finally, Abraham got it right in Genesis 22. When God called on him to sacrifice Isaac, he did not worry, but he trusted that God would even raise him from the dead if He had to do so. We know this because he told his servant that "they" would come back. (v.5) What was the result of faith? Abraham was assured that God would provide. When we worry, we are afraid that God won't provide or protect. We must move from worry to trust.
Jesus said the same thing at the end of Matthew 6. Don't worry about earthly treasures. Lay up treasures in heaven. If we worry about earthly treasures, we will not live by faith, so we will miss laying up the treasures in heaven. Also, He told us not to worry about what to eat or wear. Why? He told us that because God can and will feed and clothe us better than we can imagine, if we will trust Him, instead of worrying. The key is to seek His kingdom first. (v.33) How do we do that? We do it by living a life of faith, not by worrying. That is why verse 34 commands us not to worry about tomorrow. Once we worry, we head off having faith.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Genesis 23-24 and Matthew 7.
In Genesis 20 Abraham lied about Sarah being his sister, again. Why did he commit the same sin again? He was still worried about what men would do to him, and he had not come to be able to trust God with his life. His worry had paralyzed his faith. In Genesis 21 the same thing happened to Sarah. Once she had Isaac, she was worried that Ishmael would detract from her son's inheritance. Her worry kept her from trusting God's promise that He would make a great nation from Isaac. Finally, Abraham got it right in Genesis 22. When God called on him to sacrifice Isaac, he did not worry, but he trusted that God would even raise him from the dead if He had to do so. We know this because he told his servant that "they" would come back. (v.5) What was the result of faith? Abraham was assured that God would provide. When we worry, we are afraid that God won't provide or protect. We must move from worry to trust.
Jesus said the same thing at the end of Matthew 6. Don't worry about earthly treasures. Lay up treasures in heaven. If we worry about earthly treasures, we will not live by faith, so we will miss laying up the treasures in heaven. Also, He told us not to worry about what to eat or wear. Why? He told us that because God can and will feed and clothe us better than we can imagine, if we will trust Him, instead of worrying. The key is to seek His kingdom first. (v.33) How do we do that? We do it by living a life of faith, not by worrying. That is why verse 34 commands us not to worry about tomorrow. Once we worry, we head off having faith.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Genesis 23-24 and Matthew 7.