Living Under the Father's Care :: Matthew 6:24-34
Preached to the saints of Mount Olive Lutheran Church and Grace English Lutheran Church, Bovey and Marble, MN; September 12, 2021
Therefore, do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious about itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble (Matthew 6:34).
Our Lord Jesus Christ, who took on our flesh, willingly stepped into our reality of life. He took on all of your troubles, all of your burdens, all of your anxieties and, most importantly, all of your sins. He carried it all to to the cross and in His dying breath, he brought it all to completion for you. Today, he speaks as the God of All creation and offers you, His disciples, great comfort: Do not be anxious about tomorrow.
Easier said than done, to be sure. You almost want to interrupt Christ our Lord and say, “are you serious? Do you not see what is going on down here? Do you not know how difficult daily living is? Inflation is rising; illness continues to creep in and disrupt our comfortable lives; everyone is shouting about life, liberty, and fairness – and the shouting only gets louder! Jesus, what do you mean, do not be anxious?”
You almost want to interrupt him – but you don't. You know He’s right. Evening and morning are in His hands, He has created them, oversees them, and establishes them. With his death on the cross and rising again, He has freed you from a life of toil and trouble. He holds all authority over all things. You know he’s right – there is no need to be anxious. Even though Satan and this wicked world distracts you and tries to derail your trust in Christ, the victory Jesus has won cannot be removed. Jesus has already conquered and completed tomorrow for you – so there’s no need to worry about tomorrow – what we will eat, what we will drink, what we will put on. When compared to the eternity that Jesus has won for you with His holy precious blood, tomorrow – and every tomorrow – are lived under the Father’s Care. And He is an all knowing, all loving, and all caring Father who knows what you need, even before you ask Him.
He knows about all of the problems and troubles that plague your mind. He knows what keeps you up at night. He knows how your budget causes you an upset stomach. He knows you worry about your kids’ future. He not only knows about the troubles of living in a sinful world – He lived it himself. And before you think, “well, He is God, so how difficult could it have been,” remember that this Jesus, who is God in the flesh, voluntarily made himself nothing so that you could be called a forgiven Child of God. This Jesus left his heavenly throne and willingly entered our reality.
He is the Creator of all things, yet He had no place to lay his head – except a filthy manger and a borrowed tomb. This Jesus, who planted a marvelous garden, was starved, stripped, and given sour wine as refreshment while he innocently hung upon the cross, bleeding and dying for your sins. This Jesus sweat drops of blood as he pondered the great price He would pay so that you would have God as a loving Father and life in His Kingdom. This Jesus was abandoned by his closest friends – He was cast aside by God and left in the dark for three hours – He carried the burden of sin, anxiety, and troubles for all the world – and he carried it for you, too.
That weight was heavy – heavier than any burden you will ever carry – and He carried it willingly. As Hebrews 12 states: For the joy set before him, he endured the cross. The great anxiety and weight that comes with living under the tyranny of the prince of darkness was carried by Christ Jesus – and he entrusted his dying moment into the hands of His gracious and loving Father, bowing his head and giving up his Spirit. He died, that you would be set free from anxiety and worry concerning this short existence that we call life. Seeking first the righteousness of God and giving his every living and dying breath for it, God raised him up, clothed him with all glory and honor, and has seated him at the Right Hand.
Christ, in His loving authority, clothed you with His righteousness in baptism. He set His seal of salvation upon you. He desires to feed you with His real and true Body and Blood – food that does not spoil, but always imparts forgiveness and life to you. He has set all things in place for your eternity. He has done all the work necessary. He gives you these words, not as a condemnation, but as a comfort: I say to you, stop being anxious of your life; what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will be clothed in.
The Lord Christ does not desire anxiety, worry, and fear to be your reality – he has come to release you from this grip of the devil’s work. So, to put your mind at ease, Jesus points to that ongoing, loving, fatherly care by setting your eyes on how he cares for the simple things of creation.
Look at the birds of heaven, that they do not so nor reap, nor gather into barns, and your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth more than they? Martin Luther said that these birds put us to shame. They wake up each morning, sing their praises to God, and then go and joyfully receive all the good things that God has set aside for them for the day – sometimes set aside by us. Not one sparrow falls from the ground without our Father in heaven knowing about it; surely he will care for you whom he calls His own beloved, forgiven children. As you bargain over nickels and dimes, look at the birds. Christ did not live, die, and grant eternity for the birds, but for you. If he cares for them, how much more will he care for you, whom he shares flesh, life, and death with?
And concerning clothing, why are you anxious? Learn from the lilies of the field, how they grow. They do not toil nor spin, and I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself as one of these. And if God so clothes the grass of the field that exists today, and tomorrow is thrown into a furnace, will He not much more, you, oh you of little faith?
The grass withers and the flower fades in a season, yet the Lord of Creation still clothes it in beauty. If the years of man are 70 – or by means of his grace 80 – how much more will he array you with glory in this life and into the next?
A lot more, actually. God paid for you and your life with the cost of His own dear Son – a price He was pleased to pay. Raising Him up from the grave, He also raises you up and rescues you from the fires of destruction. Whatever sin, Satan, and the world throw at you in this life, as disciples and students of Christ Jesus, know that your heavenly Father will provide all that is necessary for you. He will provide for his precious children whom he has redeemed with the price of His own blood.
His care for you is not in some distant, out there future – it is present here and now as we receive His Word of salvation in the forgiveness of sins that He has won. God’s care for you is in this place – and in your homes – each and every single day as you feast on His Word – a Word that imparts His truths, His forgiveness, and builds you up into the fullness of everlasting life. Hear it from God Himself – from Jesus – For all these, the things of this life, the pagans seek for. Indeed, your heavenly Father, he knows you have need of all these. But you, seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these will be added to you. Therefore, do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious about itself.
So let us with joy, patience, and security, live under the Father’s care, knowing that his steadfast love never ceases, His mercies are new every morning; and he has provided for our greatest need through His Son, who granted us the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. In Him we live and move and have our being under the Father’s care – now, and into eternity. Amen.