Matthew 6:25-34 NKJV “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? (26) 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? (27) Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? (28) “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; (29) and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. (30) 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? (31) “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ (32) For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. (33) But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. (34) Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
Matthew 6:25-27 TPT “This is why I tell you to never be worried about your life, for all that you need will be provided, such as food, water, clothing—everything your body needs. Isn’t there more to your life than a meal? Isn’t your body more than clothing? (26) “Look at all the birds—do you think they worry about their existence? They don’t plant or reap or store up food, yet your heavenly Father provides them each with food. Aren’t you much more valuable to your Father than they? (27) So, which one of you by worrying could add anything to your life?
Jesus uses the example of the little birds possibly sparrows.
These little birds are some of the lowest form of animal life.
Birds cannot save for the future. Birds cannot sow and reap and yet God takes care of them.
God takes care of and has a plan of provision for the lowest form of the animal world.
If we, as humans, are so far superior to the birds, then surely God will take care of us.
Matthew 6:28-30 TPT “And why would you worry about your clothing? Look at all the beautiful flowers of the field. They don’t work or toil, (29) and yet not even Solomon in all his splendor was robed in beauty more than one of these! (30) So if God has clothed the meadow with hay, which is here for such a short time and then dried up and burned, won’t he provide for you the clothes you need—even though you live with such little faith?
He then goes to talk about the lilies of the field. They do not toil nor do they spin. This is a reference to the tasks of men and women of the day.
Grass that has a limited life-cycle.
Jesus is saying to us, “Don’t let worry take over your mind…”
Notice Jesus did not just say don’t do this and not give us the equipment to not do it.
Matthew 6:31-34 TPT “So then, forsake your worries! Why would you say, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ (32) For that is what the unbelievers chase after. Doesn’t your heavenly Father already know the things your bodies require? (33) “So above all, constantly chase after the realm of God’s kingdom and the righteousness that proceeds from him. Then all these less important things will be given to you abundantly. (34) Refuse to worry about tomorrow, but deal with each challenge that comes your way, one day at a time. Tomorrow will take care of itself.”
Matthew 6:33 NKJV But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
Matthew 6:33 AMPC But seek (aim at and strive after) first of all His kingdom and His righteousness (His way of doing and being right), and then all these things taken together will be given you besides.
- Our very first pursuit is to be after the Kingdom of God.
This represents all of the laws of the Kingdom that God has established. These are spiritual laws that if I understand them will provide for me.
We need to understand the difference between spiritual laws and natural laws:
Most of the time natural laws work and respond instantaneously.
Spiritual laws don’t show immediate results or “payback” in the “seen” realm and are delayed.
The Kingdom has within it these spiritual laws that if I will work and cooperate with them, they will work on my behalf; they are designed to help me.
You keep or work a spiritual law by faith.
We need to have just as much confidence in the spiritual law as we do the natural law.
If spiritual laws worked in the natural instantaneously then we would not have to teach the Bible. Everyone would obey simply because they have to.
Why did God set it up this way? He designed spiritual laws to work this way so that we would have to obey them by faith. This is why people will dismiss them and think that they have no impact.
- Our second pursuit is His righteousness.
Righteousness should never be confused with holiness.
Holiness is a living pure in moral word and conduct.
You live a holy life because you are righteous and not the other way around.
You are holy because you are righteous.
Righteousness is right standing with God and is more about position than anything else.
It is being in a right position with God; a position of being blessed.
If you go through the drive through of McDonalds and pull up 30 feet from the speaker, you can order all day long but you will not get any food because you are out of position.
Jesus put you in the right position with God!
Galatians 3:13 NKJV Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE”),
Galatians 3:13 TPT Yet, Christ paid the full price to set us free from the curse of the law. He absorbed it completely as he became a curse in our place. For it is written: “Everyone who is hung upon a tree is doubly cursed.”
Jesus lost His clothes, His health, His possessions, His influence, even His favor with God.
Everything He lost, He lost it so we could gain it.
Galatians 3:14 NKJV that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
Galatians 3:14 TPT Jesus, our Messiah, was cursed in our place and in so doing, dissolved the curse from our lives, so that all the blessings of Abraham can be poured out upon even non-Jewish believers. And now God gives us the promise of the wonderful Holy Spirit who lives within us when we believe in him.
Galatians 3:29 NKJV And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.
Galatians 3:29 TPT And since you’ve been united to Jesus the Messiah, you are now Abraham’s “child” and inherit all the promises of the kingdom realm!
He did not just make us righteous because He knew we would struggle with understanding this, so He put us in a family.
God said, “I am going to put you in a family because there is no bond that is stronger than family.” This is what God chose to do.
He not only forgave us, but He put us in a family.
Galatians 4:4-7 NKJV But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, (5) to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. (6) And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!” (7) Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.
Galatians 4:7 TPT Now we’re no longer living like slaves under the law, but we enjoy being God’s very own sons and daughters! And because we’re his, we can access everything our Father has—for we are heirs of God through Jesus, the Messiah!
We are positionally and relationally in the family of God.
There is no bond stronger than the bond of a family.
If we are the righteousness of God, then why do we end up in bondage and not experiencing God’s best in our lives?
The Bible says that Abraham was rich and blessed. The Bible says that Isaac was rich and blessed. The Bible says that Jacob was rich and blessed. All this was because of the covenant family relationship with God.
But we see some 400 years later, the family of God living in bondage and in slavery.
Here are two questions we need to think about from this story:
What caused the Children of Abraham to not walk in what God had already blessed them with as part of that family?
What caused them to walk and live in a constant state of worry?
They worried because they did not know what theirs as members of God’s family and what God had already blessed them with through Abraham.
They did not know what family they were a part of and what belonged to them.
Matthew 6:33 NKJV But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
Jesus is saying to us that we will live in a state of worry because:
We do not understand the Kingdom of God (laws that God has already put in place to provide for us).
We don’t know and understand what our position is in His family because of what Jesus did for us (His righteousness).
John 14:27 NKJV Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.