A Lamp Unto My Feet Bible Study Website
Matthew 6:25-34
Lesson #17
WORRY OR FAITH
- Memory verse: Mat 6:33
- Read Mat 6:25-34 Parable of the Birds and the Lilies
- What is the central truth of the parable?
- If I put God as my top priority focus and spend my energies serving Him, He will provide everything I need because I am so valuable to him.
- I will, therefore, not have to worry about the future.
- The Greek word for worry is merimnan which means = to worry anxiously, anxiety.
- Anxiety is an over abundant concern with what might happen in the future.
- The future of reality is seldom as bad as the future of our fears.
- Worry involves fear, and fear is the opposite of faith. (James 1:6-8)
- What is meant by the correlation between food and clothing and the birds of the air (25-26)?
- Birds, too, are part of creation and God takes care of them with the necessities of life.
- He will take better care of us who have chosen Him and serve Him out of love.
- Let us consider the characteristics of birds and relate those characteristics to the parable:
- Birds work for their provision, but it is always available.
- They don’t store their food.
- They don’t worry and get ulcers wondering if it will be there tomorrow.
- We are to work for a living, but what we need is always available from God.
- Consider the characteristics of lilies and relate those characteristics to the parable:
- The Huleh lily of Israel is noted for its colors from brilliant scarlet to a deep purple.
- The bloom of the lilies have a short life span. We, too, have a relatively short life span in the eternity of things.
- Lilies are beautiful, but God considers us more so.
- When they are dead, they are burned and forgotten. When we are dead, we will not be burned in the lake of fire with non-believers, but we will live forever with Christ. He will never forget us or forsake us. (Heb 13:5)
- Integrate this parable with that of Mat 6:19 and Mat 6:22 and Mat 6:24.
- What the Christian life should be like:
- In Mat 6:19-20 we have a choice of what we value in life.
- In Mat 6:22 we have a choice of focus and purpose in life.
- In Mat 6:24 we have a choice of gods to serve.
- In Mat 6:33-34 we have a choice of worry or faith.
- If we make the right choices, God will take care of all of our needs because we have placed our whole faith in Him. If He is sufficient to give us eternal life, how much more will He supply the lesser, temporary things.
- According to psychologists men and women have 7 deadly worries:
- =1= Poverty =2= Criticism
- =3= Ill health =4= Loss of love
- =5= Loss of liberty =6= Old age
- =7= Death
- What the Christian life should be like:
- What seven reasons does this passage give for not worrying?
- Jesus forbids this kind of worry.
- He forbade it because it takes the joy out of life and is the opposite of faith.
- Therefore, He gives us 7 reasons for avoiding this disabling sin.
- =1= God gave us life so we can surely trust him for the lesser things. (25)
- =2=God provides for birds. He will more surely provide for men who have chosen to love him. (26)
- Worry refuses to learn the lesson of nature, the lesson of history, and the lesson of life.
- If you remember what God has done in the past, you will never worry about the future.
- =3= Worry is useless and unproductive in bringing about positive change. (27)
- Worry cannot change the past or the future.
- Worry can often damage your health. Stomach ulcer, coronary thrombosis
- Worry affects a man’s judgment and makes him unable to intelligently deal with life.
- =4= If God gives such beauty to a flower with such a short life, how much more will he take care of man that will live forever. (28-30)
- =5= Worry is distrust of God and is a characteristic of a non-believer. (32)
- Worry is not caused by external circumstances.
- In the same circumstances, one man will be serene and the other will be consumed with worry. Worry comes from the heart. (Isa 26:3)
- =6= Worry can be defeated by seeking first and concentrating on God and His kingdom. (33)
- =7= Worry can be defeated by learning to live one day at a time. (34)
- What is the central truth of the parable?
- Summary of principles in Mat 6:25-34:
- Don’t be unnecessarily concerned about daily provision (25)
- God considers us as very valuable. (26) (30)
- Don’t worry about the things you cannot change. (27)
- God can do a better job of providing for you than you can because all things belong to God. (29)
- Don’t put your worries into words. (31)
- Be single minded, serving God first, and He will take care of you. (33)
- The context of the chapter is one of choices:
- Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven (6:20)
- Have a single focus to your life (6:22)
- Choose to serve one master, the Lord Jesus Christ (6:24)
- Don’t have anxieties about tomorrow.
- Anxieties are what you think might happen but usually never happens. Jesus forbids it. (34)
- Scriptures to combat worry:
- Psa 56:3-4 Isa 41:10
- Jer 29:11 Phi 4:6-7
- 1Pet 5:7
- Psa 37 God’s tranquilizer Psalm
- Fret not (1,7,8)
- Trust (3)
- Delight (4)
- Commit thy way (5)
- Be still (7)
- Cease anger (8)
- Wait (9)
Homework
Matthew 7:1-6
- Application of Mat 6:25-34
- What is your greatest fear in life? (the one on which you spend most of your time and thoughts)
- What main points in last week’s lesson will help you defeat this fear?
- What do you plan to do this week that will defeat your fears?
- Find some scriptures that speak the word of God to your fears and write them here.
- Preparation for Mat 7:1-6 Judging others
- Read Mat 7:1-5 The Parable of the Mote and the Beam
- What is the central truth of the parable of the mote and the beam?
- List the reasons why we are not to judge other people.
- Read Joh 7:24 What kinds of things do you think fall under the category of “righteous judgment” that we are to judge?
- Read Mat 7:6 Parable of Dogs and Swine
- What is the central truth of this parable?
- Read Mat 7:1-5 The Parable of the Mote and the Beam
- Memory verse: John 7:24
