Our text for this blog is Matthew 6:25-30, where Jesus is giving a sermon to His followers.
Matthew 6:25-30
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
For many, food, drink, and clothing are the whole of their life. It is all they think about. And the world is doing its best to get us to live on that level. But Jesus has said that we should not be anxious about those things. And He points out two things in nature that will help us in that area—birds and flower.
BIRDS
Jesus said, “Look at the birds of the air [Look at and think about them].”
- They don’t sow or reap or gather.
- Yet God our Father feeds them.
- And we are better (closer to God) than they are; we are His children. So, He definitely will care for us.
- Also, what good will it do anyway to worry about these things. Will worrying change anything? Will it extend your life?
Let’s look at the birds and all humans, how God provides for them.
Birds: They do nothing to provide for themselves, yet God provides for them.
Humans: They have to sow and reap and gather for themselves, but then God alone will give the increase.
In both cases God provides. And though man must enter into the process (sowing, reaping and gathering), it is God alone who ultimately provides for man, because He makes it rain and He makes the crops grow.
Now let’s look at the argument from the standpoint of a Christian.
- If God provides for both the birds and for all humans, how much more will He provide for His own family—His believers?
- If He provides for mere creatures and for unbelievers, will He neglect His own Children? No!
If we reason these things out with ourselves, this will defeat anxiety and worry in us. If we realize that because He provides for the birds, He will most certainly provide for us even more, because we are His beloved children.
When you really see yourselves as His child, you should know that He will care for you. Maybe this is your problem. That you forget (or you don’t think about the fact) that you are His child and He loves you as His own.
FLOWERS
Flowers do nothing! Even birds have to look around for worms and seeds to eat; but flowers do nothing. And God makes them grow and look beautiful. He gives them the sun and the rain.
Have you noticed how flowers always face the sun? You may notice how in the evening they will bend way over to continue to look into the sun. We could learn a lesson in that.
If we look at (and think about) the flowers, we see the hand of God, His perfect creation, the glory of His creation. The flowers are perfectly clothed by God and are dependent on God for everything they need to keep living and to look good.
If God our Father so clothes the flowers with such beauty that last only a little while (a few months) will He not cloth us His children whom He loves and that lasts forever?
Stephen Nielsen 