In March of 2020, near the start of Covid-19, a friend texted me “I know I’m not supposed to worry, but I’m struggling not to.” Millions of people felt the same way. We had no idea what would happen with the coronavirus.  Thank God that is behind us, but people are still stressed about numerous things.

How do we respond as Christians? Based upon Jesus’ teaching in the Sermon on the Mount, I am going to show you 5 reasons why it doesn’t make sense to worry.  

God takes care of the birds and the flowers

In Matthew 6:26, Jesus said, “Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet our Heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?”  Jesus is inviting his listeners to consider the birds. They don’t sow or reap or gather into barns. Farmers sow their crops in the spring, they harvest them in the fall, and then they store them away until they can be used or sold.  But the birds of the air do little. They hunt a bit for their food, but it’s a simpler process than for the farmer. God takes care of His creatures.

Jesus gives another similar illustration in v. 28-29: “And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.” The flowers don’t work to provide for themselves. God provides for them, and they are beautiful. Jesus even says that Solomon – the richest and wisest king in the history of the world – was not taken care of like them. 

If God can take care of the birds of the air, the flowers of the field and all the plants, then don’t you think he can take care of you – one of his beloved children? Of course he can! How silly it would be to worry about this, that, or the other thing when God will take care of you. 

Worry doesn’t benefit you

Matthew 6:27: “And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?” 

Think about all the times you have been worried sick over something – how did that benefit you? If we were honest, we would all admit that our worry didn’t help. The sooner we realize the limited benefit of worry, the better off we will be. That is not to say you should be careless.. But letting worry and fear dominate your life, is not the way to live, especially for a child of God. 

Worry shows a lack of faith in God

Matthew 6:30: “But 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?” 

If God takes care of the birds and flowers, don’t you think He will take care of you? For all those who are in Christ, you are one of his precious children. He cares for you in ways you can’t even begin to understand. 

Then why do we worry? Because of our lack of faith. This is the first of 5 times where Jesus scolds the disciples for lacking faith. The disciples had witnessed countless miracles and heard his teaching. Didn’t they realize that he could take care of them? We think that our problems are too big for God. But our Lord has already promised that he will supply every need of ours according to his riches in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19)? 

Every time we worry, it demonstrates a lack of faith in God. It shows that we don’t see God for who he is and we are not willing to put our lives in his hands. So we need to pray, Lord, take my “little faith” and give me “great faith.” We pray, Lord, help me to give my worry and anxiety over to you. 

God already knows our needs

Matthew 6:31-32: “Therefore, do not worry, saying, What shall we eat? Or What shall we drink? Or What shall we wear? For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.” 

It is natural to worry about basic needs. But going back to point #1, we need to keep things in perspective. If the physical body is all we are living for, then something is missing. Christians are called to live a very different kind of life. To focus only on the body’s needs will cause us to lose sight of eternity. If this earthly life is all there is for us we will worry. But the Bible says, “flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of Heaven.”   

We as Christians are called to live a life of humble dependence on our Master and Lord. When we yield ourselves to him, we start to see how He takes care of us. We come to see that we don’t need to worry. It’s true that we do have needs, but God the Father already knows what we need. This echoes what Jesus said earlier in chapter 6 while on the subject of prayer. “Your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” (6:8)

The question is, do we trust him to supply those needs? 

Worry shows we are preoccupied with the future

Matthew 6:34: “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” 

Most of our worries have to do with the future. But Jesus essentially says, don’t worry about tomorrow – don’t worry about next week – don’t worry about a month from now. Tomorrow will have enough problems of its own. The better approach is to take things day by day. You are going to suffer. What good is it to worry about tomorrow when, “Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Just because you are a Christian doesn’t mean you’re not going to suffer. 

Focus on being faithful in the moment. Jesus is not saying don’t plan. But he is saying, don’t be preoccupied with the future. Obviously, we don’t know what tomorrow holds. The only certain thing is that in this fallen world, you will have troubles.

Well, there you have it – 5 reasons not to worry as a Christian. 

– God takes care of the birds and the flowers (v. 26, 28-29)

-Worry doesn’t benefit you (v. 27)

-Worry shows a lack of faith in God (v. 30)

-God already knows our needs (v. 31-32)

-Worry shows we are preoccupied with the future (v. 34)

I close with 1 Peter 5:6-7: “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.” 

This article is based upon a sermon preached February 4, 2024, which can be accessed here.