Let us not worry about tomorrow.
[Matthew 6:25-34]
Do you know what will happen tomorrow? We can find the answer to this question in James 4:13-15: “Come now, you who say, "’Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.’ Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. Instead, you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.’” The Bible clearly says we don’t know what our life will be like tomorrow. Therefore, Proverbs 27:1 says, “Do not boast about tomorrow, For you do not know what a day may bring forth.” We don’t what will happen not only tomorrow but also today. Therefore, the Bible tells us not to boast about tomorrow. Also, the Bible says not to worry about tomorrow (Mt. 6:34). Still, aren’t we worried about tomorrow? In Matthew 6:25-34, Jesus is saying not to worry several times. In particular, Jesus says in verse 34: “"So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Today, I want to meditate on the three things under the heading "Do not worry about tomorrow."
First, what should we not be worry about?
In today's text Matthew 6:34, the Bible tells us that we should not worry about tomorrow. Here, what does Jesus refer to when He said “So do not worry about tomorrow”? Look at verses 25 and 31: “For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? … Do not worry then, saying, 'What will we eat?' or 'What will we drink?' or 'What will we wear for clothing?” What Jesus was referring to was that we should not worry about what we will eat, what we will drink and what we will put on (Lk. 12:29). In other words, Jesus is telling us not to worry about the needs of everyday life. Jesus is saying that “the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things” (v. 32). In other words, Jesus is saying that unbelievers are asking for these things because they are concerned about their daily needs such as food, drink, and clothes. Maybe we claim to have faith but like unbelievers we worry about these things as well.
In this world, there is a lot of worry. I cannot help but agree with what Apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 7:32-33: “But I want you to be free from concern. One who is unmarried is concerned about the things of the Lord, how he may please the Lord; but one who is married is concerned about the things of the world, how he may please his wife.” Also, when we do God’s work, we are like Martha in Luke 10:41, we are worried and bothered about so many things. This reminds me the hymn “My Soul in Sad Exile”: “My soul in sad exile was out on life’s sea, So burdened with sin and distressed …” (Internet). What should we do in this world full of distress and worries? The Bible Luke 21:34 tells us to be careful. What should we careful? The Bible says we should be careful not to let our mind be dulled by the dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of life (Lk. 21:34). If there are worries of life, our hearts will get dull. And when our hearts are dull, we are bound to lose spiritual sensitivity. As a result, we won’t be able to live according to the guidance of the Holy Spirit because we don’t understand it. So we will live according to our sinful nature. In the parable of the seeds in Matthew 13:22, Jesus says that the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word and it becomes unfruitful. Isn’t this true? Among the worries of our live, especially when we are under financial pressure, we are more prone to be tempted by wealth. If we have the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth, then we cannot hear God’s voice even though we read the Bible and hear and study the Word of God. As a result, we will live a fruitless life of faith. Therefore, we should not worry about tomorrow, as Jesus said.
Second, why shouldn’t we worry about tomorrow?
In today's text Matthew 6:24-34, Jesus is telling us three reasons:
- The first reason is that life is more important than food or clothing.
Look at Matthew 6:25 – “For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?” In general, I think it is normal for us to worry about what to eat, what to drink or what to wear for our own lives. This is because our people are eager to survive. But those of us with faith should think biblically rather than think generally. Biblical thinking is that we don’t have to worry about what we eat or drink or what we wear for our lives because our Heavenly Father knows that we need all these things (v. 32). Moreover, since our Heavenly Father gave us eternal life in Jesus Christ, will He not give us the daily necessities to us? I think this is what Jesus meant by life is more important than food or clothing (v. 25). God has given even His begotten Son Jesus to the cross for our salvation (eternal life). “He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?” (Rom. 8:32) Wouldn’t Heavenly Father provide us with the daily bread we need?
Wouldn’t Heavenly Father who loves us and even gave His begotten Son on the cross for our salvation give something for us to wear? Our Heavenly Father, who gave us eternal life, is God who knows what we need and has no difficulty in providing to us.
- The second reason is that our Heavenly Father knows that we need all these things.
Look at Matthew 6:32 – “For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.” According to Psalms 139, our God is the God who made us (v. 14) and who knows us (v. 1). He knows when we sit down and when we rise up. He understands our thoughts from afar (v. 2). He is intimately acquainted with all our ways (v. 3) and even before there is a word on our tongue, He knows it all (v. 4). The amazing truth is that God’s precious thoughts to us are outnumbered the sand (vv. 17-18). Why does God have such vast thoughts toward us? It is because God who knows us the best loves us the most. Don’t you think God who knows us the best and who loves us the most knows what we need in our everyday lives? Will your Heavenly Father not know the food and drink we need and the clothes we need to wear?
- The third reason is that each day has enough trouble of its own.
Look at Matthew 6:34 – “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” When I was meditating on this word, the Korean gospel song “I don’t know about tomorrow” came into my mind: “I don’t know about tomorrow, I just live from day to day. I don’t borrow from its sunshine, For its skies may turn to gray. I don’t worry o’er the future, For I know what Jesus said, And today I’ll walk beside Him, For He knows what is ahead” (Internet). This song is written by Mrs. Hee-sook Ahn. I still remember reading her book ‘If I perish, I perish.’ As I was meditating on this word, I came to know the story which I didn’t know about her before. The story is that she was scheduled for execution on August 18, 1945. The reason is that when Elder Park Gwan-jun and his son were calling out "Jehovah God's Great Mission" in the Capitol of Japan and threw a warning that ‘Japan would be ruined by sulfur" three guards ran to Elder Park and his son and capture them. Then a security guard asked Mrs. Ahn ‘Are you one of these people?’, she said ‘yes’. So she was arrested as well. And she was transferred to Pyongyang prison and imprisoned for 6 years. It was said that the execution was scheduled on the morning of August 18, 1945. However, on August 15, 1945, Japan surrendered to the atomic bomb of the United States and Korea was liberated, and on August 17, the day before the execution, Mrs. Hee-sook Ahn was released (internet). Isn’t this surprising? Isn’t it surprising that she was rescued a day before her execution? That was why she wrote this song: “I don’t know about tomorrow” came into my mind: “I don’t know about tomorrow, I just live from day to day. I don’t borrow from its sunshine, For its skies may turn to gray. I don’t worry o’er the future, For I know what Jesus said, And today I’ll walk beside Him, For He knows what is ahead.” We are walking on this rough path that the Lord had walked on. There are times when it seems to be there is no end. And there are times when we get exhausted. But we must not worry about tomorrow because each day has enough trouble of its own as Jesus said. In fact, even if we are to be executed tomorrow, we should leave tomorrow to the Lord and not worry about it with the determination that if we perish we will perish. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Lastly, what should we do to not to worry about tomorrow?
When Jesus said not to worry, He gave us two examples: the first is the birds of the air (vv. 26-27) and the second is the lilies of the field (vv. 28-30). Consider the first example. Look at Matthew 6:26-27: “Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life?” When we consider the birds of the air, they don’t sow, nor reap nor gather into barks like us. Can they farm like us? Of course, the answer is no. If the heavenly Father feeds the birds that can’t farm, will He not feed us and take care of us who are formed in the image of God and who are more precious than those birds? In addition to this, what we should think about is who among us can add a single inch to our height by worrying? (v. 27) Here, the world “height” doesn’t only refer to our physical height but also “the length of life” (Swanson). I thought of the word "height" primarily as the length of the body, but I think it is reasonable to interpret it as "the length of life". The reason is that when we think about what Jesus said, “Is not life more than food …” (v. 25), I think Jesus is telling us that not only can we not be able to grow the body by worrying about it but also we can’t extend our lives one more hour. So Jesus said “And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life?” (v. 27). Can we extend our life for an hour by worrying about it? Isn’t it worse for our health? Think about how the lilies of the field grow (v. 28). They don’t toil nor do they spin (v. 28). Nevertheless, Jesus said that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these (v. 29). “But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you?” (v. 30) To those who are worried about what to eat or what to wear, Jesus is saying “You of little faith!” (v. 30). That’s why we should look at the birds of the air (v. 26). And we should observe how the lilies of the field grow (v. 28). We are more precious than them. We are those who are bought with the precious blood of Jesus Christ. Therefore, the Bible says that God honors us (Isa. 43:4). If God feeds and clothe the birds of the air and the lilies of the earth, will He not feed us and clothe us? Therefore, when we are worry about tomorrow, as Jesus said, we should look at the birds of the air and the lilies of the field. When we do, we will not be worry about tomorrow.
We must first seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness in order not to worry about tomorrow. In other words, we must seek the kingdom of God and the righteousness of God, rather than worrying and seeking for what to eat, what to drink or what to wear, like unbelievers. If our priority is food, clothing and shelter, then we will worry all the days of our lives. But if our priority is His kingdom and His righteousness, then we will experience God's provision of our food, clothing and shelter. This is what Jesus said in Matthew 6:33 – “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” By believing in this Word of Jesus, let us seek God’s kingdom and God’s righteousness first. As we pray in faith "Give us this day our daily bread" (v. 11), let us all seek first the kingdom of God and live according to God's will (Park Yun-sun). In doing so, God will fill our daily needs with our food, drink and clothing. May we be able to experience this grace.
This is what the Bible says in 1 Peter 5:7, “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you” and in Philippians 4:6-7, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” God is telling us not to be anxious about anything. He is telling us not to worry. Therefore, we should not worry about tomorrow. We should not worry about tomorrow what to eat or what to drink or what to wear. Our Heavenly Father knows that we need all of these things. God, who gave us the most important thing to us, that is salvation, eternal life, by giving His only Son Jesus on the cross, will give us all of these things. Therefore, let us first and foremost seek God’s kingdom and live according to His will for His glory.