Daily Reading & Meditation Saturday (June 21): Why are you anxious? Scripture: Matthew 6:24-34 24 No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. 25 Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you shall eat or what you shall drink, nor about your body, what you shall put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 And which of you by being anxious can add one cubit to his span of life? 28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin; 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O men of little faith? 31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, `What shall we eat? or `What shall we drink? or `What shall we wear? 32 For the Gentiles seek all these things; and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well. 34 Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Let the days own trouble be sufficient for the day. Meditation: What does the expression serving two masters and being anxious have in common? They both have the same root problem - being divided within oneself. The root word for anxiety literally means being of two minds. An anxious person is often tossed to and fro and paralyzed by fear, indecision, and insecurity. Fear of some bad outcome cripples those afflicted with anxiety. Its also the case with someone who wants to live in two opposing kingdoms - Gods kingdom of light, truth, and goodness or Satans kingdom of darkness, sin, and deception - following Gods standards and way of happiness or following the worlds standards of success and happiness. Who is the master in charge of your life? Our master is whatever governs our thought-life, shapes our ideals, and controls the desires of our heart and the values we choose to live by. We can be ruled by many different things - the love of money and possessions, the power of position and prestige, the glamor of wealth and fame, and the driving force of unruly passions, harmful desires, and addictive cravings. Ultimately the choice of who is our master boils down to two: God or mammon. What is mammon? Mammon stands for material wealth or possessions or whatever tends to control our appetites and desires. There is one master alone who has the power to set us free from slavery to sin, fear, pride, and greed, and a host of other hurtful desires. That master is the Lord Jesus Christ who alone can save us from all that would keep us bound up in fear and anxiety. Jesus used an illustration from nature - the birds and the flowers - to show how God provides for his creatures in the natural order of his creation. God provides ample food, water, light, and heat to sustain all that lives and breathes. How much more can we, who are created in the very image and likeness of God, expect our heavenly Father and creator to sustain not only our physical bodies, but our mind, heart, and soul as well? God our Father is utterly reliable because it is his nature to love, heal, forgive, and make whole again. Jesus taught his disciples to pray with confidence to their heavenly Father: Give us this day our daily bread. What is bread, but the very staple of life and symbol of all that we need to live and grow. Anxiety is neither helpful nor necessary. It robs us of faith and confidence in God’s help and it saps our energy for doing good. Jesus admonishes his followers to put away anxiety and preoccupation with material things and instead to seek first the things of God - his kingdom and righteousness. Anxiety robs the heart of trust in the mercy and goodness of God and in his loving care for us. God knows our needs even before we ask and he gives generously to those who trust in him. Who is your master - God or mammon? Lord Jesus, free me from needless worries and help me to put my trust in you. May my first and only concern be for your glory and your kingdom of peace and righteousness. Help me to live each day and moment with trust and gratitude for your providential care for me. Psalm 34:7-12 7 The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them. 8 O taste and see that the LORD is good! Happy is the man who takes refuge in him! 9 O fear the LORD, you his saints, for those who fear him have no want! 10 The young lions suffer want and hunger; but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing. 11 Come, O sons, listen to me, I will teach you the fear of the LORD. 12 What man is there who desires life, and covets many days, that he may enjoy good? Daily Quote from the early church fathers: The value of life, by John Chrysostom, 547-407 A.D. Note the acceleration of images: just when the lilies are decked out, he no longer calls them lilies but grass of the field (Matthew 6:30 ). He then points further to their vulnerable condition by saying which are here today. Then he does not merely say and not tomorrow but rather more callously cast into the oven. These creatures are not merely clothed but so clothed in this way as to be later brought to nothing. Do you see how Jesus everywhere abounds in amplifications and intensifications? And he does so in order to press his points home. So then he adds, Will he not much more clothe you? The force of the emphasis is on you to indicate covertly how great is the value set upon your personal existence and the concern God shows for you in particular. It is as though he were saying, You, to whom he gave a soul, for whom he fashioned a body, for whose sake he made everything in creation, for whose sake he sent prophets, and gave the law, and wrought those innumerable good works, and for whose sake he gave up his only begotten Son. (excerpt from THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW, HOMILY 22.1) Go to | Daily Reading & Meditation Index | Meditations may be freely reprinted for non-commercial use. Cite copyright & source: dailyscripture.net author Don Schwager © 2014 Servants of the Word
Posted on: Sat, 21 Jun 2014 00:58:44 +0000
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