o Not worry Matthew 6:34 | 1517
Treasures in Heaven 6:22,23pp // Lk 11:34 – 36
19“ Do not store up for your selves treasures on earth, r where moths and ver min de stroy, s and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for your selves treasures in heav en, t where moths and vermin do not de stroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. u 21 For where your trea sure is, there your heart will be also. v
22“ The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, a your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eyes are un healthy, b your whole body will be full of dark ness. If then the light with in you is dark ness, how great is that dark ness!
24“ No one can serve two mas ters. Either you will hate the one and love the oth er, or you will be de vot ed to the one and de spise the oth er. You can not serve both God and mon ey. w
Do Not Worry 6:25 – 33pp // Lk 12:22 – 31
25“ There fore I tell you, do not worry x about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your
which produces change on the outside as we discipline ourselves to be more Christlike. That includes keeping our good works toward others secret, so that we check our motivations. We do not do God’ s work in the world to be praised by others. The same is true with prayer, fasting, and all the other spiritual disciplines.
6:19 – 21 Moth, rust, and thieves represent those forces that cause earthly treasures to diminish in value and finally be destroyed. Such things do not provide ultimate security. The contrast of“ treasures on earth” with“ treasures in heaven” implies a contrast of values. Whatever the disciple has placed as his or her highest value is a gauge of the condition of the heart. The righteous value must be God himself for security and direction in life. 6:22 – 23 The eye becomes the conduit that fills the heart with what each person focuses on. If a disciple’ s eyes are fixed on earthly treasure and earthly security, then the heart will likewise be full of darkness. 6:24 The term for“ serve” indicates the work of a slave, not an employee. A slave is the property of one master, which implies exclusive service. One must completely reject anything that hinders attachment to Jesus and give oneself completely to him. 6:25 The principle about worry is expressed in the simple statement,“ Do not worry about your life.” Sometimes“ worry” can be translated as“ concern.”
6:19 r Pr 23:4; Heb 13:5 s Jas 5:2, 3
6:20 t Mt 19:21; Lk 12:33; 18:22; 1Ti 6:19 u Lk 12:33
6:21 v Lk 12:34 6:24 w Lk 16:13
6:25 x ver 27, 28, 31, 34; Lk 10:41; 12:11, 22; Php 4:6; 1Pe 5:7
6:26 y Job 38:41;
Ps 147:9 z Mt 10:29-31
6:27 a Ps 39:5 6:29 b 1Ki 10:4-7
6:30 c Mt 8:26; 14:31; 16:8
6:32 d ver 8
6:33 e Mt 19:29; Mk 10:29-30
UNCORRECTED PROOF
Mt 6:21 ❖ Would someone looking at our lives conclude that our hearts are set on God? Why or why not?
heav en ly Fa ther feeds them. y Are you not much more valu able than they? z 27 Can any one of you by wor ry ing add a sin gle hour to your life 3? a
28“ And why do you wor ry about clothes? See how the flow ers of the field grow. They do not la bor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Sol o mon in all his splen dor b was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here to day and to morrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you— you of lit tle faith? c 31 So do not wor ry, say ing,‘ What shall we eat?’ or‘ What shall we drink?’ or‘ What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run af ter all these things, and your heav en ly Fa ther knows that you need them. d 33 But seek first his king dom and his righ teous ness, and all these things will be giv en to you as well. e 34 There fore do not wor ry about to mor row, for to morrow will wor ry about it self. Each day has enough trou ble of its own.
a
22 The Greek for healthy here implies generous. b
23 The Greek for unhealthy here implies stingy. c
27 Or single cubit to your height
Concern is inappropriate when it is misdirected, indicating a lack of trust in God. 6:26 – 27 Jesus’ disciples should not worry because the Father cares for his creatures. When Jesus’ disciples are responsible for carrying out the proper ways of life as ordained by God, God is faithful to carry out his end of the order. 6:28 – 30“ Little faith” is a favorite expression of Jesus, found mainly in this Gospel. It indicates not absence of faith but deficiency of faith. 6:31 – 32 Those with faith in God’ s provision will not worry and will reject the pursuits and values of unbelievers. 6:33 The use of the imperative“ seek” does not mean to look for something not present. Jesus has already announced the arrival of the kingdom. In this context, it means that his disciples are to make the kingdom of heaven the center of their priorities. 6:34 All the worry in the world today can do nothing about the cares and problems of tomorrow. As disciples learn to let God care for them today, they will become increasingly secure in his care for them tomorrow.
6:19 – 34 If we put Jesus at the center of our lives, we will avoid the modern idolatry of materialism. We probably do not think of worry as a form of idolatry, but it is when we