Don’t be a Worrywart

• Matt 6:16-34
• ³¹ “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.
• The world we live in has become more complex than I’ve seen in my entire life. 
• If you were a worrier before- you might be on overdrive during this season- lots to focus on
• I am a man, that if you knew the intricacies of my heart, I lean more towards worrying than not worrying- but I’ve grown a lot in the past 10 years. I grew A LOT in the past year. 
• I’ve actually worried less in the past year than I would have expected to
• Ive worried about the church, people of the church, my leadership, people’s perceptions of me, my kids, my wife, my career, my future, food, ammo, heat seeking incendiary rounds- normal 
• But I’ve noticed that the more I seek after God- the less I worry about stuff. 
• The more I focus on him and others, and the less I focus on myself, the less worry I have
• TITLE- don’t be a worrywart- warts grow- and the more you worry the more it grows
• Many times we worry about stuff that never happens and needlessly worry
• Jesus said “27 Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature”
• Let me explain to you the end at the beginning- The reason you worry is because you don’t seek after Jesus and his righteousness realizing everything you worry about will be given to you
• Jesus goes through points to his sermon, serve others, pray, fast, store treasures in heaven, be generous, don’t serve two masters, don’t worry, seek after me, get your heart right

1. You worry when You don’t Serve others

• ^V2 do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly. (This a theme- Don’t be a hypocrite- God will reward you)
• Like many points in Jesus’ sermon- the precursor to “do not worry” is get your heart right with serving others- we covered this last week- but you can’t hear it enough
• The connection we didn’t make last week is there is a correlation between your worry and the actions you are doing in your life- namely- serving others. 
• V25 he says “therefore I say to you” which is a connection to what he just got done saying
• Serve others and you’ll worry less- look for ways to serve people. Church, home, work, comm
• Luke 6:38 READ
• Giving people worry less- what they realize when they are helping others might be a few things- 
• You forget what you’re worrying about, you get perspective, you get broken of selfish desires
• Let me say this- not only the destitute have needs- you can serve people who seem to have it together- sometimes they are the ones who need your help even more- time, love, emotions
• Pr 11:25  The generous soul will be made rich,And he who waters will also be watered himself.
• Mark 9:35  “If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all.”
• Look for ways to serve others and you’ll worry less- be COMMITTED Matt 20:28, 1 peter 4:10, 

2. You worry when don’t pray

 V5And when you pray, not be like the hypocrites. Father will reward you openly

Again-the things you worry about- Food, shelter, clothing, life, living- PRAY ABOUT IT

• Luke 18:1  Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart,
• You lose heart when you don’t pray- Go before God asking him to provide, protect, give peace
• Last week we talked a bit about praying- I want to encourage you to pray- 
• 1 Thes5:17 pray without ceasingPh 4:6  Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;
• Ephe6:18  praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, 
• When I was in Egypt- either by air or by bus- choose your death- I chose bus- 7 hours of prayer
• It took away the worry- I just focused on my relationship with God- thought about eternity

3. You worry when you don’t fast

• V16when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, Father  will reward you openly. 
• Private fasting before God will result in open rewards- fulfillment of the things you worry about
• Can we just take God at his word? I meet with a lot of despondent people who claim to be Christians- and have exactly zero Christian disciplines- Serving, praying, fasting- who we are
• Matthew 6:16-18 READ I’ve preached at least 5 sermons on fasting- some as recently as a year ago- go and listen, but you don’t have to listen to them– just fast- once a week maybe- once a month at least. Its what we do DO IT
• What is fasting? Going without food. Not anything else- water only 24 hours is good start
• Joel 2:12  “Turn to Me with all your heart,With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.”
• Psalm 69:10  When I wept and chastened my soul with fasting,That became my reproach.
• Daniel 10:3 Daniel 3 weeks Luke 4:2  Jesus fasted 40 days. Apostles and disciples
• Nehemiah 1:4 says  I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven.
• Its actually my first response to calamity- some people eat when they are worried- it just compounds the problem- learn to be hungry- it’s a great spice! 
• I beat up my flesh- you want to make me worry? I’m going to beat you up! 
• If you can learn to control eating- you learn you can have discipline in many areas

4. You worry when You lay up your treasures on earth

• Jesus says 19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal;
• Whats interesting- is that in this sermon- Jesus talks about the need to not worry about things of this world, while simultaneously telling you God will reward you, and then not focusing on it
• Now 2000 years ago maybe it was a new Ox, hut, rake or something- but it’s the same heart
• IF I had the things of this world- I wouldn’t worry- but if you don’t fix this worry thing- then you just worry that you’re going to lose it once you get it- it’s a viscous cycle
• Hebrews 13:5  Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
• Laying up your treasures in heaven is focusing more on your own personal wealth, material accumulation, worldly accolades, respect and acceptance of the worlds ways- Worship MEN
• 1 John 2:15-16 READ
• We’re not supposed to even love the world at all! None of it- I get it- I have the worlds goods- Car, house, TV, phone, internet. I go to Disneyland, I buy toys. But it doesn’t drive me at all
• When you take your happiness away from the things of this world- you’re just above it
• Proverbs 23:4-5 READ- riches are so temporary- Stocks, real estate, jobs, its all just stuff
• 1 Timothy 6:8-10 read- Be content with food and clothing- 
• Don’t get covetous of the world- I could have it all- but I choose to serve Jesus instead

 5. You worry when you look at evil

• Here’s where it connects- v22-23 READ
• Good eyes look and linger on good things- good eyes- good body. Bad eyes- lingering on evil- looking for evil in everyone- you will be in darkness
• Jesus starts with service, prayer, fasting and heart condition and then hits with applicability
• Keep your eyes from stuff that leads you astray- covetesness in the eyes results in darkness in the heart- You don’t enjoy what you have and you envy what others have and no one wins
• Feasting on magazines, movies, videos, etc of what you wish you had will destroy you
• I really enjoy watching supercar videos- but I have no heart to it- if I did I wouldn’t watch it
  • Titus 1:15 To the pure all things are pure, but to those who are defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure; but even their mind and conscience are defiled.
  • When you’re steeped in evil, or filling your eyes with evil- darkness will fill your body
  • You must protect your eyes- you have to protect what you look at to not worry- just dont
  • Ps 101:3  I will set nothing wicked before my eyes;Psalm 119:37  Turn away my eyes from looking at worthless things, Job 31:1  “I have made a covenant with my eyes; 
  • Covetness, envy, greed- are all filled through the eyes- do you watch and read things that fill you with such a fantasy that you start to look at other peoples stuff that you want- or hate the things that God has given you- that which you pray for you begin to abhor
  • “An evil eye was a phrase in use, among the ancient Jews, to denote an envious, covetous man or disposition; a man who repined at his neighbour’s prosperity, loved his own money, and would do nothing in the way of charity for God’s sake.” (Clarke)
  • Guzik- In any case, Jesus tells us that either our eye is directed at heavenly things (and therefore full of light) or it is directed at earthly things (and therefore full of darkness).

6.You worry when you are serving two masters

• 24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.
• Following Jesus has been and will continue to be an all or nothing proposition and the language of Jesus and the Bible is a drastic separation from who you will serve
• God demands that you would serve him ONLY- This sermon talks about receiving from Jesus for being disciplined- but he says- but you can’t serve that stuff- you can’t God or Money-
• James 4:4 READ Friend of the world is an enemy of God
• Believe me- The time is coming and partly now when you must make a decision on who your master is- What will you be willing to do to appease your overlords? Who do you serve?
• Galatians 1:10 says to not please men but serve God ONLYRomans 6:16 be slave to God and no one else Matthew 4:10 You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’ ”

7. You worry when you give yourself over to worry

• 31-32 READ- Your father in heaven knows that you need these things
• Here’s the deal- you either trust God or you don’t. God is real and he knows what you need
• How many times have you worried, and then God showed up right on time?
• Waiting, waiting, waiting, and then BOOM. Getting wife, Getting church building- WAIT
• Philippians 4:6  Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;1 Peter 5:7  casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.Proverbs 12:25  Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression, But a good word makes it glad.Psalm 55:22  Cast your burden on the Lord, And He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be [a]moved.John 14:1  “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.

Worry begets worry- the more you worry the more worrisome you become

The ultimate worry is death- and as Christians- we really shouldn’t worry about

We have overcome the world- we have an inheritance- we have eternity with Jesus

This year is probably the first year of my life that I’ve really given myself over to death

Just letting it be what it is- life will go on- Things will be fine. I will be in heaven. 

8. You worry when you are not seeking after God and his righteousness

• The end of this- the “Therefore” of all of it is really quite simple
• v33 seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
• If you serve, pray, fast, store up treasures in heaven, keep your eyes, and not worry you are freed up to seek the kingdom of God- serving, praying, fasting, storing up, eyes no worry
• And then Jesus drops THE bomb- ALL of these things will be ADDED to you
• What will be added? We saw it- The Lord will reward you openly- I’m not exactly sure what those rewards are- but it sounds like something that I want more than judgment or pain
• Mat 5:6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,For they shall be filled.
• John 6:27  READ That the SON will give you
• When you make serving Jesus the number one priority in your life, your clothes, food, housing, car, spouse, stature, will be given to you by Jesus
• Psalm 34:9-10  Oh, fear the Lord, you His saints!There is no want to those who fear Him.10 The young lions lack and suffer hunger; But those who seek the Lord shall not lack any good thing.
• NOT LACK ANY GOOD THING- doesn’t say you wont suffer, or want, or go through anything- but you wont lack any good thing. Death, destruction, destitution, you’ll get through it
• Romans 14:17  for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.- when you have the HS you can have JOY through anything
• I get it- there are some HUGE earthly pains. Death of a child, divorce, job loss, sickness, disease, all manner of horribleness- but those that are SEEKING after GOD don’t have any worry about it- they walk through it with Jesus and come out on the other side faithful
• And Jesus promises- Mark 10:29-30  who shall not receive a hundredfold now in this time—
• And I believe it! I believe that God wants you fed, clothed, and safe. I do
• But the answer is to NOT WORRY- and SEEK AFTER GOD- Seek after him- make it about him
• So the next time you find yourself worrying- rush out and serve someone, pray, go on a fast, check your heart, store up your treasure in heaven- and then CHOOSE to not worry
• No one says you have to go through life worrying- you can just be OK with it- 
• Seek God- Trust him- seek after the kingdom and HIS righteousness!

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