Matthew 6:19-34

Today's Passage: Matthew 6:19-34

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on
earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also
have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

In yesterday’s passage, we read the Lord’s prayer. Jesus, continuing the Sermon on the
Mount, expounded on the ideas and heart postures reflected in that prayer. As we pick up today
in verse 19, it’s important to look at Jesus’ words through the lens of the Lord’s
Prayer—specifically, what it means when we ask God to “Give us this day our daily bread.”

In verses 19–24, trusting God for our daily bread means we don’t depend on our own
abilities or what we can get for ourselves. Our treasure, those things we store for ourselves,
reflect our heart. They are the things we depend on instead of God. Those things will not last.
Only the treasure we “lay up in heaven” will last for eternity. If we love (fix our eye) on the
“treasures” of this world, we have a big problem—we cannot have both those treasures and God.
“No one can serve two masters.” Trusting God for our daily bread means depending on him
instead of ourselves.

Verses 25–32 illustrate the effect of not depending on God in this way—anxiety. Sissy Goff
in her book Raising Worry-Free Girls writes, “Anxiety is a method of seeking two experiences:
certainty and comfort. The problem is that it wants these two outcomes immediately and
continually.” Trusting God for our daily bread means finding our certainty and comfort in the
Lord… in every moment!

Whereas we seek certainty and comfort for ourselves and our future, Jesus said, “your
heavenly Father knows that you need them all.” Then, he gives us the cure for our worry and
anxiety, “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added
to you.” Boy, that sounds simple doesn’t it—like it should be easier to practice than it is. Also, it
sounds so simple, we wonder if it can’t possibly be true.

Anxiety is a very difficult topic, and I don’t pretend to have all the answers. We all struggle
with anxiety, but some of us deal with uncontrolled anxiety—a mental health condition that is
very serious, very real, and extremely challenging for those who suffer from it and those who
love those who suffer from it. However, the “cure” offered in this passage cuts to the quick of
several aspects of anxiety. Sissy Goff says that anxiety attacks the mind through “exaggerated
likelihood, catastrophic thinking, underestimated ability, faulty memory, and perpetual
questions…worry has no memory and assumes the worst.”

Seeking the Kingdom and God’s righteousness reminds us of many things, but primarily, all
our problems are temporary. Also, it reminds us of who we are in Christ. What do I have to fear
if I am a son or daughter of the King and Creator of the Universe?

So, how do we seek the Kingdom and God’s Righteousness? The first answer is Jesus’
example of prayer earlier in chapter 6. Second, is God’s Word. We have to replace the lies of
worry and anxiety with truth. Psalm 119:105 describes God’s Word as a “Lamp to my feet and a
light to my path.” Anxiety fears what’s still ahead in the darkness, but often God only reveals
what lies immediately ahead. Anxiety steals our heavenly perspective and wraps it in a worry
about things that may or may not come true. Instead, we must be obedient right now, remind
ourselves of truth right now, and trust that God has the next hour, the next day, the next year, the
next life already written—and he will be glorified in it.

Written By: Tyler Short