Rev. Joel Heckmann, pastor at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Okarche, OK, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Matthew 6:25-34.
Jesus’ gift of the Lord’s Prayer paves the way for His teaching concerning worry. Because God is their Father who provides daily bread, Jesus’ disciples have absolutely no need for worry. Their heavenly Father will assuredly give them what they need for this body and life. Jesus even gently pokes fun and gently teases His disciples concerning their worry, reminding them that worry can truly accomplish nothing. Our heavenly Father gives us vocations in which to work, but because we have His promise, the worry is taken away. Instead of seeking after only food, drink, and clothing according to the consumerism of the world, Jesus calls us to seek after His kingdom and righteousness. His kingdom is His activity of powerfully and graciously reigning over this world. This kingdom is found wherever Jesus is found, and He has promised to be found among us still today reigning through His Word and Sacrament. This stands as good news for us as Christians, giving us the comfort that God is reigning in this world and compelling us into our vocations of service for our neighbor. In Christ, worry is taken away.
“All Righteousness Fulfilled” is a mini-series on Sharper Iron that digs into the Gospel according to St. Matthew. The first evangelist proclaims Jesus to Jews and Gentiles alike as the fulfillment of God’s saving words and acts throughout the Old Testament. As the Christ in the line of David and Abraham, Jesus is the promised King who comes to bring sinners from every nation to live under His gracious reign.
Sharper Iron, hosted by Rev. Timothy Appel, looks at the text of Holy Scripture both in its broad context and its narrow detail, all for the sake of proclaiming Christ crucified and risen for sinners. Two pastors engage with God’s Word to sharpen not only their own faith and knowledge, but the faith and knowledge of all who listen.
Sharper Iron is underwritten by Lutheran Church Extension Fund, where your investments help support the work of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. Visit lcef.org.
Matthew 6:25-34
Do Not Be Anxious
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will 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 a single hour to his span of life?[a] 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 you 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 after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
Footnotes:
- Matthew 6:27 Or a single cubit to his stature; a cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters
English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
