Sermon for MHBC (4 September 2022). You can watch on our website or on Facebook or YouTube.
When we started having children, I felt anxiety and worry and fear like I had never known before. I suddenly realized the world could hurt me like never before. In Anna Karenina, one character says this after his wife gives birth: “Now the world has so many ways to hurt me.” The world is a dangerous and worrying place.
One of the ways we try to avoid being harmed is by setting up safety measures to protect ourselves. We want to stay ahead of anything that can go wrong. Sometimes this means prepping for worst case scenarios. Other times it just means a low-grade worry about what’s next so we aren’t surprised.
But Jesus tells us that this worry is a sure way to have our heart wrapped around all the wrong things. He teaches us a better way. He shows us a way to be satisfied in what we have and where we are. Since the Lord provides everything we need, we are free to seek him above everything else. We were made to be satisfied in God above everything else.
1. Don’t count on earthly treasure (vv. 19–24)
a. Stuff isn’t permanent (v. 19)
Buddhism – One of the foundational teachings is the concept of impermanence – things aren’t permanent – according to Buddhism, “nothing lasts.” This is the painful but inescapable reality of life. Or, if you prefer to put it in the eloquent words of a country song, “I’ve never seen a hearse with a trailer hitch.”
Jesus gives a couple of examples of why things aren’t permanent. First, he says, where moth and rust destroy. He’s talking about pests and time. Second, he says, where thieves break in and steal. Stuff can be destroyed or stolen.
One of the fasting growing segments in commercial real estate is self-storage. There is over 7sqft of storage space for every person in the US. In other words, the US population would fit in the storage facilities in the country. But in Jesus’s day there weren’t storage facilities. So if you had something valuable, you could (a) leave it in your house. But thieves might break down the wall and steal it. Or you could (b) bury it somewhere. But if was expensive clothing, moths might eat it, or if it were metal like coins, rust might corrode it. We forget this with our storage facilities, but the reality is that our stuff isn’t secure. A bad economy can ruin our finances. Natural disasters can leave us without valuable things like cars and homes. Hoping in stuff sets us up for disappointment. So Jesus tells us to focus on things that can never be taken away (v. 20).
But there’s a bigger point than simply the impermanence of stuff.
b. Stuff can capture our heart (v. 21)
Here is the great danger. The heart is the center of who we are. It is the GPS of our lives. It directs us. It determines the direction we take. Jesus says what we value determines the direction of our heart.
Jesus illustrates the danger of this in vv. 22–23. The eye being good or single/clear or healthy depending on you translation. In some places, the word means single or clear. This would be a person with a singular focus. They have one priority. The evil eye, by contrast, is the attempt to focus on too many things—like trying to follow Jesus and accumulate great wealth. This word can also be healthy or good. In the OT, a good eye refers to a generous person. A bad eye is a greedy person. Either option makes Jesus’s point. Stuff can catch our eye and capture our heart. We can become so focused on something that it destroys us—the darkness becomes great.
So Jesus tells us in v. 24 why this is so important. The word mammon is sometimes limited to money. That’s the way a lot of translations handle this. But mammon really can refer more broadly to prosperity, wealth, and possessions. One commentator suggests stuff.
Jesus says our allegiances can’t be divided. We can’t serve two masters. Not simply because it’s not right. But because it’s impossible. It’s the law of non-contradiction. A can’t be B. Cats can’t be dogs. We can’t love Jesus and love everything he is against.
But Jesus gives us some advice for making sure our heart isn’t captured by stuff. Here’s his corrective: Don’t be anxious.
2. Don’t be anxious (vv. 25–31)
That’s obviously easier said than done. Before we talk about how that’s done, let’s pay attention to why Jesus says this. Notice the connection between v. 25 and the previous section (therefore). Our worries and anxieties drive our pursuits. If we are anxious, our heart will focus on what’s making us anxious. That means our heart will be captured by the pursuit of those things.
There’s a reason that the Bible repeatedly reminds us to bring our worries and anxieties to God in prayer. Have you ever been really anxious and had trouble focusing on anything else? Why is that? It’s because your heart has been captured.
Jesus gives us some practical advice. The first piece of advice is to remember the care and power of God (vv. 26; 28–32).
The second piece of advice is to remember the waste of worry (v. 27).
The third piece of advice is our final point: Seek the Lord.
3. Seek the Lord (vv. 33–34)
Jesus tells us that our heart should be consumed with seeking God. Notice he says seek first. He’s talking about priorities.
The philosopher Soren Kierkegaard reflected on this passage. He asks, should we get a job to make a difference in the world. His answer: No, first seek the Kingdom of God. He asks, should we give all our possessions away. No, first seek the Kingdom of God. Should we preach this message to the world. No, first seek the Kingdom of God.
Part of what drives our worry and anxiety is fear of missing out. We are fearful that we will not experience joy. That we will experience pain. We are fearful we will lose our life and miss out on pleasures and experiences.
Larry Crabb: “Real pleasure, the only kind that satisfies the human soul and, at the same time, transforms a man into a marvelously decent person, is the sheer pleasure of living for the glory of God. It’s what each of us was designed to do.”
We were made to be satisfied in God above everything else. It is the deepest longing of our heart. Worry takes root when we look for satisfaction anywhere but God—whether that is family, health, wealth, or accomplishments.
We could go to numerous passages but listen to Ps 27:4: One thing I have desired of the Lord, That will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord All the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the Lord, And to inquire in His temple. The psalm teaches us that this should be our singular focus. And God invites us to be satisfied in him above everything else. Just a couple of verses later we read: When You said, “Seek My face,” My heart said to You, “Your face, Lord, I will seek.” The Lord says to us this morning: Seek me. Seek me and everything else will come together (v. 34).
Again, this is easier said than done, but let’s think about the gospel connection. Jesus says that we need to remember the Lord’s care and how he provides for us. In Christ, God has provided for our worst fears. Because Jesus dies for our sins, we are no longer separated from God who is our heart’s deepest desire, our reason for existence. And because Jesus died for our sins, we have been set free from the power of sin and death. And because Jesus is alive, there’s nothing that can separate us from God—not even death. God will not abandon us. We will be with him forever.
This morning we come to the table. This is a symbol of God’s provision for us. In Christ, all our deepest needs are met, all of our greatest fears are answered. As we eat and drink, we are reminded just how good the Lord is.