Post #638358

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? 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? -Matthew 6:26-30 Christ has told us to not be anxious over anything. He means *sinful* anxiety of course, the temptations that arise from a sense of fear and desperation. As He continues, He shows us that our anxieties are understandable - but irrational. The birds we see flying around do not fret... but they still need to eat. They look to God for their food, and work with Him as they find and distribute the things they eat. Jesus uses birds as His example because He says that God feeds them, yet they still do stuff. Instead of being anxious, we are to rely on God as the birds do. But like the birds, we do not sit around waiting for the Lord to put food in our mouths - He expects us to go out and get what He has provided, expecting good from Him the entire time. He also asks whether anxiety actually *does* anything for us. Does it make us live longer? No, it actually shortens our lifespan. Does worrying solve problems? No - though it may inspire action to address a problem, worrying is not a rational thing so the actions taken will be ineffective, distracting, or downright sinful. Worrying won't solve the problems. Christ also mentions clothing, and speaks of clothes as regarding their appearance. Before the textile revolutions that we benefit from today, clothing was more difficult to obtain, more expensive, and a stronger status symbol than today. Sure, someone might notice a woman's Gucci purse or a man's Armani blazer, but "looking nice" is easier for everyone these days even if they don't spend thousands on a sweater. Everyone can afford a decent polo shirt at least. But in the ancient times clothing was a gate to social status; if you weren't able to afford dyed robes or jewelry, life was certain to not be easy and you probably weren't going to have a lot of friends. When Jesus brings up clothing, it is not *merely* clothing that He is discussing but rather what was needed to get clothing and everything that clothing brought people. It requires money and time, and nice clothes bring friends and opportunities and even someone to woo and wed. It could also, if we're speaking of sturdy stuff like armor, mean protection. With this one example, Christ speaks of everything else that goes into life aside from our daily bread. Why do lillies serve as His example of clothing? Because their beauty and safety takes absolutely no effort on their part. God expects us to see matters of food as cooperation: He provides, we collect. When it comes to the things we *can't* control, we ought to be like the plants of the field and simply entrust ourselves to Him. I cannot control whether someone breaks into my home at night, but I absolutely can trust God to protect me and my family - and for Him to wake me up for responding to the threat. Note here that Jesus does not condemn the people he speaks to. He is no gnostic, buddhist nor monk. He goes against anxiety, not seeking to deal with hunger. He goes against worry, not addressing human needs. He does not tell the crowd that they are sinful on account of *wanting* food and water and nice clothes, because it is not bad to want such things. Where sin enters the picture is when the soul lacks faith in a loving God who wants to provide them!