Arthur W. Pink

“Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?” – Matthew 6:25

ANXIETY AND WORRY IS FORBIDDEN IN SCRIPTURE
It will be seen from the title of our chapter that another subject of practical importance is presented to our notice in the verse we have now reached. It is a subject which immediately concerns each one of us, for in varying degrees all are guilty of the very thing which is here forbidden, namely worrying over material things, yielding to anxiety about future supplies.

IT IS DISHONORING TO GOD
This is something which is highly dishonoring to God, a sin which we need to make conscience of, confessing it with shame and seeking grace to avoid any further repetitions thereof. The very fact that such anxiety is here forbidden not only exhibits once more the exalted standard of piety which is set before us in the Holy Scriptures, but also evidences their uniqueness, their Divine Authorship, for there is no other book or religion in the world which condemns inordinate solicitude over the temporal necessities of life. Proof of this assertion appears in the fact that the natural man is quite unaware that anxiety about food and clothing is a SIN.

ANXIETY MANIFEST A LACK OF FAITH IN GOD’S PROVIDENCE, AND DOUBTS OUR FATHER’S LOVE FOR US
Not only is such anxiety wrong, but it is a sin of great gravity. It is not simply a constitutional infirmity which we may excuse, a mere trifle we need not be concerned about, but rather is it a foul iniquity from which we should seek cleansing. To be fearful about the supply of future needs, to be worried that we may yet be left to suffer the lack of temporal necessities, is to be guilty of wicked unbelief. It calls into question the goodness and care of our Creator. It manifests a lack of faith in His wise and gracious providence. And if we be Christians, it betrays doubt of our Father’s love. And surely these are evils of the deepest dye. Moreover, as we shall yet see, such disquietude and distraction of mind is, in reality, the workings of covetousness, the lusting after things we have not, which is a sin of great magnitude. Oh, that the Spirit may convict us of this wickedness and subdue this iniquity.

ANXIETY IS AT THE ROOT OF COVETOUSNESS
It has been pointed out in previous chapters that the main draft of our Saviour’s Sermon from Mat_6:19 to the end of chapter 6 was to dissuade and deliver His hearers from the spirit of covetousness. Having forbidden the practice itself (Mat_6:19), and disposed of those objections which the corrupt heart of man might frame to excuse himself in the committing thereof (Mat_6:22-24), Christ now struck at the very root of covetousness and sought to remove the cause thereof, namely a distrustful and inordinate care for the things of this life, especially for such things as are necessary for the maintenance thereof. This is clear from His words in Mat_6:25, and the attentive reader will note that the same line of thought is continued by Him to the end of Mat_6:34. Such unusual repetitions as “Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat” (Mat_6:25), “Take no thought, saying, What shall we eat?” (Mat_6:31), “Take therefore no thought for the morrow” (Mat_6:34) intimate not only the weightiness of this Divine precept, but also our slowness in heeding the same.

ANXIETY AND WORRY IS A SURE SIGN THE HEART IS FIXED ON EARTHLY THINGS
“Therefore I say unto you, take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on” (Mat_6:25). Before proceeding to amplify what has been said in the last paragraph, let us point out that there is a close connection between this verse and those preceding. It may be regarded as Christ’s meeting a further objection against what He had insisted on. He had forbidden the laying up of treasures on earth, and had warned against the making of mammon our god. To this many might answer, There is no danger of us doing that: so little of this world’s riches come our way that we can scarcely procure the bare necessities of life. Even so, says Christ, you too are in grave danger: the fear of poverty and worrying about the future as truly ensnare the souls of the poor as the love of wealth does the rich. Distrustful and distracting care about supplies of temporal needs is a sure sign that the heart is fixed on earthly things.

(From An Exposition Of The Sermon On The Mount)