Source: Roger Hance (idps)
"'Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?' (Matt. 6:26)
What a challenge these words are! If God our heavenly Father, if He watches over the birds of the air and feeds and cares for them, and if we are of far greater value to Him than they are, is it conceivable that He will fail to take care of us? What have we to be anxious about when we have such a loving Father to provide for us and to protect us? Yet it is unfortunately true to say that many Christians suffer from worry and anxiety and are constantly filled with fear. How unreasonable, how wrong and how unnecessary this is! Are you anxious about your future needs with regard to food, clothing, shelter . . .? Well, Jesus said ‘ . . . take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? . . . for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you’ (Matt 6:31-33). We are indebted to Elizabeth Cheney for her delightful and telling lines:
Said the robin to the sparrow,
‘I should really like to know
Why these anxious human beings
Rush and worry so!’
Said the sparrow to the robin,
‘Friend, I think that it must be
That they have no heavenly Father
Such as cares for you and me!’
What an indictment upon those of us who call ourselves believers! If we are believers, or to use a better word trusters, and if we are living by faith, for how much are we trusting? Are we trusting God for forgiveness but not for food? Are we trusting Him for our redemption but not for our retirement? Are we trusting Him for our cleansing but not for the protection and care of our children?
There is a great word in 1 Peter 5:7 which has become increasingly meaningful to me over the years. It reads: ‘Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.’ have you learned to do this? Have you cast all your care, all the responsibilities of your life (your home, your children, your job and your future), upon Him? He cares for you, and He invites you to allow Him to be not only your Sin-bearer but your Care-bearer. ‘Casting all your care upon him’ is a matter of your taking by faith all the cares which are resting upon you and of transferring them over to Him. Thus, if you have cast them from yourself on to Him, then you are left without a care in the world! Yes, Jesus will take all our cares away if in faith we will commit ourselves and them to Him.
Here is the secret of knowing not only ‘peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ’ (Rom. 5:1), but ‘the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, (to) keep our hearts and minds through Christ Jesus’ (Phil. 4:7). This is the ‘perfect peace’ spoken of in Isaiah 26:3: ‘Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.’ Do you have peace, this freedom from anxiety, worry and fear, this ‘abundance of peace’ (Ps. 37:11)? If not, ‘How is it that ye have no faith?’ (Mark 4:40).”
Source: Francis W. Dixon, Other Preachers’ Bones, 1: The Five beholds, p 4-6 (I do not recommend this book, I just agree with the above part).
Source: Geert De Rycke (vandaag)
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