FOR THIS REASON




For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink, nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor do they reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil or spin, yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith!
(Matthew 6: 25-30 – NAS)



Jesus begins this section by saying, “For this reason....”


“For which reason?” we ask.


We have gotten so used to breaking up the things Jesus says into convenient little segments we call verses, that we often overlook the flow of one concept into the next. We memorize our verses in isolation of their context. Not that such a habit negates the power of such verses, but we lose some of the effect by forgetting to check the context.


The reason Jesus is talking about is what He had just said: we cannot serve both God and money. Between that sentence and the first one in this passage, He heavily implies that we ought to choose God as our Master. For this reason, then, we are not to be worried. God is our Master and is on the job doing what masters do in taking care of their servants.


Jesus knows that our primal worries are for food and protection of our bodies (clothing first and then shelter). And He knows that we have a hard time relating to – and even relying upon – an invisible master. We cannot see God Himself as easily as we see our work-boss or the currency in our pocket. So Jesus takes the time to remind us of how all-encompassing God’s dominion really is.


You worry about food? Look at the birds! God feeds them, even though they do not plant seed and raise the food they eat. They do not take the time to harvest and process food. But God feeds them. They go about the world fulfilling their purpose in just being birds, and God takes care of them.


And you are worth far more to the Lord than the birds of the air.


Of course, Jesus doesn’t forget that the cause of our distraction from dwelling upon the sovereignty of God lies in our daily worries. So He speaks to that: can you add a single hour to your life by worrying?


Studies have shown that we can very well shorten our life-times by worrying. The stresses that anxiety and worry create in our bodies wear away at them, sapping our inner strength. Worry undercuts our ability to take joy in our work and in the people around us. But can we increase our lifespan by worrying about how we are to get on? No we cannot.


Jesus then moves on to our worries about what we are to wear. Now admittedly, we do have an inclination to look nice. Jesus knows that full well, just as He knows how easily we can get caught up in the dream of looking better and better and better. He even addresses it straight on: “Solomon in all his glory.”


By all accounts, Solomon loved rich, fabulous beauty, around him and on his back. When he became king, he inherited a large treasury that his father had built up. David had amassed this fortune so that a glorious temple to the Lord could be built in Jerusalem. He had been forbidden to do so himself (being a man of war and blood), but he decided that he would make sure that the glory of God would be reflected in the temple he charged his son Solomon to build. And Solomon did use the fortune for that purpose. But because of his wise rulership, he also greatly increased the wealth of the king, and he celebrated it, in the surroundings of his palace and in the clothes he wore. The “glory of Solomon” was very great indeed for that age.


But Jesus undercuts that all by pointing to the lilies of the field, and saying that the dazzling display of Solomon was still less than the beauty of lilies in a field.


“Really?” we wonder. Is Jesus serious? Fine linen and wool clothes dyed in rich colors, even the famed, rare and expensive Tyrian purple? Embroidery with gold thread? Jewelry of gold with pearls and other gemstones? A lily is finer than that?


But a lily in a field on a sunny day is indeed a thing of great beauty. In the midst of the greens of grass, the lily opens out its trumpet-shape, glowing white against the green around it. The petals gently curve outward in a graceful arc at the end, their texture softer than silk. And deep in the heart of the trumpet, the pistols and stamens glow with a yellow far warmer than gold.


We so often substitute “bright and shiny” for the real beauty of God’s creation.


That is what Jesus is trying to remind us of: God is the Master Craftsman. The Lord lavishes all this beautiful details on the simple things that, basically, garnish the world. The birds of the air and the lilies of the field are flourishes and pleasing ornaments to His creation. We, as His children, are so much more than flourishes and ornaments.


Even when we remember that God considers us His children, we still let anxiety about what we will eat and how we will stay clothed and sheltered nibble away at us. When things go rough for us, we worry about having “enough.” Jesus tells us that the birds of the air get “enough.” He tells us that in God’s eyes we are worth far more than “enough.” And that His care will bring us far more.


“You of little faith!”


Jesus must have been smiling as he said that. He knows how easily we can be shaken. He knows that the ember of faith can be choked. But the spark has not gone out. With His reminder of how God treats the birds and the flowers, He gently blows upon our faith, encouraging the flame to grow again. Even a little faith is enough to start a fire again. Let us remember the power of the Master we have chosen.