Do Not Worry • March 29 (Sermon Only, Tony Evans)

you [Music] [Laughter] well hello friends I'm coming to you again this week from my den here at my home because in Dallas County we're on lockdown they've they've got us staying in our homes in light of this great challenge that we're facing today but again the Word of God is not limited by buildings or physical facilities and so it's my honor to be with you again today to encourage you and to challenge you and then not let this virus on you that was a man one day he was terribly worried because life had crushed him and he just wanted to throw in the towel they called the police to to kind of try to get him to not quit on life and the policeman said look i'ma tell you my worries you tell me your worries and if my worries are worse than your worries then you need to reconsider what you are thinking about doing so they both of them extreme exchange their fears and concerns and worries and that's if they did the policeman reached out his hand the gentleman put his hand in the policeman's hand and guess what they both jumped because wary and fear has a way of transferring very quickly from you to other people and I think that's what's happening with this virus in fact the virus is not the only thing that transfers quickly our anxiety worry and fear is outpacing the problem of the virus because it's consumed the mind the heart the energy and the emotions of our cells our families the whole nation and even the world I want to tell you two words right now don't worry maybe you didn't hear me don't worry in case you don't worry now unless you think that comes from me let me make a correction that comes from Jesus in Matthew chapter 6 verses 25 to 34 Jesus says three times don't worry don't worry don't worry he says stop worrying in verse 25 31 and 34 stop it now you say but how practical is that given all that we're facing the unknowns the crisis the expansion the speed the sickness is that a practical expectation of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ well yes it is because he commands us not to do it but maybe some definitions will help us here we have a legitimate right for legitimate concern what we don't have the right to do is worry because what worry is is concerned gone haywire God does not expect us not to deal in reality if you're sick you're sick if you're struggling you're struggling but that's different than worry concern you own worry owns you when weary tells you you're not going to sleep right now imma keep you up okay that's not concerned that's weary when concern tells you we gonna palpitate your heart right now when you can't get it calm down oh you've now graduated to worry when when you are when you're shaking and shivering and sweating because the concern is telling you how you gonna operate now physically you've gone from concern to worry because you're no longer in control of it it is now in control of you and Jesus says stop it one man said I'll pay somebody $100,000 who do my worrying for me I've got so many things to worry about another gentleman said well I'll take that out I'll do your worrying for you $400,000 then the gentleman said well where's my $100,000 that's when the first man said well that's the first thing you have to worry about the worry has a way of transferring it and we see it now in the culture when we listen to the news when we hear with people of thinking when we get the statistics yeah that we started off as concern and is now causing us to tremble now that it's affecting more than health but financial markets and and confining us to premises and limiting our motion and movement and raising questions about supplies of needs and food and all of that yeah it can kind of draw you from legitimate concern for which you should act responsible to illegitimate wary in fact Jesus even goes a little deeper because he says if you control by worry he says oh ye of little faith in verse 30 of Matthew 6 he didn't say you had no faith he says it's too small many people believe in God who's still worried because they have little faith but now how do you measure little faith how do you know well if you're worrying and that's becoming your pattern you know you have little faith and that's because of the size of your God some years ago I was supposed to take a plane to a speaking engagement in Iowa my wife was supposed to go with me until she found out that I was gonna be picked up in a twin-engine Cessna to take me there to get me through the engagement on time she said I'm sorry I'm not going with you I told her you don't have enough faith she said to me that's because you don't have enough plane the schedule got changed and I wind up going by a major airlines no she said I'm going with you now I said your faith grew she said that's because the size of your plane grew you see the size of your faith is tied to the size of your God when you shrink God you automatically shrink faith so if you and I have little faith it's because we're operating with a small understanding and view of God so the way you get more faith is not going faith hunting the way you overcome weary is not by trying to tell yourself and talk yourself into not worrying it is to expand your understanding view of and submission to God so the best way I can help you to work through this crisis help me help help those who are in our sphere of influence is to grow God in your understanding in your experience and in your focus because when we grow him your faith will grow with it and your weary will shrink and become responsible concern Jesus goes on to say in this passage in Matthew 6 you need to look at mother nature who's controlled by father God mother nature is not a lady who has independent authority she submitted to Father God and he says what you need to do in verse 26 is look at the birds of the air who don't sow or reap or gather in barns and yet your heavenly Father feeds them he says look if you're worried about Corona or anything else that's causing you to illegitimately worry rather than be limited to legitimate concern he says you need to go bird-watching because they will teach you how God operates by the way he calls them your heavenly Father not the birds heavenly father he says they don't sow or reap they don't go farming birds don't have 403 bees they don't have CDs they don't have mutual funds they don't have saving accounts and yes they don't have ulcers have you ever seen a bird with an ulcer cuz they didn't worried a hole in their belly and yet he says your heavenly father not dance your daddy your daddy takes care of them so let's picture our friend the bird he's standing on a branch but he's not standing on the branch with his beak open toward heaven waiting for worms to drop into its mouth every day it goes worm hunting because it assumes something if I'm alive there's a worm somewhere to be found so he doesn't alleviate responsibility out of concern to eat the exercises responsibility knowing that the provision comes from another source God says when you're prone to worry Gobert go bird-watching cuz you'll see how the father operates he says and look at the lilies of the field how well they're clothed he goes on to say says the lilies of the field they don't spend they don't have sewing machines and yet they are beautiful because your heavenly Father provides for them you know our problem we believe in a God we do not understand as a father we hear it in our prayers Oh Great Father and God creator of the universe who spun creation into being simply by the voice and word of his mouth all of that's true but you can believe in that God and still keep a transcendent long distance relationship not an intimate association as daddy he says that I want you to look at him as a father when it comes to not worrying he says I want you to look at him as a father and understand that this father cares for you and when you come to look at him this way on stand in this way and relate to him this way you begin to experience God the daddy and not just God the Creator I love Isaiah chapter 26 verses 3 & 4 I will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed upon me Jeremiah 17 verses 7 and 8 says that God will keep you calm even in a drought even in a virus so I want you to calm down I want you to look at your family members right now who are seated with you and say don't worry the kids who now understanding that they're staying out of school because of this virus whisper to him now hey hey kids don't worry let me tell you about your heavenly father yes your earthly father is limited but your heavenly daddy is not this is the time to go Daddy honey yeah we talk about God but we're talking about the fathering of God who is also the great creator of the universe you know we've got this exercise when we supposed to wash our hands 20 seconds and do it many times during the day let me give you a little secret use hand washing it's prayer time yes put the soap on your hands you're washing them have a conversation hey for hey daddy you told me not to wear it you told me not to worry about the virus in fact you told me where be anxious but nothing you said so so right now I'm not gonna worry I know this is a problem out of control but you're not out of control and you're my daddy so as I wash my hands when you send your kids to wash their hands teach them to pray that see this is a great time cuz Philippians 4 says when you are tempted to be anxious that's an invitation to pray so you always know you're supposed to pray because it always should be connected when you're tempted to be a weary up and if you are gonna wash your hands all day long talk to your daddy all day long and get your growing focus on God who is able to calm your fears don't misunderstand me Korona you ought to be concerned about we ought to follow the directions that were given by our government and by our leaders and we ought to make wise decisions about physical distancing that's social distancing we want to stay connected but do the wise things but being still be able to sleep at night still be able to laugh still be able to love your loved ones you don't live in panic when you know you have a Heavenly Father the problem is we have a world today that has forgotten that God wants to be their daddy not just a name we throw out he says if you will make this shift there will be a dynamic change in your calmness meter he says in verse 31 do not worry saying what will we eat or what will we drink or what will we wear put it in everyday colloquial language how are we gonna make it am I gonna get there how are we gonna do it he says for these things the Gentiles non-christians eagerly seek they get worried about it they go after been nervous he says but your father here we got a daddy thing going on again already knows you need these things you know what our problem is today we have too many people who have never been with a daddy who knows how to be a father so you know you don't know what it is to look for somebody to cover you in a crisis but you do have a daddy if you're committed to Jesus Christ you've got a daddy who is more concerned about your welfare than you are and he says the secret so I'm gonna give you the secret if you want to get over your worry if you want to get over you want to calm down be concerned responsibly but I want you to cool it because Jesus demanded it stop it don't worry here's what I want you to do first 33 seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added to you let me repeat verse 33 and seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added to you if you want to calm down and stay calm and keep your family calm and your loved ones calm and your fellow church members calm then here's what you do and the key word is first did you know that some things God can't do you said but I thought there's nothing God can't do oh yeah no that thing's God can't do for example the Bible says by two immutable things it's impossible for God to lie he can't lie another thing God can do is he can't be contradictory to his own nature he is always consistent with himself God can't sin so there's some things God can't do but let me tell you another thing God can do he can't be second the moment you put God in second place you've removed him from engagement with your life seek ye first the kingdom of God God must be put in priority but not just could you say the word God is first in my life that's nice religiosity no he must be functionally first not philosophically first he must be functionally first not merely verbally first and how do you know when God is first because he takes priority in your decision-making when you have to choose what you will do or won't do he wins the choice if he does not win the choice he's not first no matter how often you use his name and what should we be looking at when we put him first it says seek ye first the king of God his rule in your life God's kingdom is his rule that he gets the final decision over everything that has to do with you that makes him first he does not want to be one of many he has an exclusivity clause here he wants to be prioritized over the highest priority you have in your life because when you have to make a choice you choose him or his way of doing things that's why you ought to seek first his kingdom and his righteousness his righteousness is his standard what is his standard on this issue what is his standard on my life what is his standard on my relationships what is his standard on my self what is his standard on this thing I want to do what is his standard and when I submit to his standard and relate to him as my father because it's a relationship thing not just doing it because he says do it but doing it because he's daddy he's a relationship God wants a relationship and he wants a close one an intimate one with you he says when you do this I got you and does that mean there won't be challenges no because then there would be nothing to pray about does that mean it won't be trials no because that means there's nothing you have to trust him for but it says that you will not face those trials by yourself they actually would become opportunities for you to see daddy do his thing there's nothing like a child that doesn't have to worry because they know daddy's got it that daddy has it not only because he has the power to have it but because he's my daddy and he loves me this is a great teaching moment for the beloved ones in your life for your fellow congregants to know that you don't have to worry in fact after this passage and you should read these these verses Matthew 6 verses 25 2:34 you should read that every day three times a day and we never worry starts bubbling up you should read it and then you should pray to be reminded that he got it that is in charge that is on a roll kids don't worry daddy's moving no you want you want to keep daddy in front of them you want to keep daddy in front of yourself in front of your loved ones you want to keep daddy because when you do it will become clearer daddy really doesn't know what he's doing I love how he closes the section he says so do not worry verse 34 about tomorrow for tomorrow will care for itself for each day has enough trouble of its own most people are crucified between two thieves yesterday and tomorrow do you know today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday so let yesterday go trust God for tomorrow and be at peace with him right now if he has you here today believe he's got you today you plan for tomorrow but you live by faith today and when you do you will see God's Spirit allow you to breathe allow you to sleep allow you to rest because you know daddy's got it we tell you a little bit about my life growing up in Baltimore my father was a stevedore he was a longshoreman and the only time he got to work with when ships came in and they had to unload and load boats so sometimes he would go weeks and sometimes months without being called in to work based on what was happening with the loading and unloading of ships during those times when months went by when he didn't have work I never stayed up worrying about how I was gonna eat I never stayed up worrying about how the bills were gonna be paid I never worried because I knew my daddy you know what my daddy would do my daddy would go fishing now folks who know Tony Evans know Tony Evans does not eat fish I don't eat fish he's sleeping and don't eat fish because the way I ate growing up with my father didn't have work he would go catch herring the herring that's fish with a billion bones in it tiny bones we had herring for breakfast we had herring for lunch we had herring for dinner and then we had herring for dessert he would catch him by the nets and bring him home I grew up doing those prayers of the time eating herring for everything saw me fishing more but you know what I never went hungry now I would prefer a fried chicken sometimes I had to settle for herring but I was always fed because I knew my daddy and my daddy would do whatever it took for me not to worry what norway's what I wanted wasn't always what I preferred but did meet the need that God's not promising you everything is gonna be exactly like he wanted and you won't have some inconveniences doing times like this he is saying he loves you enough to be your daddy and as a daddy he loves you enough to meet you at your point of need so stop it quit it because he cares for you and let the peace of God Philippians 4 that passes all understanding guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus take a deep breath relax be legitimately concerned but don't worry stop it you

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Length: 24min 54sec (1494 seconds)

Published: Sun Mar 29 2020