What does the Bible say about worry?

"Mammon" is not a word we get often in scripture. It is only here, and in Luke 16. From the context in each case we see worldly gain to be the prominent thought. Worldly gain, or earthly riches, is called "the mammon of unrighteousness" in Luke 16. So the grand lesson is, that we should give the Lord the first place in everything, and not to be double-hearted, or double-minded. A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways. Then the thought may arise, "Well, if I pursue that path it may take me into a path of trial —." So it will, and this is the lesson of chap. 8. If they had gone on with the multitude they would have escaped the storm. But it is a path of faith. The Lord will take care of those who are concerned for His glory. God's glory and our good are inseparably linked together for the believer. If we care for His glory, He will take care of our good. This verse 25 has puzzled not a few. J.N.D. gives, in his translation, "Do not be careful about your life, what ye should eat and what ye should drink." It means "anxious thought" take no anxious thought for your life. Now, we christians get further instruction in the Epistles: "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God." What a relief to the soul, to be able to hand up everything to the One who loves me perfectly, who has almighty power, and is always to be trusted! If this is realised, there will be always God's peace keeping the heart and mind. We have no power to keep our own. There we are let into the secret how it can be. You get eating and drinking and raiment here, and some have confined the teaching of 1 Tim. 6:8 to food and "raiment" (A.V.), but this latter word is really "covering" and takes in the shelter of a roof as well, a place to lie down in, as we have already remarked.

"Take, therefore, no thought for the morrow; for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself." That is, our Lord prepares us for this, that the anxiety which dreads an evil thing on the morrow is nothing but unbelief. When the morrow comes, the evil may not be there; if it comes, God will be there. He may allow us to taste what it is to indulge in our own wills; but if our souls are subject to Him, how often the evil that is dreaded never appears. When the heart bows to the will of God about some sorrow that we dread, how often the sorrow is taken away, and the Lord meets us with unexpected kindness and goodness. He is able to make even the sorrow to be all blessing. Whatever be His will it is good. "Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof."

226 - 15. He says as a principle of life to the multitude: "Keep yourselves from all covetousness," for your life is not in this. But He draws from the consideration of this subject this guide to His disciples: "Be not anxious about what is necessary," adding many considerations why they should not, for God recognises the necessity of food and clothing, and will therefore provide for them that trust in Him, so as that they need not be anxious. But He warns all to keep from covetousness as an evil in itself. It is common with our Lord in His discourses to address Himself to the multitude on the principles of good and evil, life and death, and to His disciples on principles on the same subjects flowing from their state of grace and faith.

This begins another branch of this part of the subject: "To his disciples." If these be the general principles, if it be thus with the world, do you who have a Father, even the Father, not be anxious or take thought for your soul or body, "What ye shall eat … nor what ye shall put on." I had customarily thought that this contained merely an a fortiori argument, that if God had given the greater He would surely give the less. But there is more - to you, believers, the soul or life must be more than merely meat. It is not that which it will occasion to you the care of; and the body worth more than raiment, as if that were the only thing it should give occasion to you for thought about, when indeed it was to put on and be the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. This, however, was not yet revealed. It was, however, more than clothing, there was something more in it than that, and Christ spoke from, though He did not declare that knowledge, and so justly, for His subject, as it was comparative teaching, He was occupied with, and not express revelation of promise. Well then! if they be so, your thoughts should be in another channel, rising above such a view of the soul and body. Yet there is more in this. This is the natural care of it, for the natural man cannot go beyond it; "Let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we die." Do not therefore take thought for the body or life, for taking thought for them, as in the world, is always natural and of the natural man. The life concerned service for God - eternal life, all He had to give that was life. But He proceeds to assign positive grounds operative upon them as believers in this world, to wit, instead of making these things the end of their thoughts as to soul and body, and their god as unbelievers must - to know God, and therein that these were subsidiary things which He provided when He was owned as God, for these things were His and under His ordering, and that He cared for them, and for much less even than they.

It is an arresting word, "take no thought for your life," whether in regard to daily food or necessary clothing. Though necessary, these things must not be allowed to occupy time and thought as though they were vital matters. We have far more than this to live for. The birds are a pointed object lesson for us. They make no preparations for obtaining meals, yet God the Father has provided this necessity for them in such a way that they simply obtain their food as they need it. True it is that we could not exist in the same way, but faith may nevertheless count upon God to provide through giving employment, health, strength, or whatever is required to take care of these things. Faith in a living God is the vital matter here, faith that does not degenerate into anxiety. Man, who is capable of a conscious knowledge of, and communion with, his Creator, is of much more value to God than the birds.

What then has the child of God to do with fear? His only fear should be lest he might be unfaithful, and fear man more than God, lest he should forget that ceaseless care of love which makes him invulnerable to every weapon wherewith Satan seeks to compass his destruction, until the time appointed of God. The children of God, if they were in the power of this truth, would also be far less restless and anxious in times of sickness. God may permit us the use of means, but how often are these resorted to in a spirit of unbelief, as if our recovery were entirely dependent upon human aid and advice. Surely if a sparrow cannot fall on the ground without the permission of our Father, His children cannot. No, the very hairs of our heads are all numbered, and God is honoured by our perfect calm and confidence in the face of the greatest dangers, resting, as we may, in the assurance that diseases and enemies alike are but instruments in His hands, for the execution of His own purposes of tenderness and love.

The Lord applies this also in another way. Passing as pilgrims and strangers through this world we have certain needs. We are independent of the scene altogether excepting as regards our bodies. In all other respects we are made to feel with the Psalmist that it is a dry and thirsty land where no water is. But our bodies have needs; they must be fed and clothed. Our blessed Lord, in His tenderness for and sympathy with us, takes notice of these our wants; and He does so because He knows how often care, springing out of these necessities, comes between our souls and Himself, and prevents all possible enjoyment of the Father's love. In the parable of the sower indeed He mentions the cares of this world as one of the things that choke the seed of the Word, so that no fruit is brought to perfection. He therefore provides also an antidote for this evil. He tells His disciples to take no thought, i.e. to have no anxiety, for their life, what they shall eat, nor for their body, what they should put on. And, to enforce the exhortation, He reminds them that the life is more than meat, and the body than raiment; and then He adduces two illustrations of God's care that would ever meet their eyes — the fowls of the air, and the lilies of the field. They could scarcely step out of their houses without seeing bird or flower, and then He would have them remember that God fed the one and clothed the other, and that if so, seeing they were of more value in His eyes than either ravens or lilies, much more would He feed and clothe them.

The name of their Father made anxiety about earthly and bodily wants a painful incongruity, and in particular about what kind the supply should be. From Himself the birds read them one lesson, and the lilies another. He nourishes each fleeting creature, He gives the passing flower its beauty. How much more did He care for His children? It was a touching appeal and carrying with it to every believer the conviction of irresistible truth. They were, they are, called to believe in His sustaining goodness. He never fails in His love: they ought not to fail in resting and counting on it day by day. If tried as to it, let them not doubt that it is for their good. It is impossible for God to lie. Are they to doubt His love Whom the Lord reveals as their Father? He who embraces the least objects of His care will act worthily of His love to the nearest.

Why is it that there is such emphasis upon our being without care? It is certainly not that we may settle down in comfortable self ease. In the parable of the sower some of the seed sown fell among thorns. The thorns sprang up and the seed was choked. In His explanation the Lord said the thorns are the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, the lusts of other things and the pleasures of this life (Matt. 13:1-9, 18-23; Mark 4:1-9, 13-20; Luke 8:4-8, 11-15). The cares of this world are first mentioned in each of the places where the parable occurs. The parable deals primarily with the initial reception of God's Word into the heart and the things that hinder this. However, what hinders this initial reception of God's Word will also hinder the fruitfulness of those who have truly received it. If we desire to live lives that are fruitful for God it is essential that the cares of this world are not allowed to displace His claims and interests. This is emphasised in Matthew 6 too. “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you”. As His interests are sought, as they are actively pursued, so we will find that our necessities are provided for. May we have grace to follow a course in line with these clear directions of Scripture.

1 Matthew 6:25, 31, 34a. In the King James translation this being careful or anxious is translated “take thought.” It is the verb of the same word translated care in 1 Peter 5:7a. It also occurs in verses 27, 28 and 34b.

(6) Finally, He gives us a limit for care, which by itself would very much exclude it. How much of the burden that we carry belongs really to the morrow, ― a burden not yet legitimately ours: for who can really tell what shall be on the morrow? Each day will have its own sufficient evil ― not too much, for a careful hand has apportioned it: but by borrowing trouble not yet come, we not only necessarily make the burden of the day too heavy, but we cannot reckon upon divine grace for that which is not come, and bear it thus so far without assistance. Nay, we have lost Him from our thoughts in all this calculation of the unknown future which is in His hands. How often has love in the most undreamed of way, disappointed all our fears!

In all this it is not taking thought for the morrow that is forbidden us, but taking care, (in the full sense of care). The word used has been claimed in these different senses by different interpreters; but it certainly is derived from one which suggests "division," and so "distraction" of heart; and this is completely in accordance with the warning about singleness of eye and divided service. Moreover, James, where he is speaking explicitly of the boasting of those who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain," corrects such a speech in this manner, that "ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this or that" (James 4:13, 15). He blames only the confident assurance of the speech, and not all "taking thought for the morrow." This, in fact, should be evident: the whole current of our lives would be changed by the contrary supposition, which those who make it have immediately and seriously to modify.

We have read your letter with deep interest and we can enter into your feelings. We believe the Christian is bound to provide for his family, day by day — bound to educate his children and put them in the way of earning an honest livelihood. All this is so plainly commanded in the New Testament as to admit of no question. But these sacred duties leave wholly untouched the question of hoarding up and of speculation. We do not believe in these latter at all. We believe that hoarding covers the soul with rust and speculation fills the heart and mind with care and anxiety.

"Be careful for nothing." I have found that word so often a thorough comfort. Even if it be a great trial, still "be careful for nothing." Oh! you say, it is not my petty circumstances - it is a question of saints going wrong. Well, "be careful for nothing." It is not that you are careless, but you are trying to carry the burden, and so you are racking your heart with it. How often a burden possesses a person's mind, and when he tries in vain to cast it off, it comes back and worries him! But "be careful for nothing" is a command, and it is blessed to have such a command.