Turn with me if you want to follow
along to the passage in Matthew that is traditionally called
Our Lord's Sermon on the Mount. That's Matthew 5, 6, and 7. It's actually the longest recorded
message of our Lord Jesus Christ. It's quite lengthy compared to
many other of the quotes that the New Testament writers give
us concerning Christ, but I want to try to zero in on just a specific
part of that sermon. It's actually found in Matthew
chapter six and verse 24. So are you there? Matthew chapter
six, verse 24. Let me read through it first.
No man can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one
and love the other. or else he will hold to the one
and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. Then think about it. Therefore
I say unto you, take no thought for your life. When I first began
to think about this here recently, I thought if I were doing this
and saying this, I would say take no thought to idols. Take
no thought to false religion. Take no thought to heresy. Don't
you think that would be a valid thing? But look at what he says.
Therefore, I say unto you, take no thought for your life, what
ye shall eat, and what ye shall drink, nor
yet for your body what ye shall put on. Is not the life more
than meat, and the body more than raiment? 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? Which of you, by taking thought,
can add one cubit unto his stature? Why take ye thought for raiment?
Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow. They toil not,
neither do they spin. And yet I say unto you, that
even Solomon, in all his glory, was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore? If God so clothed
the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast
into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you? O ye of little
faith. Therefore, take no thought, saying,
what shall we eat, or what shall we drink, or wherewithal shall
we be clothed? For after all these things do
the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knoweth
that ye have need of all these things. But, here it is, but
seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and
all these things, that's these aforementioned things, shall
be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for
the morrow, for the morrow shall take thought for the things of
itself. Sufficient unto the day is the
evil thereof. Five times in this text, that
I chose to read from this, what's called the Lord's Sermon on the
Mount. Five times the phrase is used or in some way referred
to, and this will be my title, take no thought. You know this, verses 24 through
34, this is all very simple. Simple language, is it not? It's simple language. Our Lord
uses simple illustrations that almost anyone, unless they maybe
have a brain problem, you know, I'm not making fun, just really
have a brain problem, uses simple illustrations to profoundly make
his point. What a simple, yet staggering
command. Staggering. because he says,
not even don't do this, he says take no thought. You know how hard it is to control
your thoughts? Huh? Listen, honesty dictates
this, impossible. impossible, yet he says, this
is our master's words, take no thought. So, not if, so when
I do, I know I am not fully walking in his command. My excuses and self-justifications
notwithstanding, Simple, yet staggering. Ever really consider this? Ever
really thought? When I first read this passage,
and my mind was on a couple things, and I began to read it, and then
I was at work, and it hit my mind again, I began to make a
few notes. The truth that I see here has remained the same, but
Mason, my attitude changed tremendously from what I originally had intended
to set forth to you this morning. Consider this. I'm gonna just
give you four things looking just at the text. Take no thought
to physical necessities. Necessities. These are not extras. Right? Food. Water to drink. Clothing. And we can go on because I don't
believe our Lord was exhaustive here. A roof over your head.
Your wife or your husband, because does not these things have a
connection to the family? You see? All of these things
are so interconnected to your children. You got children to
feed and to clothe. And yet Christ says, take no
thought. Wow. Wow. And remember, he said, the heavenly
father knows you have need. So we're not talking again about
extras. We're not talking about that
extra automobile, but even the one that you need to get back
and forth to work so you can make the money to pay the bills.
And clearly this book teaches we ought to do that. Does it
not? There's not a believer in this
world that doesn't know that that's the right thing to do.
Get a job, pay your bills. Be straightforward with them,
right? And yet Christ says about eating and drinking and clothing
your body, don't think about it. Wow. Wow. Consider the wow. Remember, these are physical
necessities. Look. No man can serve two masters,
for either he'll hate one, love the other, or else he'll hold
to the one, despise the other. Ye cannot. Now, no matter what
I try to convince myself of, I can find that equilibrium. Never thought that way? I can
find that equilibrium where the one necessity that I'm not to
give thought to, but I won't give too much thought. He didn't
say don't give too much thought to it. Why does he say? take
no fault. Mason, that still staggers my
mind every time I read that and think about that. But look, look,
you cannot serve God and mammon, therefore I say unto you, and
he talks about what you eat, what you drink, what you put
on your body. Again, my mind, when I read that,
I thought I dealt with idolatry and drunkenness and you know,
abusing your body with drugs, right? But that's not what he
deals with, is it? Take no thought for what you
eat, the physical necessities of life. Secondly, the master,
and I intentionally use that because he talks about two masters,
but there is one, the master. Secondly, the master examples
God's sovereign fiat over physical necessities. He gives two examples
of how God, in sovereign fiat, what do the birds do? Do they
go out and plow? Do they? No. No. And yet, God feeds them. Each day, they think about going
out there and finding something to peck at and eat, don't they?
And Mason, I don't know what a bird's thoughts are, but I
don't think he's thinking two years down the road. Now maybe
I'm wrong on that, I can't speak with the animals, but you understand
what I'm trying to get at? It's just every day, that bird
and the birds, billions of them, if not trillions or whatever,
and yet God feeds them. Isn't it amazing? And here are
lilies, lilies. And what do they do to be what
they are? Nothing. How much time do they exercise
thinking about what they are and what they need to do? Nothing. God takes care of this by sovereign
fiat. And look at a whole field full
of them. How beautiful they are. Isn't
that something? Lord, right in the middle of
this, this example of birds and plants and God's sovereign fiat
over taking care of all the necessities of even birds and plants. He
asked this stinging question. 27, which of you by taking thought,
see that? Which of you by taking thought
can add one cubit unto his stature? You see, if you don't get that,
you've got a problem. You understand? Think about it
as hard as you will. Spend day after day after day
pouring your mind into it. How can I be one more cubic taller? It's useless. Correct? Useless, and he's the one that
knew how to ask questions, and in some places, it even said,
after that, no man doth ask him any more questions. Because he's
the God of all glory. He knows how to put a question
to you that you cannot answer to prove him false. To prove
him false. The birds, the plants, and then
this question, right in the middle of it. The master then immediately
goes to the heart of the matter. Wherefore, verse 30, if God so
clothed the grass of the field, which is today, and tomorrow
is cast into the oven, that's the field which is today and
tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe
you? And notice the clothes put in
there. You could say the whole thing, whatever it is. Give you
food to eat. stuff to drink, clothes on your
body, a roof over your head, whatever you need, what you really
need, not just what you'd like to have, what you got to have
to keep on going in this world. Here's the problem, though. Here's
the problem. O ye of little faith. And that's got to be pretty little.
Because the Lord of glory himself said, if you have faith as the
grain of mustard seeds, You could say to this mountain, be thou
removed and cast into the sea. And Mason, I don't think he was
exaggerating or even being metaphorical. Because faith is a characteristic. It is a fruit of God alone. Intrinsically. My problem, I said my problem,
and I love you folks, but your problem too, is the lack of faith. That's our problem. Oh ye of
little faith. Then fourthly, the master then
now shows us here's the true necessity. But seek ye first
the kingdom of God and his righteousness. Here's what y'all to start thinking
about. Every day, oh God, Make me, make me think on these things. Seeking his kingdom and his righteousness. And then Christ said all this
other stuff. It'll happen. You know what he says? That's
a promise. This is not some mean, arbitrary
command. This is a promise. Is it not? Here's the reason why, think
about it. This is why this is true necessity, because to question
this is to question God. Verse 31, before he says, take
no thought, saying, what shall we eat? Or what shall we drink? Or wherewithal shall we be clothed?
For after all these things do the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly
Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. Do you think he's mean and arbitrary? Mason, he is full of compassions
and mercies toward his people. Full of it! He sent the Son of
God into this world, made flesh to suffer in our stead. Be forsaken of the Father, and
I can't explain that, but that's what it says happened to him,
Joe. And Paul puts it this way, if
he did that for us, How shall he not with him also? What? Freely. Freely give us all things. Oh God, how little faith I have. And let's be careful. We know
where that faith come from. Thank God for even little faith
though. But let's not blame God. He said, all glory goes to God. Why? Because God says so. He
says, my glory, through the prophet Isaiah, I will not share with
another. I will not. I will not. My glory, I will
not share with another. But he knows how to take care
of us far beyond what we can even what? Think. Is that what
it says? Think! Ask for or even think. I don't even know what I really
need to eat. Amazing, isn't it? See, the question
is to question God. To give all thought in this place
is worth it. Seek ye first the kingdom of
God. Take therefore, verse 34, take
therefore no thought for the morrow. That's impossible to
do like it should be done. like it should be done because
I should be able to do that. Take therefore no thought for
the morrow, for the morrow shall take thought for the things of
itself. Sufficient under the day is the
what? Difficulty. The trials, the tribulations
thereof. It ain't going to be easy. But
it is going to be. God will give you enough food
to keep you alive till the day he's determined that you die.
And even when you die, we will put clothes on you and stick
you in a box with clothes on. Now don't we? Isn't that one
of the most nonsensical things yet? You got a dead body, we
put clothes on it to put it in the ground. Let's think about
that a while. Now we do that for modesty reasons
and we all like to have that last final look, but really Mason,
do I need clothes on? Are you gonna stick me in the
ground and my body's going to rot? Think about it, how much
we give to all these things, mammon. Christ said, you can't
serve that in me. That's what he's talking about.
You can't serve that in me. Oh God, open my ears to hear
what should be. But God also opened my heart
to confess what really is. You see what I'm getting at now?
What really is. Oh, how often I take thought
on the wrong things. When I first started looking
at this, I was gonna just hammer down on taking thought on the
wrong things. And as the weeks went by, I realized,
Walter Pendleton, you take thought on these things way too much. You see? Consider the following. Two main
statements I want to give you. We'll look at a few things concerning
them. Here's the first one. Let me
just give you both of these. This is not a balancing act of proper
proportion of two different sides. Do you understand what I'm trying
to get at here? Now, I'm sure sometimes my ability
to write things and say them may be a little convoluted, but
this is not a balance. What Christ is talking about
here, even in verses 24 through 34, is not a balancing act of
proper proportions of two sides. Well, put the most emphasis on
the kingdom of God and his righteousness, then you can start putting emphasis
on the other things. That's not what he says, is he?
He says take no thought. He said, you seek first the kingdom
of God and his righteousness. These other things will be what?
It's not, I've got the first one, now I'll go on to the second
one. Seek ye first, but then he said, then second, seek this.
Is that what he says? No, seek ye first, and that means
only. This first is a first of onlyness,
not a first of order. You understand what I'm saying
now? Now I'm getting theological, ain't I? No, that's not too theological,
is it? You understand what I'm saying. You understand, more
importantly, what he's saying. Seek ye first the kingdom of
God and his righteousness. All these things will be what?
Added. Mason, it's like, you won't even
have to really hit a lick at it. Now, if you have to go to
work, God'll give you a job to go to work. If you need the car
to get to work, God'll give you a car. It may not be the one
you like, but he'll give you something to get you there. You
understand what he's talking about here? But I've got to pour
my life into this. Be careful. God may let you pour
your life into it and that may become your life and you may
perish with that life only. It's not a balancing act. This
is two opposing, unequal, distinct sides. Even when we're talking
about what you eat, what you drink, what you put on your body.
Those simple necessities, absolute necessities. Yet when weighed,
Joe, they mean nothing compared to the first. You seek that first
thing, first, all this other stuff will fall right into place. As he knows, we need it. Now, that's it. As he knows,
we need it. Christ's reign, that's the kingdom
of God. Everybody talk, kingdom of God,
what is the kingdom of God? It's the reign of God in Christ. That's what a kingdom is. In
a kingdom, you have a ruler, you have an area they rule, and
you have peoples that they rule over. That's the three things
that make up a kingdom. Christ is the king of this kingdom. That's why he said, the kingdom
of heaven is at hand. Why? Because the king's here. I mean, bless God, wherever the
king's at, that's where the kingdom's at. I mean, we even have a, I'll
give you a little bit of an illustration of this, and I know all human
illustrations will fall short, but we have embassies in different
places over the world. You know what they call that
little speck of land right there over that building and a little compound
is? Sovereign U.S. territory. Even if it's in another
sovereign country. Right? And that is certain things
that the international community has agreed upon. Now, of course,
as men, we break that all the time. But you understand what
I'm saying? Why? Why is it sovereign U.S.
territory? Because that's where the ambassador
is. And that's where he takes care of the business of that
country with the country that they're in. Just wherever the
king's at, that's the kingdom. Seek ye first the kingdom of
God. What's that mean? It means Christ reigning. And
folks, he reigns right now on the throne. He was born, and
he probably wasn't that big, Mason, little baby. He was born
what? King. King. King. Seek ye first the kingdom
of God and his righteousness. What's that? The gospel tells
us that. Paul says it in Romans chapter
one, verses 16 and 17 about I'm not ashamed of the gospel of
Christ. For it is the power of God and the salvation to everyone
that believeth, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For therein,
that is in that gospel, is the righteousness of God revealed. Do you really wanna know what
the righteousness of God is and seek it? Seek the gospel, the
good news about the person and work of Jesus Christ. That's
where it's at. And these things, as he says,
are exclusive. Seek ye first the kingdom of
God. And he doesn't say, then, once you got a handle on that,
then you can go on to these other things. That's not what he says,
is it? But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness.
All these things shall be added. Now, here's it. Mason, I trust
Christ. I do. Unless I'm totally deceived,
I trust Christ. So why don't I trust God for
my food, my drink, and my clothing? I trust him for my everlasting
soul? And yet I so often figure I've
got to put all this thought into all these other things. Really,
Walter? Really? You know, I want my wife
to love me because she loves me, not because of the clothes
I got on. You understand what I'm saying? We joke sometimes, I love the
Chevrolet Camaros. No, I'm not getting off on a
side track, but I love the Chevrolet Camaros, and I've told Penny
many a times, we would make that car look good. So if anybody wants to do something
for your pastor and his wife, no, just kidding. But you understand
what I'm saying? I love my wife because of my
wife. The clothes just adorn her, but she's what makes it
beautiful. You see, seeking the kingdom
of God and his righteousness is to see he's it. He's it. If I have to wear rags, Jophie's
clothing up my nakedness. That's great. Is it not? I don't have to have T-bone steak
all the time. Brown beans and cornbread will
get me through. Right? Right? Give your, this is not a give
it your best try. Seek ye first the kingdom of
God and his righteousness, then all these things will be added
unto you. Seek the glory of Christ the
master always. And then, oh God, oh God, help
me not to give thought to these other things. And God, forgive
me what I do. Because I will. I will. I do. But I know I shouldn't. And I
know, Mason, the uselessness of it. So here's my second point.
This place, this place here, these words here, this truth
that Christ give us here, this is no place for self-deceiving,
self-justification. We look at this, oh, okay, I'm
really seeking the kingdom of God first. How often do we usually
really do that? We don't. Christ is not giving
us some standard to meet, and then if we meet it, then we'll
be accepted of God. You better hope to God you're accepted in
him, the son. And then, because you're free,
then you can, oh God, work in me. No one seeks the right way by
nature. Isn't that what Paul said in Romans 3.11? And he's
quoting from the Old Testament, so we know it's true. Old and
New Testament time. There is none. There is none
that seeketh after God. So if you're seeking His kingdom
and His righteousness at all, it's because God Almighty put
it in you to do it. Thank Him for it, even when you
fail in it. Even when you fail in it. None
of us, I'm talking now about believers, none of us ever get
it fully right. You remember the passage I read
to you last week, Ecclesiastes 7 verse 20? I'll just quote it
again. There's not a just man upon earth,
that doeth good and simmeth not. Even when I put forth, and I'm
gonna try to qualify, when I put forth my best effort, it's still
shot full of sin. Still shot full of self. I still
think way too much on these things. Because in effect, I should truly
think about them not at all. Right? Not at all. Oh God, make me to be honest
with myself. Oh ye of little faith, take my
place there. Take my place there. Joe, I don't
think that's even, it's oh, there's compassion. Mercy there. Well why don't he just give us
enough faith? That's his business. He's gonna continually remind
you and I on this side of glory, on this side of immortality,
He's gonna continually remind you and I what we are and our
absolute need of Him. I don't know all the reasons
that God has made it like it is, but that's one of the reasons
so that we would continually seek ye first the kingdom of
God and His righteousness. Oh God, make me to be honest
with myself. Help me not to be this way. A rebel will continue
in his obstinacy. You know the passage. Proverbs
29 and one. Proverbs 29 and one, and I can't
quote it. I'm gonna have to turn back there and read it to you.
I thought I had it. But look at it. Proverbs 29,
verse one. He that being often reproved. What? And hardeneth his neck. You see, when I read this, to
start with, I thought, all right, I can preach on that. We love
Christ first. We love Christ foremost. No,
we love Christ, the command, Mason, is love him only. Think
about and seek him only. All this other stuff, don't even
give thought to. Is that not the actual command? But my mind
wants to bring it down to a more palatable and workable thing,
to where I feel a little bit better about myself. That is
self-deceiving and self-justifying. Is it not? He that being often reproved
and hardeneth his neck shall suddenly be destroyed, and that
without remedy. Somebody says, but I thought
you said God was sovereign. Oh yes. Oh yeah. Now think about this. You remember
Nebuchadnezzar? That proud, pompous, arrogant king? And he reigned
as a king in his country. And God brought him down. God
brought him down, and what did that man confess? He said, he,
talking about God, he that walketh in pride, he is able to abase. So that lets me know this, if
you're walking in pride, it's not because God's not able to
abase you, it's because God had a purpose to abase you. He's
left you where you're at, and when he leaves us where we're
at, every time a rebuke comes, here's what it should be, rather
than saying, oh, God help me. We try to somehow twist it or
water it down to make it more palatable to our own sense of
self-worth and self-righteousness. Oh God, spare me from that. Because
here, look what Solomon says about a believer. Look at it,
Proverbs chapter nine, I love this. Proverbs chapter nine in
verse eight. Reprove not a scorner lest he
hate thee. Now if you know somebody's opposed
to what you're gonna say and you've already dealt with it,
you know, reprove not a scorner, that lets me know, Mason, I gotta
know a little bit about this person. I'm not talking about a stranger,
a scorner. And you've been over it with them and over it with
them, over it with them, let it alone. Knock the dust off
your feet. Don't cast your pearls before
swine. It's all the same thing. Reprove not a scorner lest he
hate thee. Look, rebuke a wise man. Why would a wise man need
to be rebuked? Because our wisdom is in Christ,
not in us personally. Rebuke a wise man, and he will
love thee. Oh, maybe not right at the get-go,
But if he's truly a wise man, that's a man that God's been
worked on by the power of his grace, and you tell them the
truth of God, eventually, you know what, Mason? He gonna bring
your head down. Gonna bow you before the feet
of Christ, and you'll love even the messenger that God sent to
rebuke you. And if you don't, you're a scorner. Look at it. Give instruction to a wise man,
and he will be yet wiser. Teach a just man and he will
increase in learning. The fear of the Lord is the beginning
of wisdom and the knowledge of the holy. Really holy. I'm not holy. I think on these
things when I should not. But he is holy. And Joe, his
commands to me are holy. Even though I can't keep them
as they should be kept. What's that make a wise man do?
A truly just man that's just before God? A justification is
in Christ Jesus. You know what that is? It bows
you down and cry out for mercy. Mercy. What if David was a king? A man after God's own heart,
Joe, and yet he still said, oh God, be merciful to me. You see, you never get over needing
mercy. You never get over needing forgiveness. Oh God, may this
day and any tomorrows that I may have that become today's, may
they be this, the day of your power upon me. because according
to Psalm 110 verse three, my people shall be willing in the
day of my power. Secondly, may you, oh God, may
you be at work in me. Paul said Philippians two verse
12. Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. That's
what Christ is talking about in Matthew chapter six. Here's
something to engage yourself in. Seek after. Seek ye first the kingdom of
God and his righteousness. But oh, he says, for it is God
that worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. And that includes if I need to
cry out for forgiveness of sin and confession of failure. Right? Right? John put it this way. The blood of Jesus Christ keeps
on cleansing us from all sin. And that's a person who's walking
in the light. Now most people think walking in the light is
you never will ever commit a sin. If that's the reasoning, then
I've got no need for the continual cleansing of the blood of Christ.
Because even when you walk in the light, no, only when you
walk in the light, do you see yourself for what you really
are. And that's why God gonna show
me every day makes me shows me, I think on those things. Oh God, be at work in me both
to will and to do of thy good pleasure. And according to the
writer of Hebrews, chapter 13, verses 20 and 21, it takes the
blood of the covenant of Jesus Christ himself to do that. Let's
read that one. Turn to Hebrews chapter 13. This
is good. Hebrews chapter 13, verse 20. Now the God of peace, that brought
again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of
the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant,
make you perfect in every good work, to do his will, working
in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ,
to whom be glory. Forever and ever, so be it. In other words, that's just the
way it is. Now here's the thing, quit trying
to figure out what your good works are. Quit trying to figure out what
your good works are. Seek ye first the kingdom of God and
his righteousness. All this other stuff will be added to you. Isn't
that what Christ said? Oh God, help us to do that. Our
heavenly Father, help us to believe you. I mean believe you, not
just believe on you. Believe on you we desire. God,
help us to believe you in Christ's name, amen.