3.  Jesus’ disciples are not to be characterized by worry and anxiety: Matt. 6:25  Concern, planning ahead, etc. are not wrong: Prov. 6:6-8; 1 Tim. 5:8  Jesus is warning us not to turn legitimate concerns into anxiety and constant worry. 3 God’s children are not meant to be “worry warts”!

4.  Worrying is a sin: Matt. 6:25, 31, 34  Three times in this passage Jesus commands us not to worry.  Therefore, to worry is to disregard a direct command of the Lord.  This command is just as important as those concerning lying, stealing, murder, etc. 4

5.  Worrying shows a lack of faith in God: Matt. 6:26, 28-30  “O ye of little faith?”  Remember the ancient Israelites?!  If God cares for the birds and flowers, what about the pinnacle of His creation? Gen. 1:26-27  What are we saying when we burden ourselves with worry? 5

6.  Worrying accomplishes nothing: Matt. 6:27  In reality worrying is costly.  Nobody can add one good thing to his life by worrying.  The opposite is true, worry can impair our health (physically, emotionally, and spiritually) and shorten our life. 6

7.  Worrying is what the Gentiles do: Matt. 6:31-32  Worrying means we’re living like a heathen.  Non-Christians have good reason to worry: 1 Pet. 3:12  Christians don’t! Rom. 8:31-32; Eph. 1:3, 15-23 7

8.  Worrying distorts our priorities: Matt. 6:33  Many things are important in our lives.  “our citizenship is in heaven” that is THE priority of our lives!  Worry wastes time and energy that is better spent on pursuing the kingdom of God and His righteousness. 8

9.  Worrying is a thief: Matt. 6:34  Worry = “to strangle”  Worry robs the Lord of our rightful service to Him! Lk. 10:38-42  Where will the things we worry about “be” when we are in eternity?  Worry chokes out God’s word from our heart: Matt. 13:22 9

10.  Increase our faith: Lk. 17:5  Read and meditate on God’s word: Rom. 10:17; Psa. 119:11  Worry is a lack of trust in God’s ability to “have our back.”  With God on our side we have no good reason to worry! Eph. 3:20; Rom. 8:31-32; Heb. 11:3; 1 Cor. 10:13; 2 Pet. 1:4; Phil. 4:19 10

11.  Prayer: Jas. 5:16  Remember King Hezekiah? 2 Kgs. 19:14-15, 20  Sincere prayer is powerful! Phil. 4:6-7; 1 Pet. 5:7; Jas. 4:7-8 11

12.  Lean on a friend: Jas. 5:16  Friends are important: Prov. 17:17; Eccl. 4:9-12  The emotional weight of our problems can be a burden heavier than we can bear alone: Gal. 6:2  It’s a big mistake not to confide in trusted brethren: Jas. 5:16 12

13.  Learn to live one day at a time  Recall the children of Israel in the wilderness?  Jesus taught this principle: Matt. 6:11, 34  Today is not an opportunity to recall yesterday’s failures or worry about tomorrow’s problems. It is a day to rejoice! Psa. 118:24; Phil. 3:13-14 13

14.  Do the right thing  Only those doing evil have cause to worry: 1 Pet. 3:12  If we do what is right we have no reason to worry: Acts 24:16  Worry sometimes arise because we fail to prepare. 14

15.  Learn to be content  Paul had to learn this: Phil. 4:11-13  Often we worry about things that are very unlikely to happen.  We must learn to enjoy what we have while we have it.  We can always improve our situation, but it can’t be achieved through worrying. 15

16.  Remember we cannot control other people  Some worry about other people; an exercise in futility.  We must set a good example (Matt. 5:13-16), but in the final analysis we are not and cannot be responsible for others.  In the end people make their own decisions and our worrying won’t change that one bit. 16

17.  Few are immune to the temptation of worry.  But Jesus tells us worrying is wrong: Matt. 6:25  The Christian’s heart is characterized by joy and peace: Phil. 4:6-7  Let’s all work on it; the Lord will help us! 17