Faith or Fear

Matthew 6:31-32

Therefore do not worry, saying, “What will we eat?” or “What will we drink?” or “What will we wear?” For . . . your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.

In the sermon on the Mount, Jesus addresses one of our primary concerns, which is, “If I really trust God with everything I have, how do I know I won’t run out of everything I need and just die?” Jesus responds to our deep-seated fear by talking about how we can live worry-free, like the birds in the sky and the flowers in the field. Jesus’s followers can be generous with what we have because we know that God – “your Father”, as Jesus says – will take care of us just as he takes care of creation.

In Luke’s version of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus ends with these words: “Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions and give alms” (Luke 12:32-33). Being generous with our possessions is simply a matter of expressing our faith that God will take care of us, whereas worry and anxiety about possessions reveal a profound lack of trust in the God who made us and loves us.

David Kasali, son of a pastor in the Democratic Republic of Congo, resolved to work and study hard so he wouldn’t be like his father who struggled to provide for nine children. Eventually David got a good paying job and become friends with a bank manager who invited him to prayer meetings. At one prayer meeting David realized God was calling him into ministry but he had been running away because of his desire to earn his own money. Pulling out his wallet he said, “It is as though, when I was baptized, I pulled my wallet out of my pocket and said, ‘Don’t baptize my wallet.’ Today I want my wallet to be baptized with me. I surrender it.” From that point on, David’s life completely changed. As a result, God has been able to use him in amazing ways.

Reflection Questions

Read Matthew 6:25-33 again. Ask the Holy Spirit to guide your reflections. Are you afraid to surrender your wallet to God? Or will you choose to trust him to take care of you? Ask him to help you live worry-free and be generous with all he has given you.