THEN JESUS SAID TO his disciples: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. 23Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. 24Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! 25Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? 26Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?
27“Consider how the lilies grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 28If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! 29And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. 30For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. 31But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.
32“Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. 33Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. 34For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
Original Meaning
THE ONE WHO fears God and builds up treasure for him has nothing to fear. Jesus therefore underlines the importance of trusting God. The illustrations he uses here draw on creation. Ravens, lilies, and grass have much to teach us. Jesus closes with a short note about generosity in verses 33–34. If we can trust God to care for us, then we can be generous, unlike the rich fool of verses 16–21.1
Jesus begins with a call not to worry. The Greek present imperative used here implies that we should be constantly free of anxiety. We are subject to God’s care, so we should rest in his hands. The issue in this passage concerns the basics of “life” (v. 22): food, health, and clothing. We should not be excessively distracted about our physical circumstances, for food and clothes are but the wrapping paper around which true life revolves.
The first example Jesus gives involves an unclean creature, ravens (Lev. 11:15; Deut. 14:14). This choice is significant, since ravens were among the lower rank of living creatures.2 In their coming and going, God is aware of their needs. They do not plant or store grain; yet God feeds them. If he cares for them, how much more will he care for us! Not only is life more than food or clothes, but God is also more concerned about people as the objects of his care than for the rest of the creation.
From this illustration Jesus takes up some practical considerations about anxiety. What does worry contribute? Does it add any length to one’s life?3 If not, then why worry about the things of life? Some things in our world accomplish nothing. Anxiety, though perhaps a natural response to sensing events that are beyond our control, is one such profitless activity.
Examine beautiful flowers like the lilies—a second example from nature. There is no labor in their existence; they simply do what they are created to do. Yet they represent the height of beauty and aesthetic fashion, even more beautiful than Solomon with all of his wealth (2 Chron. 9:13–21). Who can dress themselves as God has dressed them? Even the grass, which lives for a short period and then is cast into fire, is cared for and clothed by God.4 If God cares for them, he will care for human beings.
Worry casts doubt on God’s care. So Jesus addresses them as people “of little faith” (v. 28). The essence of trust is to recognize that God will take care of what is in his hands. Thus, there is no need to worry about food and clothing. This approach to life is different than “the pagan world,” those who go through life without awareness of God’s presence. They scurry after physical concerns, but the Father knows what his disciples need. Jesus’ shift to mentioning the “Father” adds an image of family and concern to his remarks. Every good father watches over his children.
Jesus calls for a single issue to be a disciple’s major concern: God’s kingdom (v. 31). God will care for the rest. To “seek [God’s] kingdom” means to live as his representatives. As members of his household and the citizens of his community, we are to conduct ourselves in the best interests of home and country. We must represent him and reflect his righteousness in a world unconcerned about knowing God. That is the constant call of the disciple, as the Greek present imperative “seek” indicates.
There is nothing to fear in this task, since God desires to give this kingdom to his sheep. The pastoral image in verse 32 is informative, since sheep can be among the more skittish of creatures and tend to be frightened easily. Jesus casts God as a caring great shepherd who cares for his own and gives them what they need in order to do what he has called them to do (Ps. 23).
If we do not need to worry about the provisions of life, then we can be generous with what God has given us. So Jesus calls for selling possessions and being generous by giving to the poor. Such generosity God honors; he gives us “treasure in heaven.” Such treasure involves God’s commendation and reward for service that pleases him. For that treasure no security guard is needed, since no thief or moth can get to it.
Being generous reveals more than merely supplying aid to others. Where our treasure is, there our heart will be as well. In other words, how we use our resources communicates our values. If we invest in earthly possessions, we show we care about things. If we invest and care for people, we radiate our love for others. God’s kingdom is about people. That is where our investments of time and resources should be, especially with those who have needs to be met.
There is another fundamental reason for this exhortation. A life attached to possessions becomes a stumbling block, because it leads to high anxiety. Jesus indicates that one way in which disciples can be different in their testimony is to reflect that people and needs have priority over possessions and ownership. Acts 2 and 4 and the example of Barnabas at the end of Acts 4 show that the early church reflected such values. The ethics of an absence of anxiety is also an ethics that is aimed at relating to people through generosity, because we are confident of God’s care.
Bridging Contexts
WHAT JESUS CALLS for in this text is countercultural in terms of values and orientation for the modern world. For most people living is defined by what they can gather for themselves to make life comfortable and secure. Whether we think of the home as a nest or a castle, our desire to build a safe world of privacy is one of the most fundamental values our culture espouses. Consider these messages from our culture: “You deserve a break today”; “You have earned it.” They articulate a philosophy that we are entitled to such things as kings or queens of our own mountains.
How frustrating it is for many that life often reveals we cannot control its affairs and circumstances. That is beyond our call in God’s world. Those who do meet with some success and achieve a certain level of comfort in life find themselves in the position of the rich fool of 12:13–21; it is a short-lived reality. The pursuit of materialistic goals and heaping up treasures on earth results in emptying life of what God has designed as one of his most precious gifts: the honor of serving those around us. The conflict between Jesus’ call and the call of our culture may be why, though we respond with understanding about his remarks on worry, we tend to resist what he says about the use of our resources.
The combination, however, is both intentional and timeless. God wants saints who trust his care and rest in his hand, doing what he has called them to do rather than pursuing agendas and emotions that are counterproductive. The nest God gives us is designed to be a base of operation, a haven of service for him. This is what we should concern ourselves about, not our food or clothing. God will care for us, so we need not worry about how he will provide for us.
We would do well to recall that Jesus is speaking this to an audience that is predominantly poor or humble in social status. Jesus’ teaching often targets the poor (cf. 4:16–18). Most of his audience were people who labored from day to day for one day’s wage. If he can say such things to those of humble means, how much more are they true for those of us whose daily needs come with more consistency. The sensitivity called for here reminds us that when we spot people with needs, we should strive to meet them. Many organizations in the Christian community that provide basic needs for the poor are often seen as not doing true ministry, but nothing is further from the truth. God often shows his love for sinners by how his saints reach out in love to meet their needs. The means of care for those who go hungry are often those who have something to give.
Contemporary Significance
HOW DOES ONE apply a call not to worry and to be generous? The issues that lead to application reach deep into the human psyche. We all want to feel secure. We like being in control, but we are fooling ourselves if we think we have life by the throat. Doctor’s offices and hospitals are filled with people who are emotional wrecks because they have failed to control their world and become lost in emotional space. My father-in-law was a practicing doctor, and I remember how often his visits to patients were related not to their being physically sick, but being emotionally at sea.
The first step in wisdom is to know better. We ought to leave ourselves in the Father’s tender loving care. He can direct us to use our gifts and abilities, and we must trust him to provide for us as we work to serve him. That is why before Jesus addresses our pursuing the kingdom, he addresses the need for trust. Human attempts to attain security can come from a variety of sources. We can attempt to create a safe environment for our lives. We can try to create a world where we control others. We can seek the accolades of peers to give ourselves worth. We can withdraw so that we are safe in our own little world. We can seek to be different, so we are noticed and affirmed as present, whether positively or negatively—a route the teenager makes into a vocation! Each of these attempts is really an evasion of the need to seek identity in the one source who can give it, the tender care of God.
Jesus pleads for his disciples to observe nature and to understand that God is in the business of caring for needs, and that by doing so, he models how we are to care for others. The world fights and worries about territory, power, and turf control, while God feeds the ravens, clothes the lilies, and gives splendor to the grass. He longs for disciples whose identity is so secure in God that they graciously and generously pursue kingdom values, honoring him by living with integrity and serving others around them, regardless of the cost. The God who gave his Son to show the way promises his care as we walk the same path. He knows what we need and understands what the call requires.
A major obstacle to pursuing God’s call, however, is to think that we need to get security in other areas of our lives before we can be freed up to serve as he wishes. In the process we short-circuit what God calls us to do and get distracted with personal security issues. Sometimes we can be most effective when God has us in a place where our reliance on him is a necessity and is obvious to all around us. The spiritual life as Jesus sees it is not a life of comfort, but of risk, exposure, weakness, and vulnerability. He wants us to venture out in waters where the course has not been charted out clearly, simply relying on him to give us the opportunity to do what we have been created to do (2 Cor. 1). Thus, without trust it is impossible to please God or serve him effectively. The call of God will never take us to a place where the grace of God cannot sustain us.
The generosity this text calls for has often been questioned. Are we really called to sell all our possessions? Jesus’ point is that we must give up viewing what we call ours, as if it were a private possession to be hoarded. When Zacchaeus in Luke 19:8 offered to sell half of what he had and give it to the poor, Jesus commended him without qualification. What Zacchaeus did is take the step of faith that says, “My resources are not mine, but yours. Show me how to use them for your glory, O God.” That was the prayer of a disciple who sought to apply what Jesus teaches here. Beyond the prayer are the moments of truth, when we take our resources and give them up or put them to use so that others can benefit from their use.
Yet such a prayer can be a rationalization if it is not uttered with an inner sense of being willing to carry through on its request. Zacchaeus not only made a statement of his intentions; he acted on it. Seeking God’s kingdom through proper orientation to God means that the use of what he provides is not restricted to our own selfish interests. We see ourselves as part of a community to be served and loved. For such a commitment, God promises to meet our real needs—those that develop our character—as well as to reward our generosity with his affirmation, both now and in the age to come.