SERMON TITLE: Worry
TEXT: Philippians 4:4-7
SPEAKER: Ed Grable
DATE: 2.9.20
Hello Gateway, my name is Ed Grable, and it is an honor and privilege to speak to you tonight.
I would like to start off our time with a quick audience participation question. The question is, “How many of you would say you have a tendency to worry?” Ok, there are a few of you. Now don’t look around to the ones who didn’t raise their hands, because you are going to worry about them now.
But seriously, when I stand before a group of people like you all, I often wonder what you’re facing in life right now. Inevitably, there are going to be those of you who are struggling and battling worry in one way or another. Worry is at an all-time high in the world today, especially here in the United States. We are continually ranked in the top ten most stressed or anxious countries. One of the most shocking things I found in my research was an article from 2008 in Psychology Today that says:
The average high school kid today has the same level of anxiety as the average psychiatric patient in the early 1950’s. We are getting more anxious every decade. We expect to have a more affluent lifestyle, we are driven by unrealistic ideas about relationships, appearance, and what we need. (https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/anxiety-files/200804/how-big-problem-is-anxiety)
And anxiety isn’t helped by the fact that we have all the bad news all the time. Bad news sells—and reminds us—that we can all be in danger. Even though we live longer, have better healthcare, travel is safer, we are richer, and we have safer cars—we now think that there is always disaster on the horizon.
Because we are constantly bombarded with bad news, we think that we are in greater danger. We may not be in greater danger—but it’s what we think that counts in the way we feel. No wonder we are nervous wrecks. Just look at the headlines today: the coronavirus is headed our way. Global warming is a real thing , war with Iran is going to break out any moment. Not to mention the anxiety of social media and all the junk it throws at us.
I always think it is funny how news stations try to put a feel-good story on at the end of the broadcast. I don’t know about you, but sometimes I can’t make it till the end. Thank you, evening news, now I have more things to worry about. So, the world feeds our anxieties!
With all of that said, a few questions come to mind. As Christ-followers, How can we worry less?
Is there a way we can help stem the tide of worry in our lives and in the lives of those we love?
What does the Bible tell us about worry?
Well, I believe Paul gives us three clear steps to facing worry and anxiety as a believer.
So — if you have your Bible — let’s turn to our passage for today. Please turn with me to Philippians chapter 4. We’ll be looking at verses 4-7.
Background and Setting
While you’re finding Philippians 4, let me tell you a little bit about the book, who’s writing it and why. The book is written about 30 years after the death of Jesus by Paul.
Paul is in a prison cell in Rome where he is a guest of Caesar. He is writing to a church in Philippi, a city in Mesopotamia or modern-day Greece. Many believe this is a church Paul himself planted. He loved this church, and he was so thankful for the love and support he had received from them. In fact, the constant theme of this letter is joy. Paul wants to encourage those who read this letter. He is well aware of the struggles they are facing. They are being persecuted for their faith and like any church, a few of them are not getting along, but the gospel is still being proclaimed and people are being saved.
Now, let’s jump into the end of the letter. Where Paul writes.
4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again, I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
So, we know that worry and anxiety can be a normal part of our life. Your circumstances may seem overwhelming, but as a Christ-follower, it comes down to trusting God and looking at things from a different perspective.The first thing Paul says we need to do when we are worried or anxious about something is to understand that: Praise is Powerful!
Praise is Powerful!
Let's look at verse 4 and 5 again. Paul say..
4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again, I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand;
Paul tells the Philippians that they need to rejoice, no matter what happens.
Paul is not being flippant or dismissing their struggles. It's kind of his way of saying, “Remember what happened the last time I was with you?” The last time he visited, he was accompanied by Silas, Timothy and Luke. We know this to be true, because Luke records the events of that day in the book of Acts in the sixteenth chapter.
You see Paul is no stranger to a prison cell. While in Philippi, he encounters a slave girl possessed by a demon. Paul cast the demon out of her. Upon hearing this, her owners had Paul and Silas beaten and thrown into jail. That night Paul and Silas began to pray and praise God. There was an earthquake, and their chains fell off and the prison doors flew open. The end result was not only did their jailer become a follower of Jesus, but so did his household. Their surroundings and situation did not remove their joy. They did not lose hope. Worry and anxiety can rob us of joy and steal our hope.
What Paul is asking us to do is extremely difficult. Especially if you find yourself following a loved one to the hospital in an ambulance not knowing their fate. Or when the person you love has just packed a bag and says they’re leaving. How do you rejoice? Come on, Paul, you don’t get it! I don’t know if I will have a job by the end of the year, and my children are making poor decisions and rebelling so badly that every time we talk - if we talk - it turns into a fight. You want me to rejoice?
The joy we are talking about is not purely a human emotion but deep-down confidence that God is in control of everything for the believers good and His own glory, and thus, all is well no matter the circumstances.
Yep, that is what he expects. Our joy comes from the Lord, because he is ever-present. It’s a confident Joy.
II want to tell you a story about a friend of mine whose name is John Paul who found joy in spite of his circumstances. We met many years ago. He was raised in a small village in Africa. At the age of 10, he went with some friends to see the Jesus movie. Upon seeing this movie, he gave his life to Christ. After returning home and sharing the news ,he was threatened, eventually being chased from the village with dogs and machetes. He found his way to the closest big city where he lived on the street washing dishes and different things to survive. He said he never lost his joy. He knew God had a plan for his life and he was going to trust that plan. John Paul eventually found his way to a Youth for Christ program.
He would eventually be discovered and adopted by an American family who brought him back here to the States where he would eventually attend Bluffton College here in Ohio and meet his lovely wife. He has since written a book about his story, and the last time we talked was headed back to visit the village he ran from as a little boy. He found joy in what God was doing, not in his circumstances.
You can, too.
Sometimes, it is as simple as saying, “God, I’m struggling in all this, but I love you and I trust you.” Remember your joy comes from the Lord!
The Psalmist understood this as he wrote.
Psalms 145:18
18 The Lord is close to all who call on him, yes, to all who call on him in truth.
This leads us to the next instruction from Paul for those in Philippi and us here today. And that is:
Prayer is a Priority!
Let’s look at verse 6:
Paul continues:
6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. ESV
The New Living Translation says it this way:
6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. NLT
Be anxious for nothing: and when he says nothing, he means nothing. Paul is simply saying as a Christ-follower you don’t have to allow worry to steal your joy.
Now having concern is different than worry or anxiety.
Having a concern is ok. We can have concerns for people, your job and the world, but that’s it. Concern shows you care, but it doesn’t consume your thoughts and actions. Worry and anxiety can cause you to lose sight of what God has done and is doing.
The question becomes: Do you trust God to do what is best for you?
Remember: Nothing is outside His sovereign control! What causes you to be anxious or worried? Stop and think about the things you are most worried about. How many of those things do you have control of? Does anything get accomplished by you worrying about these things?
In Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, he asked a question.
Mathew 6:27 (NIV)
6:27 Can anyone of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?
For those in this room that worry, what would be your answer to His question?
What is the result of your worry?
Lack of sleep, lack of appetite or you find yourself in the frozen food aisle consulting your two favorite counselors, Ben and Jerry?
Do you know what you get when you worry?
Nothing! You often lose more than you will ever gain.
I read a quote that said 90% of what we worry about never happens, and the other ten percent isn't as bad as we made it out to be.
We are good at making movies. Some of you can come up with stuff that would top Spielberg and Stephen King.
You think of the worst scenario, and you blow it up. You tell yourself, “If I plan for the worst, then it won't be so bad, right?”
Did you know that most hospital ER visits are stress-related? In fact, I’m a part of that statistic. Back when I was working three jobs and burning the candle at both ends, I would feel my heart racing super fast followed by a feeling I was going to pass out. Needless to say, I thought I was having a heart attack, so I was eventually driven to the hospital where I had a lot of tests done and was even hospitalized for the night. In the end, it was all because I was overstressed and worried about taking care of my family. The real heart attack came when I got the bill.
Paul then tells us what to do with our worry. He says to take it to the Father. He wants to hear from His children. When we communicate it, He receives it. It’s a conversation with your heavenly Father. Some might even say, “Why go to God? He already knows what is going on in my life, and he knows what I desire to happen.”
Let me put it to you this way. For those of you who are married, how does your spouse know what you need? You tell them, right? What happens if you don’t tell them? They get it wrong, and you get mad. But whose fault is it? Yours, right?
There are others who think, “It’s not important. I don’t want to bother you.” Bother me! God says! That’s how a relationship works. God says come to me tell me what you need.
Paul even tells us how to approach the throne.
In 1 Peter we read a similar promise. 1 Peter 5:7 says
1 Peter 5:7 (NIV)
7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
Martin Luther was quoted as saying:
“Pray, and let God worry.”
So, before we move forward, let’s do this: If worry and anxiety are stealing your joy, I want you to take it to God right now.
PRAYER:
Father, we come before you and bring all of our worries and anxieties. You know every single thing that causes us to worry and at times allow our eyes to miss what you are doing. We give you each one with the confidence that your plan is so much better than anything we can imagine. Thank you for loving us and showing me grace after grace especially in those times when we lose faith. May we find your joy no matter our circumstances.
Amen!
Paul's final instruction tells us how to keep worry and anxiety at bay once we have given them all to God
Peace is Possible!
In verse seven we read:
7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Now how many of you read this and go, “Ok, Paul, how can I have this peace if it passes all understanding?” Well, he tells us. We are to guard our hearts and minds with His peace. This is not a peace that we can obtain on our own. God created us and He understands us. Where does worry often get its start? It is either felt or thought, right? You hear people say, “I feel anxious about it or I can’t stop thinking about it.”
Don’t get me wrong. Processing feelings and thoughts are good things. The trouble comes when it consumes you: when your concerns turn to worry, and your thoughts turn to anxieties.
Paul says we must guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Remember, Paul is in jail, so he was probably staring at a Roman soldier as he wrote these words.
A Roman soldier was very serious about his duties. No matter what, if they were told to guard it, nothing was getting in, and I mean nothing.
Paul says be careful what you let enter your mind and your heart. In other words, if you hear, think, see or feel something that is going to cause you to worry or be anxious, don’t allow it in. Stand your ground!
Worry is the enemy of peace!
Peace of God: This describes a relationship that we enter into with God through the finished work of Jesus Christ. It is the trust in that work that gives us peace!
Years ago, I worked at a hospital where I took care of people who needed surgery. I could tell you some amazing stories of how I saw God at work in my time there, but there is one encounter that I will never forget, and I believe it is why these verses mean so much to me.
Tom was a 52-year-old man who came in with belly pain and fatigue. He looked very healthy and had taken great care of his body. He ate good food and exercised all the time. He had run a marathon the year before and was hoping to do one again soon.
From the moment I met Tom, I knew there was something different about him. He was so kind and thankful every time I helped him. He was a night owl like me, and so we had a chance to talk quite a bit. I remember telling him I appreciated his kindness to me. He said just because he was feeling bad didn’t mean everyone around him should. Plus, he had put all his trust in this guy named Jesus.
No matter what, he was in His hands. Tom recited this verse and went back to his room. I had a couple of days off and didn’t think I would see him again. But during shift report my first night back, I saw his name on my sheet. My heart sank when I read his diagnosis. He had cancer, and they had given him weeks to live. If I’m honest, I thought I’d see a different man when I walked in his room. But I didn’t. He was exactly the same. Happy and kind and praising Jesus. Everyone around him was somber and sad but he refused. He was going to give God the glory until the end.
He had this peace Paul is talking about. He knew he had to guard his heart and mind of all the bad things he could have let influence his attitude and thinking. A peace that passed all understanding. It didn’t make sense to so many that came in contact with him, but his faith in God’s plan for his life was so powerful, and it gave me perspective in my life.
One commentary I read said it like this:
“When people seem to "lose" their heart or mind, it often is connected to an absence of the peace of God in their life. The peace of God then does not act as a guard for their hearts and minds”
Can you guys keep a secret? I struggle with worry, too. I worry about all kinds of things. If I’m honest, most of them don’t matter, but they still can keep me awake at night. These verses are in my head every time I start to feel worried and anxiety tries to steal my joy. I will usually stop and laugh at myself and say something like, “Stop your stinking thinking, Ed. God is in control and He’s got this.” I trust he has my life in His hands, and His ways don’t always make sense to me, but I gave my life to him over 30 years ago, because he gave his life for me. I know I can put my trust in Him and Him alone.
As a Christ-follower, I want to live differently than the world. How about you?
The world tells us worry and anxiety are a normal part of life, but though it may be normal, they can’t steal our joy!
We can praise Him no matter what our circumstances!
As we cast our worries at his feet in prayer.
Then and only then, will we experience His peace which is all we need.
Let’s pray.
PRAYER
Heavenly Father, I ask that you would help those of us who worry to look to you no matter our circumstances, rejoicing in the fact that we are your children and we know you are at work even in our darkest moments. Father, I also ask that we remember to bring every worry to you in prayer knowing that you love us and want to hear from us. Finally, Lord, may we guard our hearts and minds with Your peace, not the peace the world offers, but Your peace that passes all understanding. And we ask all of this in your Son’s precious name. Amen.
May you go rejoicing in what Christ has done and is doing guarding your hearts and minds with His peace that passes all understanding.
The notes for this sermon can be found here.
Stories, news, and resources for things happening at Gateway Church.
