Monday 4th January 2021
Leave Your Worries To God
Pastor Soong Kok Kee
Matthew 6: 25-34
Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?
Year 2020 will be a year none of us can ever forget. For those of us who are still around, we praise and thank our Lord for His guidance and protection. Thousands have died around the world and millions have lost their jobs. Big businesses have closed down and many say the economy will easily take another 3-4 years to recover – no one is sure. In situations like this in every country, how not to worry? The only good news is that Covid-19 vaccines will soon be available but many are still worried about the effectiveness and side effects.
Here are some worldly advice to cure your worries:
Blessed is the man who is too busy to worry in the daytime and too sleepy to worry at night.
Perpetual worry will get you to a place ahead of time – the cemetery.
Half of the things we worry about never happen, and the other half will happen anyway – so why worry?
When a fellow says there’s nothing to worry about, somebody had better start worrying about him.
A scholar will sit up all night worrying over things a fool never dreamed of.
It’s foolish to worry about something beyond your control – such as your wife.
Our Lord starts this passage by telling us not to worry about what we will eat, drink or wear – the very basic necessities of life. William Hendriksen says the word “Therefore” shows the connection with the preceding. He says, on the basis of what has gone before and in connection with what follows, the meaning is probably this: Since transitory earthly treasures do not satisfy, and setting the heart on them implies forfeiting the enduring pleasures of heaven (6: 19-21), and since the yearning for such earthly riches blurs mental and moral vision (verses 22,23), and finally, because a choice must be made between God and Mammon (verse 24), do not continue to set your heart on the latter, that is, on earthly things, such as food and drink, to keep alive, or on clothes, to keep dressed. After all, it is your heavenly Father who gave you your life and your body and will sustain them. He who has provided the greater, namely, life and body, will he not also furnish the lesser, namely, food, drink, and clothes? Is not life more important than food, and the body than clothes? Do not, then, confuse priorities!
Our Lord assures us that as he takes care of the birds of the air, lilies and even grass of the field, will he not take care of us? He assures us that he knows what we need even before we ask of him. He reminds us to seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to us as well. Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters in the Lord, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own (verses 33,34). Let us all leave our worries to our heavenly Father.
PRAYER: Dear Lord, thank you for this timely reminder. As we all approach 2021 with so much uncertainty, we all have worries and anxieties about our family, our work, our business, our church and our ministries. But we take comfort that you know our every need even before we ask of you and as you have taken care of the birds of the field, lilies and grass of the field, surely you will take care of us. In Jesus precious name we pray AMEN.
每日灵粮
星期一，2021年1月4日
标题：把您的忧虑卸给上帝
讲员：宋国基牧师
翻译：郑振隆弟兄
【太6:25-34】
“所以我告诉你们：不要为生命 忧虑 吃什么，喝什么，为身体忧虑穿什么。生命不胜于饮食吗？身体不胜于衣裳吗？
2020年将是我们所有人都无法忘记的一年。对于仍健在的我们，我们赞美并感谢我们的主的指引和保护。世界各地已有成千上万人丧生，数百万人失业。大型企业已经倒闭，许多人说经济至少需要另外三到四年的时间才能恢复-没有人能够确定。 每个国家在这样的情况之下，怎么能不担心？唯一的好消息是，新冠肺炎（Covid-19）疫苗即将面世，但许多人仍担心其有效性和副作用。
以下是一些俗世的建议，可解决您的忧虑：
白天忙碌到无法忧虑，晚上因太困倦而无法忧虑的人是有福的。
永无止境的忧虑会让您提前到达一个地方 – 墓地。
我们忧虑的事情中有一半永远不会发生，而另一半无论如何都会发生 – 那么为什么要忧虑呢？
当一个人说没什么可忧虑的时候，最好有人开始为他忧虑。
一个学者会为愚人做梦也想不到的事情而彻夜不眠。
为一些您无法控制的事情（例如您的妻子）忧虑，是愚蠢的。
我们的主在这段经文的开头就告诉我们，不要为生命忧虑吃什么，喝什么，为身体忧虑穿什么 – 这些都是生活最基本的必需品。威廉•亨德里克森(William Hendriksen)说：“所以”一词表明了与前者的联系。他说，根据在此之前和之后相关的联系，其含义该是这样：既然短暂的世俗财宝不能使人满足，把心放在其上就意味着放弃天堂的持久欢乐(6:19-21)；再者，对这些世俗财宝的渴望使精神和道德的视野模糊了(第22、23节)；最后，由于必须在上帝和玛门之间做出选择(第24节)，所以不要继续将您的心放在后者，即俗世的事物，诸如饮食以存活、服饰为穿著。毕竟，是您的天父给了您生命和身体，祂将维持它们。祂既提供了更重要的，即生命和身体，岂不也供应次要的，即饮食和衣服吗？生命不胜于饮食吗？身体不胜于衣裳吗？那就不要混淆优先秩序了！
我们的主向我们保证，祂既照顾空中的飞鸟、百合花，甚至是田间的草时，难道祂会不照顾我们吗？祂向我们保证，即使在我们向祂求之前，祂已经知道我们所需要的。祂提醒我们要先求祂的国和祂的义，这些东西都要加给我们了。因此，主里亲爱的兄弟姐妹们，不要为明天忧虑，因为明天自有明天的忧虑。一天的难处一天当就够了 (第33、34节)。让我们大家将忧虑卸给天父吧。
祷告：亲爱的主，谢谢祢及时的提醒。当我们都带着如此多的不确定性面对2021年时，我们都对我们的家庭、工作、业务、教会和事工感到担忧和焦虑。但我们感到安慰的是，在我们向祢祈求之前，祢就已经晓得我们的一切需要；而且祢既看顾田间的飞鸟、野地里的百合花和草，祢也一定会看顾我们。我们奉耶稣的宝贵名祈祷，阿门。