PREPARE

In light of Jesus’ words about God being our Master rather than wealth, we are next challenged to set God as our sole provider too. The result, Jesus says, is that we will no longer worry. This is only possible for us if we understand the character of God rightly. He is a good Master. He is a good Provider. He takes care of us and gives us what we need. As our trust in God’s faithfulness grows, our propensity towards worry will lesson.

Prepare for this week’s message by reading Matthew 6:25-34 with Psalm 23

ATTEND

Verses: Matthew 6:25-34

Main Point: Don’t Trust Worry. Trust God.

1. Do Not Worry: (Matthew 6:25)

2. Birds and Flowers: (Matthew 6:26-30)

3. The First Priority: (Matthew 6:31-34)

REFLECT

1. What impacted you most from this week’s message? What challenged you or encouraged you? What did you learn about the character of God? How did this week’s sermon affect your perspective on God or your perspective on yourself?
2. Are you a worrier? What things cause you to worry? What do you think is the underlying cause of worry? How do you personally combat worry?
3. Read Matthew 6:25. What is the “Therefore” there for in this verse? (See the previous section Matthew 6:19-24.) How does the current section connect to the previous section?
4. What did Jesus command in these verses? What perspective did Jesus provide on food and clothing?
5. Read Matthew 6:26-27. What points was Jesus making in this example? Do birds worry? Although birds work, who is the One responsible for feeding them?
6. Are humans or birds more valuable to God? Why is this truth important to what Jesus is saying? According to Jesus, how affective is worrying?
7. Read Matthew 6:28-30. What was Jesus’ point about God’s provision in this example? How important are flowers compared to humans in God’s economy?
8. How would you define faith? (See Hebrews 11:1 for a good starting place.) How does worry relate to faith? How does “little faith” relate to worrying?
9. Read Matthew 6:31-34. Again, Jesus commanded His disciples not to worry. How is this behavior similar to the pagans (people who don’t know God yet)? Is worry a form of “functional atheism”? Why or why not?
10. What priority did Jesus give in verse 33? What does it mean to seek God’s Kingdom and His righteousness as the first priority of life? How does seeking the Kingdom first provide a solution to worry?

ACT

- What is one specific thing you can do this week to put into practice what you learned in this message?
- How can you deepen your relationship with God and follow Him more closely this week?
- Who is someone you can share what you learned with?