Matthew 6:34
“Therefore, do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”
Here we are at the end of the anxiety series with one final charge and a third “Therefore” in the section. Predicated on the power and love of a heavenly Father, the real-life framing of the Beatitudes, the antitheses of Matthew 5, and the prayer framework of the Lord’s Prayer, we arrive at one final concluding statement. If all of that is true, then tomorrow’s troubles are also in His hands.
James 4:13-15 puts it bluntly: “Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit’—yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.” Only God knows our future. Psalm 90:12 says, “So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.”
Sufficient for the day.
Lamentations 3:22-24: “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. ‘The Lord is my portion,’ says my soul, ‘therefore I will hope in him.’”
The antidote to anxiety is not a ten-step process, a breathing technique, or a multi-vitamin. It is a concrete understanding and faith in a loving Father. Warren Wiersbe put it this way: *”Worrying about tomorrow does not help either tomorrow or today. If anything, it robs us of our effectiveness today—which means we will be even less effective tomorrow.”*² Our safety, our security, our today, and our tomorrow rest not upon our ability but His.
So, in one way, we may say anxiety points to what we are actually leaning on, and in another, that if it is not Christ, we have actively thrown away the only real solution that will ever exist. Charles Spurgeon said it in seven words: *”Beware of creating trouble by ante-dating it.”*¹
Tomorrow’s grace has not been issued yet. The man who tries to draw on it today finds the throne room empty for that request, because the need has not arrived, and candidly, it points to a still untrusting soul.
Proverbs 3:5-7 grounds us with this: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil.”
These past few weeks have been a teeter-totter of emotion and a test of my own strength in the midst of the unknown. Yet, someone mentioned to me, “I think you might be all out of answered prayer, because you seem to be getting everything you ask.” The truth is, God has closed many doors and opened others that glorify Him.
I can tell you this. When I read the word ‘sufficient,’ I believe it truly means that God will provide you with the sufficient faith you need for the day. Not for the troubles of tomorrow. You’ll have sufficiency then.
But today, His faithfulness is all I or you will ever need.
What does your anxiety reveal about where you are leaning or what you are trusting in?
Are you willing to let His faithfulness be sufficient today?
Stay on Mission
¹ Charles H. Spurgeon, Faith’s Checkbook, entry for January 14 on Matthew 6:34 (Passmore & Alabaster, 1888). Public domain.
² Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Loyal: Following the King of Kings (Matthew). The BE Series Commentary (David C. Cook, 1980).
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