The Father's Heart wk 3
Notes
Transcript
A Father Who Provides
A Father Who Provides
This morning we are continuing our series on the Father’s Heart and looking in Matthew 6 this morning at a Father Who Provides.
Because God is a good and loving Father, His children are free from anxiety and invited to trust His faithful provision - daily, relationally, and eternally.
We live in an anxious age - there is rising costs, uncertain futures, and pressure to provide.
Many people do not doubt God’s power, but they are not sure about His personal care.
Jesus speaks not as a philosopher, but as a Son revealing the heart of the Father.
Our text is in the middle of Jesus’ sermon on the mount, and He turns to the topic of anxiety, by saying do not be worried.
The statement do not be worried is not a command of shame, but an invitation to trust.
Listen closely to the text in this section of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 6:25-34
25 “For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?
26 “Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?
27 “And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life?
28 “And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin,
29 yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these.
30 “But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith!
31 “Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’
32 “For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.
33 “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
34 “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Pray
1. The Father Knows What You Need
1. The Father Knows What You Need
25 “For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?
26 “Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?
27 “And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life?
Key Truth
God’s provision flows from His awareness.
Jesus names real needs: food, drink, clothing but He does not name luxuries.
Worry assumes we are alone in meeting our needs.
Anxiety reveals what we believe about God’s attentiveness.
Illustration
A small child does not lie awake worrying about groceries.
Not because food appears magically - but because someone else carries that responsibility
Theological Insight
God’s omniscience is not distant knowledge - it is fatherly concern.
Application Question
Are you carrying a burden God never asked you to carry?
Are you worrying about something that God has never asked you to be responsible for or for you to provide?
2. The Father Values You Deeply
2. The Father Values You Deeply
26 “Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?
27 “And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life?
28 “And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin,
29 yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these.
30 “But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith!
Key Truth
Your worth to the Father exceeds your needs.
Birds are fed; flowers are clothed - yet you are worth more.
Provision is not based on performance, but on relationship.
Anxiety often comes from forgetting our value.
Are you not much more valuable than birds and flowers?
Contrast
The world asks: what do you have?
The Father asks: Do you know who you are? (you are a child of God the high king.)
3. The Father Invites You to a Different Pursuit
3. The Father Invites You to a Different Pursuit
31 “Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’
32 “For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.
33 “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
Let me just say quickly here, that some people take that last verse that if we Seek God then He will give us anything and everything we want.
But Jesus says there all these things will be added to you, what has He been talking about in this section, food, drink and clothing.
God will supply our basic needs - food, drink, and clothing - will He bless us with other things, at times, but the promise here is for our basic needs.
Key Truth
Trust grows when priorities are reordered.
The Gentiles chase provisions as ultimate.
The children of God seek the kingdom of God first
Provisions follows alignment, not anxiety
Seek First Means:
God’s rule over your heart - seek to allow God to be the Lord of your life.
God’s righteousness in your choices, when you make a choice in life, are you seeking to see if it is within God’s righteousness.
God’s purpose over your plans, are you pursuing your plans, goals, and dreams or are you seeking the will of God in your life.
Promise
All these things will be added to you.
This is not prosperity - it is sufficiency.
4. The Father Provides One Day at a Time
4. The Father Provides One Day at a Time
34 “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Key Truth
God’s provision is daily, not distant.
Tomorrow’s worries rob today’s grace.
God gives grace in portions - like manna in the wilderness
Trust is learned in the rhythm of everyday dependence.
Illustration
God rarely shows us the whole staircase - He gives us the next step.
Conclusion:
Resting in the Father’s Care
Jesus does not promise a worry-free life.
He promises a Father-filled life.
The cross is the ultimate proof that God did not spare His own Son - how will He not also provide what we need?
You are not forgotten
You are not overlooked
You are not on your own
You have a Father who provides.
Next week we will be looking at A Father who Sends
