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How do you overcome anxiety?
What is the thing that Jesus most often tells us not to do in the gospels? It is "Fear not". We can assume that Jesus said this to his disciples and people even more than what is recorded. The reason why Jesus says this is because He understands man. He who made man, and who himself became man (and was without any sin), understands man better than anyone. Jesus says, do not fear, because people fear. Anxiety is something most (if not all) people struggle with at times, some more than others. Fear can be paralyzingly overwhelming at times. Anxiety is one of the biggest problems of modern man.
But what is the solution? The worldly solution is medication. Medication is the answer if your anxiety is the result of a chemical imbalance in your body, but in most cases this is not the problem. Jesus shows us that the reason why we become anxious is in most cases a spiritual problem, rather than a physical one. It is related to our relationship with God.
In Matthew 6:19-34
Jesus talks about anxiety. Here He offers us a long-term solution to the
problem. Many times when you go to the doctor, he treats the problem without
paying attention to the cause. However, Jesus shows us the cause of our anxiety
in verses 19-24 before He leads us to the treatment in verses 25-34.
1. The cause of anxiety
What makes us anxious is that we are focused on the wrong things in life. Jesus uses 3 descriptions to ultimately lead us to what causes our anxiety. Like a good doctor, He examines you to find out exactly what is causing the problem:
a.Where your treasures is
"Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal." (v6:19). In South Africa we perhaps understand the second example better than the first. Treasures here on earth can be stolen and can be destroyed by moth and rust. Notice, however, Jesus is not talking about possessions here, but treasures. Possessions are things that you consider essential, but your happiness does not depend on them. Treasures are things that have become so important to you, you cannot do without them. Let me give you an example: Your mobile phone can be a possession to you (it's important, good and useful), or it can be a treasure to you (I have to have it, I can't live without it). Jesus is talking about treasures here and if you lose a treasure it leads to anxiety!
If you make a treasure of anything here on earth, your treasures are in the wrong treasure room. And those things will inevitably lead you to become anxious. Doctor Jesus pressed his finger on something and it hurts, but it’s not unbearably painful. We're starting to see what the problem is, but it's not clear yet.
b.What your focus is
"The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light," (v22). How do you look at situations? How do you summarize circumstances? This tells you something about your eye, whether it is looking rightly or wrongly. If your eye is focused on earthly things, your eye is bad and sees only darkness. If your eye is focused on heavenly things, your eye is good and sees light. If you have a worldly attitude and perspective of events, you will be overwhelmed by hopelessness in circumstances. Worldly things are uncertain and unstable.
So what Jesus is saying is, if your eye is focused on the wrong place in your circumstances it will cause you to become anxious. We're getting closer to what the problem is, Jesus stuck his finger in your eye, and the pain is almost unbearable, but we're not quite at the real cause yet.
c. Who is your master
“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money." (v24). Jesus' investigation is now progressing, He pressed on your treasures and it hurts, He then pressed on your eye and it was very painful, now to investigate further and find the real cause. And what is the real problem? The heart of the problem is a problem with your heart. And here's the problem with your heart: As you seek the blessing of Christianity you don't want to leave the things of the world behind. We misunderstand the reason why God gives us worldly things. God bestows upon us the things of this world as servants to honour Him, but we have made the servants our lord and the Lord our servant. We seek Him for His blessings, but we do not seek His glory with what He gives us. This leads to a conflict in the heart which leads to our anxiety. We cannot serve two masters, it is either God and His glory, or it is the world and its misery. But serving two masters at the same time is not an option, it's either God or the world, not both.
With this, Jesus got to what is
the real cause of our anxiety: Our focus is not completely on God, we are trying
to live with one foot in the kingdom and the other foot in the world. If our
concern for worldly things overwhelms us it leads to anxiety.
2. The solution to anxiety
This brings us to the 'therefore' of verse 25. Therefore, because the overemphasis of worldly things is the cause of our anxiety, stop worrying "Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?" verse 25. Notice that the things that Jesus lists here as the things that trouble us are all future things "what you will eat or what you will drink...or what you will wear". While the consequences of things from the past or in the present can lead to anxiety, our anxiety is usually about things that may (or will) happen in the future. The reason our anxiety is mostly about future things is because we cannot control them or know what they will bring.
So we have a diagnosis: What has become our treasure has darkened our eyes and has become our god and we fear losing it. We have placed our trust in things we cannot trust, things that are uncertain and may disappoint us and now we are anxious about them.
So what is the solution? What should we do to get rid of our anxiety? The answer is two words: Believe God! Believe the one who promised and who is really in control. Jesus shows us what this faith in God should look like:
a.Think of your Father's dominion
What we are going to eat, what we are going to drink, what we are going to wear, these are things that we are anxious about, but these are the things that God has promised us. If God cares for the birds of the air and clothes the lilies of the field, how much more will He care for us. We are more than they are! They are creatures of His hands, but we are His children, we are much more valuable than they, so how much more will He care of us.
The things we get anxious about are the things the pagans worry about says Jesus, and we can trust God for these things, He will take care of us! The first 'pill' you should take for your anxiety is: Believe God is really in control!
b.Surrender your life into His hands
Faith is not just understanding the Word and believing that it is true, faith requires that we trust God for it. It calls for us to let go of everything and jump in the absolute trust that His arms will catch us. We must bring our needs to Him who will provide for us.
This is Jesus' point in the famous words of verses 33-34. “’But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.’ ‘Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.’” If you believe that God is truly God, then you will bow to His kingship and believe that He will do what is right. If He has promised to provide, then He will provide, because He is trustworthy and righteous. He who promised me eternal life also promised me my daily bread and with it all that I need.
The second 'pill' you must take is: Trust His provision. Trust Him, it's the medication to treat your anxiety.
What you are anxious about is perhaps something that is
really a worry, but if it is really a worry, says 1 Peter 5:7 "casting all
your anxieties on Him, because He cares for you." But being anxious about
these things will not help, it will not solve the problem (v27) We must do what
Jesus encourages us to do in John 14:1 " Let not your hearts be troubled.
Believe in God; believe also in me.” The context of this verse is that He is
going to prepare for us an eternal place, we need not fear that we will be
lost. But verse 13 shows that it is also about his temporary provision of our
every need. He will take care of us, so don't be anxious, trust God and He will
provide. Faith in God is how to overcome anxiety!
ds. Leon Harmse
The pastor of Sunward Park Baptist Church