God Cares For His Own
…casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.
(1 Peter 5:7 ESV)
One of the many effects of the Fall is that we actually believe the illusion that we govern our own lives. As Charles Spurgeon once remarked, “The armor-bearer of Sin is Self-confidence.” In the pride and arrogance of our sinful hearts, we are convinced that we have sufficient power and inner resources to alleviate our current woes and prevent future unpleasant situations. Yet, how often does the illusion translate into worry and anxiety in our daily experience! God allowed David to peer through the fog of illusion in his own life, resulting in his emotional confession:
When I am afraid,
I put my trust in you.
In God, whose word I praise,
in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.
What can flesh do to me?
(Psalm 56:3-4 ESV)
David, the warrior king of Israel, came to the realization that neither his courage nor his skill as a warrior could overcome the fears in his own heart. Now, lest anyone think David was merely waxing poetic during a lazy afternoon interlude, let me provide the context for this confession. At the time David wrote this Psalm, he had already been anointed king of Israel by the prophet Samuel at God’s direction. But there was a problem with this: Saul was still the reigning king. The effects of sin had caused Saul’s mind to deteriorate; his heart was hardened and he directed a jealous rage against David (whom he saw as a threat to his position as king). Saul pursued David through the Judean hill country with the express purpose of killing David, thus securing his throne and his power.
Saul had a network of spies who reported on David’s whereabouts, so that David was not safe anywhere in Israel for long. In an effort to preserve his life (without threatening the life of Saul—the Lord’s anointed), David fled from the frying pan into the fire. He went to Gath and to Achish the king, avowed enemies of Israel. David’s reception by Achish so terrified him that he pretended to be insane—scratching at the doors of the city gate, drooling, and doing whatever it took to convince Achish that he had lost his mind.
And David rose and fled that day from Saul and went to Achish the king of Gath. And the servants of Achish said to him, “Is not this David the king of the land? Did they not sing to one another of him in dances,
‘Saul has struck down his thousands,
and David his ten thousands’?”
And David took these words to heart and was much afraid of Achish the king of Gath. So he changed his behavior before them and pretended to be insane in their hands and made marks on the doors of the gate and let his spittle run down his beard. Then Achish said to his servants, “Behold, you see the man is mad. Why then have you brought him to me? Do I lack madmen, that you have brought this fellow to behave as a madman in my presence? Shall this fellow come into my house?” (1 Samuel 21:10-15 ESV)
Thinking that David had lost his mind, Achish allowed David to leave Gath, unharmed. This is one of many episodes in David’s life that reinforce the truth that God cares for His own.
It is only God’s favor (grace) that allows us to stand today and to have hope for tomorrow. David was no match for Goliath—it was God’s power working through David that gave him the victory over a much more powerful opponent. David was no match for the wrath of Saul and the army of Israel. David was no match for Achish, king of Gath, and his army—sworn enemies of Israel. More to the point, David’s inner resources were no match for the even greater opponent—sin. Neither was he a match for the consequences of his sin (consider just a few examples from David’s life: his adultery with Bathsheba, the murder of her husband, Uriah, the machinations of his rebellious sons). Through it all, God enabled David to see that God Himself was his strength and the stronghold of his life.
God is also the one who enables us to see that He cares for us and that our trust in Him is not misplaced. Such knowledge is wonderfully liberating. If God cares for us, how will a life of care and worry on our part accomplish anything worthy of Him? And, if God cares for us, that lifts a burden from our hearts and minds, which allows us to pursue the good works that God has created beforehand for us to walk in (see Ephesians 2:10). We cannot be wholeheartedly devoted to God’s purposes for us if our hearts are divided.
Teach me your way, O LORD,
that I may walk in your truth;
unite my heart to fear your name.
(Psalm 86:11 ESV)
The need for God’s grace is never more apparent in our lives than when we think our own strength has sustained us, or that we can make it on our own. Every follower of Jesus Christ has need of this truth—God cares for His own. Worry, anxiety, and “the cares of this world” cannot compare to the grace of God. Jesus Christ allows no room for misunderstanding on this point: And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? (Matthew 6:27 ESV).
Even more important than consideration of our physical and emotional quality of life, however, is the ultimate consideration of our spiritual quality of life. When examined in the light of Scripture, worry and anxiety are expressions of a sinful mindset… For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin (Romans 14:23b ESV). And to be clear, biblical faith is not some formula or adherence to certain words that have the power to create reality—that is misdirected naiveté, at best—it is certainly not the Gospel.
Biblical faith is a rock-solid trust in God and in His ability to care for His own. So when Paul tells us that “whatever does not proceed from faith is sin” he is getting at the heart of the matter. Worry and anxiety are not so much rooted in fear and insecurity as in a pride in our own ability to take care of ourselves, our tendency to trust not in God but in the arm of the flesh.
We all are confronted every day with temptations to worry about a multitude of issues in our lives—money, health, our spouse, children, grandchildren, problems at work or concerns about the economy. These are real concerns that are a constant source of temptation to worry, to be anxious, to be overcome with fear. But God knows our needs—even our need for assurance and re-assurances. He has graciously provided a way in which to handle these concerns: prayer. One of the most difficult lessons for Christians to master is turning to God when we are tempted to “go it on our own”. This independent spirit is the antithesis of a maturing faith.
God cares for His own and when we develop the habit of humbly trusting Him in the complex issues of life, we begin to see an amazing strengthening of heart and mind. What we find is that God has not changed, our situation may not have changed, but our perspective has changed. We begin to see the timeless truth that God cares for His own as expressed in the wonderful hymn, “Praise to the Lord, the Almighty.”
“Praise to the Lord, who o’er all things so wondrously reigneth,
Shelters thee under his wings, yea, so gently sustaineth!
Hast thou not seen
How thy desires e’er have been
Granted in what he ordaineth?”
By trusting God unconditionally, we position ourselves to receive clarity and understanding—God’s perspective, if you will. Somehow, God changes our view of our situation so that we perceive beyond our situation that these very circumstances are ordained by God and that our desires have been granted in what God has ordained. We must learn to make the connections between what we ask and what God gives. This kind of wisdom is foolishness to the world, but a cherished anchor for the soul who trusts in God.
God’s word is clear on this point: our anxiety and worry do effect a change in our situation, but only in negative directions. Only God has the power and ability to bring about positive change both within us and in our external environment. David learned this crucial lesson while on the run from Saul and through many other episodes in his life. This is the same young man who had been the subject of songs of heroism in Israel:
And the women sang to one another as they celebrated,
“Saul has struck down his thousands,
and David his ten thousands.”
(1 Samuel 18:7 ESV)
This is the same David who, as a youth, had fearlessly fought bears and lions when they attacked his father’s sheep. It is this same David who later confessed, “When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.” We are so accustomed to hearing Old Testament narratives presented as Sunday School stories for children that it is easy to forget these are true accounts of real people. David had the same kinds of dreams, the same kinds of hopes, and even the same kinds of fears that we experience. But somewhere along the line, David had learned this comforting truth: God cares for His own.
We all sin and fall short of the glory of God. But those who place their trust in Jesus Christ as the only means of salvation experience the grace of God without measure. Yes, we still sin, but we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ, the righteous Son of God. And our daily struggle against worry and anxiety are constant reminders of our need for forgiveness and for the wonderful provision of the grace of God that is more than sufficient for our every need.
The reality is that while we live in this fallen world we all have opportunities to fear, to worry, and to be anxious. Yet in Jesus Christ we find a peace that transcends our fears and cares. Jesus’ own words to us cut through the illusions of our paltry resources: Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. (John 14:27 ESV)
God cares for His own!
Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. (Matthew 6:31-33 ESV)
Soli Deo Gloria!