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"Be careful for
nothing;" that is, "Be anxious about nothing." No anxiety
ought to be found in the believer. Great, many, and varied
may be our trials, our afflictions, our difficulties, and
yet there should be no anxiety under any circumstances,
because we have a Father in heaven who is Almighty, who
loves His children as He loves His only begotten Son, and
whose very joy and delight it is to succor and help them at
all times and under all circumstances.
Anxiety should not be found in the
children of God, but we should attend to the exhortation
given us in Philippians 4:6-7, "Be careful for nothing; but
in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving
let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of
God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts
and minds through Christ Jesus."
Notice particularly the following points:
(l) "In Everything," that is, not merely when the house is
on fire, not merely when the beloved wife is dying, not
merely when our children are on the brink of the grave, but
in the smallest matters of life, bring EVERYTHING before
God, the little things, the very little things, what the
world calls trifling things-EVERYTHING-living in holy
communion with our heavenly Father, and with our precious
Lord Jesus Christ, all day long. And when we awaken at
night, by a kind of spiritual instinct, again turn to Him,
and speak to Him, bringing our various little matters before
Him, the difficulties in connection with our family, our
trade, our profession. Whatever tries us in any way, speak
to the Lord about it. Ask Him for help regarding everything.
(2) "By prayer and supplication," taking
the place of beggars, with earnestness, with perseverance,
going on and waiting, waiting, waiting on God.
(3) "With thanksgiving," we should at all
times lay a good foundation with thanksgiving. If everything
else were wanting, this is always present, that He has saved
us from hell. Then, that He has given us His Holy Word, His
only begotten Son, and the Holy Spirit. Therefore we have
always abundant reason for thanksgiving. Oh, let us aim at
this!
"And the peace of God, which passeth all
understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through
Christ Jesus." We shall have the peace of God. And this so
great a blessing, so precious a blessing must be known
experimentally to be entered into, for it passes
understanding. Oh, the peace of God, how exceedingly
precious this blessing!
See therefore how we get this peace of God
through attending to this exhortation, that in everything,
in the most minute affairs of life, we let our requests, by
prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, be known unto
God. And further, that we seek to the utmost to avoid
anxiety. Oh, let us lay these things to heart, and the
result will be, if we habitually walk in the Spirit that we
shall far more abundantly glorify God than as yet we have
done. |