Lesson 1

Fear and Worry Introduction

June 03, 2007

Bro. Gary Johnson

Adult Sunday School

Matthew 6:26-34

We have heard some long introductions to some messages around here every once in awhile but this may take the prize as I believe to day will be all introduction to what the future lessons of this quarter will be ,so maybe once we get around to starting the series the introductions will not be long.

When the subject of this class is considered many of you may not think it is particularly relevant to you.  Some of you may think that it might be interesting to you but only as it might be applied to others, not yourself.   Some will think it is a subject that could be easily overlooked, and some may not even recognize it as a sin, which it is and as others harmful to our testimony.  This is such subtle and respectable “vice” (compared to most others) this one often goes undetected, or at least unacknowledged as a sin.  In one of the sessions on this subject at Lafayette it was called “The Accepted Sin”

Let’s quickly review a proposed “Christians Questionnaire” from scripture that all of around here should be familiar with as we hear from it often, use it in evangelism, and have it beautifully posted in the next room.  As Christians we know we sin, but we would not want to be guilty of continuing in any of these sins.

Do You Steal?  I can feel some indignant reply’s of “Of course Not!!”  You might continue saying “as a Christian ordering my life by God’s Word “I would not do that.  Your reply would be similar if I continued down the list, with Do You Lie?  Do you swear? Do you get drunk? And encouraged by your rapid and steadfast firm reply’s I will continue.

Do you worry?  Call it, anxiety, having concern, fear, fretting, etc. they all = worry

All Worry, all anxiety or any other word you prefer to call it is sin, an extremely subtle and evil type of sin.

Worry is nothing more and nothing less than a lack of faith and a lack of faith is a sin

The headline of a recent Chicago Tribune page 1 article was, Consumers Eat, Drive, and Shop Less and Worry more.

What is worry?   The Greek word translated worry is “anxious” which means to be pulled in different directions.  Our hope pulls us in one direction; our fears pull us the opposite direction; causing us to pulled apart.  A form of torture was to tie four horses to a person, one to each arm and one to each leg that is the feeling of being pulled in different directions.

Worry can tear a person apart, inwardly just as much as the four horses, could outwardly.

The Old English root word from which we get our word “worry” from means to “strangle”.  Worry can strangle a person, It has definite physical consequences; headaches, neck pains, back pains, and of course ulcers.  It can affect our thinking, our digestion and our coordination.

From the spiritual point of view worry is wrong thinking (the mind) and wrong feeling (the heart) about circumstances, people, and things.

The Subject of this Quarters Lesson’s is Worry

We will be using several references on this subject in addition to the Bible and hope to glean out a lot information on the subject and maybe even eliminate the word form our vocabulary.

I will be using Wayne Mack’s book “Down but not Out”, Elyse Fitzpatrick’s book “Overcoming Fear, Worry, and Anxiety” and Jerry Bridges’ book “Trusting God” in addition I will be using other sources such as the NANC class on “Worry & Fear: the Accepted Sins”, and  article in a recent edition from the Massachusetts General Hospital  Publication Mind, Mood & Memory.

So let me begin by saying that:

Worry is the greatest thief of joy, Bar None

Why do we worry because we do not claim the promises of Philippians’ 4 6 & 7

Phi 4:6  Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

Phi 4:7  And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

We do not claim the promises of Isaiah 26:3 or John 14:27 and especially John 16:33

Isa 26:3  Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.

John 14:27  Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

John 16:33  These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

Note the contrasting experience of John 16:33  “IN ME PEACE”  IN THE WORLD “TRIBULATION”

Jesus gives us Peace, the World Worry.

The real HOPE is in claiming another of His promises in his reassuring words “Be of good cheer I have overcome the world.

IF there is a life that replaces worry with peace, a life protected from vexation, by the possession of God’s antidote, His own peace - - - - Who would not want to have it?  Mans world as we live in it and observe it tells such a life is desperately needed.  God’s word as we study it tells us it is gloriously possible YES it is available. 

With such promises as these Christians, SHOULD be know universally, as people abiding in an unfailing peace, a people who have renounced worry,  However is seems that the Mr. or Mrs. Or MS Average Christian gives themselves to worry pretty much like any other folks.

A very well known Christian Magazine recently did a survey:

The conclusion of 200 telephone interviews was: Millions of people are living in the bondage of fear.  We are becoming a Nation of fearful people.

The actual results of the survey showed 115 of the 200 said they lived in a constant fear.

30 Were afraid of going insane, 22 of committing suicide, 12 of being alone, 9 of heart disease, 7 of close places, 6 of cancer, 5 of death, 5 of fainting. And number three on list 19 said they were afraid of everything.

WHY DO PEOPLE WORRY?

1. People worry because it is a personal habit;  May be a mental habit.  An attitude of mind towards what happens, may happen, or may not happen.  The habit of worrying wears groves in our gray matter,  .  Like the ruts in a dirt road every time we indulge the grooves get deeper, easier to fall into and harder to climb out of.  We become victims of our own habit.  I used to say my mother got worried if she could not think of anything to worry about.

2. People worry because it is contagious: It is passed from mouth to mouth.  Our neighbors are worldly people.  They know only the world’s philosophy.  When things do go wrong or even threaten to go wrong, they freely express their worldly fears and anxieties.  Then we catch it from them, UNLESS our prayer life, along with a constant renewing of the mind through the feeding upon God’s Word, Makes Christ more real than our neighbors, we can fall into their ways, that of worrying because They are worried

3. People worry because They do not realize Our Heavenly Father’s care from His Word.  Listen again to Matthew 6:25-34  Mat 6:25  Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?

Mat 6:26  Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?

Mat 6:27  Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?

Mat 6:28  And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:

Mat 6:29  And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

Mat 6:30  Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?

Mat 6:31  Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?

Mat 6:32  (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.

Mat 6:33  But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

Mat 6:34  Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

The summary of these verses tells us;  The key to a care-free life is a day by day trust that leaves the unfolding future wholly and implicitly in our Father’s hands.

IN A FATHER SON RELATIONSHIP THE FATHER PROVIDES.

Why We Should Not Worry!

Number one I find it impossible to point to a single benefit that comes from worry.

Number two have you ever thought that it could be injurious to your neighbors?

We all have friends and neighbors, who know us, that are not Christians and know we are.  We may very well be the only example or picture or “sample” of what a Christian that they have.  When we are all smiles and happiness when we are in sunshine and all maters are well with us,  Our observers are not strongly impressed with our “Praise the Lords”  They reason somewhat like Satan did when concerning Job that piety and prosperity are linked together.  Anyone ought to smile and act the part under those circumstances.

But let any adversity come.  A financial reversal, a death in the family, ill health, or loss of a job,  Now your observers are all attention to see how your Christian faith will stand up to this test.  If your alert observer see the light fade from your eyes, the joy depart from your heart, the corners of your mouth droop as the woe enters into your conversations replacing the “Praise the Lord.  They will say “Its just as I thought.  There is no reality in that Christian Faith.  Those people go to pieces just like any one else.  They have nothing that I do not have.

Just when you had the opportunity (that you may have been praying for) to bear a glowing testimony to a Savior who sustains and satisfies under all circumstances, you failed Him  in the opportunity He gave you and by so doing you robbed your neighbor of seeing how your Savior can overcome all.

Concern for worldly things has been a hindrance for ages as in the parable of the great supper in Luke 14:15-24

Another reason we should not worry is hurts the heart of our Heavenly Father.

Imagine for a moment that you are the father of an 8 year old boy some of you will be some of us have been.  Now let us suppose that we notice this boy looking weary instead of his normal joyous self.  You ask him what  is troubling him?  His response is my clothes are wearing out and getting too small and he did not know where he was going to get the money to buy new ones.  Your reaction would be one of hurt.  The boy has stepped into his father’s province, robbing him of his fatherhood prerogative.  Knowing you had always provided for him you can not understand his lack of trusting to continue your function as his father that of providing for him out of love.

This example may seem extreme, so extreme that you consider it unbelievable, but is it any different then us the children of God refusing to believe His promise in  Hebrews 13;5 “I will never leave thee,  nor forsake thee. “

Worrying on the part of a child of God is no less out of line or any less shameful then what we considered the actions of that 8 year old son we just talked about.

I believe the evidence is in on what worry is and the fact that it is one of the sins (accepted or not) that most of us are prone to committing much more often than we would care to admit.  I know it is a much too often used word around here

HOW NOT TO WORRY

What is the cure for worry?  There are many: Believing, Christ, Faith God, Prayer, & Trust just to name a few in alphabetical order.  We even have a How to Manual to learn how to use them, and it is not called “Worrying for Dummies”.

Let’s start with Psalms 55:22 Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.

We have already read Matthew 6:25-34 so lets add Mathew 11:28-30   Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Mat 11:29  Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

Mat 11:30  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

We have 1,000’s of promises throughout the Word of God.  Many of them would be a sure cure for worry if we were just to claim them I heard in and was amazed in an  early Bible Study numbers as high as 7,000 and now I am sure that it is probably more.

God can cure worry through His Word.

Our escape from worry is in God, by bringing Him into the center of life’s living.  This means a life of prayer (Just in case you have never heard that before around here)   A life of trust that through prayer feeds upon the promises of His Word.

Judy just recently purchased a Greeting Card for our daughter in law that says everything this whole series is going to say.  It reads on the cover:  “Good Morning this is God”      inside it reads:”I will be handling all of your problems today,  I will not need any help,   So have a Good Day”  With the scripture reference of Romans 8:37 “We are more than conquers, through Him that loved us”

Where Gad and His Word are enthroned, worry can not crowd in.  Probably the most quoted definition of worry is:  Worrying is you doing the work that was intended for God”.

Scripture, studied in simple faith, assimilated into our Spiritual being, and turned back to God in trusting prayer, will produce peace in the soul.

The Holy Spirit knowing the proneness to worry as one of the consequences of sin, provided for this by giving many promises to cover this need.

Since I like participation in Sunday School I often have you read verses instead of me reading them all..  If I assigned the correct verse from the first chapter of these I could assign 13 different books of the Bible and you could almost read them all in unison.  Do the words “Grace be to you and peace from God the Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ” sound familiar to you?  Do you get the message that is being given to us?  These recurrent words are far from being a mere formula.  They describe the Christian Life.  It is “Grace and Peace” never reversed Peace cannot be had apart from Grace, and Grace cannot be appropriated without Peace.

We have been given: Saving Grace, Keeping Grace, Sustaining Grace,  Upholding Grace, Guiding Grace, and Teaching Grace.  It is Grace to endure and Grace that covers every need.  And we have Peace including Peace with God, Peace from God, and even the Peace of God.  That last promise the Pease of God comes from a verse we just ought to read again right now.   Phi 4:6  Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

Phi 4:7  And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

I believe that may be as good of verse to quote as any now and any time that our present subject as  a chance to restate a beautiful promise that we are given so that we should not worry.

These two verses make it clear that you can not worry and believe the promises of God at the same time.  If you believe the promises of God you have peace and inter happiness.  If you believe in the humanistic viewpoint and look at your circumstances form a human viewpoint, you are going to worry yourself into a state of terrible misery.  Another cure for worry that is mentioned in these verses is prayer

So we can now ask the question why worry, when you can pray or is it Why Pray when you can always Worry.   Should I ask someone to close this class by leading us in a word of worry?

First Test

Worry Quotient Inventory

Rate yourself on these items, using the scale below:

            4. = Usually    3. = Often     2. = Sometimes     1. = Seldom      0 = Never

 1 .    I become overexcited or react excessively.

 2 .    I have difficulty sleeping at night.

 3 .    I become easily confused and forgetful.

 4 .    I feel nervous and jittery.

 5 .    I feel pressured.

 6 .    I feel “out of it” or distant.

 7 .    I feel uncomfortable and ill at ease.

 8 .    I am dissatisfied.

 9 .    I find myself “racing the clock” to get things done.

10 .   I get irritated.

11.    I have a sense of foreboding gloom.

12 .   I don’t feel like doing anything.

13 .   I feel (think) that I must be constantly busy or working.

14 .   I feel “down”.

15 .   I feel helpless, out of control.

16 .   My stomach becomes upset.

17 .   My hands and face become moist from perspiration.

18 .   I feel my heart pounding.

19 .   I feel lightheaded.

20 .   My face becomes hot,

21 .   My fingers and hands shake.

22 .   I can’t sit or stand still.

23 .   My muscles feel tense.

24 .   I have headaches.

25 .   My neck becomes stiff.

26 .   I am fatigued.

27 .   I am critical of others.

28 .   I relive or rethink past negative experiences.

29 .   When I am doing one thing, I am thinking about other things that I have to do.

30 .   I am so busy that I don’t think that I have time for worship or devotions.

31 .   I anticipate failure.

32 .   I expect bad news.

33 .   I feel distant from God.

34 .   I am heavyhearted.

35 .   I wonder if God really cares.

36 .   When I make a mistake, I continue to think about it.

37 .   I have difficulty praising and thanking God.

38 .   I find it much easier to complain or find fault then to express appreciation,

39 .   I focus more on God’s commands and warnings then on God’s promises and encouragement to me in Christ.

40 .   I don’t think I am appreciated or respected.

41 .   I foresee difficulties, problems, objections, calamities, and “the worst in everything.

42 .   I prefer to avoid challenging situations, rather than face them.