Articles
“Proper and Improper Concern”
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:4-7
A few weeks ago, as part of our sermon series in Philippians, we covered the text above and noted that God does not want his people to go through life crippled by anxiety but to instead give their worries to him in prayer. In this passage Paul echoes Jesus’ famous teaching in the Sermon on the Mount where the Lord repeats the phrase “do not be anxious” three times (Mt. 6:25, 31, 34). Whereas prayer is the antidote for anxiety in the Philippians passage (and 1 Peter 5:7), faith is the antidote to anxiety in Matthew 6. There is, therefore, a correlation between our level of anxiety and our level of trust in God.
This is all true. However, I fear that due to a lack of thoroughness on my part I may have given you the wrong impression about anxiety. The word “anxiety” or “worry” (μεριμναο) is viewed negatively in the context of Philippians 4 and Matthew 6. But the word itself is neutral, neither good nor bad. In other places, it is translated as “concern” in a positive sense. The same Greek word (μεριμναο) is used by Paul of Timothy: “I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be cheered by news of you. For I have no one like him, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare. For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know Timothy's proven worth, how as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel.” (Phil. 2:20-22)
Here, Paul is clearly commending Timothy’s “concern.” So there is a difference between proper concern and improper concern in the Christian’s life. Let’s site a few more passages to see the difference more clearly.
Improper concern — With what ought Christians not to be concerned?
First, our trust in God should guard against anxiety about the unknown things of this life: “do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” (Mt. 6:34) Why worry about tomorrow when we don’t know what tomorrow will bring? What we are worried about may never happen. Our fears are often liars and we only multiply our trouble by worrying about the future. Better to use the resources God gives us today for the trouble we face today.
Second, our trust in God should guard against anxiety about the necessary things of this life: “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?” (Mt. 6:25) Jesus points to nature to teach us that God faithfully supplies the physical needs of his beloved creation (26, 28-31). Worry about the necessities of life is typical of people who do not know the care and love of our heavenly Father. (32)
Third, our trust in God should guard against anxiety about the routine things of this life: “But the Lord answered her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.’” (Lk. 10:41-42) While Martha busied herself making dinner, Mary set aside this routine concern in favor of hearing the Lord’s teaching. It is not that concerns of hospitality and service are wrong (Rom. 12:13; 1 Pet. 4:9), but rather that the word of the Lord should take precedence. In terms of worry or care, we must never let the “many” routine day-to-day tasks of this life crowd out the “one thing” that is “necessary”—the words of eternal life that will never be taken away from us.
Proper concern — With what ought Christians to be concerned? The following passages use the same word (μεριμναο) in a positive sense.
First, Christians ought to be concerned with the welfare of other Christians: “I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be cheered by news of you. For I have no one like him, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare. For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.” (Phil. 2:20) Timothy’s humility led him to put the interests of others (and Christ’s) ahead of his own. He was genuinely concerned about the spiritual health of other Christians. “Worrying” over other Christians will cause us to pray for them, serve them and help them grow in the Lord. This is proper concern.
Second, married Christians ought to be concerned with the welfare of their spouse: “I want you to be free from anxieties. The unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord. But the married man is anxious about worldly things, how to please his wife, and his interests are divided…” (1 Cor. 7:32-34a) In context, Paul advises single Christians in Corinth not to marry “in view of the present distress,” whatever that was (26). Perhaps they were suffering through some famine or persecution. The responsibilities of marriage would complicate and burden their lives unnecessarily during this time of “distress.” So Paul tells them the facts of marriage: if you get married, you have a responsibility to please your spouse. Your life will revolve around putting their needs ahead of your own and sacrificially caring for them (Eph. 5:22-33). Our takeaway is that those who are married ought to “worry” over pleasing their spouse. This is proper concern.
Third, Christians ought to be concerned with the welfare of the church: “But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.” (1 Cor. 12:24-26) Paul likens the local church to a human body with diverse members. We must all “have the same care (μεριμναο) for one another.” We ought to “worry” over our brothers and sisters in Christ, showing mutual concern in the church. Paul felt the “daily pressure” of his “anxiety for all the churches” (2 Cor. 11:28). When we have this proper Christian concern for one another, we will go out of our way to treat each other honorably.
Not all worry is bad worry. Our faith in God’s love and provision relieves us of the stress of worrying about the unknowns and the necessities of life while, at the same time, compels us to worry over the well-being of others. In Christ, we can cast our cares upon the Lord in prayer. This will fill us with joy, peace and the strength to care for one another.
