Freedom from Anxiety Through Kingdom Priorities

Week 5: The Way of Trust — Freedom from Anxiety Through Kingdom Priorities Matthew 6:19–34

Central Idea: Jesus calls His followers to make obedience to God their one priority and to trust that He will provide all their needs. Anxiety about possessions and provision reveals divided loyalty and lack of trust in our Father's care.

Today we are exploring one of the most practically challenging passages in the Sermon on the Mount — Jesus's call to release anxiety and reorder our lives around His kingdom. In a world that tells us to earn more, secure more, and worry about everything in between, Jesus offers a radically different way of living.

This week we'll look at why anxiety is really a spiritual issue at its root, not just a psychological one. Jesus diagnoses our worry as a symptom of divided loyalty — trying to serve both God and the security that money promises. The cure isn't a better mindset. It's a reordered heart.

As we work through Matthew 6:19–34 together, we'll be asked three honest diagnostic questions: What do you worry about most? What does your budget reveal about your priorities? And are you living like someone with a heavenly Father — or like an orphan who has to secure everything on their own? Come ready to be honest, and come ready to be free.

I. YOU CANNOT SERVE TWO MASTERS (vv. 19–24)

Treasure Reveals Heart Location (vv. 19–21)

Matthew 6:19–21 NIV

The point is: everything you try to secure on earth is ultimately insecure. Every earthly treasure has an expiration date.

The Eye as Lamp (vv. 22–23)

Matthew 6:22–23 NIV

The Impossibility of Dual Allegiance (v. 24)

Matthew 6:24 NIV

Do you own your possessions — or do they own you?

II. DO NOT BE ANXIOUS (vv. 25–32)

The Command and Its Reason (v. 25)

Matthew 6:25 NLT

Look at the Birds (v. 26)

Matthew 6:26 NIV

Anxiety Is Useless (v. 27)

Matthew 6:27 NIV

Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

Consider the Lilies (vv. 28–30)

Matthew 6:28–30 NIV

What the Gentiles Seek (vv. 31–32)

Matthew 6:31–32 NIV

So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.

III. SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM (v. 33)

The One Priority

Matthew 6:33 NIV

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

The Promise

"And all these things will be added to you."

What Does Seeking the Kingdom Look Like?

IV. DO NOT BE ANXIOUS ABOUT TOMORROW (v. 34)

One Day at a Time

Matthew 6:34 NIV

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Anxiety Robs Us of Today

Can you trust God enough with tomorrow to actually rest today?

Three diagnostic questions to sit with this week.

First: What do you worry about most? 

Second: What does your budget reveal?

Third: Do you live like you have a heavenly Father who provides — or like an orphan who has to secure everything yourself? 

Matthew 5:20 NLT - “But I warn you—unless your righteousness is better than the righteousness of the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven!

Jeremiah 17:9 - “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is? NLT

SIX SIGNS OF A SPIRITUALLY UNHEALTHY HEART:

1. HARBORING ANGER

Matthew 5:21-26 - You have heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment. 22 But I say, if you are even angry with someone, you are subject to judgment! If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse someone, you are in danger of the fires of hell.23 “So if you are presenting a sacrifice at the altar in the Temple and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you, leave your sacrifice there at the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God.25 “When you are on the way to court with your adversary, settle your differences quickly. Otherwise, your accuser may hand you over to the judge, who will hand you over to an officer, and you will be thrown into prison. 26 And if that happens, you surely won’t be free again until you have paid the last penny. NLT

2. HARBORING LUST

Mark 5:27-30 – “You have heard the commandment that says, ‘You must not commit adultery’ 28 But I say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 So if your eye—even your good eye— causes you to lust, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30 And if your hand—even your stronger hand—causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.

3. UNSCRIPTURAL DIVORCE

Mark 5:31-32 – “You have heard the law that says, ‘A man can divorce his wife by merely giving her a written notice of divorce.’ 32 But I say that a man who divorces his wife, unless she has been unfaithful, causes her to commit adultery. And anyone who marries a divorced woman also commits adultery.

4. PLAYING WITH THE TRUTH

Mark 5:33-37 – “You have also heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not break your vows; you must carry out the vows you make to the Lord.’ 34 But I say, do not make any vows! Do not say, ‘By heaven!’ because heaven is God’s throne. 35 And do not say, ‘By the earth!’ because the earth is his footstool. And do not say, ‘By Jerusalem!’ for Jerusalem is the city of the great King. 36 Do not even say, ‘By my head!’ for you can’t turn one hair white or black. 37 Just say a simple, ‘Yes, I will,’ or ‘No, I won’t.’ Anything beyond this is from the evil one.

5. MAKING RETALIATION

Mark 5:38-42 – “You have heard the law that says the punishment must match the injury: ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’ 39 But I say, do not resist an evil person! If someone slaps you on the right cheek, offer the other cheek also. 40 If you are sued in court and your shirt is taken from you, give your coat, too. 41 If a soldier demands that you carry his gear for a mile, carry it two miles. 42 Give to those who ask, and don’t turn away from those who want to borrow.

6. HATING YOUR ENEMIES

Mark 5:43-47 “You have heard the law that says, ‘Love your neighbor’ and hate your enemy. 44 But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! 45 In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike. 46 If you love only those who love you, what reward is there for that? Even corrupt tax collectors do that much. 47 If you are kind only to your friends, how are you different from anyone else? Even pagans do that.

Notes coming soon!