1 Peter 5 Part 3 - Cast Your Anxieties on Him
1 Peter 5:6-7; John 10:27-30 - Why ruin today with anxieties about the past or future?
“Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.”
1 Peter 5:6-7 NASB1995
In the devotionals that he writes for Heaven on Wheels, which are based on various topics, Steve has focused quite often on anxiety, one of the prevalent emotional states that plague Americans (and others) in our modern age. Peter first equates humility under the mighty hand of God to exaltation at the proper time and then tells his church to cast all of their anxiety on God, because He cares for them. Let’s look at verse 6 first (through the word “time”), then crack open that faith-killer known as anxiety.
Continuing with his plea for humility that he started in previous verses, Peter says that we should humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God. Mighty comes from the Greek word κραταιός or krataios, meaning the mighty power of God. This is the only usage of this adjective in the New Testament. When we realize how tiny and insignificant we are in comparison to the God of the universe, then all of those day-to-day annoyances and trials diminish in importance. Jesus gave us great comfort, though, in these verses in John, saying that we are in His hand, not just under it:
“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.””
John 10:27-30 NASB1995
If we are humble under the infinite power of God, then we are exalted at the right time. Exalt comes from the Greek word ὑψόω or hypsoo meaning
to lift up on high, to exalt
metaphorically
to raise to the very summit of opulence and prosperity
to exalt, to raise to dignity, honour and happiness
Notice it says that this exaltation happens at the right time. That right time is God’s time, not our time. Here’s a good commentary from Precept Austin on this timing (the embedded link goes to Biblia):
The sovereign God controls everything, including time! God is never late, never early, but always on time. God will exalt us in His own good time. God never exalts anyone until that person is ready for it. First the cross, then the crown; first the suffering, then the glory. Moses was under God’s hand for 40 years in the desert herding dirty, disobedient sheep before God sent him to deliver the Jews from Egypt. Joseph was under God’s loving hand for at least 13 yrs before God lifted him to the throne, His perfect timing allowing Joseph to be able to testify “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive." (Ge 50:20)
Now let’s talk about anxiety. In verse 7, anxiety comes from the Greek word μέριμνα or merimna, a noun meaning care, concern or anxiety. We are to cast or throw our cares to God. Sounds great! So why are so many people, including me (I am getting better), anxious all of the time? According to a very recent poll summarized by the American Psychiatric Association, more than 70% of Americans feel anxious or very anxious about keeping their families safe. Here is the list of the major concerns that are rattling around in people’s minds:
70% were anxious about keeping themselves or their families safe.
68% were anxious about keeping their identity safe.
66% were anxious about their health.
65% were anxious about paying bills or expenses.
59% were anxious about the impact of climate change on the planet.
50% were anxious about the opioid epidemic.
45% were anxious about the impact of emerging technology on day-to-day life.
Our media has done a fine job in this country spinning things to make them seem like existential threats (like “climate change”) when they are not. I won’t go down that particular controversial path about the environment, but almost everything that people obsess about and worry about NEVER COMES TO PASS, as I can tell you from personal experience. That doesn’t mean that something horrible might not happen in the future, but why worry about it? I have been a first-class worrier and “worst-caser” all of my life, worrying endlessly and needlessly about so many things, but even dragging them into worst-case scenarios. My list includes the following that I have obsessed about:
Nuclear war
Destruction of our civilization by an EMP (electromagnetic pulse) event (natural or artificial) - serves me right for reading One Second After. That destruction could also be from an asteroid or comet.
Terrorist attacks
Retaliation by another person for a passing insult or driving encounter (like following me home because I honked) or even having a false criminal accusation
Identity theft
General or personal economic collapse
Every type of cancer and nasty disease known to humanity - check those symptoms!
Getting laid off when I was working
Things that I did or said to other people in my past
Pretty much everything else (a true pandemic, plane crashes, IRS audits, sudden body aches and pains, wildfires, crime, accidentally blaspheming the Holy Spirit, etc.).
God cares for me, though! I am to cast my cares and anxieties to Him - throw them to Him like blazing arrows! But we must be cautious to not cast cares to Him that are not appropriate. Here is what Enduring Word has to say about this passage (links go to Blue Letter Bible) - this is great commentary!:
Casting all your care upon Him: True humility is shown by our ability to cast our care upon God. It is proud presumption to take things into our own worry and care about things that God has promised to take care of (Matthew 6:31-34).
If we would heed the command of 1 Peter 5:6 and truly humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God, we would have far fewer cares to cast upon Him as invited in 1 Peter 5:7. Worries about covetousness, ambition, popularity, all evaporate under the command to humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God.
[Charles] Spurgeon used the illustration of a man who came to move your furniture, but he carried a huge and heavy backpack of his own. He complains that he finds it difficult to do the job of moving your furniture; would you not suggest that he would find it easier if he laid his own burden aside so that he could carry yours? In the same way, we cannot do God’s work when we are weighed down by our own burdens and worries. Cast them upon Him, and then take up the Lord’s burden – which is light burden, and a yoke that fits us perfectly.
There are many anxieties that we cannot cast upon God, and Peter’s word here purifies us of these ungodly anxieties.
“I am worried that I will never be rich.”
“I am burdened that others enjoy sinful pleasures and I do not.”
“I am worried that I am not famous or even popular.”
“I am burdened that I cannot get revenge on those who wronged me.”
“All cares of covetousness, anger, pride, ambition, and wilfulness must be cast to the winds; it would be criminal to dream of casting them upon God. Do not pray about them, except that God will redeem you from them. Let your desires be kept within a narrow circle, and your anxieties will be lessened at a stroke.” (Charles Spurgeon)
Casting is a rather energetic word. He didn’t say, “Lay all your care upon Him,” because we have to do it more energetically than that. The idea is, “throw it away from you.” The pressures and the burdens of your life are so heavy and difficult that it takes great concentration of effort to put them on Jesus.
This work of casting can be so difficult that we need to use two hands to do it: the hand of prayer and the hand of faith. “Prayer tells God what the care is, and asks God to help, while faith believes that God can and will do it. Prayer spreads the letter of trouble and grief before the Lord, and opens all its budget, and then faith cries, ‘I believe that God cares, and cares for me; I believe that he will bring me out of my distress, and make it promote his own glory.’” (Spurgeon)
For He cares for you: At their best moments the religions of ancient Greek culture could imagine a God who was good. Yet they never came to the place where they believed in a God who cared. The God of the Bible – the God who is really there – is a God who cares for you.
My generalized anxieties don’t seem to fall into the pattern of covetousness, pride, ambition, and material wealth, so there’s that at least. God has done wonders for me, through faith and prayer, to carefully set aside these fevered imaginings, some tinged with paranoia, that are not based in reality or in sound probability theory. I know that He cares for me!
My next devotional examines 1 Peter 5:8-9 Resist the devil. As I near the end of 1 Peter, I am now setting my sights on an upcoming devotional series on that reluctant prophet Jonah.
Heaven on Wheels Daily Prayer:
Dear Lord - I am so grateful for how you have helped me rid my mind of anxieties and fears that are so meaningless compared to your Mighty Hand. Please help me to continue to put aside these temporary worries that have no bearing on my exaltation. In Jesus name. Amen.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Commentary from Enduring Word by David Guzik is used with written permission.
Thank you Barb I needed to hear that again. I can reach anxiety levels at the simplest of things. As usual very well written thank you.