Clothing of Care, Garments of Praise
Text:1 Peter 5:7 Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.
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Introduction:
Lets read the first eleven verses of 1 Peter 5:1-11 The
elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the
sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed: 2
Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof,
not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; 3 Neither
as being lords over God's heritage, but being ensamples to the flock. 4 And
when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that
fadeth not away. 5 Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the
elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility:
for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. 6 Humble
yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due
time: 7 Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. 8 Be
sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion,
walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: 9 Whom resist stedfast in the
faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that
are in the world. 10 But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto
his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make
you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you. 11 To him be glory and
dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
Of all those needful verses I want us to center our
attention this morning on just one, vs. 7. “Casting all your care upon Him, for
He careth for you.” Isn’t that a great
encouragement? Cast your care. When you first hear that verse it stands out, or
perhaps it stands out in the times of life when you really need for it to stand
out. When the Holy Spirit of God knows that you need to be reminded, He cares
for you. Once you read it you can’t forget it and the Holy Spirit will use it
to bless you just when you need it the most.
We need such reminders because Christians aren’t supposed to
worry, we walk by faith and hope in the future and by the promises of God’s Word,
not by the circumstances of the moment. We know we are not supposed to worry,
but most of us do some of the time and some of us do it most of the time. (You know who you are.)
Sometimes it just hard to get away from worry, like the story of a man who was desperately in need of a job and in that desperation applied for a job at an internet startup, that he had no experience for.
He was interviewed by the president of an internet start-up company.
"I am afraid that we have only one job open, that you might qualify for, the position of Vice President of Worry. The person we hire must take over all my concerns and anxiety."
"That sounds like a tough job, said the applicant, "what much does it pay?"
"I'll pay you $150,000 a year to do all my worrying for me."
"Wow, I'll take the job. That sounds great. Wow, okay so now, when do I get paid for doing your worrying?"
"That, my new vice-president, is your first
worry?"
Carrying Care - 1 Peter 5:7
…all your care…
The Clothing of Care
In the Greek N.T. the verse is written like this, "All your care having cast upon him, because with Him there is care for you.”
The word care, comes from a Greek word which means "that which causes one to be draw in different directions” That sounds exactly like what worry does do us, it pulls us in all directions and we can’t see a solution to our problems at the end of any of them.
The Dangers Of Worry
It can be difficulty to rid ourselves of anxiety.
It’s not hard to understand why it is so hard not to worry, not to be anxious, just look at the events and problems that surround us. Just look at the stress of life and of the destruction of sin that is impossible to ignore.
You can’t ignore why we worry, but you also shouldn’t ignore the dangers of not begin able to control worry and stress. The emotional and even spiritual strain not only can hurt us you emotionally but also spiritually and physically.
Stress can contribute to ulcers, cancer and physical illnesses.
Some years ago, the Mayo Clinic stated that statistically 80 percent to 85 percent of their total case load were all either in reality or artificially due directly to mental stress. Also there appeared an article in a leading medical journal entitled, "Is Stress the Cause of All Disease?" The author of the article says that at the beginning of the century, bacteria were considered to be the center of attention. Today, mental stress has replaced bacteria.
Seventy percent of all patients who come to physicians could cure themselves if they only got rid of their fears, worries, and bad eating habits. - O. F. Gober.
Well bad eating is a sermon for another day, but fears, worries and stress is something that we as God’s people should be able to handle.
The Bible states this in Proverbs 14:30 A sound heart is the life of the flesh: but envy the rottenness of the bones.
Proverbs 15:13 A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance: but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken.
Proverbs 17:22. A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.
In fact the word worry comes from an old Anglo-Saxon word which means to strangle or choke and that is exactly what worry will do to your heart and if left uncontrolled to our health as well.
The damage can also be spiritual, because man is both body and soul, what affects one part of us, always affect the other.
Worry, anxiety and stress can take my eyes off God, off His promises and off His provision. Once that happens then it is so easy to slip away from our service to God, the house of God and even our once close relationship with God.
Let me give you a good Jewish saying not found in proverbs, but you can take it with you today as well. “Worms eat you when you're dead; worries eat you when you're alive.” - Jewish Proverb
Transition: So then, as a child of God, how do we deal with worry, stress and anxiety?
Casting My Care 1 Peter 5:7
Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.
It’s All in the Cast
Casting comes from the Greek word epiripto, Literally the word comes from the action of a man casting his garments upon a colt.
It is only used here and in Luke 19:35 And they brought him to Jesus: and they cast their garments upon the colt, and they set Jesus thereon.
The idea is that he takes the garment he has been bearing, he removes it from his own person, quits wearing it, quits carrying it and then casts that clothing of care, that shirt of stress, that wardrobe of worry, that rag of rigor, that dress of distress, that attire of anxiety, over to another who would now carry it in his place. (I don’t mind telling you I got a little stressed out string together that sentence.)
In the Greek New Testament this word is in the past tense. i.e., "Having cast." Peter is telling those early Christians who were under such persecution and he is telling us who live in a world that is defined by stress, that our worries and concerns have already been given over completely to God. We just need to remember that truth.
All in this case means every kind and every variety. I was looking for more insight into this verse and one of my sources put it this way, The Amplified Bible put it this way, "Casting the whole of your care-all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all-upon him.”
Matthew 6:25-30 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? 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? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?
The Clothing Exchange
We must strip off the clothing of care and begin to wear garments of praise.
When Jesus preached in Nazareth, he quoted a passage from Isaiah 61:3 as His mission from His Father. "To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty, for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness, that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He might be glorified."
When we accepted Jesus as our Saviour, He gave to us garments of praise to replace our clothing of care. That is why we as children of God, followers of Jesus Christ, should not be dominated by worry. Why would we choose to put back on those sad rags?
How then do we stop wearing the clothing of care?
First, by doing what Peter told the young men to do in vs. 5. You have to make an exchange, our worry wardrobe for a suit of submission. We must be clothed in humility. Read 1 Peter 5:5 Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.
Humility means submission to God, it means I’m trusting Him with the issues of my life, because He has promised to never leave me, promised to comfort me, promised to meet my needs. When I clothe myself in humility, I am submitting myself to the One who can care for me.
Paul said this to Timothy in the last letter he wrote before God took him home, 2 Timothy 1:12 For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.
Worry is an indication that we think God cannot look after us. Oswald Chambers (1874-1917)
Humility also means putting others before myself, putting their needs before mine. Worrying means I’m doing just the opposite, it puts me and everything about me first. But when you cloth yourself with humility, you will be so surprised how little you will worry about yourself when you have others on your heart. Suddenly, what is or isn’t about to happen to me isn’t as important as the concerns of those around me.
Wearing the clothing of humility is an acknowledgment, a confession that I have very little power to affect anything around me so I cast that worry on the One who can do something about all things.
You must also make sure that you consciously cast every care upon Him.
When you find yourself in wrapped up in worry, attired in anxiety and dressed in distress, stop and go to God. Pray, and in that prayer name the worry, the problem, the fear, the doubt and then remove it from your heart and tell the Lord that are leaving it with Him. Cast it off whenever that worry crops back up. every time you find you’ve picked it back up, then go back to God in prayer and cast those sad rags away.
Peter may have been inspired by Psalms 55:22 Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.
Philippians 4:6 Be careful for nothing (don’t be full of care about anything); but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
Trade your sad rags for God’s glad rags, exchange your clothing of care for God’s garments of praise.
Illustration: Song, His eye is on the Sparrow
Civilla Durfee Martin the author of the song His Eye Is On the Sparrow tells about the inspiration for the song, “Early in the spring of 1905, my husband and I were sojourning in Elmira, New York. We contracted a deep friendship for a couple by the name of Mr. and Mrs. Doolittle -true saints of God. Mrs. Doolittle had been bedridden for nigh twenty years. Her husband was an incurable cripple who had to propel himself to and from his business in a wheel chair. Despite their afflictions, they lived happy Christian lives, bringing inspiration and comfort to all who knew them. One day while we were visiting with the Doolittles, my husband commented on their bright hopefulness and asked them for the secret of it. Mrs. Doolittle's reply was simple: 'His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.' The beauty of this simple expression of boundless faith gripped the hearts and fired the imagination of Dr. Martin and me. The hymn 'His Eye Is on the Sparrow' was the outcome of that experience.
His Eye is on the Sparrow.
Why should I feel discouraged, why should the shadows come,
Why should my heart be lonely, and long for heaven and home,
When Jesus is my portion? My constant friend is He:
His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me;
His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.
"Let not your heart be troubled," His tender word I hear,
And resting on His goodness, I lose my doubts and fears;
Though by the path He leadeth, but one step I may see;
His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me;
His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.
Refrain: I sing because I'm happy, I sing because I'm free, For His eye is on the sparrow, And I know He watches me.
Transition
Now lets look at the second part of the sentence in this beautiful verse. 1 Peter 5:7 Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.
Cradled In His Care
For He cares for you
The Certainty of God’s Care
Now Peter gives us the assurance that can cure all our worries, anxieties and fears, We can let them go because God cares for us. This is a different word that the word for care used in the first part of the verse. This word in the Greek is μέλω, melo and because God melos us we can be mellow, when it comes to the cares of this word. This kind of care means that someone is the object of God's concern, of His forethought and of His interest. Isn’t it comforting to realize that someone, who is the object of God’s concern is you. I can toss my clothing of care, because I know that God personally and intimately cares about me.
God's Care Replaces My Care
The care of God is not limited to mankind in general, it is applied to you individually. God cares for me.
In Isaiah 41:10 Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.
Psalms 115:12 The LORD hath been mindful of us: he will bless us;
Luke 12:7 But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows.
Illustration: Almighty God
On one Saturday night years ago, when you still had to dial all the numbers of a phone number before you called someone, the pastor of the Almighty God Tabernacle was working late, and decided to call his wife before he left for home. It was about 10:00 PM, but his wife didn't answer the phone. The pastor let it ring many times. He thought it was odd that she didn't answer, but decided to wrap up a few things and try again in a few minutes.
When he tried again she answered right away. He asked her why she hadn't answered before, and she said that it hadn't rung at their house. They brushed it off as a fluke and went on their merry way. The following Monday, the pastor received a call at the church office, which was the phone that he'd used that Saturday night. The man on the other end wanted to know why he'd called his house last Saturday night. The pastor was dumbfounded and couldn't figure out what the guy was talking about. Then the caller said, "It rang and rang, but I didn't answer."
The pastor then remembered the apparently misdirected call and apologized for disturbing the gentleman, explaining that he'd misdialed his wife. The man said, "That's OK, let me tell you my story. You see, I was planning to commit suicide on Saturday night, but before I did, I prayed, 'God if you're there, and you don't want me to do this, give me a sign now.' At that point my phone started to ring. I looked at the caller ID, and it said, 'Almighty God'. I was too afraid to answer!"
That’s a great story and if its not true then it should have been true. As any preacher will tell you about a good illustration. It’s a good illustration that God cares.
God cares so much for you that he sent his own son to bear our sin on the cross. God cares so much that He waits patiently for you to come to the end of yourself and take the burdens you can’t bear and give them to him. God cares so much that in His providence He made sure you would hear this message today so that you could cast off your clothing of care and be wrapped in garments of praise.
If only we would stop lamenting and look up. God is here. Christ is risen. The Spirit has been poured out from on high. All this we know as theological truth. It remains for us to turn it into joyous spiritual experience. - A. W. Tozer (1897-1963)
Conclusion:
Let me close by telling you the story of Pastor Charles Albert Tindley
Charles Albert Tindley was born in Berlin, Maryland, July 7, 1851; His father was a slave, and his mother was a free woman. He was raised among the slaves of Maryland. His father died when he was very young; without a father he had to work to help the family. When grown, Tindley married and moved with his wife Daisy to Philadelphia.
Tindley was largely self-taught throughout his lifetime, the fancy word for this is an autodidact. He learned to read mostly on his own. When he felt God calling him to preach, he contacted a local synagogue and asked to learn Hebrew. Later he took correspondence courses from a seminary in order to learn Greek. He did all this while working as a janitor for the East Bainbridge Street Church. Beginning in 1885, he was appointed to serve two or three-year terms at a series of churches, until coming full circle back to pastor at East Bainbridge in 1902, where he once had worked as the church janitor. The church grew rapidly, relocated several times to bigger facilities and finally changed the name of the church to Tindley Temple where the membership roll grew to about ten thousand.
The reason we are interested in an AME preacher, born before the Civil War and who grew up in the hardship of poverty and slavery, is because he wrote heartfelt hymns and is considered one of the founders of Gospel music. Among his songs were “Nothing Between”, “We’ll understand it better by and by” and “Stand By Me.” When you know his life don’t those word have even more meaning? He also wrote this song that fits 1 Peter 5:7. Leave it There.
1 If the world from you withhold of its silver and gold,
And you have to get along with meager fare,
Just remember, in His Word, how He feeds the little bird,
Take your burden to the Lord and leave it there.
2 If your body suffers pain and your health you can’t
regain,
And your soul is almost sinking in despair,
Jesus knows the pain you feel, He can save and He can heal,
Take your burden to the Lord and leave it there.
4 When your youthful days are gone and old age is stealing
on,
And your body bends beneath the weight of care,
He will never leave you then, He’ll go with you to the end,
Take your burden to the Lord and leave it there.
Refrain:
Leave it there, leave it there,
Take your burden to the Lord and leave it there.
If you trust and never doubt, He will surely bring you out.
Take your burden to the Lord and leave it there.
Are you wearing the clothing of care this morning?
Are you wearing the clothing of care this morning? Aren’t you ready to cast them to the Lord and let him give you garments of praise? Cast all your care to Him by going before Him in prayer, humbling yourself in the presence of your Lord and there lay your burdens, your worries, your cares, your anxiety down at the foot of the throne of grace and as you stand, you’ll find yourself wrapped in garments of praise.
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