Toilet paper, there are folks out there that do not believe that God is sovereign over toilet paper. It sounds funny, but do we believe he is? I struggled in Wegman’s last week to believe he was sovereign over kombucha. There were 4 big bottles – Chris and I use 4 big bottles a week. Voila! God had sovereignly provided 4 bottles of kombucha in the cooler – at Wegman’s – for ME! Sandy dear, we live in community. C-O-M-M-U-N-I-T-Y
Crises have a way of revealing our hearts to those around us and if we are wise, to ourselves. How we handle the situation in our hearts is a litmus test for what we believe about the position of man in respect to God and others. We learn and grow and change almost always in the context of community. How I perceive God responding to me in the midst of a community crisis speaks volumes about how I view my relationship with God. Do I view myself as the person who deserves glory? (Oh! Kombucha for ME!) or do I see God as the person who deserves glory?
Jesus teaches us in Matthew 6:8 that our Father knows what we need before we ask him. I believe any self-respecting Christian would say that they believe that. This fact makes us vastly different in heart posture from someone who, say, doesn’t believe that God is sovereign over – oh…let’s see…maybe COVID-19 and its implications…
Matthew 6:8 is one of the most profound statements in Scripture. Taken by itself it can be made to seem egocentric. When put in context, this is God-incarnate placing himself at the center of all the cosmos.
Matthew 6:9 puts this in context with the word ‘therefore’ (or ‘so’, ‘then’). Because of all that was taught previously by Jesus, pray in this way. The word ‘pray’ shows up as an imperative in the Greek. There is a certain way in which we are instructed to pray. There is a pattern to follow. Praying is done like so: and then Jesus proceeds to describe this way. It is not a magical way. There are no words that are more or less commonly used in the Greek language. Rather this is the way to address God knowing who we are and how we are to interact in different circumstances and common social affairs in society.
Jesus taught us how to interact with one another in these affairs. He has taught this from the perspective of who we are as disciples of Christ. He has reminded us in Matthew 5:17 that he has fulfilled the law that we might be free to live as he has called us to live.
Jesus pulls us back to the epicenter of life in Matthew 6:9. He tells us because of how you are called to live combined with who I am and what I will do for you, you are free to call upon God your Father to provide all that you need for life and godliness (Matthew 6:8). Pray in this way. Be dependent on God. Do not think of your circumstances first, think of God and his way first (Psalm 119:33).
Immediately following his own instruction, Jesus begins addressing with compassion and methodology those who would be too anxious to believe they could think in this way. They place themselves and their concerns at the center of their lives.
The hoarding of toilet paper, kombucha or whatever hits your panic button reveals a breakdown in what should be a desire to give God glory – not ourselves. Anxiety is a fruit of our glory-thieving. Matthew 6:8 tells us that God already knows what we need but we are to ask in this way anyhow. Toilet paper and kombucha have their place in our society but Jesus tells us our own perceived needs are not to be the center of how we interact in society. God knows our need before we ask; seek him first and the things of this earth, including COVID-19, will grow strangely dim.
(By the way: this led to my purchase of 2 bottles of kombucha – not 4.)