Trinity 15 – 2026

[Jesus said:] “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.

“Therefore I tell you, 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? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

“Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

“Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” ^(ESV)

 Prayer: Heavenly Father, help us to seek first Your kingdom and Your righteousness. Give us childlike confidence and contentment in You. Give us courage and give us blessing in our vocations. Do not give us treasure or riches, but apportion to us our allotted bread. Lord, You know our heart and our temptations; have mercy, and fill us early and often with Your mercy, so that we may sing joyfully and be content all our days. Amen.

Dear Fellow Redeemed,

“I don’t have enough stuff! It’s so bare in my home. I wish I had more clothes in my closet, and more kids toys to clean up.” Now, I doubt any of us have ever said this. You won’t find books on how to clutter your home at Barnes and Noble. You won’t find books encouraging you to bring more things into your home. Why? Because our problem is that we have too much. We live in excess. People throw away good food. We can bring a van load of things to donate to the thrift store, and most of us would hardly be able to tell the difference. How many civilizations in the history of the world can do that? And yet, we still worry about the future. Even though God has provided us with more than we need, we still worry about how we will provide for ourselves in the future. Doesn’t that seem a little silly?

No matter how much or how little we have, how rich or how poor we are, we will always be tempted to want more. We will be tempted to find peace and joy in material things. We are tempted to love money more than God. And so, Jesus says, “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”

This is a real warning from Jesus. There are many examples from Scripture of people falling away from God because they became consumed with the cares of this life. How many times have we heard of a person who fell away from the faith because, “They got caught up in the world.” The Apostle Paul tells the sad fate of one of the early Christians, “for Demas has forsaken me, having loved this present world, and has departed for Thessalonica” (II Timothy 4:10). This is why Paul says “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs” (I Timothy 6:10). If we are more concerned about money and material things, we will lose the most important thing—eternal life in heaven and our end will be destruction.  

Now of course, money is not evil. It is one of God’s blessings. There have been many faithful believers who were rich and faithful, like Abraham or Job. Yet, Jesus words are still very true: “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God” (Matthew 19:24).

But why is money such a temptation that’s talked about numerous times in the Bible? Well, think about the first commandment. The Lord said, “You shall have no other gods.” Luther’s explanation to the first commandment is quite helpful, “We should fear, love, and trust in God above all things.” To have no other gods, means to fear, love, and trust in him above all things. When we fear, love, or trust in things more than the true God, we make that our god, it becomes an idol. Anything could be a false god. You can make yourself into a god if you love yourself more than God.

Money is a tempting idol, because it makes the world go round. While the Israelites weren’t tempted to love the American dollar, they were tempted to love the false gods of the other nations who were said to give them bountiful harvests, fertility, and protection from enemies. It was tempting to worship these gods, because when you are dependent on the success of your harvest in order not to starve, it doesn’t seem like a bad idea to hedge your bets. But the problem of course, is that these weren’t gods. They were fake. Besides this, God demands that we worship him alone.

While we might not worship a golden calf or a wooden statue, we are tempted to fear or love money, because it is our modern-day security. But money is a foolish thing to put your trust in. How many hundreds of currencies have failed in world history? How many markets have plummeted in just the past 100 years? Our trust in these fickle things is as foolish as Israel’s trust in a wooden statue.

This is one of the reasons it is good for us to give to church. When we put our offering into the plate, we are acknowledging that God is the one who gave it to us. It’s not ours, we are simply a steward of it. And the same God who has provided for us in the past, is the same God who will provide for us in the future. Our trust, no matter how shaky it may be at times, is not in our bank account, but in our faithful God who promises to care for us.

God wants us to trust in him. Jesus is jealous for our fear, love, and trust. And so, he gives us a few examples for why we do not need to be worried and anxious about what we will eat, drink, or wear. Jesus said, “Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?” Jesus was ahead of his times! Worry and anxiety are not beneficial to our mental health. It’s certainly not going to help us live any longer. But more importantly, when we worry, we are failing to trust and believe in God. 

Think of the billions of birds that there are. God provides for them all. They don’t sow crops, they don’t have permanent homes, they don’t have the securities that we have, but yet God provides for them. Jesus says, “Are you not of more value than they?” Jesus has a good sense of humor. “Are you not of more value than birds?” Yes, Lord. We know that we are.

Jesus gives another example, “Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?” Look at all the beautiful flowers God creates for our enjoyment. They last but a moment but the Lord put thought into them and gave them beauty. If he has taken that much care to clothe the flowers, how much more will he clothe you, “o you of little faith?” God will not forget you. If he cares for the flowers, he will care for you.

But if you are still wonder about the Lord’s care for you after these examples, consider what Jesus did for you! He cared for your body and soul so much, that he redeemed you from sin and death, by offering up his innocent life on the cross and dying for your sins, so that you could enjoy eternal rest with him. In a place where there is no rust or decay, famine or sin, but perfect joy and bliss. Where the Psalmist sings, “How lovely is Your tabernacle, O Lord of hosts! My soul longs, yes, even faints For the courts of the Lord; My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God” (Psalm 84:1–2).

How did you receive this privilege? Did you earn it or will you pay it back through your labors? No. You couldn’t. It’s all by grace. He gives you the clothing you need to enter the kingdom of heaven, the most beautiful garment you possess. As Isaiah declared, “I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, My soul shall be joyful in my God; For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness” (Isaiah 61:10).

If God has done this for you, died for all your sins and rose from the grave so that nothing can separate you from his love, if he has prepared you a heavenly home and won eternal life for you, do you think you can trust him? Yes. What’s more, you should want to be with him because that is where true peace is found.

Money won’t give you peace. Maybe temporarily, maybe for a moment. But it cannot save you. It will not bring you lasting and eternal happiness. But God can, and he does. So, Jesus says, “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” And you are seeking his kingdom and his righteousness when you come to church, where faith is kindled in your heart and Christ’s righteousness is given to you in the words of absolution and in his life-giving body and blood.

You and I are sinners who are tempted to fear and love other things. But Jesus calls us to repentance and faith in him. He promises to forgive those who come to him. To strengthen our faith and calm our worry, Jesus gives us these wonderful examples that we see every day. The birds of the air and the lilies of the field. When you see the flock of geese moving south or hear the sparrow chirping, when you see flowers blooming whether that be a lily or your Christmas cactus, remember that if God cares for them, he will care for you.

God wants you to enjoy this world, but he doesn’t want you to be swept away by it. He wants your fear, love, and trust in him. He is jealous for you. If he is our God, we will have all that we need. Because in him we find true peace, rest, and happiness. In him, we have a God who cares for our body and soul. The same God who has cared for you all your life, will continue to care for you in the future. He is a God you can trust. And when we do trust in God, it serves as a wonderful example to this world that worries and wants. A Christian who puts their hope and trust in God serves as powerful testimony. It serves as a light for where others can find peace. Because truly, we are content in Christ. In him, we shall not want for more. Amen.