Good morning, and I would like to preach to you today on the topic of anxiety and depression. You may think, well, why such an uplifting topic on the Lord's Day that we celebrate together? Well, you'll notice, you've just heard it in Luke 12, and you will also notice it in Matthew 6, that Jesus makes a connection between anxiety and our discipleship. It's interesting that in the immediate context where Jesus is talking about our discipleship, that is to say our following Him and our seeking first the kingdom of God in both Matthew 6 and Luke 12, Jesus mentions those things in the immediate context of our repentance from anxiety. For example, Matthew 6, 31 through 34 says, Jesus says, therefore do not worry. Don't be anxious saying, what shall we eat? Or what shall we drink? Or what shall we wear? For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow." So if we are going to be disciples of Christ and truly His followers, one of the things that we must consider is our repentance from anxiety. This is not an optional part of our discipleship. It is an essential part. And you'll notice again that Jesus places this as the direct opposite of seeking first the kingdom of God. Well, here's the plan for today. I hope that what we can draw out from God's Word today will be an encouragement to you to strengthen your own soul in this work that we need to be at every day, and that is repenting from worry and anxiety. It's a common sin. It is a common affliction that we are under, some more than others, but it is very common. And Jesus I think here makes it very plain that it's an essential part of our ongoing repentance if we are to be His followers. So the plan that I would like to follow is first of all to answer the question, what is anxiety? What is this worry that Jesus mentions? Matthew 6 answers that question for us very well. And after I answer the question, what is anxiety? I would like for us then to turn to the book of Proverbs and we will discover from the book of Proverbs that there are warnings there that are very helpful to us. Lest we, and you know how sin works, but lest we begin to think that we can indulge anxiety and not suffer for it, the book of Proverbs will set us straight on that. It will give us warnings again that I hope will encourage us in an ongoing diligent repentance from anxiety as a part of our discipleship and following the Lord. So what is anxiety? Let's call it what it is. Let's understand it from the scripture. Like I said, the answer is found in Matthew chapter 6. If you want to go ahead and turn there, I'm going to read just a few portions. I'm going to be mainly summarizing this before we go to Proverbs. When we listen to Jesus' description of the hypocrites, and that takes up the bulk of Matthew 6. What is the sin that's being explained to us in Matthew 6? Well, you would rightly answer and say there are a lot of sins, aren't there, in Matthew 6 that Jesus is exposing? You would look at this description of the hypocrites. They give in a very public way so that people will praise them. And they pray in a very public way so that they get the praise and they fast. They do all of these things to have the honor of men. It's a very self-centered kind of a thing. And so what's the sin involved in that? Well, the sins are many. They are manifold. We would look at that description, we would hear it, and we would say, well, there's pride, right? Yes. And there's the sin of covetousness. There's that. We would say there's the sin of greed, and there's the sin of self-trust. And they're prying, aren't they? They're giving in a religious context, so they have the name of the Lord upon their lips, but they're carrying His name. They're burying His name in a vain and worthless manner. So there's the violation in that way of God's law. But there's another sin that is being exposed throughout Matthew 6 with the hypocrites, and it's the sin of anxiety. I don't know if you've ever thought about the hypocrites in that way, but they're very anxious. They are very worried. That might not appear to you initially. They would seem, at least outwardly, to be very confident. They would seem to be, on the outward appearance of things, to be very much at peace, but they are actually very anxious, and that's the sin that Jesus gets to there, ultimately, near the end of Matthew 6. There's lots of sins including the sin of anxiety that has gripped the hypocrites. Their souls are greatly troubled by what they perceive to be a lack of the treasure that they believe will make them happy. You can tell that they're very anxious and very troubled about it. Look at the great work and the lengths that they go to to gather this treasure to themselves because they are convinced that they are poor without it. They believe that they are lacking what they really need. They believe that they are suffering under a lack of the treasure that they think will make them happy and healthy and whole. They want completeness. They desperately want wholeness. They want wellness in their souls and in their lives. They want peace. They want tranquility of soul and they want to be secure in it. And so they seek the treasure or the reward that they want to believe will give them security. They're all wrapped up in this and they're very anxious. Wrapped up in pride, yes, covetousness, greed, self-trust, all of those are there, but also the sin of anxiety is being exposed to us by what Jesus says. Jesus in this portion of the Gospel of Matthew, He makes a connection between seeking and treasure. That which you believe to be the most necessary thing to have, that is to say, what you believe most worthy to be pursued, that is what you will pursue. And that is what you will store up once you find it. These hypocrites thought that true lasting treasure was the approval of men. And how do we know that that's the case? Because that's what they're chasing after. Everything they do is designed to gather the approval of men to themselves. That's what they believe would make them happy, healthy, and whole and safe. That's what they thought would give them peace and tranquility of soul if they could just have the praise of men. That's what they sought. That's their treasure. That's what they were seeking. We always seek. what we believe to be our treasure. It will never be any different. If you don't think it's valuable, you won't go looking for it. If you don't value it, if you don't think that you really need it, you won't go looking for it. And even if you happen to stumble across it, you won't do the work of gathering it to yourself to retain it if you don't think that you really need it. So Jesus makes this obvious point for us, this connection between seeking in treasure." So the hypocrites thought that true lasting treasure was the approval of men. And Jesus says they get their reward. Their treasuries are full of what they think is treasure. They have the reward, but that ends up being a very sad statement, doesn't it? It's very sad because they get what they wanted and it was worthless for the good of their souls. They have the reward, Jesus says. So he says, then, therefore, seek what will last. Store up for yourself treasure that will last. Seek for and set your heart upon true and lasting treasure. This is why Jesus then goes on to talk about this idea of where your heart is or where your devotion is. Matthew 6.21, he says, for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. And then he says, the lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness? Now here's his point. Whatever you believe to be the treasure that will make you rich and whatever you believe will make you secure and safe and happy and at peace, that will be the devotion of your life. Wherever your treasure is, that's where your heart will be also. By that, Jesus is saying, that's the devotion. That's where you'll devote your thinking. All of your convictions and your affections and your love will be where your treasure is. You will be devoted to what you believe will make you happy, healthy, and whole. Whatever you believe to be the most valuable that will give you wellness in your life and wellness and tranquility in your soul, that is what you will be devoted to. It'll never be any different. You will be devoted to it. That is where your heart will be. It will be the focus of your eye. That's another way of describing devotion. What is it that your vision is filled with? That is what your treasure is. If you put a shade on the window of the room, the room will be dark. If your vision is filled with treasure that's susceptible to the moth and susceptible to the rust, your whole life will suffer. Your vision is on that which is dark. Your vision Your devotion, your whole focus is upon that which cannot make you happy, healthy, and whole. So the hypocrites are chasing after these things in Matthew 6 and their whole life is covered in this darkness. So Jesus then goes on to say, therefore, make a choice. Make the right choice. And it's a choice between masters because that which you truly seek that which you seek as the true and lasting reward, that is your master." That is your master. It'll be the Lord or it'll be the mammon, that is the treasures of this world. So Jesus says, don't think that you can serve two masters. Now, why does He say that? Because that's exactly what we think we can do. He says, don't think to yourself that you can serve Two masters. You cannot be devoted to two different kinds of treasure. Your devotion will be on one or it will be on the other. Your heart will be on one treasure or it will be on the other. You will only be serving one master at a time. You cannot stand before the master called Mammon, the treasures of this world, and think that he can give you what is worth storing up and that he can give you what will make you happy, healthy, and whole. At the same time, stand before the other master who is God with all of your heart, soul, mind, and strength. It'll be on one place or another. Only one of those masters can provide you what you really need. Do you believe that? Only one of those masters can provide what will last. Only one of those masters can provide what will not fade and will not ultimately disappoint. As a result of being made in the image of God, we all naturally are treasure hunters. We do that without even having to work at it. We do it naturally. It's built into our nature. We naturally crave eternity. We naturally come into this world craving that which will last. We come into this world knowing that we need treasure. We need that which is valuable. We naturally know that we need to have that which is worth storing up and that which will last and that which will make us safe. And as a result of the fall, we try to satisfy that need with the things of this world, approval or other things. So what is anxiety? What is this that's being revealed here in Matthew 6? It's the fear of lacking something needed. That's what anxiety, that's what this worry is that Jesus is speaking of. It's a lack of having that which is lasting. It's the fear that you are suffering a lack that will give lasting and irreparable harm. There is anxiety. The hypocrites were anxious for the approval of men. So where was their devotion? What had filled their vision? The approval of men. And all of their seeking was upon that. And all of their devotion was upon that. Getting the treasure or the reward of approval. And so they made a choice of one master over another. So we have this warning in Matthew 6. That the master called Mammon can only give temporary things. But he'll whisper in your ear, won't he? The master of Mammon, called Mammon, will whisper into your ear with tempting promises of good things. But he only stirs up turmoil, and it can only be turmoil in the heart that does not trust God." Why are the hypocrites chasing after all of these things? Because they don't trust themselves to God's promises. He promises that He can provide for them for lasting relief in their souls, for lasting treasure. So what is anxiety? It's this turmoil. And it is this disturbance of distrust. This is why it's the opposite of devotion to Christ. We're devoted to Him or entirely entrusting ourselves to Him or we don't trust Him. There's this turmoil and disturbance of distrust and unbelief. This is what Jesus is calling anxiety. It springs from a polluted well. There's this polluted fountain that resides very naturally and pours out of our hearts which doubts the sovereignty of God, which doubts His goodness, which doubts His faithfulness, which doubts His faithfulness to give us what we really need. That's anxiety. It springs. This tree called anxiety, it springs from this knot of roots. There's the unbelief of idolatry. There's the unbelief of covetousness. You can be anxious as we see here in Matthew 6. You can be anxious for sinful things. You can be anxious for things that in and of themselves are not sinful like food, clothing, and shelter. But you can be anxious not trusting that the Lord will provide what you really need. But either way, you've devoted yourself. When you indulge the sin of anxiety, you are indulging the sin of not trusting the Lord. Has He not promised? Has He not given His word that the Father knows the needs that you have and will provide everything that you need according to His good will, not only for the things of this life but for the things of the life to come? Either way, when you indulge the sin of anxiety and you give in to that, there's a master other than the Lord who is receiving your devotion. There's something else that has filled your vision in that moment. So that's what anxiety is. I think Matthew 6 is a very great uncovering of what it looks like when the vision is clouded over with this dark sin. Well, let's look now at the fruits that we ought to expect that we will bear if we indulge this sin. So let's look, if you will, in the book of Proverbs. I'd like to begin Proverbs chapter 12 and verse 25. If anxiety is distrust, of the Lord. If anxiety is not believing His promises, if anxiety is not entrusting ourselves to the Lord and His promise to provide real, lasting treasure, if anxiety is this pursuit and this devotion to the temporary things, then we must hear the warning that there is going to be a cascading set of consequences that proceed from this. We cannot think to ourselves that we can indulge any sin for that matter and expect to be blessed. We cannot begin to entertain this notion that we can indulge our sins and be the better for it or be stronger for it or not suffer for it. That's true for any sin and it's especially true with regards to the sin of anxiety. So let's consider the fruit of anxiety. Proverbs 12 and 25 says this, anxiety in the heart of a man causes depression. Anxiety in the heart of a man causes depression. Here, dear saints, is a strong warning that I hope that you will hear today. It is a strong warning that ignoring the command of our Lord to entrust ourselves to Him and to entrust all of our needs to Him will bring consequences. The book of Proverbs is full of this. It's full of action and consequence. And here is a proverb that pertains to anxiety. Anxious care, fearful unbelief in the faithfulness of God to give you what you need can begin to settle down into your thinking. It can be the characteristic of your heart if you're not careful. Anxiety, this fearful unbelief in the faithfulness of God to provide what you need can begin to get settled down and it can get to the point where it's not a passing or a fleeting traveler in your thinking, but it can get to a point where it is driven down its stakes and set up its tent in the habits of your mind. Your mental habits can become all wrapped up in this anxious thinking and being devoted to things other than the Lord or His promises that you believe will make you happy, healthy, or whole. Living by sight and not by faith, this kind of thing. Your thinking can become covered with this spider web of doubting over whether or not you will be taken care of or whether or not you are being taken care of. The proverb warns us that this anxiety can become settled down into the heart and notice the consequence. It can cause depression. The ESV says it weighs a man down. It's a word that refers to being bowed down. Anxiety can bow you down. Now, bowing down might be a good thing or a bad thing. It depends, doesn't it? A man can be bowed down in joy, can he not? He can be bowed down in reverence. He can be bowed down in worship, and that would be a good thing. But in the proverb here, we can see obviously this is not a joyful bowing down. This is a bowing down under oppression. This is an involuntary bowing down. You may voluntarily bow yourself before the Lord in joy, but this is the bowing down which would come because a man's knees have been struck or his back has been struck and he's been laid out flat involuntarily. He doesn't want to be bowed down. He doesn't want to be laid out flat, but that's the consequence here. This anxiety has become settled in his thinking, this distrust in worrying over whether or not he really has the treasure for wellness of life, for wellness of soul. And this distrust has come to be settled and it's camping out in his thinking and he's not repenting of it. He's indulging it. And it brings this consequence of being bowed down as if a strike has come to his knees or somebody's put a whip to his back and has just laid him flat on the ground. He crumbles into a heap under this oppression. Anxiety in the heart of a man bows him down. It lays him low. There is this warning that we need to hear from the proverb that there is this involuntary bowing You might not wish for it. I mean, who would wish for this? There's this involuntary forced bowing. There's a buckling of the knees under the oppressive force. The proverb is warning us that anxiety causes a man to buckle and to be laid out flat with sadness. Anxiety robs a man of his rejoicing. It robs a man of taking delight in the things around him. Isn't there a sad irony to this sin? Isn't there a destructive deception in the sin of anxiety? Surely, the sin of anxiety must present itself in pretty clothes. Surely, the sin of anxiety must present itself in a way that would make it seem desirable and attractive. Why else would we give in to it? There must be something tempting to it, right? Does not anxiety whisper in your ear and say, ìIf you will but feed me, I will give you what you need.î Does not anxiety and worry over whether or not the Lord is really giving you what you need for this life or the next, does it not whisper in your ear when you indulge that sin? Does it not say, ìIndulge me and feed me and then youíll have the peace of soul that you so desperately want. nourish me, indulge me, spend some time with me, devote your thinking to me, entrust yourself to me and I will give you what you are so desperately seeking. It must present itself in a way that makes itself attractive to us. But what does it really do? What does it really give when we nourish and indulge this sin? It knocks our feet out from under us. It lays us flat. And we might not want that. We might really hate that or even try to fight against it. But the proverb warns of this very dangerous action-consequence relationship. We cannot think that we can indulge this sin in our thinking and that it not spread its destructive effects upon other parts of our thinking. Now, would anybody really be tempted to do this? Yes, this is what Jesus is speaking about in Matthew 6. He says, which of you by worrying can add a single span to your life? You can't. But that's what it whispers to us, does it not? If I will indulge my distrust of the Lord's promises, I will be made better for it. I will have a better life, and yet this is what it whispers Since when did unbelief ever bring blessing or wholeness or wellness or security? So, from this first proverb, ìBehold the anxious man.î Here he is. Heís worrying about what he will eat. Heís worrying about what he will wear. He is worrying about any other provision of life. Heís worried about happiness. Heís worried about wholeness or peace of soul. And his indulgence in worry has only brought him what? Turmoil of soul. He seeks and he searches among the temporary things. He's searching for lasting happiness. He's searching for true peace of soul, but it all leaves him not only empty, but it leaves him bowed under with a very profound sadness. There's another proverb for your attention, Proverbs 15, 13, under this same topic of this consequence of depression. 15, 13 says, a merry heart makes a cheerful countenance, but by sorrow of the heart, the spirit is broken. When the thinking of a man or a woman is disturbed by the turmoil of anxiety, That turmoil brings a heavy cloud that weighs a person down, and that discouragement can become very profound. The spirit can become broken. Somebody might try to blame their broken condition upon circumstances, but you notice that the proverb says that we only have ourselves to blame. The brokenness of spirit proceeds from a lack of soundness in the mind. It's from the sorrow of the heart that the spirit is broken. There's this unhealthiness in the thinking. That's the heart that's referred to there. There's this unhealthiness in the convictions and in the beliefs and in the devotion of one's life. And the consequence is the breaking of the Spirit. We cannot blame our circumstances for this. We have to look at ourselves and our own hearts. Now, we know that there are a variety of sources of sorrow. We know that and we know that not all sorrow is sinful and we know that not all sorrow proceeds from sinful reasons. But let's read the proverb with the sorrow of anxiety in mind. Here is the treasure hunter. And he has his eye fixed upon the temporary. And even if he gains what he seeks, he has found no lasting treasure. He only finds the frustration of the moth. And he only finds the frustration of the rust. And this lie that he's believed has left him empty. It's not given him wellness or wholeness or security. It's only brought him into further brokenness. The more that a man indulges himself unrepentantly in the paths of anxiety, the more power he is handing over to a tyrant who is only bent on breaking his spirit. This is not the sorrow of repentance, for surely repentance proceeds from a soundness of mind. Here is a sadness which is the consequence of a heart that's bound in sorrow. There's something unhealthy about it. There's this sadness. There's this misery whereby the thinking is not incorporating the promises of God. And a despair begins to seep into all of a man's thinking. It seeps into his will. It seeps into his emotions. So let me say this then. If depression or a broken spirit is a description that you are personally well acquainted with, The root issue may well be a neglect or even a distrust of the Lord's promises for your material as well as your spiritual provision. I would ask if you would explore that a bit and consider if that is not the case. If this is the consequence that you are well acquainted with, is this not the action that you have indulged that has brought The consequence, where is your thinking? Where is your devotion? What do you believe to be true treasure? What's filled your vision? The proverb allows us not to blame our circumstances. Again, 1513 says, what's the source of a cheerful countenance? It's not happy circumstances. It's a merry heart. It's thinking that's good. It's thinking that is upon the foundation of God's faithful promises. That's the happiness of the heart. That's the wellness of a person's thinking, the wellness and wholeness and soundness of a person's convictions. That's the source of a cheerful countenance regardless of the circumstance. It's the merry heart then that bears this consequence of a cheerful So, dear saints, let us be, first of all, aware of this consequence of indulging the sin of anxiety. It can lay us flat on our backs. It can knock our feet out from under us. It begins to seep into other areas of our thinking. God has made us this way. Let me ask you then to consider a second consequence That can be the result of indulging the sin of anxiety. And this is from Proverbs chapter 18 and verse 14. And here I want you to notice that there is a relationship between anxiety and perseverance. Proverbs 18 14 says the spirit of a man will sustain him in sickness, but who can bear a broken spirit? You'll notice that both sides of the proverb, the first part and the second part, both have words that refer to endurance or perseverance. There's one man who is sustained. There is one man who bears, and there would be another who is not sustained. And there's another man who does not bear up. There is this brokenness of spirit, but look at the proverb carefully. Brokenness of spirit is not tied to the circumstances but to a person's inner resources. Perseverance with Christ is not found in the abundance of our outward resources. Let us be repenting of that sinful thinking. There's lots of false gospels that have gone out and have led people to tie their sense of safety or security with the outward abundance that might be in their life, but then what happens when outward abundance is gone? Perseverance with Christ is not to be found in the abundance of our outward resources. Perseverance with Christ is not tied to our circumstances. It is tied to a man's inner resources, whether they are strong or weak. And the proverb is telling us a person can be sick, and that can be a variety of difficulties. Notice that here is a person suffering in the first part of the proverb, sick, under some great difficulty and yet the person is strong and yet the person is persevering because of the soundness of his thinking. His spirit is well within him. His devotion is upon the right treasure. His vision is filled with light instead of darkness. His spirit is truly well. resting upon the promises that the Lord has given to him. That's what sustains him in sickness. We need to be aware, again, of the common excuse that says that we are struggling in discipleship because of outward circumstances. If my life were only easier, well, then I would follow Christ better. But the proverb allows no such excuse to be made. What is it that sustains a man in his sickness? It can never be the circumstances that sustain us. It can never be something that we would put our eyes upon in this life to think that's where our hope is or that's where my help is. The only thing you'll find there is the moth and the rust. What if we seek first the kingdom of God? What if we are seeking first His righteousness? Repenting of worrying over we'll have enough food or clothing or shelter. There's this wellness in the spirit of a man. That's what sustains him in sickness or whatever other kind of difficulty might come along. It's the wellness of the inner person that sustains through sickness and the spirit as well only by the truth of Jesus Christ. The grace healthy or the healthy grace strengthened soul is equipped to ride out the storms. What about that tree in Jeremiah or the tree in Psalm 1? This tree goes through great difficulty, even through droughts, but the leaf is still green. How is that? There must be something other than general environmental conditions that that tree relies upon for its strength and for its hope and for its help. must be something hidden that that tree has its roots in. The drought comes, the difficulty comes, the storms come, but the leaf remains green. The fruit is still there on the tree. But if the spirit is sick, if the spirit is sick, all caught up in the mammon of this world, and if the spirit is broken under the sadness of so-called treasures lost, the proverb asks, Who can bear it? Who can bear it? It must be such a rare thing to find that kind of a person. So the weakening or the breaking of the spirit as a result of the turmoil of anxiety, I hope that you are more convinced today that it comes with a very heavy cost. Indulging the sin of anxiety comes with large liabilities. And we would be foolish to think that we can indulge the sin of anxiety and not have to pay these liabilities. Very helpful warnings that we have here. The proverb helps us to understand that we have a real responsibility in our endurance, that we ought not wonder why our perseverance would seem so weak as of late or our endurance with Christ would seem to be so weak and frail. As of late, if we have indulged ourselves with the sin of worrying, with the sin of anxiety, devoting ourselves to treasures that our eyes can see rather than those things that Christ promises us. Anxiety over the things of this world and chasing after temporary treasure can lead to a lack of endurance when the spirit is broken, when all of that temporary treasure is gone. There's a relationship between treasure and endurance. That which you believe to be the real treasure and that treasure which you are truly seeking first, that is where your devotion will be and that is where your endurance will be defined. What if, for example, health has become your mammon? What will bury you up when health is gone? What if money itself has become your mammon? What will bury you up when the money is gone? If approval, like Matthew 6 points out, if approval of other people has become your mammon and your Lord and your Master, then what will bury you up when that Lord evaporates? The New Testament contains many warnings about this. about professing to have Christ as master, but still holding on to and trusting in other treasures. We have examples in the New Testament that there were some who walked outwardly at least with Christ for a while, but it became revealed. It came to the surface that they were still holding on to and trusting other treasure. So for example, in 2 Timothy 4, Paul speaks of Demas. Paul says, Demas has forsaken me, having loved this present world. Well, there's a statement of devotion. Why would Demas feel tempted and then ultimately leave Paul? Well, it's because Demas had his eye on treasure. There must have been something more valuable to have. There must have been something that Demas became convinced of would provide him with happiness and healthiness and wholeness and wellness. There must have been some peace of soul, some tranquility in his thinking that Demas wanted and he found it in the world. And the result is that he forsook Paul and he forsook the gospel. Paul, when he wrote his letter to the Philippians, had something very interesting to say when he told them that he was going to send Timothy to them. He said, I trust in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you shortly that I also may be encouraged when I know your state. And then Paul said this, for I have no one like-minded who will sincerely care for your state. For all seek their own, not the things which are of Christ Jesus. Now, Paul hadn't been absolutely abandoned by everybody, but Paul had been abandoned by many. So he writes his letter to the Philippians and he says, I'm sending Timothy to you because I'm not sure that I have anybody else to send to you. There were many others that had already abandoned Paul because they wanted to seek their own things and not the things of Jesus Christ. Treasure hunters. Vision filled with all kinds of temporary things. Their devotion was on something other than Christ. Matthew Henry says, seeking our own interest to the neglect of Jesus Christ is a very great sin and very common among Christians and ministers. Many prefer their own credit and their own ease and their own safety instead of truth, holiness, and duty. He says, there are many who prefer the things of their own pleasure and reputation instead of the things of Christ's kingdom and His honor and interest. in the world. So the proverb here before us can certainly be applied to literal physical sickness. You know, I've told you this before that I've had the opportunity of speaking to many people while they were laying in a hospital bed. And many times I have made hospital visits and I have spoken with people who are not anxious. They are not fearful. They don't believe that they've lost any treasure while laying in that hospital bed. And why is that? Because they had already done the work of entrusting themselves. They had already been at work casting their cares and their needs and their burdens upon the Lord who is sovereign and who is good and who is merciful and who is faithful. They didn't begin to do the work in the hospital bed. It had come before that. We would be foolish to think that we can ignore today the hard work of soundness of heart and soundness of thinking, wellness in our thinking, entrusting ourselves to the promises of Christ. We would be foolish to think that we can ignore that hard work, that we can ignore that diligence and not suffer the consequences of stumbling in our devotion to Christ. If the body becomes stricken, what will carry us if we have neglected our souls? The proverb asks, who does this? Unrepentant anxiety is a self-strickening of our souls. We cannot think that, well, I'll wait until I'm in the hospital bed and then I will begin to work on my devotion or then I will begin to work on entrusting myself to whether the Lord will really provide, you know, and until I get to that point, I'll devote myself to all kinds of temporary things. We'd be foolish to think that, wouldn't we? We cannot overestimate our strength to carry us if we have neglected ourselves. We cannot, or I should say we cannot overestimate our strength to heal our thinking when the body is in pain. The proverb calls us to anticipate the days of struggle, whether they are days of physical struggle or some other tribulation. The Proverbs is calling us to anticipate this. To anticipate those days now by preparing and by guarding against the sins which can crush our spirits and anxiety will crush the spirit. It's like playing with fire if we unrepentantly indulge ourselves in anxiety. The infirmities that we suffer in this life are many. The struggles of this life are many and they are varied. Have you been struggling, dear saint, have you been struggling as of late with a broken and a downcast spirit? Hear the word of God and understand that it cannot be blamed on your circumstances. Could it be instead that God is using your difficult circumstances to simply uncover issues of the soul that were already there? Could it be that you're broken and downcast soul is that way because you're looking for treasure and security and hope and wellness and all of the wrong things? Let me give you one more consequence to consider. And that is from Proverbs 15, verse 15. Proverbs 15, 15. And this is a proverb that helps us to understand that there is a relationship between anxiety and perspective. We've seen this cascading set of consequences that can result if we indulge ourselves in the sin of worry. It can bow us under. It can knock our feet out from under us. It can cause depression. The bowing down of the spirit, the breaking of the spirit, unrepentant indulging of anxiety can affect our endurance or our perseverance, our bearing up. But anxiety also has a relationship with perspective. Notice Proverbs 15 verse 15. All the days of the afflicted are evil, but he who is of a merry heart has a continual feast. This is not a proverb that describes what's literally on your plate. It's a proverb that describes your perspective of what's on your plate. The proverb warns us that our hearts or the condition of our hearts colors our perspective on life. It affects the way you look at everything around you. Behold the first part of the proverb. Behold the person whose soul is afflicted. Behold the person whose soul, that is his whole habit of thinking, his convictions, his devotion, his love, all of these parts of his inner person, they are afflicted and they are wretched. He looks at his days and what does he see? What is his perspective on his days? Why they're all filled with distress. They're all filled with nothing but calamity and problems. He looks at his days and from his perspective it's nothing but misery and it's nothing but distress. That's his perspective because his soul isn't tethered to what is good. He looks out and he sees no good. If treasure is in his mind, only set upon, or his treasure and his conviction is that which is susceptible to the moth and susceptible to the rust. What does he end up having in his hands at the end of the day? Moth and rust. He's wretched and he looks out and that which he thinks is good, boy, he can't see it with his eyes. That which is truly lasting, he doesn't see it. His devotion isn't to that. His vision isn't filled with that. So what is your perspective? How do you perceive your life? Is it your perspective that all of your days are filled with calamity and turmoil, that every day is nothing but the lack of what you truly need? Notice the proverb again does not blame your circumstances. It blames your heart, your own thinking, your own affections, your own wellness of soul, your own devotion. That's what comes to question. The unrepentant refusal to be devoted to the truth and to seeking real treasure and to nourishing oneself with the truth of heavenly treasure bears harsh consequences. Who is it that has a continual feast according to the proverb? Is it the wealthy? Again, it doesn't look to circumstances. It's the merry heart. It's this inner working of thinking and convictions and devotion that is well and is whole and is sound and is resting upon the promises of Christ. That's the one who has this perspective on life like every day is a feast. Regardless your circumstances, your plate may literally not have a lot. Your life may be difficult, but what if your sins are forgiven? Well, then today was a feast. Work may be hard. School may be hard. Relationships may be hard. But what if you have the hope of heaven? What if the doctrine of adoption has become sweet? That's where your devotion is. What if adoption is your treasure? Forgiveness of sins is your treasure. Wrath satisfied is your treasure. Then what will tomorrow bring that will take that away? Every day is a feast to the heart that's merry, to the heart that's rejoicing in the truth. Every day is continual feasting. It affects your perspective. Unrepentant indulging of anxiety and worry can give you a perspective. Every day is filled with nothing but bad and I never have what I need. A merry heart has a continual feast. Does not Paul himself serve as an example of this in 2 Corinthians 12 when he said, quoting Christ, he says, my grace is sufficient for you for my strength is made perfect in weakness. And so Paul says, therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities. Paul says I take pleasure in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake for when I am weak then I am strong. What was the treasure that Paul had his vision filled with? Well, it wasn't an easy life. His life was filled with persecution and distress and need and reproach and infirmity. But because he had grace, every day was feasting. Every day was feasting. Let me conclude then with a word of repentance. If you'll look back in the book of Proverbs, And look at the beginning of the book, Proverbs 2. Let us be encouraged in our repentance from the sin of anxiety. And again, God's Word gives us all that we need. Proverbs 2 beginning at verse 1. My son, if you receive My words and treasure My commands within you, so that you incline your ear to wisdom and apply your heart to understanding. Yes, if you cry out for discernment and lift up your voice for understanding. If you seek her as silver and search for her as for hidden treasure. Then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God. For the Lord gives wisdom. From His mouth comes knowledge and understanding. He stores up sound wisdom for the upright. He is a shield to those who walk uprightly. He guards the paths of justice and preserves the way of His saints. Then you will understand righteousness. and justice, equity in every good path. When wisdom enters your heart and knowledge is pleasant to your soul, discretion will preserve you. Understanding will keep you to deliver you from the way of evil. Here is the path of our repentance and it can be summed up in one word, listen. Listen. We began with Proverbs 12, 25 today. Anxiety in the heart of a man causes depression, but a good word makes it glad. Do you hear the command in that proverb? If a good word makes it glad, the command is we must listen to the good word. Here is our help that we need. Here is the path of repentance. We need to quit ignoring what Christ tells us. We need to listen to Him and entrust ourselves truly to His promise. This is what will keep us, and this is what will guard us. This is what will keep us safe. If we would take in the words of Christ and His promises as if that's the silver, this is the hidden treasure. His promise when He says, Your Father knows what you need. He knows it even before you know that you need it. And He has prepared a way for you to have all the provision that you need. Your Heavenly Father will take care of these things for you. And more than that, in Christ, your greatest problem has already been solved. In Christ, your greatest need has already been met. Wrath satisfied, sins forgiven, righteousness imputed. You dine at the table with the Lord. You have communion and fellowship with Him. Here is our help and hope. Here is the treasure that cannot be taken from us. Dear saints, here's the good word. Here's the good word. But we must listen. We must incline our hearts. That is to say, we must bend our understanding. We must bend our devotion. We must bend our seeking to that which God says to seek, to give our understanding to His Word, to give our trust to Him and the things that He promises. So the problem ultimately isn't in the circumstances. For the broken spirit or for this depression of soul, this bowing under, It's in the heart of the man. And so therefore, the solution is not a good word that would speak of a change of your circumstances. It's a good word that brings to you the work of Christ. It's a good word that brings to you His promises. God Himself, He is our peace. Christ Himself and His work This is our peace. This is our tranquility. This is our treasure. This is what it means to be at rest. This is what it means to be rescued from turmoil. There's no turmoil in God and Christ wins it for His people. We only enjoy it in Him. So we would ask or say the same thing as Paul did in Romans 8. when He said, We know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. Now here's treasure. Here is treasure. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover, whom He predestined, these He also called, whom He called, these He also justified, and whom He justified, these He also glorified." What shall we say to these things? As we look around, these things of distress in our life, these things of trouble in life, what shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son but delivered Him up for us all. Shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? All things. So let this be a part of our discipleship of Christ, of our following with Him. Seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness joined with this repentance from anxiety.