Anxiety, The Intoxicating Faith-Destroyer

The Urgency of Casting Our Anxieties on Jesus

I have a music playlist of word-for-word bible passages. I love them because they help me with Scripture memory. I was listening to one on 1 Peter 5:6-11 and something that I had missed before struck me:

Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.  Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith...

For context, 1 Peter is a letter written by the Apostle Peter to Christians who were experiencing intense suffering and persecution. Throughout the letter, Peter encourages them to remain firm in their Faith and Hope in the Lord Jesus Christ. He reminds them of their Great Salvation and of their eternal, unfading, untouchable, and infinite inheritance in Christ. He also exhorts them to walk in love towards all, in holiness, and vigilance as the Children of God should. It is the theme of vigilance, watchfulness, and sober-mindedness in relationship to anxiety that drew my attention. Let’s look at some Greek words definitions as they are used in this passage:

• Sober-minded (νήφω/néphó): properly, to be sober (not drunk), not intoxicated; figuratively, free from illusion, i.e. from the intoxicating influences of sin (like the impact of selfish passion, greed, etc.); having ‘presence of mind’ (clear judgment)…the opposite of being irrational.

• Watchful (γρηγορέω/grégoreó): literally, "stay awake"; figuratively, be vigilant (responsible, watchful); to give strict attention to, be cautious, active lest one fall into sin.

Per Peter, vigilance and sober-mindedness are an integral part of walking in faith and enduring trials. The dangers of being ‘intoxicated’ or ‘asleep’ are hopelessness, prayerlessness, and in 1 Peter 5:8, having one’s faith devoured by the devil (1 Peter 1:13, 1 Peter 4:7, 1 Peter 5:8-9).

Vigilance vs Anxiety?

• Anxiety (μέριμνα, ης, ἡ /merimna): properly, a part separated from the whole; figuratively. worry, dividing and fracturing a person's being into parts; to be drawn in different directions.

Recall the definition of Peace in my previous article:

• Peace (of God) (εἰρήνη, ης, ἡ /eiréné): conveys the idea of wholeness as a gift from God, quietness, and rest…

I did not realize before writing this article that Anxiety and (the) Peace (of God) in Greek literally convey completely opposite states of being: Anxiety reflects not being whole (being shattered, scattered, restless) while Peace (of God) is being whole and rested in God. Wow!

This is what Peter is teaching us by drawing a relationship between casting our anxiety on God and being sober-minded/watchful. See, when we are consumed with worries and concerns, our hearts and minds are foggy, intoxicated, restless, and scattered. We cannot think clearly about who God is in the midst of it all. Fear settles in deeper and deeper. We are consumed with the Hows, Whats, and Whys that provide no help. Sin becomes more and more alluring. Our defenses are down since we are not looking to Our Great Defender. We try to find refuge and help elsewhere, but there is no other. That is when we become open and vulnerable to the devil, who is prowling around like a roaring lion, seeking to devour our faith.

-Note: The word anxiety in this article is not referring to the care, wisdom, thoughtfulness, and diligence we are called to use in life, especially in regards to the things of the Lord (Proverbs 6:6-8, 1 Corinthians 7:32, Matthew 6:33).

God-Given Lifeline

In order to remain unintoxicated, vigilant, and alert about who God is and therefore stand firm in our faith, we must cast our anxieties on God. It is our lifeline. In my previous article, The Peace that Guards, I explained in more detail how The Peace of God, through prayer, guards our hearts and minds against anxiety. As we endure and persevere in casting our anxieties on Him, we remain single-mindedly focused on God and our Faith in Him stands; and because God is God and he cares for his children, he will move mountains to bring about our good from whatever circumstances we are going through (Romans 8:28-29).

Anxiety and Unfruitfulness?

I want to point out one last thing about anxiety that struck me. In the gospels, Jesus was adamant that his disciples must cast their anxieties on him (Matthew 6:25-34; Luke 12:22-31), lest they lust after the god of money and despise the True God (Matthew 6:24-25). As striking as this teaching is, it is the relationship between anxiety and unfruitfulness that really sobered me up about the urgency of casting my anxieties on Jesus, knowing that every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire (Matthew 7:19):

Hear then the parable of the sower:  When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path. As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy, yet he has no root in himself but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away. As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. (Matthew 13:18-22).

There is that word again, merimna. In Matthew 13:22 it specifically refers to anxiety about things pertaining to this earthly life. Jesus essentially says that they are three major reasons why people who once professed faith in him ‘lose their faiths’ or remain unfruitful : tribulation or persecution, anxiety about things pertaining to this earthly life and the deceitfulness of riches. Do you see the connection with what Peter is saying in 1 Peter:5? The mind that is not rested on Christ, that does not have a pattern of casting anxieties on him, is in danger of falling away or having their faith choked up. Casting our anxieties on Christ is not just for peace of mind, it is a battle for our faith, for our life!