By Marvin A. McMickle
The next part of the prayer cuts in one of two ways, depending upon where you are on the economic scale; give us this day our daily bread. When Jesus spoke this prayer for the first time to a crowd of people who were gathered on a hillside in Galilee, most of them were people who did not have much in the way of economic resources. They were poor people who lived from hand to mouth, working hard for everything they had and still ending up with very little. Many of them literally did not know where their next meal was coming from, so in this clause Jesus was calling upon them to put their trust in God who would provide for them day after day.
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There may be somebody here today who knows that these words are true and who know that God will meet our needs day by day even when we do not know where the next meal is coming from. This is a word of hope and encouragement for some people who have been laid off from work, who cannot meet their financial obligations, who cannot see a way out of their poverty; God can and God will feed and provide for his people day by day. There are people, and I would guess that some of them are in this church today, that are only one pay check away from catastrophe. They have no savings, no investments and perhaps even no retirement. This clause is just for you; the God we serve can meet our needs on a day-by-day basis.
Just as God gave manna to the people of Israel as they made their way across the desert in their journey from slavery in Egypt to freedom in the land of Canaan, so too will God take care of us. However, there were some people numbered among the people of Israel who did not trust God or would not be content with daily bread. They wanted longer-term security, so rather than gather enough food for one day they would store food for many days into the future. Not everybody wants to wait on God for daily bread.
There may be many people in this church today who do not need God to give you daily bread. You may be among those for whom money is of no concern. You have established a solid financial plan and you economic security seems to be secure. Remember the words of Jesus that say, 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).
Everything in our society tells us to gather up money for ourselves so that our future can be secure.
However, everything in our faith warns against that very point, largely because we end up putting our faith in money and not in God. In this same 6th chapter of Matthew, Jesus warns us against too much focus on riches and materialism. He says, do not build your hopes on things that moth and rust can consume or that robbers can break in and steal. Instead of that, says Jesus, Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all of these things shall be added unto you.