Of course, Jesus did not encourage his listeners to stop working and wait for God somehow to provide for their families. Even the birds have to search for food for themselves and their young. Thus, Christians had to work if they wanted to eat. They had to care for family responsibilities. Christian servants and slaves had to work diligently for their masters. (2 Thessalonians 3:10-12; 1 Timothy 5:8; 1 Peter 2:18)
The apostle Paul often worked as a tentmaker to support himself. (Acts 18:1-4; 1 Thessalonians 2:9) Still, those Christians did not look to secular work for security. They trusted in Jehovah. As a result, they enjoyed an inner peace unknown to others. The psalmist said: “Those trusting in Jehovah are like Mount Zion, which cannot be made to totter, but dwells even to time indefinite.”—Psalm 125:1.
Anyone who does not trust firmly in Jehovah might think differently. The majority of humans view material wealth as a major key to security. Hence, parents have encouraged their offspring to invest much of their young adulthood in higher education, hoping that it will prepare them for well-paying careers. Sadly, some Christian families have found the cost of such an investment to be very high, as their children have lost their spiritual focus and turned to pursuing materialistic goals.
Hence, wise Christians realize that Jesus’ counsel applies as much today as it did in the first century, and they try to keep a balance. Even if they have to spend long hours in secular work in order to care for Scriptural responsibilities, they never allow the need to earn money to blind them to the more important spiritual matters.—Ecclesiastes 7:12.
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