We have an even deeper need for God to care for us. Our every provision comes from Him, and our very survival depends upon His constant care. In His providence, He demonstrates His general care for all of humanity. "He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust" (Matt 5:45). In this sense, He makes no distinction between the righteous and the wicked, and His mercy is over all of His works. "The eyes of all look expectantly to You, and You give them their food in due season. You open Your hand and satisfy the desire of every living thing" (Psalm 145:15-16). He is kind to all, and He cares for all because He has made them.

But Peter's encouragement here quoted does not regard God's general care for humanity but His special care for individuals. We require not only God's care as a sovereign creator but also His care as a loving Father. We need to have a special intimacy with Him through which we have continual access to His most tender affections. But how can this happen? Such a relationship is a privilege that results from true conversion to Christ, a conversion that involves submission in heart to His Lordship. "For God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you" (1 Peter 5:5-7). It is the humble who fear God and turn to Him for salvation. It is the humble who are blessed to have true intimacy with the King of the universe. It is the humble to whom God says, "As a father pities his children, so the Lord pities those who fear Him" (Psalm 103:13). Consider Peter's encouragement:

We are to be casting all of our care upon the Lord. The word translated "casting" literally means throwing something upon something else. In this case, it is to take our cares and throw them upon One to whom they are no burden at all. That which is a weight to us is nothing to Him, for His mighty arms are more than sufficient to bear the cares of His children. And is it not wise to take the heavy load from the weak and give it to the strong? What would we think if we were to see a feeble person stubbornly struggling under a tremendous burden while the strongest man is offering to help! We often do this very thing spiritually. We carry loads that are too heavy for us, when we ought to give them to Him. We crumble under a weight too difficult for us to bear, when he is mighty to support us. It is not suggested but commanded that we enlist His aid. If we would be obedient to God and have peace of mind, we must bring our cares to Him. We must pray without ceasing (1 Thes 5:17), and those prayers must involve casting our cares upon Him. "Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved" (Psalm 55:22).

We are to be casting all of our care upon the Lord. The care intended includes the desires, concerns, anxieties, worries, and burdens of life. The verse assumes that every one of us has such cares that require God's attention. Is this not true? Is there any person who does not have a multitude of cares throughout this life? Can any person say that he has a day, an hour, or even a minute without some legitimate concern? How could that be when sin, death, the forces of evil, our many desires and needs, and a host of circumstances beyond our control are ever-present? It is only the prideful who feel no deep ongoing need of the Lord; but those who have humbled themselves before God have cares that they must bring to Him--yes, their humility may even multiply them. They recognize their lack of strength and ability to affect circumstances and outcomes. As the disciples in the boat, they sometimes feel tossed by the winds and the waves, and they are compelled to cry to Him, "Lord, save us! We are perishing!" (Matt 8:25).

We are to be casting all of our care upon the Lord. --Not some of it, all of it. In all times and circumstances that cares, concerns, and worries abound, we must give them to Him. This is not intended to trivialize our prayers. We are to have sufficient trust in the Lord so as not to turn every trite circumstance into a care, and we are not to always fill our prayers with worries. But we are to avoid the self-dependence and doubt that would keep us from bringing all of our cares to Him. Are our cares too numerous for Him to bear? Is the sum of them too much for His power? No! He is an infinite God! In Him is all power and authority. He upholds every atom of the universe every moment of every day, and our cares can never be a burden too great for His power. We must protect ourselves spiritually by not allowing our cares to remain unspoken. "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus" (Phil 4:6-8).

We are to be casting all of our care upon the Lord. Although the Lord may enlist the aid of man to help us in our plights, we must always seek Him primarily. A wrongful dependence upon others is displeasing to Him. "Thus says the Lord: 'Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart departs from the Lord'" (Jer 17:5). Why do we take our cares elsewhere and not to Him? Do we doubt His power or His love? Do we not trust Him for the outcomes? Do we not believe Him when He says, "Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and whose hope is the Lord. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear when heat comes; But its leaf will be green, and will not be anxious in the year of drought, nor will cease from yielding fruit" (Jer 17:7-8)?

We are to be casting all of our care upon the Lord because He cares for us. We would be slow to cast our cares upon one whose concern we doubted. But can we doubt that He cares for His people? "He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?" (Rom 8:32). Dear Christian, here is your strength! The creator of the universe cares for you! Wonder of wonders! In Christ, you have the loving care of the One who rules every time, season, and circumstance. You have continual access to the throne of Him who holds your every moment in His hands. He says to you, "Can a woman forget her nursing child, and not have compassion on the son of her womb? Surely they may forget, yet I will not forget you. See, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands" (Isaiah 49:15-16). Oh my soul, why do you worry! Why do you burden yourself with so many cares! Why do you have anxiety when the King of the universe is concerned for you! "Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; For I shall yet praise Him, the help of my countenance and my God" (Psalm 42:11).

Dear friend who has not come to Christ, here is a word for you. You must make it your first care that your sins have separated you from God. You must recognize that you have cared more for other things than for Him, and you must humbly seek His mercy. Believe that He is a caring God who can save you, not because of your own righteousness, but because of the righteousness of Jesus Christ, which you will receive if you humbly come to Him. Then, you will be adopted into the family of God, and as a beloved child, you can always cast your cares upon Him who cares for you.

If you would like to receive further information concerning these matters, please contact Joseph Montalto.