Jesus often argues from the lesser to the greater: if this lesser thing is true, then how much more will the greater thing be true?
This is Scripture for Students. I’m Steve Whitacre, president of Trinity College and a pastor at Sovereign Grace Church of Louisville. I want to help students build a daily habit for life-long Bible reading. Today is February 26, 2025 and this episode of Scripture for Students is called A Fortiori. Grab your Bible and let’s get started.
Our readings for today are Exodus 9, Luke 12, and Job 27.
Please open your Bibles to Luke 12.
A couple years ago when I started teaching my daughter to drive, she was understandably nervous about being responsible for a couple thousand pounds of steel hurtling down the road at 70 miles per hour. That’s a lot of responsibility. I tried to remind her that she was quite capable of driving our riding lawn mower around the back yard. And the basic principles are the same: steering, accelerator, brakes. We’re just adding a windshield, doors, and a much bigger engine. I’m not sure if that helped her much, but she has become a very competent at and comfortable with driving.
If you have taken a logic class, you may know that I tried to encourage my daughter with something called an a fortiori argument. It’s also sometimes called the “from the lesser to the greater” argument. It’s a step of logic where we say, because this thing is true in a smaller situation, how much more will it be true in a bigger situation. You see how it did that with my daughter: if you have mastered the skills of handling the lawnmower, you’ll be able to handle the car as well.
Well, it is good for you to learn this particular method of logic, because Jesus and the apostle Paul both use it often. In fact, we’re going to see it in today’s Scripture for Students. Follow along as I read Luke 12:22–31 and watch for the a fortiori argument:
22 And he said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on.
23 For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing.
24 Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds!
25 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?
26 If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest?
27 Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
28 But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith!
29 And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried.
30 For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them.
31 Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you.
May the Lord bless the reading and the hearing and the keeping of his Word.
So, did you follow Jesus’ a fortiori argument? More on that in a moment. First, let’s think about why Jesus says these things. He says in verse 22 that he does not want his disciples to be anxious. Maybe you know something about anxiety. People who study this kind of thing say that young people today are collectively, the most anxious people in the history of the world. In fact, I have a book that labels young people today, “The Anxious Generation.”
Anxiety is different from fear, although they are related. Fear is typically situational, a response to a specific threat or an anticipated danger—either real or imaginary. Typically, if you resolve the threat, the fear goes away. But anxiety is not so simple: it is a low-grade, gnawing worry, often about vague or unrecognized dangers or potential problems. Jesus wants his followers to recognize anxiety and lean on truths that will dispel anxiety and help them trust him instead. And so, here in Luke 12, he does that with an a fortiori argument.
Notice that verse 24 and verse 27 both begin with the word “Consider…” Jesus wants us to look at something specific in creation. In this case, the ravens in the sky and the lilies in the fields. Reread what it says about both of these small parts of God’s creation. God feeds the ravens food and he clothes the lilies with beauty.
Did you spot the “how much more” part of Jesus’ rationale?
24 Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds!
28 But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith!
In both cases, Jesus is working from the lesser to the greater. Those ravens look well-fed! And those lilies sure are beautiful. God has done all this for them. How much more will he do for his people?
At this point, it is easy for some people to stay in their anxiety because they think to themselves: I’m sure God cares about groups of people, like whole countries or even churches. Or maybe God cares for important people. But does God really care about me? Does he see my needs? Will he do anything about my problems?
Jesus is prepared for that concern, too. Let’s look again at where this paragraph ends:
Luke 12:29–31
29 And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried.
30 For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them.
31 Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you.
Do you see what it says in verse 30? Your Father knows that you need them. That’s an authoritative pronouncement from the lips of Jesus. And Jesus gives the antidote to anxiety here: rather than worrying about what you will eat or what you will wear—or any other kind of problem you can imagine—instead seek the kingdom of God. This means at least three things: first, pray and make your needs known to God. Second, strive to obey God in everything he’s given you to do. Third, trust God with everything that is outside your control. Because if he cares for the ravens and the lilies, how much more will he care for you?
One last thing, if you struggle in an ongoing way with anxiety, please get help. You need someone more experienced than just the friends your age. Talk to your parents or a pastor or a mature, older Christian in your church. And in all of it, remember that God knows what you need and cares for you far more than the birds of the air or the lilies of the field.
That’s all for today. If you enjoyed this episode please share it with a friend and follow us on Apple Podcasts.
This content is sponsored by Trinity College of Louisville. We shape young men and young women for Christ and for the church. Learn more at TrinityCollegeLou.com. Until next time, keep growing!