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LEARNING CONTENTMENT
Sermon preached by Pastor C. John Steer
Autumn Ridge Church, Rochester, MN
April 22-23, 2017
No. 1:
Scripture:
Becoming a Lifelong Learner
Philippians 4:11-12
Jesus calls us to be his disciples. The word “disciple” means “student” or “pupil.”
This conveys the idea that Jesus wants us to be lifelong learners.
This is a constant emphasis in scripture. In Proverbs we read “Let the wise listen
and add to their learning.” (Proverbs 1:5) Solomon tells his sons “I give you
sound learning, so do not forsake my teaching.” (Proverbs 4:2)
Because of this we are starting a new series called BECOMING A LIFELONG
LEARNER.
Over the next few weeks we are going to look at five virtues that God wants us to
learn because they can transform our life.
We begin today with LEARNING CONTENTMENT. To do that we need a good
grasp of what contentment is. So here are a few definitions.
G.K. Chesterton observed that “True contentment is the power of getting out of
any situation all there is in it.”
Jeremiah Burroughs wrote that “Christian contentment is that sweet, inward,
quiet, gracious frame of spirit, which freely submits to and delights in God's wise
and fatherly disposal in every condition."
The commentator William Plumer noted that “Contentment submissively receives
what is given. It thankfully enjoys present mercies. It leaves the future in the hand
of unerring wisdom."
I want to divide our lesson on contentment into three parts.
First let’s notice THE DESIRABILITY OF CONTENTMENT.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful to be always content? To be satisfied with our life.
To seize the joys of every day. To be free from a critical spirit. To understand that
an all-wise God has ordered our days. To know that his grace is sufficient for every
situation and his providence is perfect.
Yet if we are honest we have to admit that few of us have learned this lesson for
contentment is in short supply. Bishop J.C. Ryle preached a famous sermon
entitled, “Contentment: A Rare Grace.” He is quite right.
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We are the wealthiest and healthiest and best educated people in history.
We have more opportunities than our grandparents could ever have dreamed of.
We should be content but we are not. And we are not alone.
Before they fell the disobedient angels had heaven to dwell in and the immediate
presence and favor of God. But they were not content.
Adam and Eve had the Garden of Eden to live in with the freedom to enjoy
everything in it except one tree. But they were not content.
Contentment helps us to keep the Ten Commandments and discontentment is the
reason we break them. If we are discontented with God we look for something else
to worship. If we are discontented with our parents we don’t honor them as we
should.
Think how great life could be if we learned contentment. We would be content with
our possessions so we wouldn’t be tempted to steal from others. We would be
content with our spouse so we wouldn’t be looking elsewhere, either at
pornography or at another person - that might lead to an affair.
We’d love our work because we would learn to approach our calling with
contentment. A life of contentment would reduce stress and worry.
Discontentment on the other hand causes us to be disagreeable to those who live
with us. As a result our children often catch our negative spirit.
Discontentment is a womb for other sin. Because Cain was discontent he murdered
his brother Abel.
Today some people are discontented with the gender God has given them. As a
result some mutilate their bodies with surgery and ingest chemicals rather than
being content with how God has made them.
Discontentment is the cause of heresies in the church. Some theologians are
discontented with the doctrine of eternal punishment so they throw out the verses
on hell and so weaken the wonder of salvation. They are discontented with the
claim that Jesus is the only way to God and so they espouse a universalism that
says all paths lead to God. That is dangerously untrue because it can lead people
to their eternal ruin.
Now we might wonder if developing an attitude of contentment means we can’t be
ambitious. But that is not the case at all. I like what James McIntosh says when
he wrote, “It is right to be contented with what we have but never with
what we are.”
Paul was a very contented man but that didn’t mean that he went through life
apathetic or resigned. Paul was ambitious to start new churches. He wanted to
grow in his relationship with God.
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Contentment is obviously an ideal state to strive for so why do we so often get an F
in the class? This leads us to THE IMPEDIMENTS TO CONTENTMENT.
There are a number of obstacles to contentment but I want to highlight two big
ones.
The first is comparison.
We have a natural tendency to look at people who have more than we have and
this can make us discontented. We look at other people’s houses or cars or jobs.
This can make us angry and resentful and bitter. Those negative emotions poison
our system and make contentment impossible.
If we are going to compare let’s compare with those who have less than we do.
That is not hard because when it comes to the world population all of us are one
percenters. This means we are better off than 99% of the people on the planet.
So let us strive to avoid anything that causes us to compare ourselves with others
in a way that steals our contentment. There have been a number of studies recently
on the negative impact Facebook has on some of us. The most recent of these was
from the American Journal of Epidemiology. This is the first longitudinal study to
compare Facebook data to thousands of users’ offline relationships. The researchers
found that “The more hours Facebook users logged on the social network over time,
the more their sense of well-being and happiness declined.”
What are the reasons for this? I think the problem is comparison.
We look at other people’s profiles and it seems they have the perfect life.
They don’t. It is a photoshopped falsehood. But the comparison with our own life
can cause us to be discontented.
I sat at a lunch table at the Devoted Hearts Conference on Friday and listened to
people explain why they have stopped going on Facebook because it is causing
them stress instead of satisfaction. If social media raises your contentment – great.
If it doesn’t, turn it off.
Unbelief is another impediment to contentment. Discontentment is basically
dissatisfaction with God. It is saying “God, you are unfair. You haven’t looked after
me like you look after others. I deserve better.”
Discontentment is telling God he has made a mistake and that frankly we could run
the world better. Discontentment accuses God of injustice as if he does wrong.
But the Judge of the Earth can only do right. He can never do wrong.
Even the tribulation and suffering that comes into our life he allows for a loving
purpose so the person of faith can say “It was good for me to be afflicted so
that I might learn your decrees.” (Psalm 119:71)
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The contented person can say “It is well with my soul” even when their children
have all drowned, as Horatio Spafford was able to do when he wrote that hymn
back in 1873. A contented man can say with Job “Though he slay me,
yet will I hope in him.” (Job 13:15)
Let us understand this is not easy to do. Contentment is a hard lesson to learn.
We must fight for it each day. At school all of us had subjects that were really
challenging for us. For me it was languages. I breezed through history but Latin
nearly killed me. I went around with vocabulary cards in my pocket.
Every spare moment I tried to learn Latin vocab or how verbs and nouns decline.
I constantly kept at it and could just about scrape through the class.
Well contentment is the hardest class we have ever taken. We need to fill our
pockets with Bible verses to help us pass our daily tests.
It is essential we do this because a discontented heart is unfit for communion with
a holy God. Amos asked, “Can two walk together except they are agreed?”
(Amos 3:3) So when we find ourselves discontented we need to seek God’s
forgiveness then ask him to help us learn this beautiful virtue of contentment.
That brings us to the practical part of our lesson. We look now at THE WAY TO
CONTENTMENT.
The good news is that we can learn contentment. Paul writes to his friends in
Philippi and tells them: “I have learned to be content whatever the
circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to
have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every
situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.”
(Philippians 4:11-12)
Paul gives us three practical exercises to help us learn his secret of contentment.
The first is gratitude.
The apostle has learned to say “thank you” to God in every situation. Earlier in the
chapter he expressed this in graphic terms writing, “Rejoice in the Lord always.
I will say it again: Rejoice! ... Do not be anxious about anything, but in
every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your
requests to God.” (Philippians 4:4&6)
Let’s remember that Paul is writing this from prison. It would be so easy to grumble
but throughout his letter he expresses gratitude. He is grateful to the Philippians,
starting his epistle with “I thank my God every time I remember you.”
(Philippians 1:3)
Paul is grateful for the work of Christ. In chapter 2 he bursts into a hymn of praise
for what Jesus has done for us writing, “Christ Jesus, who, being in very nature
God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own
advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a
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servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as
a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on
a cross!” (Philippians 2:5-8)
It is not too great an exaggeration to say that Jesus came in order that we can be
eternally content.
Paul knows that gratitude and contentment go hand in hand. When thankfulness
comes through the front door discontentment has to leave by the back door.
We all need to find ways we can practice gratitude. One of the men in my Life
Group last Wednesday told us that he takes pictures on his phone of things or
events that bring him joy and sends them to his family. He wants to cultivate an
attitude of gratitude.
We all thought this was a great idea. It is following Paul’s advice that whatever is
pure, lovely, admirable, excellent or praiseworthy. We should think about such
things.
So I decided to be on the lookout for reasons to praise God and be grateful.
This week driving to church I passed Mayowood Lake and saw a flock of white
pelicans. I had never seen that before in the 28 years I have lived near that lake.
I got out of the car and marveled at those magnificent birds that God has made.
I have been learning some fascinating facts about my pals the pelicans.
For example, if they have a bump on their bill it indicates they are about to breed.
I have learned that a pelican’s bill is a foot and a half long, the longest of any bird.
Attached to it is a big pouch capable of holding the liquid equivalent of two flushes
of a toilet. Pelicans perform strange looking exercises to stretch and maintain their
pouch. It is a form of pelican yoga. I thank God that I was there to witness it.
I visited them every day until they flew away.
The other day, Gretchen and I noticed hundreds of monarch butterflies feeding off
the sap coming out of a river birch tree in our yard. It was a beautiful sight and we
both marveled at it. Thanking God for his creation helps us learn contentment.
As a nation we love to complain about air travel. There is no room for our legs
and no food for our bodies and some passengers get dragged off planes
unceremoniously.
But let’s learn from Paul when he said “Do everything without grumbling or
arguing.” (Philippians 2:14) Let’s turn the experience of flying upside down.
How amazing that we are traveling at 40,000 feet at 500mph crossing the United
States in six hours. 150 years ago that journey would have taken us weeks or even
months and we may have died along the way.
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Let’s remember that every situation we find ourselves in is a seminar on
satisfaction. It is an opportunity to practice contentment.
A second way to be content is godliness.
The apostle writes, “But godliness with contentment is great gain.”
(1 Timothy 6:6) Godliness is being like Jesus.
That is why Paul looks at Christ rather than his circumstances. Paul’s life is Christcentered. He is able to say, “For me to live is Christ.” (Philippians 1:21)
You may recall that we began the year with this verse.
I asked you to remember three truths about it.
For me – it’s personal.
To live – it’s practical.
Is Christ – it’s possible.
Not only is Paul’s life Christ-centered, it is Christ-controlled so he is able to tell the
Philippians that although Caesar has put him in prison “I am in chains for
Christ.” (Philippians 1:13) God has placed Paul in Rome so he can preach to the
Praetorian Guard. Some of them have become Christians.
Then Paul’s life is Christ-energized. He tells the Philippians “I can do all this
through Christ who gives me strength." (Philippians 4:13)
It is impossible to be content without Christ but with him we can learn to live a life
of contentment.
A third way we can practice contentment is generosity.
The Philippians had taken up a collection for Paul and they sent the money with one
of their own men called Epaphroditus. Paul tells them something really lovely about
their gifts explaining, “They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice,
pleasing to God.”
(Philippians 4:18)
When we are generous we have the pleasure of meeting the needs of others, of
being part of something bigger than ourselves. Stingy people have shriveled souls.
We are born grasping with closed hands. Grace calls us to open them and to say to
God, “Take what you want. It is all yours anyway.” When we do that an
extraordinary thing happens. Paul explains what it is when he says,
“My God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in
Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:19)
Notice those words “All your needs.” One of the great needs we have is to be
content. God provides contentment when we practice generosity.
Now we are afraid to do that because we don’t think we have enough.
So God says, “Trust me.” I’ve got all the riches of glory at my disposal.”
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If you’re afraid, start small. Give away one percent of your income. I guarantee
you will receive so much blessing in the form of contentment and satisfaction you
will soon want to give two percent and then more because we can never outgive
God.
So Paul gives us these three exercises to practice this week: gratitude, godliness
and generosity. They lead to a life of contentment.
Bishop Ryle gave his congregation this wonderful counsel.
This is what you should do if you would be content. Seek God for your portion,
take Christ for your Savior, and use God’s word for your daily food. Contentment is
found at the feet of Jesus Christ. He who has God for his friend and heaven for his
home can wait for his good things and be content with little here below.
So let us be content this week. Remember you are in Christ.
You are the subject of his grace and Christ in you is the hope of glory.
All
All
All
All
All
your
your
your
your
your
cares are Christ’s cares.
sorrows are Christ’s sorrows.
need is Christ supplied.
sicknesses are Christ cured.
crosses are Christ’s burden.
Your life, physical, spiritual and eternal, is hidden with Christ in God.
You can say “Christ and I are one.” One in name. One in affection. One in
sympathy. One in fellowship. And one through the countless ages of eternity.