Preacher: Jeremy Herbert
Theme: Contentment
Text: Philippians 4:10-13
Notes:
“To live in a state of true satisfaction.” –Joe Thorn
“Who is rich? He that is content.
Who is that? Nobody.” –Benjamin Franklin
When Paul writes about contentment, he is not writing from a position of abundance–he is writing from prison.
Signs you are lacking contentment
- Complaining
- The children of Israel complained constantly after God led them from slavery in Egypt
- “murmuring”
- Covetousness
- We want what others have
- Exodus 20:17
- Conditional Joy
- “I will be happy if…
What does discontentment reveal about us?
- We have a worship issue
- Our tendency is to exchange the truth of God for lies
- Our tendency is worship the creation instead of the Creator
- Note: it is not wrong to enjoy good things that God gives
- Our issue is that we make these requirements for contentment/joy
- “The human heart is a perpetual idol factory.” –John Calvin
- We have a pride issue
- “Thus, a godly man wonders at his cross that it is not more, a wicked man wonders his cross is so much:” ― Jeremiah Burroughs, The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment
- We have a thankfulness issue
- We have a faith issue
- We don’t really trust God
- We don’t believe God
- We rebel against God
Enemies of Contentment
- The World
- The world nurtures greed
- The more you get, the happier you will be
- If only you had a newer/better/younger car, job, spouse et al, ad infinitum
- The Flesh
- Our flesh nurtures pride
- Our flesh craves (and believes we deserve) affirmation and exaltation
- The Devil
- The devil nurtures unbelief
- God is holding out on you, he does not give you His best
- Psalm 106:13, fat bellies and lean souls
Paul firmly believed that Christ was the secret to contentment, and unlike everything else in the world–Christ cannot be taken away.
