Sermon Tone Analysis
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As I was preparing for this morning’s message on contentment, I came across some pithy quotes and interesting proverbs from other countries that describe contentment from that culture’s perspective:
* Italian Proverb—/Since the house is on fire, let us warm ourselves./
* Turkish Proverb—/One already wet does not feel the rain./
* Chinese Proverb—/He who is content can never be ruined./
* Spanish Proverb—/Since we have loaves, let us not look for cakes./
* Jewish Proverb—/When life isn't the way you like, like it the way it is./
* Epictetus, a 2nd Century Stoic philosopher, (C.
55-C.
135) – /Contentment consists not in great wealth but in few wants./
* William Shakespeare (1564-1616)—/He is well paid that is well satisfied./
* A more contemporary muse, Bill Gothard, says—/Contentment is understanding that if I am not satisfied with what I have, I will never be satisfied with what I want./
* But, my favorite quote on satisfaction is an Arabian Proverb—/Better a handful of dry dates and content therewith than to own the Gate of Peacocks and be kicked in the eye by a broody camel./
This morning’s text tells us that Godliness with contentment is great gain.
For we brought nothing into the world, just as we shall not be able to take anything out of it.
If that is true, then the opposite is also true . . .
! I. WORLDLINESS WITH DISCONTENTMENT IS THE SCOURGE OF OUR CULTURE
#. have you ever wanted something really, really bad?
#.
I mean, wanted something so badly that you could almost taste it?
#. did you ever want something so much, that you thought your life would be empty and meaningless until you got it?
#. perhaps it was a toy you especially wanted as a child
#. perhaps it was that new automobile for graduation—that teen dream car
#.
perhaps it was that certain house in a certain place
#. perhaps it was a certain relationship with a certain person
#. now, have you ever had the experience of finally getting exactly what you wanted for so long only to discover that it did not satisfy for long?
#. you got the new toy, but it broke within a week
#.
you got the new car, but within a few months that ‘new car scent’ was gone and there was a ding in the side panel
#.
you got the certain house in the certain place and the basement leaked
#. you got the relationship only to discover that your ‘Prince Charming’ was in reality a toad
#. if you’ve ever experienced the emotional let-down that comes with the dissatisfaction of what you were convinced would satisfy you, then welcome to the American Experience
!! A. DISCONTENTMENT IS A SYNDROME OF AMERICAN CULTURE
#. we live in a society were we have come to define ourselves by our titles, our positions, our account statements, and our possessions
#. we have an unhealthy drive for more in America
#. this is not a new problem
* /“People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction.
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.
Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”/
(1 Timothy 6:9–10, NIV84)
#. more is the most significant word in our culture today
#. our culture’s philosophy of consumption, materialism and out-right hedonism is best illuminated by the popular bumper sticker of a few years ago which read: “He who dies with the most toys wins!”
#. if some is good, then more is better
#. more attention
#. more power
#. more titles
#. more degrees
#. more material assets
#. this culture of dissatisfaction is an epidemic that’s carefully fed by the advertising industry
#. Madison Ave.
promises us again and again that our dissatisfaction will disappear if we just buy this or that product
#.
we are constantly bombarded with ploys to get more stuff
#. you turn on the television and there are commercials
#. you log on to the internet and its full of ads
#. you drive down the highway and there’s nothing but a forest of billboards
#. you open the mail and there’s a catalog and credit card offer
#. you answer the phone and it’s a telemarketer
* ILLUS.
The average American is exposed to hundreds of advertisements a day that promise happiness.
“If you just had that new exercise machine, you’d have “abs” like the guy in the commercial.
If you just had those new clubs, you’d hit a golf ball like Tiger Woods.
If you just had the right tan or the right makeup or the right clothes . .
.”
#. my question to you is this: /“If you are not happy with what you have, how could you be happier with more?”/
#. but it’s not just our dissatisfaction with the stuff that we don’t have and want that’s a problem
#. there’s also a dissatisfaction with the things we have that we’d rather change
#.
Americans are dissatisfied with their jobs
#. one out of every five Americans admits that he or she hates waking up to the job they have
#.
many people are not content with the work they are doing because the grass always looks greener on the other side of the fence
#. instead of doing their work cheerfully and conscientiously as unto the Lord, they yield to a spirit of bitterness—as a result, they miss God's blessing
#.
Americans are dissatisfied with their spouses
#. that’s obvious by the almost 50% divorce rate in our nation
* ILLUS.
Some people in our culture trade families like my friends and I traded baseball cards when we were growing up.
#.
Americans are dissatisfied with their faith
#.
I see this especially with people raised in Christian homes
#. they’ve heard all the Bible stories since they were preschoolers, and they’ve heard dozens of sermons on every conceivable Christian theme
#. for many of these believers, familiarity with the faith has bred contempt for the church
#. the problem with becoming dissatisfied with your faith is that you become vulnerable to false ideas about God
#.
Americans are dissatisfied with their bodies
#. anyone here this morning who’s not on a diet?
#.
Americans are visiting cosmetic surgeons in record numbers for nips and tucks and lifts and liposuction and botox
* ILLUS.
In spite of the recession, Americans spent $10 billion on cosmetic surgery in 2009.
Shows like Extreme Makeovers are big hits.
If you’ve never seen Extreme Makeover, it’s kind of like “This Old House” only for the body.
Who doesn’t love the story of the respectable-yet-unremarkable-looking person being transformed into a lovely swan who suddenly is noticed by everyone?
#. please, please, please know that I’m not bashing nips n’ tucks—if they make you feel better about yourself, go for it
#.
but folks, I’ll tell ya what, what most Americans need is not a physical make-over, but an Extreme Spiritual Make-over!
#.
Americans are dissatisfied with their income
* ILLUS.
Now, most of us probably don’t think of ourselves as wealthy.
But your neighbor might!
Surveys have found that people tend to look at those who make exactly double of whatever they make as rich, regardless of their income level.
If someone makes $30,000 a year, they think someone who makes $60,000 a year is rich.
And someone who make $60,000 a year, they think someone who makes $120,000 a year is rich.
Even billionaire Ted Turner struggles with dissatisfaction with his income.
He once told a reporter, “It’s all relative.
I sit down and tell myself, ‘I’ve got $10 billion, but Bill Gates has $100 billion; I feel like a complete failure in life.”
(may I experience that kind of failure and never recover!)
#. slowly but surely we’re being consumed by the monster of more and the demons of discontent
!! B. DISCONTENTMENT LEADS TO WORLDLINESS
#. worldliness can be defined as a preoccupation with the temporal things—the material things—of this world
#.
worldliness is a spirit that demands that this world conform to our uncontrolled desires and appetites
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