The Secret of Contentment

CALL TO WORSHIP

please raise your hands w/ me

Psalm 99:1–3 “The Lord reigns; let the peoples tremble! He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake! The Lord is great in Zion; he is exalted over all the peoples. Let them praise your great and awesome name! Holy is he!”

Let’s pray - Father as we enter into your throne room this morning remind us who you are. You are the great God, the creator and sustainer of all. The world was founded and saved by your word, despite our iniquities and sins and we thank you and worship you for that. Today as we praise you may we do so with joy as your people, saved and redeemed, set apart for you and for your good purposes, and may you be the focus of our delight. Lord we love you and we thank you for gathering us in this place today, may we never take it for granted - and all Gods people said - AMEN.

WORSHIP

SERMON

Philippians 4:10–13 “I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at length you have revived your concern for me. You were indeed concerned for me, but you had no opportunity. Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”

Discontentment destroys -

as you sow and reap - if you run into the temptation of discontentment it can blow up all your efforts - everything you’ve done.

see the example of Israel in the wilderness

1 Corinthians 10:8–10 “We must not indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in a single day. We must not put Christ to the test, as some of them did and were destroyed by serpents, nor grumble, as some of them did and were destroyed by the Destroyer.”

this is why the Bible says that “godliness WITH CONTENTMENT is great gain.

without contentment, there is sin - and then therefore there is judgement and loss.

But what is contentment? Well that’s not easy....

here’s what I mean...

Did God want Israel to be content in Egypt? Well… yes and no.

Did God want Israel to be content in the wilderness? ---- yes and no.

See?It gets a little tricky.

a holy contentment… has a degree of discontent in it.

being full today - and beign hungry for tomorrow.

you’re happy - you’re satisfied - but tomorrow has new opportunities.

hungry for tomorrow.

like a joyful walk in the afternoon.

you’re happy with what you’re doing - but you’re still headed somewhere.

contentment isn’t static - contentment is going somewhere. there is a trajectory.

It’s NOT STOICISM.

Stoicism is “I don’t care.”

your without feeling, unmoved by the world around you.

first off - that’s just not true.

You definitely do care, you’re just manipulating yourself to believe you dont.

you’re a human - you have desires and goals and hopes - you’re not a stoic.

Contentment sees a broken heirloom and is sad about it… but knows there are still greater heirlooms to gain and leave behind.

contentment sees a death and mourns it, but looks forward to restoration.

contentment sees the world around us in disarray and confusion and has the answer for it for all that will listen.

Philippians 4:10 “I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at length you have revived your concern for me. You were indeed concerned for me, but you had no opportunity.”

other translations “I was made glad”

meaning - he was sad… but now he’s not. but in his sad… he was still joyful and content. Wait what?

If content meant you were happy and full all the time… then what would happen when God unfolds his plans for you and they blossom? You’d have exactly the same demeanor of happiness and contentment?

No see… there is a disctonent in the content.

Things are wrong - but God makes promises and I trust them - and then you see the promises come true. You see the trajectory?

that’s what I mean - there is a discontent in the content.

Application: God won’t let you have an idol. Why? Because an idol is what you think you need to be happy, but GOD is what you really need.

trusting him and his promises.

if you try to find “content” in somethign else, what is the Lord going to do?

if you’re his, he won’t let you have it.

or if he does let you have it, he lets you see just how bad it was to get your idols…

Philippians 4:11 “Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content.”

he clarifies there - he was content - but then he had joy - you see?

there is a little bit of “dis” in the “content” - but it’s all oriented around GOD and his provision.

Philippians 4:12 “I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need.”

but how did he learn? from where? when?

book? class? nope - life.

where God teaches you in times of plenty and times of want - to want and be satisfied in HIM

this is why it’s important that when somebody is going through it and you get that big urge to RUSH IN AND FIX EVERTYGHIN FOR THEM

you fight it a little bit.

you don’t want to be their savior, they’ve got a better one.

you want to serve the poor, you want to help them, but those in christ going through trials are going through a trial for a grander purpose

and if you step in and try to remove all the pain and all the suffering and all the difficulty from them… you might be hurting them.

well - you probably are hurting them.

Philippians 4:13 “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”

this is what we need to learn. and he teaches us throughout our lives.

Feast and famine. Trials and joy filled seasons.

so - you ready to learn?

then live. orient yourself to Christ and LIVE.

he’s teaching you now. right now.

don’t miss it.