James 4:1-10 (Series: Faith that Works)

“Grateful to the God Who is in Control”. —Contentment, Humility and Submission—

Open with a prayer and then an announcement and a prayer for Dan

Story

Scripture

“One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan. Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?” Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.”” ‭‭Luke‬ ‭17‬:‭15‬-‭19‬ ‭NIV‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/111/luk.17.15-19.NIV

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

1 Timothy 6:6 “But godliness with contentment is great gain,”

William Temple: “ Contentment with the divine will is the best remedy we can apply to misfortune”

“Contentment.” 2000. In 6,000 Plus Illustrations for Communicating Biblical Truths. Christianity Today.

Lyrics of “front porch looking in”

Matthew 13:44 ““The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.”

The story is most famously told in a late 1800s lecture called Acres of Diamonds — given by Baptist minister and educator Russell H. Conwell hundreds of times, and widely published. In that lecture he draws a contrast between people who leave their property to seek riches elsewhere and those who recognize the “treasure in their own backyard.” One of his examples goes roughly like this:

A man in California owned a ranch in the 1840s.

When he heard about gold discoveries in Southern California, he sold his ranch to pursue his fortune elsewhere.

The buyer of the ranch built a mill on a stream cutting through the property.

One day, the buyer’s little girl brought in some wet sand from the mill’s raceway, and, as the sand fell through her fingers, someone noticed tiny glints — gold dust. This turned out to be the first discovery of real gold in California, and that very land became part of what launched the Gold Rush.

Origins in moral parable tradition: Conwell based his “rancher” story on a much older Middle Eastern/Asian parable about a Persian farmer (named “Ali Hafed”) who sold his farm to search for diamonds only to have the purchaser discover that the farm was sitting atop a massive diamond mine. That older story is purely allegorical.

Acres of Diamonds

Many people are not content with the work they are doing because the grass always looks greener on the other side of the fence. They are dissatisfied even when their circumstances are favorable. Instead of doing their duty cheerfully and conscientiously as unto the Lord, they yield to a spirit of covetousness. As a result, they miss God’s best for their lives and fail to see the blessings they already have.

An ancient Persian legend tells of a wealthy man by the name of Al Haffed who owned a large farm. One evening a visitor related to him tales of fabulous amounts of diamonds that could be found in other parts of the world, and of the great riches they could bring him. The vision of all this wealth made him feel poor by comparison. So instead of caring for his own prosperous farm, he sold it and set out to find these treasures. But the search proved to be fruitless. Finally, penniless and in despair, he committed suicide by jumping into the sea. Meanwhile, the man who had purchased his farm noticed one day the glint of an unusual stone in a shallow stream on the property. He reached into the water, and to his amazement he pulled out a huge diamond. Later when working in his garden, he uncovered many more valuable gems. Poor Al Haffed had spent his life traveling to distant lands seeking jewels when on the farm he had left behind were all the precious stones his heart could have ever desired.

“Contentment.” 2000. In 6,000 Plus Illustrations for Communicating Biblical Truths. Christianity Today.

Psalm 23:1 “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.”

The Attorney and the Fisherman

A hard-driving corporate attorney saw a fisherman he knew from church one afternoon, legs dangling off the pier as he helped his two young sons catch crabs. “Why aren’t you out there fishing?” he asked.

“Because I’ve caught enough fish for today.”

“Why don’t you catch more fish than you need?”

“What would I do with them?” asked the fisherman.

“You could earn more money and buy a better boat so you could go deeper and catch more fish. Then you could buy a fleet of boats. Soon you’d be rich like me.”

“What would I do then?”

“You could sit down and enjoy life.”

“What do you think I’m doing now?”

Ray Pritchard. “Men Of Integrity” “Contentment.” 2000. In 6,000 Plus Illustrations for Communicating Biblical Truths. Christianity Today.

Content makes poor men rich; discontent makes rich men poor.

Ben Franklin

“Contentment.” 2000. In 6,000 Plus Illustrations for Communicating Biblical Truths. Christianity Today.