Content in Anything
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Difference between CONTENT AND CONTENT
Our World wants CONTENT!
GOD CALLS US TO BE CONTENT!
10 I rejoiced in the Lord greatly because once again you renewed your care for me. You were, in fact, concerned about me but lacked the opportunity to show it. 11 I don’t say this out of need, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I find myself. 12 I know how to make do with little, and I know how to make do with a lot. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being content—whether well fed or hungry, whether in abundance or in need. 13 I am able to do all things through him who strengthens me. 14 Still, you did well by partnering with me in my hardship.
15 And you Philippians know that in the early days of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving except you alone. 16 For even in Thessalonica you sent gifts for my need several times. 17 Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the profit that is increasing to your account. 18 But I have received everything in full, and I have an abundance. I am fully supplied, having received from Epaphroditus what you provided—a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God. 19 And my God will supply all your needs according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. 20 Now to our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen.
21 Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The brothers who are with me send you greetings. 22 All the saints send you greetings, especially those who belong to Caesar’s household. 23 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.
Main Point: Christians can live sacrificially because knowing God gives true contentment.
Main Point: Christians can live sacrificially because knowing God gives true contentment.
Series recap
Paul demonstrates discipleship here.
Starts off with encouragement (Reminds them of his relationship with them- note that- he has a relationship)
Encourages them about fellowship (Koinonia- Shared mission, shared lives)
Instructs them about WHO JESUS IS AND HOW THAT CHANGES US! (Shares examples- Timothy, Epaphroditus, his own life) (UNDERSTAND- DISCIPLESHIP STARTS WITH US KNOWING JESUS MORE! If you take KNOWING JESUS MORE out of discipleship then congratulations, you practice moralistic life coaching).
Challenges Believers to KNOW CHRIST IN MIND AND ACTION
Challenges believers to PURSUE JESUS TO THE END!
Provides practical counsel and final instruction
PROVIDES ENCOURAGEMENT!
That’s the basic outline of Philippians!
Let me give you 5 key verses from this book: (Understand, there’s so many more incredible verses, but let me give you four verses that you could memorize to help you remember what Philippians is about!)
21 For me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.
27 Just one thing: As citizens of heaven, live your life worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or am absent, I will hear about you that you are standing firm in one spirit, in one accord, contending together for the faith of the gospel,
5 Adopt the same attitude as that of Christ Jesus,
7 But everything that was a gain to me, I have considered to be a loss because of Christ.
4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!
In our passage today there are really three sections. Paul starts off by talking about CONTENTMENT, then he talks about SACRIFICIAL GIVING, and he wraps up with an important reminder for the Philippian believers.
Body
Body
As we start this first part look at verses 10-13 with me. Philippians 4:10-13
10 I rejoiced in the Lord greatly because once again you renewed your care for me. You were, in fact, concerned about me but lacked the opportunity to show it. 11 I don’t say this out of need, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I find myself. 12 I know how to make do with little, and I know how to make do with a lot. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being content—whether well fed or hungry, whether in abundance or in need. 13 I am able to do all things through him who strengthens me.
In this first section we see Paul talk about contentment.
Paul highlights 3 different things in here
First, Paul acknowledges the concern, care and support of the Philippian church!
The Philippians genuinely care about him.
We’ve talked a lot about Paul’s care for the Philippians, but it can be easy for us to lose sight of the reality that the Philippians care a lot for Paul!
That’s a special bond and it’s how we should feel as a church- we should genuinely care about one another AND we should be CARED FOR!
Second, Paul states that he has learned to BE CONTENT IN WHATEVER CIRCUMSTANCES HE FINDS HIMSELF IN!
The literal wording of this is a literal jumble. And it’s all because Paul wants to emphasize something. Paul wants to emphasize that he has learned how TO BE CONTENT!
So twice Paul uses the greek verb “eimi” which means “TO BE.”
See, contentment isn’t just something that happens. It’s not just ancillary; contentment is something that we need to BE!
And Paul has learned the secret in all situations, in good and bad, to be content! When things are great? He’s not proud, he’s content! When things are hard; like maybe when he’s in prison? Of course he prays to be released! But he’s CONTENT IN TRUSTING GOD THROUGHOUT IT!
Let’s be honest for a minute- contentment isn’t something that we do in America.
We don’t do contentment. We do growing in power and position.
We chase that promotion, that larger house, that pay raise. We chase what’s going to boost US!
But that’s not at all what contentment is!
Contentment as a biblical concept is demonstrated in Philippians 3:7:
7 But everything that was a gain to me, I have considered to be a loss because of Christ.
It’s saying, “WHATEVER YOU HAVE FOR ME GOD, I’LL DO IT! I’LL GO WHEREVER, I’LL GO THROUGH WHATEVER, I’LL DO WHATEVER!”
And that’s hard! But that’s biblical contentment!
Here’s the reality with contentment- whether we like it or not, it’s necessary. And contentment doesn’t always end with us getting what we wanted.
That’s the reality of being a follower of Christ! We don’t always get what we want!
But the reality is that we always get what is BEST FOR US FROM GOD!
Here’s the third thing that Paul brings up- he talks about how he’s learned the SECRET to being content!
How many of us want that secret? The secret of being content in good and hard, in abundance and in need?
Honestly, I think that if we are real, we don’t want that secret, we want the secret to everything being easy!
Like remember, Paul is writing these words from a ROMAN PRISON CELL!
He’s in absolute need! But he’s content in this!
And we’ll see in just a few verses HOW God is using his imprisonment.
But what’s the secret?
It comes in one of the two most misused and quoted out of context verses in the entire Bible!
Here’s the secret to contentment: Philippians 4:13
13 I am able to do all things through him who strengthens me.
That’s the secret to Biblical contentment!
Notice what that verse IS NOT TALKING ABOUT! That verse isn’t about a basketball game, or lifting weights, or an instagram bio!
That verse isn’t about a promotion at work or about beating cancer. That verse is about BEING CONTENT!
THAT’S WHAT DOING ALL THINGS IS REFERRING TO! (FIFTH GEAR)
It’s referring to how at ALL TIMES AND IN ALL SITUATIONS, WE CAN BE CONTENT BECAUSE OF JESUS WHO STRENGTHENS US!
Understand this- contentment isn’t from us or through us! It comes ONLY FROM AND THROUGH GOD!
Contentment comes through a NEW WORLDVIEW THAT CHANGES BECAUSE OF JESUS CHANGING US!
Contentment comes because of Jesus!
That’s the secret to it! The secret is Jesus!
So Paul can do all things- face all situations- through Jesus BECAUSE JESUS WILL MAKE HIM CONTENT IN ALL CIRCUMSTANCES!
Can we honestly say that about ourselves?
Understand- I’m not saying that contentment means we don’t take action. That’s just untrue. Before Paul was in Rome he was awaiting trial and he did evangelism and he was prepared for his trial.
Contentment doesn’t preclude action. It doesn’t preclude praying that God would change the circumstance. But it DOES involve trusting GOD and continuing to follow God no matter what!
Contentment does change the way that we approach things and look at things. We aren’t angry, we aren’t upset, we aren’t desperate. We trust God and we rely on GOD to make us CONTENT!
Biblical Contentment requires Seeking the Kingdom of God First
Biblical Contentment requires Seeking the Kingdom of God First
What I hope we’re seeing so far in this passage is that contentment comes from God! We aren’t really content because of our circumstances, what we have, or what we don’t have. If we rely on that to BE CONTENT, then we will NEVER BE CONTENT!
That’s just the truth. Our circumstances will always fall short. They will always let us down at some point. Once again- that doesn’t mean that something shouldn’t change; it just means that we need to understand that our circumstances will always let us down.
But there’s something that we can cling to that will never let us down.
That’s the kingdom of God!
33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you. 34 Therefore don’t worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Friends, SEEKING THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS WHAT WE ARE CALLED TO DO!
Notice how Jesus says it in Matthew 6- SEEK THE KINGDOM AND GOD’S RIGHTEOUSNESS AND ALL THE THINGS THAT WE ARE ANXIOUS ABOUT WILL BE PROVIDED FOR US!
But what is the Kingdom of God?
To understand that, we have to understand the GOSPEL!
GOSPEL!
FOCUS ON HOW NEW LIFE HAPPENS ON EARTH AND IN HEAVEN!
THE KINGDOM IS HEAVEN!
It’s made up of everyone who will ever, or who ever has put their faith in Jesus!
Guys, this is the Kingdom that we need to be considering!
This is the Kingdom to SEEK!
That idea of seeking means that the KINGDOM is what we focus on. We don’t focus on the short term difficulties, or on our preferences, we focus on THE KINGDOM!
Here’s a practical way to seek the Kingdom of God:
Time in God’s Word
PRAYER!
Those two things are basic things that we can do to KNOW GOD MORE AND TO UNDERSTAND THE KINGDOM MORE!
I’ll also just honestly say that if we’re starting off our days by being in God’s Word and being focused on the KINGDOM, then it’s going to be SUBSTANTIALLY EASIER FOR US TO BE CONTENT!
BECAUSE WE ARE MEDITATING ON GOD RATHER THAN ON OUR SITUATION!
Psalm 42- MLJ example. I’ve referenced it before, but the world is always going to try and distract us from the Kingdom. We have to RUN AFTER THE KINGDOM, not after what the world pushes.
But seeking the Kingdom isn’t just mental. It’s action! Part of seeking the KINGDOM is ordering our life and what God has given us to reflect that. Look at how the Philippians have done that.
Philippians 4:14-20
Philippians 4:14-20
Check out this second part of the passage with me. Philippians 4:14-20
14 Still, you did well by partnering with me in my hardship.
15 And you Philippians know that in the early days of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving except you alone. 16 For even in Thessalonica you sent gifts for my need several times. 17 Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the profit that is increasing to your account. 18 But I have received everything in full, and I have an abundance. I am fully supplied, having received from Epaphroditus what you provided—a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God. 19 And my God will supply all your needs according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. 20 Now to our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen.
In Paul’s contentment he’s THANKFUL FOR THE SUPPORT OF THE PHILIPPIANS!
Friends, don’t mistake contentment for saying that everything is perfect. It’s not the same thing. That’s what culture says contentment is, but biblically, it’s saying, “God has provided and will provide, so I can face all things THROUGH CHRIST WHO STRENGTHENS ME!”
In Paul’s life, in his struggles and in his victories, the Philippians have been his partners. They were used by God to support and provide for Paul!
He talks about how they sent gifts to him, “Several times.”
He also shares with them how he isn’t requesting gifts, but instead, how he seeks to see the Philippians rewarded by God!
Instead of seeking another gift, Paul says that he has, “Received everything in full” and that he has an “abundance.”
That’s not typical prisoner language, but that IS biblical contentment language!
He’s CONTENT BECAUSE OF WHAT GOD HAS DONE, not because everything is perfect! I can’t stress that enough today!
Paul then talks about their gifts.
He describes their gifts in three ways- all of which are found throughout scripture. He calls them:
A fragrant offering- This is Genesis 8:20-22
20 Then Noah built an altar to the Lord. He took some of every kind of clean animal and every kind of clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar. 21 When the Lord smelled the pleasing aroma, he said to himself, “I will never again curse the ground because of human beings, even though the inclination of the human heart is evil from youth onward. And I will never again strike down every living thing as I have done.
22 As long as the earth endures,
seedtime and harvest, cold and heat,
summer and winter, and day and night
will not cease.”
We see similar language of a “FRAGRANT OFFERING,” or a “PLEASING AROMA” in Leviticus 5 as God commands the Israelites about HOW TO OFFER SACRIFICES!
This is what the gift from the Philippians is! It’s SACRIFICIAL! Don’t be fooled- they didn’t send Paul what was left over at the end of the month, or just the smallest amount possible; they gave sacrificially!
An acceptable sacrifice
This is Genesis 4:4-5
4 And Abel also presented an offering—some of the firstborn of his flock and their fat portions. The Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, 5 but he did not have regard for Cain and his offering. Cain was furious, and he looked despondent.
This is Malachi 3:7-10
7 “Since the days of your ancestors, you have turned from my statutes; you have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord of Armies.
Yet you ask, “How can we return?”
8 “Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing me!”
“How do we rob you?” you ask.
“By not making the payments of the tenth and the contributions. 9 You are suffering under a curse, yet you—the whole nation—are still robbing me. 10 Bring the full tenth into the storehouse so that there may be food in my house. Test me in this way,” says the Lord of Armies. “See if I will not open the floodgates of heaven and pour out a blessing for you without measure.
Yes, our offerings to God can be PLEASING, or ACCEPTABLE OR NOT!
THIS IS POWERFUL STUFF! BUT THIS IS WHAT THE PHILIPPIANS OFFERING IS!
Pleasing to God
This is Romans 12:1-2
1 Therefore, brothers and sisters, in view of the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your true worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.
This is Mark 12:41-44
41 Sitting across from the temple treasury, he watched how the crowd dropped money into the treasury. Many rich people were putting in large sums. 42 Then a poor widow came and dropped in two tiny coins worth very little. 43 Summoning his disciples, he said to them, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. 44 For they all gave out of their surplus, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had—all she had to live on.”
FRIENDS! THIS IS THE PHILIPPIANS GIFT! THEY ARE GIVING EVERYTHING THAT THEY HAVE FOR THE SAKE OF THE GOSPEL!
THEIR GIVING IS AN ACT OF WORSHIP! Whether they have much or little, they are giving!
And they are doing it not for Paul, but to WORSHIP THE LORD!
And here’s how we know that this gift is substantial; Paul reminds them that GOD WILL SUPPLY ALL OF THEIR NEEDS!
This is why we can give! BECAUSE GOD ALWAYS PROVIDES!
Example of Tithe, example of sabbath! Everyone else is working but yet the Israelites still had food to eat and clothes to wear!
Listen, let me just make this as simple as I can- everything that we have is from God, so how are we using what God has given us?
Because really, none of the STUFF that we have is from us or is about us. It’s all about God!
That carries into our response! As God supplies the needs of the Philippians look at what Paul says our response SHOULD BE; we should give God- “GLORY FOREVER AND EVER”
We should praise GOD AND GIVE GOD GLORY AS HE SUPPLIES OUR EVERY NEED!
It’s way too easy for us to see God move and to basically say, “Well yeah; that’s what God does. I expect nothing less.”
But in reality, when God is providing- which He is every single day- we should be giving thanks!
A few weeks ago I said that “our thanksgiving is always bigger than our requests.”
That’s what is going on here! Our thanksgiving for WHO GOD IS AND WHAT GOD HAS DONE IS ALWAYS BIGGER AND MORE IMPORTANT THAN OUR REQUESTS BECAUSE GOD ALWAYS MEETS OUR NEEDS!
So we are constantly giving thanks, even as we make a request!
And that frees us up to give in a ton of different directions!
Biblical Contentment Leads us to give Sacrificially
Biblical Contentment Leads us to give Sacrificially
We can give our time and our energy because we aren’t caught up in anxiety.
We can give our money because God has and always WILL provide!
We can give our REST because God is with us in this!
I really want to encourage us, it’s easy for us to try and come up with all sorts of exclusions for why we don’t have to give of our money, or time, or whatever.
Now, for the sake of ease, I’m going to talk about money, but understand, it applies to these other things also.
It’s easy for us to say things like, “Tithe is an old covenant thing, so I don’t HAVE TO DO IT!”
And while it’s true that the idea of tithe is an old covenant law, that doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t do it!
If we truly believe that God has provided everything that we have and we are content in that, then we give not out of compulsion, but out of a cheerful heart, giving sacrificially, like the Philippians did!
They give to Paul’s ministry even though they don’t directly get the results. They give sacrificially because they know that they are only STEWARDING WHAT GOD HAS GIVEN them!
And that’s the same reality for us! The money that we make? WE ARE MERELY STEWARDS OF IT! IT IS FIRST AND FOREMOST GOD’S!
The time that we have? We are only stewards of it! It’s GOD’S GIFT TO US!
And what better act of worship is there than to take our gifts and what God has given and to lay them down sacrificially for the Kingdom!
I find myself picturing Revelation 4, where the 24 elders in heaven FALL DOWN AND WORSHIP THE LORD! Here’s what John recounts:
10 the twenty-four elders fall down before the one seated on the throne and worship the one who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne and say,
11 Our Lord and God,
you are worthy to receive
glory and honor and power,
because you have created all things,
and by your will
they exist and were created.
Notice that! The elders, these leaders fall down before God and they WORSHIP GOD! THEY DON’T KEEP THEIR CROWNS, THEY CAST THEM DOWN AND WORSHIP HIM WHOLEHEARTEDLY!
Whether it’s with our time, our gifts, our energy, or our money, what an opportunity we have to WORSHIP GOD IN THE SAME WAY!
So let me ask us, how are WE giving sacrificially? How are we being content with what God has given and choosing to GIVE SACRIFICIALLY AS AN ACT OF WORSHIP?
Friends, we can’t just read this example of the Philippians and skip over it. It matters! It’s a powerful example!
Philippians 4:21-23
Philippians 4:21-23
Here’s Paul’s final instructions to the Philippians in this letter: Philippians 4:21-23
21 Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The brothers who are with me send you greetings. 22 All the saints send you greetings, especially those who belong to Caesar’s household. 23 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.
Paul instructs the Philippians to GREET ONE ANOTHER- EVERY SAINT- every believer who is in their midst!
This is really a way of bringing them right back to chapter 1! This is Paul calling for them to CONTINUE BUILDING AND TO DEEPEN THEIR KOINONIA!
Remember what we said in chapter 1- Koinonia, biblical fellowship requires SHARING OUR LIVES- so we need to talk, and it’s about sharing the same mission! Koinonia brings GLORY TO GOD!
Next, Paul shares that the men with him in Rome send greetings. But there’s something that we skip over in verse 22.
THE SAINTS IN CAESAR’S HOUSEHOLD SEND GREETINGS!
THIS IS HUGE! AT A TIME WHERE PERSECUTION OF CHRISTIANS WAS STANDARD AND ENCOURAGED IN THE ROMAN WORLD, THERE WERE CHRISTIANS EVERYWHERE, INCLUDING CAESAR’S HOUSEHOLD!
Understand this- no matter what man does to try and stop the spread of the Gospel, MAN CANNOT AND WILL NOT EVER BE ABLE TO STOP GOD!
OUR GOD IS BIGGER THAN EVERY ATTEMPT OF MAN TO STOP HIM!
PRAISE GOD FOR THAT!
And as his final reminder, Paul encourages the Philippians with one more thing- THE GRACE OF GOD BE WITH THEIR SPIRIT!
THIS IS A BLESSING! THIS IS HIS BENEDICTION! This is what Paul wants to make sure that the Philippians remember!
In the midst of giving encouragement, challenges and instructions, he does not want them to lose sight of the fact that OUR ENTIRE WORLDVIEW ONLY EXISTS BEAUSE OF THE GRACE OF GOD!
Nothing Will Ever Stop the Gospel
Nothing Will Ever Stop the Gospel
This is one of my favorite application points I’ve gotten to make all series long.
Satan will try to stop the gospel. Satan will throw everything that he can at the gospel. But satan will NEVER triumph!
When things are hard, when you want to give up, when things feel impossible; cling to Jesus!
NOTHING WILL EVER STOP THE GOSPEL!
NOT MAN’S PLANS, NOT SATAN’S ATTEMPTS, NOTHING CAN EVER STOP THE WORD OF GOD FROM PREVAILING!
Individual churches will come and go, communities will see more or fewer believers in different seasons, but understand this in no uncertain terms; nothing will ever stop the gospel!
As an application point, do we really believe that?
Because if we do, then our outlook on reaching people changes!
“No” when we talk to someone about Jesus isn’t actually no, it’s a not yet. We start to understand that there’s a full-spiritual war going on every single day. We don’t wage war against flesh and blood. Ephesians 6:12
12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this darkness, against evil, spiritual forces in the heavens.
We have to remember this! Our fight isn’t against one another, or against a person that doesn’t like Christians, it’s a spiritual war!
It’s pretty common in churches for people to feel that the community they are in doesn’t like them. Usually this is because of a community not rising to the expectations that a church has.
And to be totally honest, I’ve had conversations in the last few weeks and months about this.
Just to be honest, the fix isn’t a sign; it isn’t another event; it’s not something with the building, or something online. The fix? It’s prayer! The fix is prayer!
The fix is to understand that we aren’t fighting THOSE PEOPLE, the war is with SATAN HIMSELF! IT’S A WAR AGAINST POWERS OF DARKNESS, EVIL, AND SPIRITUAL FORCES!
So let me just practically call on us as a church- let’s be a people that pray for our community and for OUR NEIGHBORS!
This is what we’re calling the year of the Neighbor. And I’ll just be blunt- if you don’t know at least 2-3 of your neighbors names, then it’s go time to learn those! After you know their names, PRAY FOR THEM BY NAME! PRAY AND ASK THAT GOD WOULD HELP THEM TO SEE HIM!
If you want help getting started in this, grab a Who’s Your One resource and pray through that!
But Cornerstone; hear me very clearly this morning. ABSOLUTELY NOTHING WILL EVER STOP THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST! Not man, not a government, not people who don’t pursue God, not any of the issues of the Philippians; hear me- nothing will ever stop the GOSPEL!
Let me pray for us today.
