Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

2 Thessalonians 3:7-9; 1 Timothy 6:6; Hebrews 13:5

Greeting

Contentment is a serious issue in our world today

A prime example of the mortgage fallout that happened in 2008

Many Americans were upside down on their homes when the bottom fell out of the market

The desire to have more and bigger homes than they could afford

Every few years we need to upgrade our phones even though our old phones were still working well

Many lives are ruled by the all mighty dollar

Leading to anxiety when the numbers don’t add up

For Paul in prison money was a significant issue

He had no way to make his own

Yet as a prisoner in the Roman Empire he couldn’t count on three square meals a day

Everything he ate, dressed himself with or provided for himself had to come out of his own pocket

Unlike many of his contemporary philosophers, Paul had never sought the financial benefits of being an itinerant pastor

they collect tribute, going from house to house, or, as they themselves express it, they ‘shear the sheep’: and they expect many to give, either out of respect for their cloth or for fear of their abusive language

Instead he worked to supply his own needs to set an example for the believers

Even though the passage we are going to look at tonight is Paul’s offering of thanks to the Philippians for a monetary gift

We’re going to see two things

First, that the source of Paul’s joy and contentment is not found in money

Second, that Paul is thankful for more than just the Philippians monetary contribution

Read Philippians 4:10-19

Pray

As I’ve already said contentment is a major problem in our world today

Yet the Bible has much to say on the matter of contentment

The writer of Hebrews says

Paul is a very content man and we can learn from what he says in these verses about how to experience contentment in our own lives

You’re Okay

Philippians 4:10; Philippians 1:14; Philippians 2:19; Philippians 4:1-2; 2 Corinthians 8:1-3;

The “but” here (which could also be translated O yes, and) arrests Paul’s train of thought

It’s as if he just remembered that he needs to thank the Philippians for their gift and if he doesn’t do it now he’ll forget

Paul rejoices not in the gift but in the Lord

Paul never even directly thanks the Philippian believers for their gift

He rejoices first in the Lord - acknowledging again His sovereignty over all things concerning Paul’s life.

Repeatedly throughout this letter Paul has appealed to the condition of being “in the Lord”

His rejoice is not that they sent him money but that they revived their concern for him.

The verb for revive is a figurative word meaning to bloom again

We’re in a time when the world is blooming again -

during the winter the trees go dormant and even though the potential for growth is there

it is kept below the surface until spring comes when it can burst forth blossoming once again

The Philippians had come in to a time when their ability to demonstrate their concern for Paul had again become possible

This would also be a source of rejoicing for the apostle as the church he cared about received some form of respite from the attacks that would plague the early church

At least a decade has passed since Paul first ministered in Philippi

Over that time situations had arisen in the church which prevented the Philippians from demonstrating their concern for Paul

It could be that the disunity that had arisen within the church precluded them from expressing their concern for Paul

Selfishness does not always take the form of greed and is not always ‘grabbing’.

There is another type of selfishness, the type which shows itself by its lack of concern about the lot of others.

~ Martin Lloyd Jones

It also could have been the extreme poverty the church found itself in

Or the persecution that they were facing that Paul talked about in Philippians 1:27-30

It would be very easy to misconstrue Paul’s remarks as a backhanded compliment

Like telling someone that you always feel more intelligent after having spoken with them

But we shouldn’t think that this is Paul’s intent

He has shared a deep personal affection with this church and it would be uncharacteristic of the tone of the letter for him to be sarcastic now

He acknowledges that they didn’t have the opportunity - but as soon as the time came, they were ready and willing to renew their support

There is an important application in this for us that I want to make sure we don’t miss

Even when the Philippians couldn’t send Paul their support - their concern for him never waivered

There may be times in our lives when it isn’t possible to support the church - due to legitimate financial stress, etc.

We shouldn’t feel guilty or badly during these times when the opportunity isn’t available to us

Take care of the debt first as this also impacts your witness to those outside the church

But as soon as the weight is lifted, as soon as we are above water again, we should renew our concern for the church

Paul is now going to shift his focus and qualify his thanks to the Philippians even more

I’m Ok

Philippians 4:11; 1 Corinthians 9:3-14; 2 Corinthians 12:8-9

Not that I speak from want

Paul wants to make sure that everyone understands that he wasn’t dependent of the Philippians gift

To be seen as dependent on the gift would have made Paul a benefactor of the Philippian church

an image he worked very hard to avoid

Paul never wanted to be indebted to any church or to be seen as taking advantage of the churches because of his preaching the Gospel to them

Paul says that he has learned

As the son of a Pharisee Paul probably would have come from a family that was at least middle class if not well off

He would have been used to having much as a child

All of that would have changed after his conversion

Although the attitude of contentment was not natural nor did it come easily, this quality of contentment eventually became an essential attribute of his character.

His statement is that he has learned

It implies that Paul’s whole experience up to the present, especially as a Christian, has been a schooling whose lessons he has not failed to master.

And this is not a temporary or subjective contentedness - Paul says that he is content in whatever circumstances

Borrowing again from Stoic thought during his time the word Paul uses for content is “autarkes” meaning self-sufficient - yet he has a different meaning in mind

The Stoics believed that self-sufficiency meant that “man should be sufficient unto himself for all things, and able, by the power of his own will, to resist the force of circumstance”

In fact the Stoic saw suicide as the highest form of human freedom, independence, and moral dignity, leading to an escape from slavery

This belief is continued to be practiced today among those who ascribe to the buddhist practice

The buddhist’s have qualified these thoughts into four noble truths - that all of life is suffering; that suffering is caused by wanting or craving (even the craving to continue to exist); that suffering can be overcome and happiness attained when we give up cravings; and finally that there is a path that leads to the overcoming of suffering through eight lifestyle practices

Paul borrows this term (an easily recognized term during his time) to express his freedom from wants and worry, untroubled by events outside of his control

But for Paul the source of his self-sufficiency does not come from the same place as the Stoics or the buddhist’s

His source of sufficiency comes from an external source - his source is Christ.

He will never attain to perfection who will not labor to be satisfied with this: that all his natural and spiritual desires should be satisfied in the absence of everything which is not God.

This is most necessary for an abiding peace and tranquility of spirit.

Paul was not without trials

To the troubled church in Corinth he would write and answer to those trying to discredit his ministry to them

Paul was not without worries

He was given a thorn in his flesh by God

And yet he expresses his contentment to the church in Philippi

In essence he is telling them that their relationship is not contingent on their support of him

He is reinforcing his affection and love for them

Now he’s going to get even more detailed about the embodiment of true contentment is

The Secret of True Contentment

Philippians 4:12

We must keep in mind that this passage is flanked by a reference to the Philippians’ anxiety over their needs (4:6–7) and by a promise that God will supply those needs (4:19).

The Philippians needed to hear—and to see exemplified in the apostle—that the enjoyment of material abundance is not the basis for contentment.

Paul had learned through out his life what it was to have little and to have much