ChristianContentment

Tom was recently declared a bankrupt because a high-riskstock-market investment, he made several months ago, went awry. Tom had knownthis risk when he started, but he took his chance. Jane is an executive in arenown advertising company. She had laboured her way up the corporate ladder byshear hard work, but in the process she neglected her family and her husbanddivorced her. Dick is not married, what he earned as a store assistant issufficient for him to live comfortably, but he decides to work as a drivinginstructor out of his office hours and the whole of each Sunday. In addition,he is also studying for a degree part-time. Eventually, Dick broke down becauseof exhaustion. Harry is despondent because he alone, of all his classmates atschool, does not have a girlfriend. He began to indulge in fantasies andpornography. Pam was recently diagnosed with cancer of the liver and was toldby her doctor that she does not have many months more to live. She was sodepressed that she attempted suicide.

If I tell you that these five persons all profess to beChristians, I am sure that, if you yourself profess to be a Christian, you willsay that there must be something wrong with each one of them. But if I ask youto pinpoint what is that something that is wrong, you will likely give me avariety of answers ranging from greed to lust to hopelessness; and it will beunlikely that you will identify totally with anyone of them. It may surpriseyou, therefore, if I tell you that the fundamental problem with each one ofthem is the same, and that you too are likely to have the same problem to onedegree or another. What is this problem? May I suggest that it is a lack of aparticular virtue, namely, contentment.The want of contentment is the fundamental problem in most believers, whichmanifests itself in a variety of noticeable ways. Contentment is so vital for aChristian that it is placed next to godliness by Paul. He says, "Godlinesswith contentment is great gain" (1 Tim 6:6).

What is "Contentment"?

The Webster Dictionary defines it simply as "the state orquality of being satisfied and not displeased." But what is"Christian contentment"? William Hendriksen captures the sense of theword when he translated the Greek (autarkeia) as "soul-sufficiency."But the Puritan divine, Jeremiah Burroughs, explains it best: "Christiancontentment is that sweet, inward, quiet, gracious frame of spirit, whichfreely submits to and delights in God’s wise and fatherly disposal in everycondition." Two ideas stand out clearly in this definition. First, itspeaks of contentment as flowing from the heart and soul, rather than fromexternal circumstances or stimuli. Thus if you feel happy because you have afull stomach, it is not really contentment for it is a temporary satisfactionproduced by food. In the same way if you have been generally unhappy with yourjob, but suddenly gets a pay rise and you feel happy, it is also no realcontentment for it is externally induced and you will soon want more. Christiancontentment is quite independent of circumstances. It is a disposition of theheart and the soul, and generally lasting. Secondly, Christian contentment mustbe seen in relation to the sovereign God whom the believer loves.

The unbeliever’s fatalistic creed, "Don’t worry, behappy," simply does not speak of contentment. It speaks of plainirresponsibility or fatalism depending on how you look at it. But a Christianwho is content, in the true sense of the word, submits to the will of God inwhatever circumstance, whether he perceives it to be good or bad. He knows thatGod’s hand is in every circumstance, and he knows that all things work togetherfor good to them that love God. Thus a Christian who has been retrenched,through no fault of his own (i.e., if he has been obedient to Colossians3:22–25, etc.), does not descend into the valley of depression. Rather herejoices in his trial (Jas 1:2; Phil 4:4) and he asks God for wisdom to knowhow his soul may best benefit from the testing (Jas 1:5).

Contentment is Achievable

Someone may object: "All these sound so ideal, but can a real Christian achieve that inreality?" My answer is, emphatically, yes! A real Christian can no doubtbe content, else the Scripture is irrelevant to anyone. In fact, contentmentcan be learnt or cultivated. One of the most remarkable statement made by theApostle Paul on the subject of contentment is found in Philippians 4:11,"Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoeverstate I am, therewith to be content." But how can contentment be learned?I suggest that, in the case of a Christian, it may be learned by discoveringthe causes of discontentment and then dealing with them. This is so becausecontentment ought really to be a fundamental virtue of every believer since weought to be "dead with Christ" (Rom 6:8; Col 2:20; 3:3). Thus a lackof contentment speaks of remaining corruption, which may be remedied with thehelp of the Holy Spirit as we discover its causes in our soul. What are thecauses of discontentment? Paul hints at three reasons in the succeeding contextof 1 Timothy 6:6.

Firstly, discontentment arises from a failure to distinguish between thetemporary and the permanent. Paul says, "For we brought nothing into thisworld, and it is certain we can carry nothing out" (v. 7). This is commonsense. When we were born into this world we had nothing. In the same way, whenwe die we will not be able to bring anything with us. The patriarch Job puts itgraphically: "Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall Ireturn thither" (Job 1:21a). What is the remedy for this symptom? Nonebetter than that of our Lord’s: "Lay not up for yourselves treasures uponearth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through andsteal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth norrust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal" (Matt6:19–20). So then, if you would learn to be content, learn to distinguishbetween what is temporal and what is eternal, and always give much morepriority to what is eternal. Bear in mind that this has to do not only with ourmaterial possessions, but our time and how we live. Let us live like pilgrimsheading to that Celestial City (cf. Heb 11:14–16, 26).

Secondly, discontentment is also caused by our failure to distinguishbetween needs and luxuries. Paul says, "And having food and raiment let usbe therewith content" (1 Tim 6:8). It is true that the definition of needshas changed over time. What is needed today was luxury in the past. But theargument is still relevant to us today. Few of us can honestly say that we donot have more than we need for our basic necessities. So, in the light of theApostle’s teaching, it would mean that we should not be yearning for more thanwhat we already have. To help cultivate a sense of the difference between needsand luxuries, the first question that you should always ask, when acquiringsomething, is: "Is it really necessary that I should have this?" andnot "Do I have the means to purchase it?" So, if you are planning toget a car, first ask, "Do I really need it?" and then only after youdetermine that you really need it, then ask, "Can I afford it?" Donot give in to the temptation to get what is not really needful but luxurious.Naturally, it is crucially important to refrain if you will get into a big debtto purchase what you want. When you are struggling with this aspect of workingon contentment, may I urge you to consider our LORD Himself, for "thefoxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hathnot where to lay his head" (Matt 8:20). Each time you pray the Lord’sprayer: "Give us this day our daily bread," remember how our Lordlived for our sake.

The third cause of discontentment is plainlycovetousness. Paul warns, "For the love of money is the root of all evil:which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and piercedthemselves through with many sorrows" (1 Tim 6:10). Wanting to be rich maynot be a sin in itself. Some may want to be rich for noble reasons ofsupporting a large family or because of a desire to contribute more to the workof the ministry. But there is just a very fine line between wanting to be richand coveting. One may be a legitimate aspiration, the other is no less thangreed. We are not warned against noble aspirations, but we are warned againstgreed and covetousness, and the painful result of it. Those who covet err fromthe faith. We are commanded in the 10th commandment, "Thou shalt notcovet." And in case we think that this is the last and so the least of thecommandments, the Apostle Paul warns us that covetousness is in fact idolatry(Col 3:5). If we covet something, we would desire it so much that we would putin our whole heart to try to get it and we would fill our minds with it all thetime. How could we then love the LORD with all our heart and soul and might?Would we not then be committing idolatry, since we have essentially replacedGod with what we covet? In this regard, bear in mind that covetousness is notonly to do with material wealth. In its broadest manifestation, alldiscontentment is covetousness, for when we are discontented with our presentcircumstance, we covet what providence and blessings God has chosen to withholdfrom us. With this broader definition, what is the remedy for this ailment? Letme suggest a three-course remedy.

Remedies AgainstDiscontentment

The first course,—take when you are pleased withyour present circumstances but tempted to become selfish and self-reliant,—isChrist.Remember that you are but a steward of Christ: all you have really belongs toHim. Like the widow with her two mites, aim to bear fruit and please Christwith what time and resources He has placed in your charge. Aim to hear Him sayat the last, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast beenfaithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thouinto the joy of thy lord" (Matt 25:21).

The second course,—take when you are tempted tomurmur because of your present circumstances,—is also Christ. Remember the words ofChrist as He concludes His great sermon on contentment: "But seek ye firstthe kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and allthese things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow:for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto theday is the evil thereof" (Matt 6:33–34). Ask the Lord how you are to walkthat you may seek Him in your present circumstances (cf. 1 Cor 7:17, 20–22).Have you lost your job? Heed the words of Paul: "Be careful for nothing;but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let yourrequests be made known unto God" (Phil 4:6). And while waiting for theLord’s supply, will you not maximise your time by reading those books youshould have read in the Sabbaths squandered away. Has the security of your jobbeen yanked off your feet by a corporate announcement? Think nothing of it.Continue to serve as unto the LORD, and not to men (Eph 6:7); and whatever youare tasked to do, do it heartily, as to the LORD, and not unto men (Col 3:23). Do not beoverwhelmed by the future. It is in God’s sovereign hand.

The third course,—take when you are tempted todespair because the woes that have come upon you is more than you can bear,—isagainChrist. Is your present circumstance too hard? Is it full ofsuffering and frustrations? Dear reader, again do not forget that contentmentcomes from within. Never let external circumstance dictate your heart. Considerthe great mercies of Christ to you, and those afflictions you face will seemminor to you. It was Luther who said, "The sea of God’smercies should swallow up all our particular afflictions." JeremiahBurrough gives a very good illustration: If you throw a pail of water on thefloor of your house, it will make a great show—there will be a sorrowful mess,but if you throw it into the sea, there will be no sign of it at all. Meditate,therefore, on Christ and fill your heart and mind with the mercies of God (Phil4:8); and cast your anxieties upon Him because He cares for you (1 Pet 5:7).Realise that you can "do all things through Christ whichstrengtheneth" you (Phil 4:13).

Can you honestly say that you are content? Take heed, lest youmurmur if the Lord should deprive you as He did Job. Are you struggling withcontentment? Remember that you can learn contentment and you have aresponsibility to do so. All who are in Christ ought to be content becausediscontentment is a result of worldly-mindedness; and worldly-mindedness isinimical to those who are not of this world (Jn 15:19).