Learning To Be Content [Part 1]
Learning To Be Content [Part 1]

Learning To Be Content [Part 1]

Sermon Text

Philippians 4:10-12

Date
December 10, 2023
Speaker
Ps Paul Cheng
Reading Time

~17 min read

TRANSCRIPT

I greet all of you in the blessed name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Our text for this morning's message is taken from Philippians 4:10-12. Allow me to read for you Philippians 4:10-12, "But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly, that now at the last your care of me hath flourished again; wherein ye were also careful, but ye lacked opportunity. Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need."

The Lord bless the reading of His holy and sacred Word. The title of our message is “Learning to be Content”. Contentment is something that most people would desire to have, yet few would rarely take time to consider its true meaning and implications. As Christians, we would all agree that contentment can only come to us through a right relationship with God and trusting in His sovereign, loving, and purposeful providence. But nonetheless, in reality, we would do the opposite. We would seek for contentment in places where it cannot be found. We would try to seek for contentment in money, material possessions, power, fame, prestige, relationships, or even in our jobs. Somehow we have this idea that contentment can come to us when we are free from difficulties. That is why we rely on all these things for security. But the truth is that contentment cannot be attained through all these things because in this fallen world, it is impossible to be completely free from problems.

Well, the Bible has much to say about contentment. In the gospel of Luke chapter 3, after John the Baptist preached a strong message about repentance, the soldiers asked him, "What shall we do?" And he said unto them, "Do violence unto no man, neither accuse any falsely, and be content with your wages." In other words, do not engage yourselves in all these wicked deeds to gain ill-gotten wealth. Just be content, be happy, be satisfied with your wages. The Apostle Paul said to young Timothy, "godliness with contentment is great gain." And how would that be possible? He went on to say, "For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out." (1 Timothy 6:6-7). This is an important truth that we must always remember. When we are born, we bring nothing into this world. When we die, we carry nothing out of this world. If nothing in and nothing out, then whatever we have accumulated in between does not belong to us, right? We are just stewards of what we have received from God, and we are either good or bad stewards depending on how we use the resources given to us.

So the Bible not only identifies contentment as a virtue but also prescribes it as a command. The Apostle Paul had come to the concluding part of his letter to the Philippians. He wanted to express his heartfelt gratitude to them. He had a special relationship with the Philippians. They were very generous to him, especially during those difficult moments in his life. He was a prisoner at Rome, confined in a small space, guarded around the clock by a Roman guard. And most certainly, he would be constantly anticipating his trial before the infamous Emperor Nero and even facing possible death. Unable to support himself, he was absolutely dependent on those gifts sent by generous friends like the Philippians. But beneath the surface of all these trials and afflictions, we see the picture of a man who was totally contented in such devastating circumstances. Paul knew how to rejoice in every situation and be free from worries and anxieties because his heart was guarded by the peace of God. Remember, in the preceding verses, Paul had urged the Philippians to seek the peace of God which passes all understanding, which shall guard their hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Dear friend, is your heart always filled with discontentment? Perhaps you are unhappy with your current situation. It could be your job, or your house, or your family, or you are facing all kinds of adversities. How can you be content? Well, let us learn how to be content from the Apostle Paul, who himself was in the midst of life's most severe circumstances. To begin, we cannot be content unless we first understand what Christian contentment is all about.

I. Our Contentment is Based on Our Understanding of God’s Providence

Our first point is “Our Contentment is Based on Our Understanding of God's Providence”. Let us begin with verse 10: "But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly, that now at the last your care of me hath flourished again; wherein ye were also careful, but ye lacked opportunity." Several years had passed since Paul had founded the church at Philippi. At one point in his ministry, in the past, the Philippians were the only church that had supported him financially. And now, they again sent him a gift. But in between, there was a gap. There was a period of time whereby they were not sending him any gifts because they lacked opportunity. The reason for the lack of opportunity was not given to us. Maybe it was because of their extreme poverty, or maybe they were unaware of Paul's needs, or they were unable to locate him. We do not know for sure. These are just some of the possibilities. But the important point is that recently, they were able to continue to support him again. When Epaphroditus arrived at Rome, he brought with him a generous gift from the Philippians. And Paul was so happy that he said, "I rejoiced in the Lord greatly." He rejoiced not just because his needs were met but because he was able to hear about them and to experience their love for him after almost 10 years.

That gap, that period of time, was about 10 years. That was why he said, "Now at the last your care of me hath flourished again; wherein ye were also careful, but ye lacked opportunity." In other words, you were always concerned about me, but it is just because you lacked the opportunity. How do we know that his rejoicing was not because of the gift meeting his needs? Well, later on in verse 17, Paul said, "Not because I desire a gift: but I desire fruit that may abound to your account." The word "flourish" is a very interesting word. It is a term that is used to describe a plant flowering again. Some of us here love to do gardening. If there's a plant in your garden that has not been producing fruit for whatever reasons, and then all of a sudden, it started to produce much fruit, I believe you would be very happy. How much more when you experience the flourishing love the believers will show to you after being inactive for almost 10 years. It is just like something that has been dead and then all of a sudden, it is revived and it is flourishing. Most of you know that when the Lord called me to serve Him full-time, I was serving in the prison ministry in Singapore. I was preaching the gospel to the former drug addicts. Through the years, I built a strong brotherly bond with those people whom I have counselled. After I came to pastor this church in Melbourne, I still kept in touch with some of them, but I lost contact with the majority. Sometimes I used to think, do they still remember me? Have they forgotten about me? We spent years together; maybe they have forgotten.

Last month, I visited Singapore with my son Silas. Some of them heard about my visit. When they heard that I was preaching at a particular church, they came to attend the worship service, and they even invited me to their homes. I was very touched. Just when I thought they had forgotten, then I saw the love flourishing again. This is just like the glimpse of what the Apostle Paul would have felt, and the meaning of this word "flourishing." Paul's rejoicing reflects his confidence in God's providence. He was certain that God, in due time, would arrange the circumstances to meet his needs, to encourage his heart, to send the right people. So there was no panic on his part. We do not see Paul attempting to manipulate people. We do not see Paul taking matters into his own hands. He was content because he knew that the times, the season, and the opportunities of life were all controlled by the sovereign God who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will (Ephesians 1:11). That is the meaning of divine providence. Those people who seek to control their own lives will inevitably frustrate themselves. Only a confident trust in God's providence will you and me be content.

Do you know the difference between providence and miracle? Providence and miracle are two ways in which God deals with the world. A miracle is God's direct intervention in this natural world. It is an event so contrary to the normal course of events that there is no scientific explanation for it other than the power of God. For example, there is no natural way you can ever explain the opening of the Red Sea. There is no natural way you can ever explain the raising up of the dead. So you will say, "That is a miracle." On the other hand, God's providence is not miraculous in the sense that it is contrary to the normal order. Rather, it employs the events, the decisions of life, the words we speak, the actions we take, and the seemingly normal circumstances of life to work together supernaturally to fit God's sovereign purpose. So when you and I acknowledge that it is the providential hand of God working, we know that it is just as supernatural as a miracle.

For example, Solomon acknowledged God's providential hands working in his life when he said in Proverbs 16:9, "A man's heart deviseth his way: but the Lord [directed] his steps." You can plan all you want, but it is God Himself who directs your path. God also providentially arranged for Joseph to rise up to such a position that he was able to preserve his people, the Israelites. Later on, after his father Jacob passed away, his brothers were afraid that he might not forgive them. But Joseph said unto them in Genesis 50:20, "But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people". A classic example would also be Esther. Remember Esther? By God's providential hands, she was brought to the position of a queen once again to save the Jews. And Mordecai said to her, "Who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?" (Esther 4:14).

All these biblical accounts are acts of God's providence. Dear friend, you may not see the opening up of the Red Sea before your eyes. You may not see the dead rising up before your eyes. But that does not mean God is not working in your life. What about God's providence? Do you see God's hands working through even the most normal circumstances of life, like in things as simple as sending someone into your life to encourage you, to pray for you, to help you, to support you, to just stand beside you? When you and I truly understand God's providence, His control over our lives, that nothing happens by chance or coincidence, but by His providence, and He is in control of the events of life, then we will be able to rest upon that assurance. Then we will be able to say, like the Apostle Paul, "I rejoiced in the Lord greatly." So when we see the circumstances of life, for the world, they are just seemingly normal circumstances. But with spiritual eyes, we'll be able to see God's providential hands working. And in all situations, we will be able to say, "I rejoiced in the Lord greatly."

II. Our Contentment is Not Based on How Much we Have

Our second point is that “Our Contentment is Not Based on How Much we Have”. In order to reiterate his point that he did not mean because of his lack that was why he was thankful for their gifts, Paul said in verse 11: "Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content." Paul had learned to be content in all kinds of circumstances. His contentment was not affected by his extremely difficult situation. The original Greek word for content in verse 11 is only found here in the entire New Testament. It speaks of being self-sufficient, having enough. Do not depend on others. One ancient writer used this word to refer to a country that has its own produce and is self-sufficient and has no need for imports. In a sense, this word is used to bring out the Christian's contentment. Our contentment comes only from God. Our contentment does not fluctuate according to the circumstances of life. In bad situations, we are unhappy; in good situations, we are happy. No, it does not work like that. We are not self-sufficient; we are sufficient in God and God alone.

In our society, we know that people are not content with having little. But the truth is that wealth, money, cannot buy contentment. We all know that. In fact, those who are rich are often the most miserable and discontented, isn't it true? But that does not mean that poor people are content. Many poor people are constantly fighting for their needs, obsessed with demanding for their rights to be met. Our needs have become our obsession. Our needs have become the number one concern in our culture. When we do not have God in our lives, man is the ultimate, and the goal of life will be to meet his needs. How sad, how tragic.

Do you realise that people are often confused about the distinction between our needs and our desires? Today, almost everything has become our needs. People will say they need better jobs, expensive cars, bigger homes. Our young people would say they need the latest electronic gadgets like computers and handphones and all the accessories. Today, even our little children would say they need space, they need freedom, they need liberty to express themselves outside of parental control. We have confused ourselves with our needs and our desires. What we say we need are not really our needs; they are actually our desires.

Paul knew that the chief end of men was not to have those desires met but to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever. Because of that, he was satisfied with whatever God had given to him. That was why he wrote to young Timothy in 1 Timothy 6:8, "Having food and raiment let us be therewith content." And food and raiment or clothing are the basic necessities of life. We are happy when we are able to have those things. When we have extras, we are happy because we receive them from God's good hand. That is our portion in this earth. But the most important thing is that we have an eternal inheritance reserved for us in Heaven which you and I will never lose and which will never perish. If we understand this important truth, then we will be like the Apostle Paul who says, "For I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith [I am] content."

III. Our Contentment is Not Based on the Circumstances

Our third and final point is “Our Contentment is Not Based on the Circumstances”. Let us look at verse 12, "I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need." To be abased means to be humble, to abound means to increase and to live in prosperity. In other words, whether to live humbly or to live in abundance, to be full or to be hungry, to experience prosperity or to suffer need, Paul was able to rise above those circumstances. So, Paul was saying he had learned by experience, by his life, to live above his circumstances and not be affected by them, not to let his contentment be taken away from him.

Dear friend, this is an important truth for all of us to learn. It is always the difficult circumstances of life that would steal away our joy and our contentment. Now, it is easy for someone who has been always living in prosperity to say such a thing. But this was not the case with Paul. He was not living in a big theological palace. He was not preaching from the high pulpit without understanding what it means to live in poverty. If you study the life of Paul, you will know that he had been tormented in so many areas of his life. Take, for example, on his first missionary journey. Many people believed the Lord Jesus Christ to his ministry, and then angry Jews from Antioch and Iconium, they were jealous, and they stoned him, dragged him out of the city, presuming that he was dead. Later on, both Silas and Paul were arrested and put into prison for preaching the gospel. When he preached to the people at Berea, again, Jews from Thessalonica were unhappy, stirred up the crowd, and forced him to leave Berea. When he preached at Athens, he was mocked and ridiculed by the sceptical Greek philosophers. He was constantly being persecuted, whipped 39 times, he experienced shipwreck and was imprisoned on several occasions.

It does not mean that there will be no trouble. To be content does not mean you will not suffer, that everything will be smooth sailing. But what it means is that you are able to rise above the circumstances. And the secret in rising above the circumstances is by focusing on the things of Heaven. That was the reason why Paul said in 2 Corinthians 4:17, "For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory". In other words, his present affliction, whatever it may be — imprisonment, whipped 39 times, shipwreck — all these afflictions, they are considered light, and it is only for a moment. Why? Because there's nothing in comparison with the far exceeding and eternal weight of glory. So, when you look to the things of Heaven and you look to the glory of Heaven that one day that would be your eternal home, and then you consider the afflictions you are going through, it is light. It is but for a moment. That is what it means when Paul said this verse.

Dear friend, as we live our days on this earth, as we serve the Lord Jesus Christ faithfully, whatever we go through in this physical life, there may be afflictions, there may be troubles, there may even be sufferings, but it is light. It is but for a moment. And, for that matter, whatever we have in this life, whatever we have accumulated in this life, it is also but for a moment. They are things temporal. Whatever we have is only good for this world. Once we die, we cannot carry a single sand out of this world. Naked we come, naked we go.

There were two men who attended their friend's funeral, and as they were leaving, one of them asked the other, "How much did he leave behind?" He was expecting the answer to be, "Well, he left behind a house in Glen Waverly and another house in Brighton and three cars and $1 million." That was not the answer. The wise man replied, "Everything he left behind, everything." If our Lord Jesus would tarry in His return and we are not caught up to meet Him in the clouds as in the rapture, one day, someone else would also say the same thing about us, "What has he or she left behind?" Everything. As Christians, we have only one life to live. We want to live this life to the fullest. We should not be focusing on things temporal but on things eternal. What will last forever and ever is the glory of Heaven.

Discontentment is a sin, and just like all the other sins, no one is exempted from it, whether you are rich or you are poor, you can still be troubled by discontentment. There was once a financial advisor who visited a poor village in Africa. He asked one of the villagers, "What is the biggest problem in the village?" He was expecting to hear about a shortage of food or the lack of medical supplies. He was not prepared for the response he received, discontentment. And the man explained, "In our village, if a man has a mud hut, he wants one made of stone. If he has a mud roof, he wants one made of tiles. If he has one acre of land, he wants two. Discontentment is a disease of the heart." If you and I are not careful, it will lead us to covetousness. It will affect our services for the Lord. It will affect our spiritual growth, and it will lead us to many other grievous sins. May the Lord have mercy on us.

How can we learn to be content? Remember, our contentment is based on our understanding of God's providence. When we truly understand God's providential control over our lives and the events of life, that nothing happens by chance or coincidence, even simple things like sending someone into our lives to help us, to support us, to pray with us — it is by His providential hand. And we rest upon that assurance. Then we will be content. Our contentment is not based on how much we have. However much we have, we are happy because we receive them from the good hands of God. That is our portion on this earth. What is most important is our eternal inheritance reserved for us in Heaven which will never perish. Our contentment is not based on the circumstances. Whatever we go through in this life, whether it be afflictions, troubles, sufferings, whatever we have, they are only temporal, they are light, only for the moment in comparison with Heaven's glory waiting for us if you and I are faithful. And I pray that all of us will always remain faithful to the almighty God.

When we return next week, we will consider the second part of learning to be content. Let us pray. Father in Heaven, we thank Thee for this opportunity for us to consider this portion of scriptures, how Thou would teach us through the life of the Apostle Paul, most importantly through Thy inspired and preserved Word, how we ought to be content. Indeed, oftentimes we are troubled with discontentment. It is a sin. It may have affected some of us so much so that our spiritual walk with Thee has been affected, our worship of Thee has been affected. Forgive us. Thou has reminded us through this passage how we ought to be content. Oh Lord, remind us always and help us. Be patient with us because we always forget. Teach us Thy precious Word, and may the Holy Spirit be our divine teacher to teach us, guide us, lead us so that we will live out this truth in our lives, and we are content in Thee, sufficient in Thee. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.

THE BOOK OF PHILIPPIANS
Learning To Be Content [Part 1]
Learning To Be Content [Part 1]

Philippians 4:10-12

Learning To Be Content [Part 2]
Learning To Be Content [Part 2]

Philippians 4:13-19