“Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.” (Phil. 4:11)
I have not, but I’m trying to.
Circumstances will arrive in your life that will cause you to be discontent, there is no avoiding this truth, but what I would ask you to notice in our opening verse is the word “learned,” it means being taught by personal example.
No one wants their house taken away and needing to learn to live on the street. “And Jesus said unto him, Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.” (Luke 9:58)
Very few people are attempting to lose willingly whatever position of power or authority they may have over others, no matter how miniscule it may be. “Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.” (Matt. 20:28)
I know of very few if any whose desire it is to live a life of sorrow, to have as a constant companion of grief. “He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.” (Isaiah 53:3)
To be content one must understand and fully acknowledge the truth of these words, “Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.” (Luke 22:42)
We have to be taught how to be content, and for that to happen we must lose, or give up, willingly that which we have become accustomed to, we must learn to do with what we have instead of thinking of what we would do if we had more.
“Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Heb. 12:2)
The Lord Jesus Christ is our example of how to be content, how to do without, how to do with what we have.
“Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?” (Matt. 26:53)
But He didn’t.
For at least three and a half years He did not have a paying job, no income financially for His efforts, yet daily He was provided for, and He was content with what was given to Him, for He knew the Father would provide. We must take the same approach, if it is removed from you, no matter what “it” is, you do not need it any longer, if something is added unto you, in some form it is to be used for the glory of God.
Things depart from us, and we remain content, after we have been taught how to be content. If much is added unto us, we are not more content, but there is the possibility of sin in both cases.
But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:” (Matt. 6:20)
Learning to be content when items are removed from you has the possibility of causing grief and resentment that should not be there.
“For ye had compassion of me in my bonds, and took joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance.” (Heb. 10:34)
If much is added to us, self-reliance, a form of pride in itself may cause us to stumble.
“For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?” (1st Cor. 4:7)
That contentment that we must learn can, in my humble opinion, be taught and received when the last part of Genesis 15:1 is accepted as truth. “I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.”
An heir to the Kingdom of heaven in all honesty will never be truly content until we get home, but this life is fertile ground to be taught how to be content in proportion for that day. Being able to count all past accomplishments as dung, losing all for Christ, dying to self, these are the path to contentment, and that path leads to the strait gate where we will be eternally content.
Another truth for you, if you will accept it on this road to learning to be content here, stop trying to be happy, and start learning how to be holy. The opposite of what the entire world believes is our path, obedience to the Word and will of God.
“These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.” (John 15:11)
Joy is far beyond happiness, it is the fulfillment of being content, and that path begins with listening and adhering to John 14:15. “If ye love me, keep my commandments.”
