Got Contentment?

Yet true godliness with contentment is itself great wealth. After all, we brought nothing with us when we came into the world, and we can’t take anything with us when we leave it. So if we have enough food and clothing, let us be content. [1 Timothy 6.6-8]

To understand that 'contentment in godliness is great wealth' is a major accomplishment for anyone.

What does it take to be content in godliness? It's not like we have to go buy something to help us do that!

God's Word is where godliness begins. While reading the Bible is a great place to start, God's Word encompasses much more than that because God's Word is much more than a book. In fact, God's Word is Jesus Christ. 

So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son. [John 1.14]

Therefore, knowing God's Word is more than just knowing the Bible - it is knowing Jesus. Godliness is found in Jesus.

It is not ironic then that Jesus is the One who taught this:

Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. [Matthew 6.33]

While I suppose it is possible to seek the Kingdom of God above all else and still seek other things with less priority, how much better is it to seek the Kingdom of God above all else without a care beyond that? We must understand that Jesus did say everything would be provided. Can we not be content with that?

In the context of Matthew 6.33, Jesus actually spoke directly to the matter of contentment in godliness:

“No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money. “That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? “And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith? “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. [Matthew 6.24-32]

Those reading the One Year Chronological Bible with me will recognize that the concept of two masters Jesus addressed above was also just seen in recent days in the writings of James:

But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do. [James 1.6-8]

The matter of loyalty then is directly tied to the matter of contentment. Loyalty really doesn't allow for a person to seek the Kingdom of God above all else AND still seek other things, does it? Contentment and divided loyalty cannot coexist. Contentment is found in singular loyalty. That would explain why so many Christians today are so unsettled: their loyalty is divided. James said such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.

Yet true godliness with contentment is itself great wealth. After all, we brought nothing with us when we came into the world, and we can’t take anything with us when we leave it. So if we have enough food and clothing, let us be content. [1 Timothy 6.6-8]

It would seem then that the crux of the matter is whether we are living for this life or for eternity. If our loyalty is divided between the two, Jesus, James and Paul all agree that that situation in much less than ideal.

So, how do we find this contentment Paul speaks of? I believe it starts off in prayer as Jesus taught us to pray. Not ironically, the first things Jesus taught us to pray point us in the right direction:

Pray like this: Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy. May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. [Matthew 6.9-10]

Until we pray like this, there is simply no way we will successfully act accordingly! 

Our contentment in godliness, more specifically then, begins in prayer. From this attitude in prayer, God's Word, Jesus, is given opportunity to take His rightful position as Lord of our hearts. From that position, His focus will be God's holiness, God's Kingdom and God's will on earth. However, we must consciously vacate that position in order for Him to take it. Whoever is lord of our heart controls everything about our lives. If we have not yielded the throne of our heart to Jesus, then God's holiness, God's Kingdom and God's will come into competition with our desires and, as we all know too well, discontentment is the result.

The best solution therefore is to give Jesus full Lordship of our hearts. It has been aptly said that "Jesus is either Lord of all or not Lord at all." No amount of "stuff" (not even the stuff we need) can bring the contentment that comes when Jesus is Lord of all in our hearts and lives.

True godliness is this: Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy. May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. When we are content in this godliness, we can then simply say, give us today the food we need...

And here it is again today... (see yesterday's article: Outdated, Irrelevant, And Just Plain Foolish?): debt, insurance, medicine and technology all serve to foster discontent as their marketing campaigns directly target "self," "self-preservation," or "self-gratification." Not a one of these markets "...may your name be kept holy. May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven."  Does this not only further confirm their status as idols?

Contentment. Got contentment?

Father, may my heart be exclusively Jesus' throne to keep Your name holy, seek Your Kingdom first and do Your will on earth as it is in heaven. I trust You to take care of my needs today - I don't even know if there will be a tomorrow! So be it!