1 00:00:00,000 –> 00:00:03,600 This is week two in a series that we have called 2 00:00:03,600 –> 00:00:05,920 the Art of Contentment. 3 00:00:05,920 –> 00:00:08,920 We have framed contentment as a journey 4 00:00:08,920 –> 00:00:11,280 in which we move from anger to peace, 5 00:00:11,280 –> 00:00:13,440 from frustration to satisfaction 6 00:00:13,440 –> 00:00:16,040 and from anxiety to trust. 7 00:00:16,040 –> 00:00:19,680 We have set a goal as a congregation for this month 8 00:00:19,680 –> 00:00:22,059 that by the grace of God we will grow 9 00:00:22,059 –> 00:00:25,440 in this holy art of contentment. 10 00:00:25,440 –> 00:00:27,080 And it’s for that reason that we’re coming 11 00:00:27,180 –> 00:00:29,320 to Philippians in chapter four 12 00:00:29,320 –> 00:00:32,040 and particularly verse 11 today 13 00:00:32,040 –> 00:00:35,220 where the Apostle says I have learned 14 00:00:35,220 –> 00:00:40,220 in whatever situation I am to be content. 15 00:00:41,720 –> 00:00:43,400 Now I want you to notice straight away 16 00:00:43,400 –> 00:00:45,320 that what we have here in these words 17 00:00:45,320 –> 00:00:47,860 are words of personal testimony. 18 00:00:47,860 –> 00:00:52,119 Actually Paul refers to himself no less than five times 19 00:00:52,119 –> 00:00:54,320 in just three verses 20 00:00:54,320 –> 00:00:57,959 and he does it without the faintest hint of pride 21 00:00:57,959 –> 00:01:01,880 or of self-preoccupation but notice what he says, 22 00:01:01,880 –> 00:01:05,720 I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content, 23 00:01:05,720 –> 00:01:07,860 I know how to be brought low, 24 00:01:07,860 –> 00:01:09,839 I know how to abound, 25 00:01:09,839 –> 00:01:13,059 I have learned the secret of facing plenty in hunger 26 00:01:13,059 –> 00:01:18,059 and I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. 27 00:01:18,160 –> 00:01:19,760 Now five times in three verses, 28 00:01:19,760 –> 00:01:23,400 this is clearly the language of personal experience. 29 00:01:23,400 –> 00:01:24,879 This is the Apostle Paul saying, 30 00:01:24,879 –> 00:01:27,680 look, I want to tell you something that I’ve found, 31 00:01:27,680 –> 00:01:32,099 experienced and proved in my own life. 32 00:01:32,099 –> 00:01:37,099 This has been true for me and it can be true for you. 33 00:01:38,599 –> 00:01:40,980 So this is the language of personal testimony 34 00:01:40,980 –> 00:01:44,639 and experience that we’re tuning into today. 35 00:01:44,639 –> 00:01:47,680 It is what God has done in the life of one believer 36 00:01:47,680 –> 00:01:52,320 and what he is able to do in the life of all believers. 37 00:01:52,379 –> 00:01:55,680 Now notice secondly here that Paul had experienced 38 00:01:55,680 –> 00:02:00,680 the best and the worst of life in this world. 39 00:02:01,680 –> 00:02:04,580 He knew what it was to be brought low 40 00:02:04,580 –> 00:02:07,779 and he knew what it was to abound. 41 00:02:07,779 –> 00:02:09,899 He knew what it was to have plenty 42 00:02:09,899 –> 00:02:12,860 and he knew what it was to be in need. 43 00:02:12,860 –> 00:02:15,279 In other words, Paul is saying to us, 44 00:02:15,279 –> 00:02:19,360 now look, in terms of the experience of life, 45 00:02:19,360 –> 00:02:23,059 you need to know as you listen to my personal testimony 46 00:02:23,059 –> 00:02:25,279 that I’ve been at the top, 47 00:02:25,279 –> 00:02:27,679 doesn’t get better than what I have experienced 48 00:02:27,679 –> 00:02:29,520 at some time in my life, 49 00:02:29,520 –> 00:02:34,240 I have known what it is for life to be as good as it gets. 50 00:02:34,240 –> 00:02:37,580 You also need to know that I’ve been to the bottom, 51 00:02:37,580 –> 00:02:39,600 that there have been times in my life 52 00:02:39,600 –> 00:02:41,919 that have been as bad as it gets, 53 00:02:41,919 –> 00:02:43,399 I’ve been in both places, 54 00:02:43,399 –> 00:02:46,279 I’ve experienced the extremities of life 55 00:02:46,279 –> 00:02:49,919 at the top and at the bottom. 56 00:02:49,919 –> 00:02:52,600 So in every circumstance, he says, 57 00:02:52,600 –> 00:02:55,220 having explored and experienced 58 00:02:55,220 –> 00:02:58,800 the whole range of human life, 59 00:02:58,800 –> 00:03:03,139 I have found that I have learned to be content. 60 00:03:03,139 –> 00:03:05,880 Now, notice this word learned, 61 00:03:05,880 –> 00:03:08,059 which clearly tells us that contentment 62 00:03:08,059 –> 00:03:10,639 is not something that comes even to a Christian 63 00:03:10,639 –> 00:03:13,259 automatically, or even immediately, 64 00:03:13,300 –> 00:03:17,279 but it is a grace that is learned over time. 65 00:03:17,279 –> 00:03:19,279 In fact, he uses the word learned twice. 66 00:03:19,279 –> 00:03:22,059 In verse 11, I have learned 67 00:03:22,059 –> 00:03:25,179 in whatever situation I am to be content. 68 00:03:25,179 –> 00:03:27,820 And then verse 12, I have learned 69 00:03:27,820 –> 00:03:32,820 the secret of facing plenty and hunger. 70 00:03:33,360 –> 00:03:35,820 Now, the implication of the word learned, of course, 71 00:03:35,820 –> 00:03:37,940 is that it was not always like this 72 00:03:37,940 –> 00:03:41,300 even for the Apostle Paul himself. 73 00:03:41,339 –> 00:03:44,660 This contentment that he gained in his life 74 00:03:44,660 –> 00:03:47,220 was not something that he came to quickly, 75 00:03:47,220 –> 00:03:48,860 and probably it was not something 76 00:03:48,860 –> 00:03:51,479 that he came to easily either. 77 00:03:51,479 –> 00:03:53,740 But what he is telling us from his own experience 78 00:03:53,740 –> 00:03:56,100 is that over time there was growth, 79 00:03:56,100 –> 00:03:58,020 there was progress, 80 00:03:58,020 –> 00:04:01,020 that that was his true experience, 81 00:04:01,020 –> 00:04:04,740 and that it can be our true experience today. 82 00:04:05,779 –> 00:04:07,820 Now, of course when we read a verse like this, 83 00:04:07,820 –> 00:04:09,820 we read a testimony like this 84 00:04:09,820 –> 00:04:14,220 and especially when we read the word secret, 85 00:04:14,220 –> 00:04:16,420 I’ve learned the secret of being content, 86 00:04:16,420 –> 00:04:18,700 you think, oh, I just hope he’s gonna tell us 87 00:04:18,700 –> 00:04:20,260 what the secret is. 88 00:04:20,260 –> 00:04:21,880 And rest assured, he does. 89 00:04:21,880 –> 00:04:23,820 He tells us what the secret is. 90 00:04:23,820 –> 00:04:27,059 We’re gonna look exactly at that today. 91 00:04:27,059 –> 00:04:29,600 But what I want to see from these scriptures 92 00:04:29,600 –> 00:04:31,500 as we seek to move forward 93 00:04:31,500 –> 00:04:34,559 in what the apostle Paul himself experienced, 94 00:04:34,559 –> 00:04:36,660 this wonderful gift of contentment, 95 00:04:36,660 –> 00:04:39,600 three ways in which we can move forward 96 00:04:39,619 –> 00:04:43,600 into greater contentment in our lives. 97 00:04:43,600 –> 00:04:45,920 And the first of them is simply this. 98 00:04:45,920 –> 00:04:50,640 Gratefully savor the blessings of Christ. 99 00:04:50,640 –> 00:04:54,640 Gratefully savor the blessings of Christ. 100 00:04:54,640 –> 00:04:57,720 And I take this from the context, verse 8. 101 00:04:57,720 –> 00:05:01,640 Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, 102 00:05:01,640 –> 00:05:05,040 whatever is just, whatever is pure, 103 00:05:05,040 –> 00:05:08,679 whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable 104 00:05:08,700 –> 00:05:10,839 if there is any excellence, 105 00:05:10,839 –> 00:05:15,359 if there is anything worthy of praise, 106 00:05:15,359 –> 00:05:19,459 think about these things. 107 00:05:21,339 –> 00:05:25,660 Now, God has given to every one of us 108 00:05:25,660 –> 00:05:30,660 the ability to choose where we focus our attention. 109 00:05:32,220 –> 00:05:35,019 So in every area of life there will be things 110 00:05:35,019 –> 00:05:36,619 that are not as you want them to be, 111 00:05:36,619 –> 00:05:38,239 things that are not as you want them to be 112 00:05:38,320 –> 00:05:40,100 in your family, and in your work, 113 00:05:40,100 –> 00:05:43,760 and in your church, and so forth and so on, 114 00:05:43,760 –> 00:05:47,200 but you have the ability to choose 115 00:05:47,200 –> 00:05:49,940 where you focus your attention. 116 00:05:51,119 –> 00:05:52,320 Here’s a good question, 117 00:05:52,320 –> 00:05:55,640 what are the good things about your family? 118 00:05:55,640 –> 00:05:57,779 Focus in on them and savor them 119 00:05:57,779 –> 00:05:59,600 and give thanks to God for them. 120 00:06:00,480 –> 00:06:03,679 What are the good things about your church 121 00:06:03,679 –> 00:06:07,720 and about your work and about your neighborhood? 122 00:06:07,739 –> 00:06:10,739 Bring to mind what is good, 123 00:06:10,739 –> 00:06:14,359 especially when you are inclined to complain, 124 00:06:14,359 –> 00:06:17,279 and that will help you to learn and to grow 125 00:06:17,279 –> 00:06:21,320 in this whole matter of being content. 126 00:06:21,320 –> 00:06:24,600 Make more as a Christian of your joys 127 00:06:24,600 –> 00:06:27,019 than you do of your sorrows. 128 00:06:27,019 –> 00:06:30,359 Make more of what you have gained in Christ 129 00:06:30,359 –> 00:06:33,739 than what you have lost in this world. 130 00:06:33,779 –> 00:06:37,880 Do this in your thinking, do this in your speaking, 131 00:06:37,880 –> 00:06:41,779 and even do this in your praying 132 00:06:41,779 –> 00:06:46,779 and you will grow in all that it means to be content. 133 00:06:47,040 –> 00:06:49,260 Now, the reason that I include praying here 134 00:06:49,260 –> 00:06:51,619 alongside our thinking and our speaking 135 00:06:51,619 –> 00:06:54,420 is that Paul refers to it in verse six. 136 00:06:54,420 –> 00:06:57,220 Do not be anxious about anything 137 00:06:57,220 –> 00:07:00,720 but in everything by prayer and supplication, 138 00:07:00,820 –> 00:07:04,119 And here it is, with thanksgiving, 139 00:07:04,119 –> 00:07:06,959 let your requests be made known to God. 140 00:07:06,959 –> 00:07:10,359 And if you do that, then here’s what you’ll find. 141 00:07:10,359 –> 00:07:12,320 The peace of God will guard your hearts 142 00:07:12,320 –> 00:07:15,359 and your minds in Christ Jesus. 143 00:07:15,359 –> 00:07:19,019 So, what he’s saying is now bring your requests to God. 144 00:07:19,980 –> 00:07:24,980 But if all that your prayers are is a long list of requests, 145 00:07:25,059 –> 00:07:27,760 a long list of things that you want to see changed. 146 00:07:27,760 –> 00:07:29,899 If that’s all your prayers are, 147 00:07:29,899 –> 00:07:31,660 then all you are doing when you pray 148 00:07:31,660 –> 00:07:34,059 is you are filling your minds with problems 149 00:07:34,059 –> 00:07:36,200 in the presence of God. 150 00:07:36,200 –> 00:07:38,679 So don’t let your prayers be what they can be, 151 00:07:38,679 –> 00:07:41,339 which praying can be an exercise 152 00:07:41,339 –> 00:07:44,220 just of worrying on your knees. 153 00:07:44,220 –> 00:07:46,339 You don’t want your prayers to be that. 154 00:07:46,339 –> 00:07:49,359 Simply calling to mind everything that’s wrong in life 155 00:07:49,359 –> 00:07:51,619 and kind of laying it out before God. 156 00:07:51,619 –> 00:07:53,859 By all means bring your requests to God, 157 00:07:53,859 –> 00:07:55,540 but do it this way, he says, 158 00:07:55,540 –> 00:07:58,720 with thanksgiving and then the peace of God 159 00:07:58,839 –> 00:08:00,239 will guard your hearts and your minds 160 00:08:00,239 –> 00:08:02,660 because you will be reminded of the grace 161 00:08:02,660 –> 00:08:06,220 and the mercy of God in your life. 162 00:08:07,399 –> 00:08:11,559 Luther has a wonderful phrase on this. 163 00:08:11,559 –> 00:08:16,559 Martin Luther talked about the rhetoric of the spirit, 164 00:08:17,160 –> 00:08:19,040 the rhetoric of the spirit. 165 00:08:19,040 –> 00:08:22,320 Now obviously rhetoric is a way of speaking, 166 00:08:22,320 –> 00:08:24,079 it relates to speaking. 167 00:08:24,079 –> 00:08:27,160 And so when Luther talked about the rhetoric of the spirit, 168 00:08:27,200 –> 00:08:29,600 he’s talking about the way in which 169 00:08:29,600 –> 00:08:32,979 the Holy Spirit Himself speaks, 170 00:08:32,979 –> 00:08:37,359 the accent, if you like, of the Holy Spirit. 171 00:08:37,359 –> 00:08:38,760 And he describes the way in which 172 00:08:38,760 –> 00:08:40,559 the spirit speaks like this. 173 00:08:41,440 –> 00:08:46,440 If a cross comes to make the cross but little, 174 00:08:47,679 –> 00:08:52,679 but if there is a mercy to make the mercy great. 175 00:08:53,119 –> 00:08:58,119 He then says that the devil has a different rhetoric. 176 00:08:59,059 –> 00:09:01,820 The devil has a different way of speaking. 177 00:09:01,820 –> 00:09:04,760 If there is a cross, he says, 178 00:09:04,760 –> 00:09:08,239 the devil makes it greater than it is 179 00:09:08,239 –> 00:09:11,119 and so brings discontent. 180 00:09:11,119 –> 00:09:14,099 And if there is a mercy, it is the rhetoric 181 00:09:14,099 –> 00:09:16,679 of the devil to make the mercy less. 182 00:09:16,679 –> 00:09:21,039 Yes, the devil says, that is a gift from God, 183 00:09:21,039 –> 00:09:23,359 but it isn’t very much, is it? 184 00:09:23,359 –> 00:09:24,200 You see? 185 00:09:25,400 –> 00:09:29,599 So I’m trying to think of an illustration of this 186 00:09:29,599 –> 00:09:31,200 and I’m thinking about music. 187 00:09:31,200 –> 00:09:34,700 Whatever the music that you enjoy listening to, 188 00:09:34,700 –> 00:09:38,640 you have certain choices in the way 189 00:09:38,640 –> 00:09:43,559 that your chosen music will sound when you play it. 190 00:09:43,559 –> 00:09:46,039 That is, you can turn up the treble 191 00:09:47,440 –> 00:09:50,159 or if you prefer, you can turn up the bass 192 00:09:50,359 –> 00:09:52,320 or you can turn them both up or both down or whatever. 193 00:09:52,320 –> 00:09:54,039 You know what it is? 194 00:09:54,039 –> 00:09:55,640 When you’re sitting in your car, 195 00:09:55,640 –> 00:09:57,320 stopped at the traffic lights, 196 00:09:57,320 –> 00:10:01,200 and alongside you comes a car with several young-sters 197 00:10:01,200 –> 00:10:04,880 and the car is kinda going up and down like this 198 00:10:04,880 –> 00:10:08,799 because the subwoofers, the bass, is turned up so far. 199 00:10:08,799 –> 00:10:11,260 You think, I hope these lights are gonna turn green soon 200 00:10:11,260 –> 00:10:13,840 because otherwise, my car’s gonna start bouncing. 201 00:10:13,840 –> 00:10:16,219 The whole road’s gonna start bouncing. 202 00:10:16,219 –> 00:10:18,919 You have certain choices 203 00:10:18,940 –> 00:10:21,979 as to how your music will sound. 204 00:10:23,200 –> 00:10:25,700 Now this is what the apostle is saying to us. 205 00:10:25,700 –> 00:10:27,099 Put it this way. 206 00:10:27,099 –> 00:10:30,799 Think of it this way, turn up the mercies dial 207 00:10:31,760 –> 00:10:34,179 in the music of your life. 208 00:10:34,179 –> 00:10:36,820 That’s what the Holy Spirit does. 209 00:10:36,820 –> 00:10:39,400 He magnifies your mercies 210 00:10:39,400 –> 00:10:42,539 and a person who is filled with the Holy Spirit, 211 00:10:42,539 –> 00:10:46,880 therefore, will do the same, make more of your blessings. 212 00:10:47,080 –> 00:10:47,840 Blessings. 213 00:10:49,140 –> 00:10:51,979 And you will grow in contentment. 214 00:10:51,979 –> 00:10:55,280 Now, friends, this does not mean 215 00:10:55,280 –> 00:10:58,679 pretending that your sorrows do not exist. 216 00:10:58,679 –> 00:11:02,840 It’s not Stoicism, it’s none of that in Christianity. 217 00:11:04,219 –> 00:11:06,380 But what it means is this, 218 00:11:07,260 –> 00:11:11,359 that when there’s an area of sorrow and loss 219 00:11:11,359 –> 00:11:13,440 in one area of your life, 220 00:11:14,380 –> 00:11:18,400 you can form the habit of intentionally putting it 221 00:11:18,400 –> 00:11:22,119 alongside another area of your life 222 00:11:22,119 –> 00:11:26,080 in which you have been particularly blessed. 223 00:11:26,080 –> 00:11:27,419 So, for example, 224 00:11:28,559 –> 00:11:30,799 someone might say, 225 00:11:30,799 –> 00:11:33,299 I have a really difficult job, 226 00:11:36,799 –> 00:11:40,280 but praise God, I have a really wonderful church. 227 00:11:40,280 –> 00:11:41,859 Now you see what that person’s doing. 228 00:11:41,859 –> 00:11:43,960 Here’s an area of great burden, 229 00:11:43,960 –> 00:11:45,840 here’s an area of great blessing, 230 00:11:45,840 –> 00:11:48,760 they’re bringing the one alongside the other. 231 00:11:48,760 –> 00:11:52,940 I’m suffering from this condition, this pain in my body, 232 00:11:53,739 –> 00:11:55,460 but praise God, I have been given 233 00:11:55,460 –> 00:11:58,780 the wonderful gift of soundness of mind. 234 00:12:00,659 –> 00:12:03,880 Jeremiah Burroughs, who I referred to earlier, 235 00:12:03,880 –> 00:12:06,659 applies this with regards to parents 236 00:12:06,659 –> 00:12:11,219 who are anxious over a rebellious son or daughter. 237 00:12:11,280 –> 00:12:12,659 He says this, it may be that you have 238 00:12:12,659 –> 00:12:15,659 a particular problem with one child, 239 00:12:15,659 –> 00:12:17,260 but then that God has blessed you 240 00:12:17,260 –> 00:12:19,739 in relation to another child. 241 00:12:19,739 –> 00:12:21,799 He uses this word, it’s very striking, 242 00:12:21,799 –> 00:12:25,000 set one against the other. 243 00:12:25,000 –> 00:12:27,260 He gives this example. 244 00:12:27,260 –> 00:12:29,900 David, King David, knew great sorrow 245 00:12:29,900 –> 00:12:31,700 over one of his children. 246 00:12:31,700 –> 00:12:33,640 Remember Absalom. 247 00:12:33,640 –> 00:12:38,640 Absalom led a horrible rebellion against his own father. 248 00:12:38,700 –> 00:12:40,419 It led to David, at one point, 249 00:12:40,419 –> 00:12:42,159 being evicted from the palace. 250 00:12:42,159 –> 00:12:44,979 He had to leave because of this mutiny, 251 00:12:44,979 –> 00:12:49,239 because of this coup that his own son had led, 252 00:12:49,239 –> 00:12:51,419 and if you know the story, 253 00:12:51,419 –> 00:12:55,219 you will recall that it led to Absalom’s untimely 254 00:12:55,219 –> 00:12:57,640 and very, very tragic death, 255 00:12:57,640 –> 00:13:01,760 and the Bible records David’s pain over his rebel son 256 00:13:02,700 –> 00:13:05,840 and how he said, oh, Absalom, Absalom, 257 00:13:05,840 –> 00:13:08,599 my son, my son. 258 00:13:09,340 –> 00:13:12,719 But Jeremiah Burrows points out that 259 00:13:12,719 –> 00:13:16,960 David had another son, who was a great, great blessing 260 00:13:16,960 –> 00:13:19,119 and joy to his heart, 261 00:13:19,119 –> 00:13:20,679 and that son’s name, of course, 262 00:13:20,679 –> 00:13:22,780 was Solomon, who became the king 263 00:13:22,780 –> 00:13:24,940 who came after him, 264 00:13:24,940 –> 00:13:26,039 and Burrows says this. 265 00:13:26,039 –> 00:13:29,440 It would have helped David in his sorrow 266 00:13:29,440 –> 00:13:32,919 if, when he had said, 267 00:13:32,919 –> 00:13:37,119 oh, Absalom, Absalom, my son, my son, 268 00:13:37,119 –> 00:13:41,760 he had also said, Solomon, Solomon, 269 00:13:41,760 –> 00:13:44,640 my son, my son. 270 00:13:46,760 –> 00:13:49,539 He says this, encouraging us to, 271 00:13:49,539 –> 00:13:54,539 call to mind our mercies in the light of our sorrows. 272 00:13:55,159 –> 00:13:57,239 He says it may be, and I’m paraphrasing him here, 273 00:13:57,239 –> 00:14:01,320 it may be that God cuts you down in your possessions, 274 00:14:01,320 –> 00:14:04,619 but then, that he employs you in his service. 275 00:14:04,619 –> 00:14:05,840 Is he that? 276 00:14:06,119 –> 00:14:08,859 Oh, I have less than I had, 277 00:14:08,859 –> 00:14:10,739 I have less than I would want to have, 278 00:14:10,739 –> 00:14:14,239 but God has used me in his service. 279 00:14:14,239 –> 00:14:16,419 And that’s a very, very wonderful thing. 280 00:14:17,400 –> 00:14:19,760 It’s not a privilege that’s given to everybody. 281 00:14:21,119 –> 00:14:23,640 It may be that God cuts you down in your possessions, 282 00:14:23,640 –> 00:14:25,880 but employs you in his service. 283 00:14:25,880 –> 00:14:28,640 It may be that you have a friend who has let you down, 284 00:14:28,640 –> 00:14:30,479 but then you have other friends 285 00:14:30,479 –> 00:14:31,780 who have been a blessing to you, 286 00:14:32,179 –> 00:14:35,880 therefore you should set the one against the other. 287 00:14:35,880 –> 00:14:40,679 Set your blessings over against your sorrows. 288 00:14:41,780 –> 00:14:45,599 Make much of God’s mercy towards you 289 00:14:45,599 –> 00:14:49,859 in your thinking, your speaking, and even in your praying. 290 00:14:49,859 –> 00:14:51,340 And here is what you will find. 291 00:14:51,340 –> 00:14:53,979 You will be delivered from what we looked at last time, 292 00:14:53,979 –> 00:14:57,280 the hellish sin of discontent, 293 00:14:57,280 –> 00:14:59,299 and you will find as the apostle did 294 00:14:59,320 –> 00:15:03,979 that you begin to grow in all of this wonderful grace 295 00:15:03,979 –> 00:15:08,859 and gift of godly contentment. 296 00:15:08,859 –> 00:15:10,320 By the way, that is one reason 297 00:15:10,320 –> 00:15:13,719 why participating regularly in worship 298 00:15:13,719 –> 00:15:18,479 in a service like this every Sunday is good for contentment. 299 00:15:19,619 –> 00:15:22,440 You worship regularly, and you enter into 300 00:15:22,440 –> 00:15:24,960 what we’re singing and what we’re praying, 301 00:15:24,960 –> 00:15:26,479 you will grow in contentment. 302 00:15:26,479 –> 00:15:28,380 It will help you every week to be more content. 303 00:15:28,479 –> 00:15:29,299 Why? 304 00:15:29,299 –> 00:15:32,000 Because you are intentionally bringing to mind 305 00:15:32,000 –> 00:15:34,900 the mercies of God and making much 306 00:15:34,900 –> 00:15:37,280 of all that is yours in Jesus Christ, 307 00:15:37,280 –> 00:15:40,820 and that’s huge to overcoming 308 00:15:40,820 –> 00:15:43,539 the hellish sin of discontent. 309 00:15:43,539 –> 00:15:47,659 So gratefully savor the blessings of Christ. 310 00:15:47,659 –> 00:15:48,500 That’s the first thing. 311 00:15:48,500 –> 00:15:50,080 Here’s the second. 312 00:15:50,080 –> 00:15:55,080 Confidently affirm the sufficiency of Christ. 313 00:15:56,020 –> 00:15:58,179 And here we’re looking at verse 13. 314 00:15:58,179 –> 00:16:03,179 I can do all things through him who strengthens me. 315 00:16:05,739 –> 00:16:09,679 Now, notice how Paul connects this secret 316 00:16:09,679 –> 00:16:14,119 of contentment in verse 12 with the strength 317 00:16:14,119 –> 00:16:17,960 that he receives from Christ in verse 13. 318 00:16:17,960 –> 00:16:22,239 Verse 12, I have learned the secret. 319 00:16:22,679 –> 00:16:25,820 Okay, Paul, I hope you’re gonna tell us what it is. 320 00:16:25,820 –> 00:16:26,919 What is the secret? 321 00:16:26,919 –> 00:16:29,559 He tells us, verse 13, here it is. 322 00:16:29,559 –> 00:16:34,559 I can do all things through him who strengthens me. 323 00:16:36,260 –> 00:16:41,260 So the secret of contentment is the sufficiency of Christ. 324 00:16:44,159 –> 00:16:49,159 The secret of contentment is the sufficiency of Christ. 325 00:16:49,380 –> 00:16:53,159 Now it’s very fascinating 326 00:16:53,159 –> 00:16:57,200 that there is another place 327 00:16:57,200 –> 00:17:01,440 where Paul also gives us personal testimony 328 00:17:01,440 –> 00:17:05,239 that arises obviously from his own experience 329 00:17:05,239 –> 00:17:09,140 and he says, in that other place, exactly the same thing. 330 00:17:10,119 –> 00:17:13,420 The other place is 2 Corinthians 12. 331 00:17:13,420 –> 00:17:15,979 And that’s the passage where in verse seven, 332 00:17:15,979 –> 00:17:18,959 Paul speaks about a thorn in the flesh. 333 00:17:19,000 –> 00:17:20,819 He doesn’t tell us what it was 334 00:17:20,819 –> 00:17:22,920 but something painful was in his life. 335 00:17:22,920 –> 00:17:25,160 It was always there, couldn’t get away from it 336 00:17:25,160 –> 00:17:29,300 and Satan used it to get at him. 337 00:17:29,300 –> 00:17:32,819 And he tells us, specifically, three times, 338 00:17:32,819 –> 00:17:35,760 I pleaded with the Lord about this, 339 00:17:35,760 –> 00:17:39,079 that it should leave me. 340 00:17:39,079 –> 00:17:41,199 Now here we come to something very important 341 00:17:41,199 –> 00:17:44,920 about contentment that needs to be said in this series. 342 00:17:44,920 –> 00:17:46,439 Contentment does not mean 343 00:17:46,439 –> 00:17:49,939 that you are indifferent to your circumstances. 344 00:17:49,939 –> 00:17:51,800 It does not mean that you give up 345 00:17:51,800 –> 00:17:54,400 on trying to make things better. 346 00:17:54,400 –> 00:17:56,300 It is not, contentment is not kind of 347 00:17:56,300 –> 00:17:57,859 throwing up your hands and saying, 348 00:17:57,859 –> 00:17:59,819 well whatever will be will be. 349 00:17:59,819 –> 00:18:01,640 That’s fatalism or Stoicism 350 00:18:01,640 –> 00:18:04,439 and that has nothing to do with Christianity. 351 00:18:05,699 –> 00:18:09,219 Karl Marx said that religion, 352 00:18:09,219 –> 00:18:11,459 by which he meant Christianity, 353 00:18:11,459 –> 00:18:14,780 he said it is the opium of the people 354 00:18:15,239 –> 00:18:20,020 and his critique of Christianity was basically this. 355 00:18:20,020 –> 00:18:22,459 That if you tell people to be content, 356 00:18:22,459 –> 00:18:24,560 you actually take away any incentive 357 00:18:24,560 –> 00:18:26,920 or motive to improve their position 358 00:18:27,959 –> 00:18:30,140 and there are many people who would bring this charge 359 00:18:30,140 –> 00:18:31,599 against the faith even today. 360 00:18:31,599 –> 00:18:34,199 People who think that the Christian gospel 361 00:18:34,199 –> 00:18:39,199 is actually in itself a hindrance to human progress 362 00:18:39,319 –> 00:18:43,739 and that it sort of is a drag on the world getting better 363 00:18:43,760 –> 00:18:45,760 and that it is in effect a kind of dope 364 00:18:45,760 –> 00:18:49,359 that is put on or in the people. 365 00:18:49,359 –> 00:18:50,959 Now, how are you going to answer that 366 00:18:50,959 –> 00:18:53,359 when you come up against that objection 367 00:18:53,359 –> 00:18:56,599 and the answer is that Christian contentment, 368 00:18:56,599 –> 00:18:59,699 which we are pursuing, does not mean 369 00:18:59,699 –> 00:19:03,020 that you are indifferent to your circumstances 370 00:19:03,020 –> 00:19:05,300 and I think we have a marvelous illustration of that 371 00:19:05,300 –> 00:19:07,000 in Paul’s thorn on the flesh. 372 00:19:07,000 –> 00:19:09,719 He doesn’t say, hey I got a thorn on the flesh. 373 00:19:09,719 –> 00:19:11,119 Just gotta live with it. 374 00:19:11,199 –> 00:19:15,079 He really wanted that thing to be changed. 375 00:19:15,079 –> 00:19:17,420 He really wanted it to be gone 376 00:19:19,040 –> 00:19:22,760 and he threw everything that he knew at 377 00:19:22,760 –> 00:19:25,560 trying to change that thing in his life. 378 00:19:25,560 –> 00:19:28,660 He pleaded with the Lord 379 00:19:28,660 –> 00:19:31,000 and when he pleaded with the Lord three times, 380 00:19:31,000 –> 00:19:32,459 which I assume means that 381 00:19:32,459 –> 00:19:35,239 three separate occasions in his life, 382 00:19:35,239 –> 00:19:39,359 he gave himself to sustained prayer and fasting. 383 00:19:39,359 –> 00:19:42,040 Oh, God change this in my life. 384 00:19:43,800 –> 00:19:45,920 He threw everything he knew 385 00:19:45,920 –> 00:19:47,459 at trying to change the thing 386 00:19:47,459 –> 00:19:52,319 that was very very painful in his life. 387 00:19:52,319 –> 00:19:54,859 So Christian contentment does not mean 388 00:19:54,859 –> 00:19:58,459 just passively kind of looking at whatever is 389 00:19:58,459 –> 00:20:01,040 and saying what will be, will be. 390 00:20:02,239 –> 00:20:04,959 Jerry Bridges’ Making the Same Point 391 00:20:04,959 –> 00:20:07,040 points to 1 Corinthians 7.21 392 00:20:07,040 –> 00:20:09,199 which I think is helpful on this 393 00:20:09,199 –> 00:20:13,079 where Paul is talking to someone who is a bondservant 394 00:20:13,079 –> 00:20:14,560 and he says this, 395 00:20:14,560 –> 00:20:17,800 -“Where are you, a bondservant when called? 396 00:20:17,800 –> 00:20:19,680 Do not be concerned about it, 397 00:20:19,680 –> 00:20:24,079 but if you can gain your freedom, 398 00:20:24,079 –> 00:20:27,560 avail yourself of the opportunity.” 399 00:20:28,500 –> 00:20:30,680 So Paul does not say, 400 00:20:30,680 –> 00:20:32,780 well you know whatever is, just accept it. 401 00:20:32,780 –> 00:20:34,280 That’s not what’s being said. 402 00:20:34,280 –> 00:20:38,239 He’s saying no if you can change a difficult position 403 00:20:38,280 –> 00:20:40,920 for the better, do it by all means. 404 00:20:40,920 –> 00:20:42,359 Is there something that you can do 405 00:20:42,359 –> 00:20:43,640 that will make a difference? 406 00:20:43,640 –> 00:20:44,640 Go for it. 407 00:20:44,640 –> 00:20:48,219 Do all that you can to make your life better. 408 00:20:49,219 –> 00:20:51,479 Contentment does not mean 409 00:20:51,479 –> 00:20:54,219 that you are indifferent to your circumstances. 410 00:20:54,219 –> 00:20:56,660 It does mean that you are not controlled 411 00:20:56,660 –> 00:21:00,619 by your circumstances and that’s what Paul is saying. 412 00:21:00,619 –> 00:21:02,459 I know how to abound 413 00:21:03,400 –> 00:21:07,619 but my joy and my peace don’t depend on me abounding. 414 00:21:07,680 –> 00:21:09,660 It comes from a deeper place. 415 00:21:09,660 –> 00:21:13,459 If your joy and your peace depends on your abounding, 416 00:21:13,459 –> 00:21:16,619 if your joy and your peace depends on certain things 417 00:21:16,619 –> 00:21:18,359 being in place in your life, 418 00:21:18,359 –> 00:21:21,579 then it is on a very shaky foundation indeed. 419 00:21:21,579 –> 00:21:25,500 Paul says my joy my peace do not depend 420 00:21:25,500 –> 00:21:29,640 upon my circumstances, they have a deeper foundation, 421 00:21:29,640 –> 00:21:32,479 they have a deeper root than that. 422 00:21:32,719 –> 00:21:36,800 And Paul gave himself to do all that he could 423 00:21:37,819 –> 00:21:39,680 in relation to this thorn in the flesh, 424 00:21:39,680 –> 00:21:42,020 and you remember what happened. 425 00:21:42,020 –> 00:21:45,199 God answered his prayer and remember what the answer was. 426 00:21:46,040 –> 00:21:50,099 He said to me, my grace is sufficient 427 00:21:50,099 –> 00:21:55,099 for you and my power is made perfect in weakness. 428 00:21:57,160 –> 00:21:59,079 In other words Paul says when I agonized 429 00:21:59,920 –> 00:22:03,040 over this most difficult thing in my life, 430 00:22:03,040 –> 00:22:05,479 here’s the answer that I got. 431 00:22:05,479 –> 00:22:10,479 The secret of contentment is the sufficiency of Christ. 432 00:22:11,479 –> 00:22:15,020 That’s the point of 2 Corynthians chapter 12 433 00:22:15,020 –> 00:22:18,020 and it’s exactly the same point that he comes back to 434 00:22:18,020 –> 00:22:20,459 in Philippians and chapter four. 435 00:22:20,459 –> 00:22:23,000 How am I able to be content even 436 00:22:23,000 –> 00:22:24,800 in the worst of circumstances 437 00:22:24,800 –> 00:22:29,800 because I can do all things through Jesus Christ 438 00:22:30,400 –> 00:22:31,439 who gives me strength. 439 00:22:31,439 –> 00:22:35,640 The secret of contentment is the sufficiency 440 00:22:35,640 –> 00:22:38,319 of Jesus Christ. 441 00:22:38,319 –> 00:22:40,020 And Paul is saying, here’s my testimony. 442 00:22:40,020 –> 00:22:41,640 That’s actually how I learned to live 443 00:22:41,640 –> 00:22:43,339 with that most difficult thing, 444 00:22:43,339 –> 00:22:44,780 the thorn in the flesh. 445 00:22:44,780 –> 00:22:48,560 I did discover the sufficiency of Jesus even there 446 00:22:48,560 –> 00:22:50,140 and this is the secret, therefore, 447 00:22:50,140 –> 00:22:52,599 that I have for anything in life. 448 00:22:52,599 –> 00:22:53,640 I know this now. 449 00:22:53,640 –> 00:22:55,160 I’ve learned this now. 450 00:22:55,160 –> 00:22:58,199 I’ve proved this now and I’m telling you 451 00:22:58,199 –> 00:23:01,839 because you can prove it too. 452 00:23:01,839 –> 00:23:04,119 Now, I want you to notice this wonderful thing. 453 00:23:04,119 –> 00:23:07,280 Christ gives me strength. 454 00:23:08,959 –> 00:23:12,959 So, what Paul is describing here from his own experience 455 00:23:12,959 –> 00:23:17,959 is an infusion of strength that comes from Christ 456 00:23:18,660 –> 00:23:21,219 into the life of a believer 457 00:23:21,219 –> 00:23:24,719 that matches the load that he gives you 458 00:23:24,719 –> 00:23:29,000 to carry at any particular point in time. 459 00:23:30,119 –> 00:23:33,180 Jeremiah Burroughs has this wonderful phrase. 460 00:23:33,180 –> 00:23:37,739 He says, God can double your load 461 00:23:37,739 –> 00:23:40,359 and triple your strength. 462 00:23:40,359 –> 00:23:42,040 I like that. 463 00:23:42,040 –> 00:23:43,819 Oh God, if you’re going to double my load, 464 00:23:43,819 –> 00:23:46,420 please triple my strength. 465 00:23:46,420 –> 00:23:47,819 But you see he’s got this point, 466 00:23:47,859 –> 00:23:50,479 there’s an infusion of strength 467 00:23:50,479 –> 00:23:53,520 that comes in relation to the load. 468 00:23:53,520 –> 00:23:55,260 That’s why I’m confident. 469 00:23:55,260 –> 00:23:57,099 That’s why I’m contented, Paul is saying, 470 00:23:57,099 –> 00:23:58,459 because whatever happens, 471 00:23:58,459 –> 00:24:00,459 and I don’t know what’s going to happen in the future, 472 00:24:00,459 –> 00:24:02,660 but I do know that Christ gives me strength. 473 00:24:02,660 –> 00:24:04,579 I’ve proved it already and therefore, 474 00:24:04,579 –> 00:24:06,420 I’m confident with regards to it. 475 00:24:06,420 –> 00:24:09,540 That’s why I’m not worrying about the future. 476 00:24:09,540 –> 00:24:10,979 It’s wonderful. 477 00:24:10,979 –> 00:24:13,260 Christ gives me strength. 478 00:24:13,260 –> 00:24:15,819 We said that contentment is a journey 479 00:24:15,859 –> 00:24:19,020 and it includes the journey from anxiety to trust. 480 00:24:19,020 –> 00:24:20,699 Here’s that journey right here. 481 00:24:20,699 –> 00:24:22,839 What is anxiety? 482 00:24:22,839 –> 00:24:23,859 What is worry? 483 00:24:24,819 –> 00:24:28,699 Anxiety is anticipating a problem 484 00:24:28,699 –> 00:24:31,260 without the strength that Jesus Christ 485 00:24:31,260 –> 00:24:32,439 will give you to meet it. 486 00:24:33,380 –> 00:24:35,500 Here’s how this works, you see. 487 00:24:35,500 –> 00:24:39,640 A friend is diagnosed with a serious illness 488 00:24:40,619 –> 00:24:42,619 and putting yourself in their shoes, 489 00:24:42,619 –> 00:24:47,300 you say, I don’t think I could handle that. 490 00:24:47,300 –> 00:24:48,439 Now what are you doing? 491 00:24:49,459 –> 00:24:52,599 You’re putting yourself in that situation 492 00:24:52,599 –> 00:24:55,459 and trying to picture yourself in that situation 493 00:24:55,459 –> 00:25:00,380 without the strength that Jesus Christ would give you 494 00:25:00,380 –> 00:25:02,160 if you were in that situation. 495 00:25:02,160 –> 00:25:04,319 That’s how worry spirals, you see. 496 00:25:04,319 –> 00:25:05,780 That’s what anxiety is. 497 00:25:05,780 –> 00:25:08,359 It’s putting yourself into a situation, 498 00:25:08,359 –> 00:25:09,900 it is anticipating a problem 499 00:25:09,900 –> 00:25:13,400 without the strength that Jesus Christ would give you, 500 00:25:13,400 –> 00:25:16,520 will give you in any circumstance, to meet it. 501 00:25:18,160 –> 00:25:22,160 You begin to notice the burdens that other people have 502 00:25:23,339 –> 00:25:25,239 and you say to yourself, now what would I do 503 00:25:25,239 –> 00:25:27,099 if that happened to me? 504 00:25:28,400 –> 00:25:30,760 And when you do that, you’re anticipating the problem 505 00:25:30,760 –> 00:25:34,760 but without the strength that Jesus Christ would, 506 00:25:34,760 –> 00:25:37,719 will give to you if you were in that circumstance of life. 507 00:25:38,599 –> 00:25:40,380 That’s what worry is. 508 00:25:40,380 –> 00:25:45,380 And here therefore is how you move from anxiety to trust. 509 00:25:45,500 –> 00:25:48,500 You confidently affirm, as Paul does here, 510 00:25:48,500 –> 00:25:50,579 the sufficiency of Christ. 511 00:25:50,579 –> 00:25:53,479 Christ gives me strength. 512 00:25:54,839 –> 00:25:57,619 He will give me the strength that I need 513 00:25:57,619 –> 00:26:01,260 for whatever I have to face and he will do it 514 00:26:01,260 –> 00:26:04,339 at precisely the right time, just when I needed. 515 00:26:04,339 –> 00:26:06,839 Not before and not after. 516 00:26:07,859 –> 00:26:10,839 He will infuse his strength into me according to the trial 517 00:26:10,839 –> 00:26:13,939 that I may face, when the time comes. 518 00:26:15,780 –> 00:26:18,020 Now some of you will know this story, it’s an old story, 519 00:26:18,020 –> 00:26:19,180 it’s a very beautiful one. 520 00:26:19,180 –> 00:26:24,180 Corrie ten Boom in her wonderful book, The Hiding Place. 521 00:26:25,219 –> 00:26:28,560 And she tells the story of how as a young girl, 522 00:26:28,560 –> 00:26:32,500 she had gone to some family friends 523 00:26:32,500 –> 00:26:34,699 and there had been a death in this family 524 00:26:34,900 –> 00:26:37,540 and so as a younger girl, she was brought, 525 00:26:37,540 –> 00:26:39,619 literally face-to-face with death 526 00:26:39,619 –> 00:26:41,020 and it quite terrified her 527 00:26:41,020 –> 00:26:44,819 and particularly what scared her was the thought, 528 00:26:44,819 –> 00:26:47,660 what if my father, on whom I depend, 529 00:26:47,660 –> 00:26:49,060 what if my Dad were to die, 530 00:26:49,060 –> 00:26:50,760 and this got into her mind. 531 00:26:51,939 –> 00:26:56,319 And she describes how that night she’s in bed, 532 00:26:56,319 –> 00:26:58,859 her father comes in to tuck her in 533 00:26:58,859 –> 00:27:02,459 and to pray with her and all of that 534 00:27:02,459 –> 00:27:06,060 and she says this, that night as my father 535 00:27:06,060 –> 00:27:10,319 stepped through the door, I burst into tears. 536 00:27:11,400 –> 00:27:13,420 I need you, I sobbed. 537 00:27:13,420 –> 00:27:15,219 Can you picture this little girl saying to her Dad, 538 00:27:15,219 –> 00:27:16,739 I need you. 539 00:27:16,739 –> 00:27:18,540 You can’t die, you can’t. 540 00:27:20,839 –> 00:27:24,020 My father sat down on the edge of the narrow bed. 541 00:27:25,180 –> 00:27:30,180 Carrie, he began gently, when you and I go to Amsterdam 542 00:27:31,000 –> 00:27:33,500 when do I give you your ticket. 543 00:27:35,319 –> 00:27:38,859 I sniffed a few times considering this. 544 00:27:38,859 –> 00:27:42,400 Why just before we get on the train? 545 00:2:43,540 –> 00:27:45,339 Exactly, he said. 546 00:27:46,380 –> 00:27:49,619 And our wise father in heaven knows 547 00:27:49,619 –> 00:27:52,319 when we’re going to need things too. 548 00:27:53,359 –> 00:27:55,699 Don’t run ahead of him, Corrie. 549 00:27:56,619 –> 00:28:00,339 When the time comes that some of us have to die, 550 00:28:00,339 –> 00:28:02,599 you will look into your heart 551 00:28:02,599 –> 00:28:07,599 and find the strength that you need just in time. 552 00:28:09,619 –> 00:28:14,640 If God had told you in advance 553 00:28:15,739 –> 00:28:18,180 everything you would ever face in your life, 554 00:28:18,180 –> 00:28:22,160 you would be completely and utterly overwhelmed. 555 00:28:23,020 –> 00:28:26,140 Thank God he does not do that. 556 00:28:27,359 –> 00:28:30,239 What he does, is he walks with his children 557 00:28:30,239 –> 00:28:35,239 one step at a time and at each point in the journey, 558 00:28:36,160 –> 00:28:40,839 he will give to you the strength that you need 559 00:28:40,839 –> 00:28:44,920 and he’ll give it to you at precisely the right time. 560 00:28:44,920 –> 00:28:48,680 Corey, when does your dad give you the ticket? 561 00:28:48,680 –> 00:28:52,719 Just when you get on the train. 562 00:28:54,640 –> 00:28:58,400 Whatever Jesus Christ calls you to do now 563 00:28:58,400 –> 00:29:00,640 and whatever he may call you to endure 564 00:29:00,640 –> 00:29:02,280 and to go through in the future, 565 00:29:03,560 –> 00:29:06,800 you can do it by his grace 566 00:29:06,800 –> 00:29:11,800 because he will give you strength. 567 00:29:14,160 –> 00:29:15,959 And Paul says, I’ve proved this in my life. 568 00:29:16,560 –> 00:29:18,819 I’ve been at the top and I’ve been at the bottom 569 00:29:18,819 –> 00:29:20,839 and all over this congregation 570 00:29:20,839 –> 00:29:23,479 there are testimonies of the truth of this. 571 00:29:24,599 –> 00:29:26,040 Where among us there are folks 572 00:29:26,040 –> 00:29:27,579 who have endured situations 573 00:29:27,579 –> 00:29:30,900 we never imagined we would in our lives 574 00:29:32,099 –> 00:29:34,560 and if we’d known in advance 575 00:29:34,560 –> 00:29:38,219 we would have said, I could never survive. 576 00:29:39,880 –> 00:29:41,319 And yet by God’s grace, 577 00:29:41,319 –> 00:29:42,780 you have been given strength 578 00:29:42,780 –> 00:29:45,640 and through the tears and through the sorrow, 579 00:29:45,660 –> 00:29:47,800 he has held you up. 580 00:29:47,800 –> 00:29:50,000 And you have proved and you have experienced 581 00:29:50,000 –> 00:29:53,160 exactly what the Apostle Paul 582 00:29:53,160 –> 00:29:55,380 is describing for all of us here. 583 00:29:55,380 –> 00:29:59,959 So friends here is the Christian answer to anxiety. 584 00:30:00,920 –> 00:30:03,920 Jesus Christ will give you 585 00:30:03,920 –> 00:30:05,839 the strength that you need 586 00:30:05,839 –> 00:30:08,680 to face whatever he calls you to face 587 00:30:08,680 –> 00:30:10,359 and he will give you this strength. 588 00:30:10,359 –> 00:30:12,400 He will infuse it into you 589 00:30:12,400 –> 00:30:14,439 at just the right time, 590 00:30:14,439 –> 00:30:16,760 just when you need it. 591 00:30:16,760 –> 00:30:19,199 Now how are we gonna learn then to be content? 592 00:30:19,199 –> 00:30:20,400 Well in this way, 593 00:30:20,400 –> 00:30:25,400 by gratefully savoring all the blessings of Christ, 594 00:30:25,400 –> 00:30:27,479 bringing them to mind regularly 595 00:30:27,479 –> 00:30:30,079 and nourishing our hearts and our minds 596 00:30:30,079 –> 00:30:32,199 on all the ways in which his goodness 597 00:30:32,199 –> 00:30:35,000 has been showered on us in Jesus Christ 598 00:30:35,000 –> 00:30:36,839 and then confidently affirming 599 00:30:36,839 –> 00:30:39,319 the sufficiency of Christ, 600 00:30:39,319 –> 00:30:41,260 that in him is all that we need. 601 00:30:41,260 –> 00:30:43,079 The secret of contentment 602 00:30:43,099 –> 00:30:47,420 is the sufficiency of Jesus Christ. 603 00:30:47,420 –> 00:30:49,739 And then here’s the last thing. 604 00:30:49,739 –> 00:30:54,020 We must gladly embrace the supremacy of Christ. 605 00:30:54,020 –> 00:30:56,079 If you want to know more of this contentment, 606 00:30:56,079 –> 00:31:00,579 here really is the step that you must take today. 607 00:31:01,739 –> 00:31:02,920 Martin Lloyd-Jones said, 608 00:31:02,920 –> 00:31:05,400 I think, very perceptively on this subject, 609 00:31:06,219 –> 00:31:09,560 If we want to feel as Paul felt, 610 00:31:10,400 –> 00:31:13,439 we must live as Paul lived. 611 00:31:14,319 –> 00:31:15,760 And we look at his experience 612 00:31:15,760 –> 00:31:17,640 of strength being infused into him, 613 00:31:17,640 –> 00:31:19,939 we look at the contentment that he gained 614 00:31:19,939 –> 00:31:22,959 at the best and the worst circumstances of life. 615 00:31:22,959 –> 00:31:23,900 We want that. 616 00:31:23,900 –> 00:31:27,780 If we want to feel as Paul felt, 617 00:31:28,800 –> 00:31:32,680 we must live as Paul lived. 618 00:31:33,880 –> 00:31:34,880 And how did Paul live? 619 00:31:34,880 –> 00:31:36,800 Well, he tells us in this same letter. 620 00:31:36,880 –> 00:31:38,699 For me to live, help me with it, 621 00:31:38,699 –> 00:31:41,540 for me to live is Christ 622 00:31:41,540 –> 00:31:43,920 and to die is gain. 623 00:31:44,780 –> 00:31:45,780 Now just think about that 624 00:31:45,780 –> 00:31:48,140 in these last moments here this morning. 625 00:31:48,140 –> 00:31:49,719 Could you say that? 626 00:31:50,900 –> 00:31:52,520 Would it be true that you are living 627 00:31:52,520 –> 00:31:53,920 as the Apostle Paul lived? 628 00:31:53,920 –> 00:31:55,119 For me to live is Christ 629 00:31:55,119 –> 00:31:56,560 and to die is gain. 630 00:31:56,560 –> 00:31:58,160 Think about this with me. 631 00:31:58,160 –> 00:32:00,000 How would you complete this sentence? 632 00:32:00,000 –> 00:32:03,719 I like to think of it with two blanks in there. 633 00:32:03,719 –> 00:32:08,280 For me to live is blank 634 00:32:08,280 –> 00:32:11,540 and to die is blank. 635 00:32:11,540 –> 00:32:13,280 What you put in the second blank 636 00:32:13,280 –> 00:32:15,939 depends entirely on what you put in the first blank. 637 00:32:17,500 –> 00:32:20,380 For me to live is family. 638 00:32:21,719 –> 00:32:24,160 For me to live is business. 639 00:32:25,079 –> 00:32:27,099 For me to live is ministry. 640 00:32:28,459 –> 00:32:30,020 For me to live is music. 641 00:32:30,020 –> 00:32:31,160 Whatever you put in there, 642 00:32:31,300 –> 00:32:33,219 whatever you put, 643 00:32:33,219 –> 00:32:36,579 whichever of these you put in the first blank, 644 00:32:38,099 –> 00:32:40,819 there is only one word that could go in the second blank 645 00:32:40,819 –> 00:32:42,579 and that is the word loss. 646 00:32:44,339 –> 00:32:48,420 If for you to live is work or family 647 00:32:48,420 –> 00:32:52,140 or business or sport or music or even ministry 648 00:32:53,979 –> 00:32:55,459 then to die is always loss 649 00:32:55,459 –> 00:32:58,459 because it is the end of the thing for which you have lived. 650 00:32:59,420 –> 00:33:04,420 But if you can say for me to live is Christ 651 00:33:05,599 –> 00:33:09,760 then in the second blank you can truly say to die is gain 652 00:33:09,760 –> 00:33:11,780 because when you die you get more 653 00:33:11,780 –> 00:33:13,319 of the one you have lived for. 654 00:33:14,319 –> 00:33:15,839 This is why when Paul was in prison 655 00:33:15,839 –> 00:33:18,520 he was in prison when he wrote this about contentment 656 00:33:18,520 –> 00:33:20,319 which is one of the most striking things 657 00:33:20,319 –> 00:33:21,959 about this letter of Philippians. 658 00:33:21,959 –> 00:33:25,579 He’s facing the possibility even of a violent death. 659 00:33:26,579 –> 00:33:28,739 And he says, now even if that should happen, 660 00:33:28,739 –> 00:33:30,859 this is chapter two and verse 17. 661 00:33:30,859 –> 00:33:32,819 I am glad and rejoiced with you all. 662 00:33:32,819 –> 00:33:35,959 Paul, how could you be content in the light of that? 663 00:33:35,959 –> 00:33:38,300 Well, because I’m living for Christ 664 00:33:38,300 –> 00:33:42,939 and so even if I die, that’s only gonna be gain for me. 665 00:33:44,459 –> 00:33:48,099 You wanna feel what Paul felt? 666 00:33:49,520 –> 00:33:52,719 You gotta live as Paul lived. 667 00:33:53,560 –> 00:33:56,160 For me to live as Christ, 668 00:33:56,160 –> 00:34:00,020 this Christ gives me strength 669 00:34:00,020 –> 00:34:03,800 and that is why I have learned to be content 670 00:34:03,800 –> 00:34:08,800 because whatever happens, he is enough for me. 671 00:34:10,919 –> 00:34:14,159 Friends, how sad it would be if for someone, 672 00:34:14,159 –> 00:34:17,260 for some family in this congregation, 673 00:34:17,260 –> 00:34:19,840 how sad it would be if your joy, 674 00:34:19,899 –> 00:34:23,860 your peace, depended on holding onto something 675 00:34:23,860 –> 00:34:24,860 that you have? 676 00:34:26,199 –> 00:34:28,739 Or gaining something that you do not have? 677 00:34:30,100 –> 00:34:34,179 How free, how confident, how happy you would be 678 00:34:34,179 –> 00:34:36,639 if you could truly say with the Apostle Paul, 679 00:34:36,639 –> 00:34:41,639 I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. 680 00:34:42,919 –> 00:34:47,919 So the first step on the road to contentment 681 00:34:48,239 –> 00:34:52,320 is to yield your life to Jesus Christ 682 00:34:52,320 –> 00:34:56,159 without condition and without reservation. 683 00:34:57,360 –> 00:35:00,800 The first step on the road to contentment, 684 00:35:00,800 –> 00:35:03,879 the first step out of the hellish sin of discontent 685 00:35:04,959 –> 00:35:08,840 is to yield your life to Jesus Christ 686 00:35:08,840 –> 00:35:12,659 without condition and without reservation. 687 00:35:13,919 –> 00:35:17,120 And those who lose everything for him 688 00:35:18,199 –> 00:35:22,120 find that they gain everything in him. 689 00:35:23,340 –> 00:35:28,340 And when you can gratefully savor the blessings of Christ 690 00:35:28,439 –> 00:35:32,000 and you can confidently affirm the sufficiency of Christ 691 00:35:32,000 –> 00:35:37,000 and you are gladly embracing the supremacy of Christ, 692 00:35:37,040 –> 00:35:40,919 then you will be able to say with the apostle Paul, 693 00:35:40,919 –> 00:35:45,919 I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content 694 00:35:46,439 –> 00:35:51,439 because I can do all things through Jesus Christ 695 00:35:53,040 –> 00:35:55,060 who gives me strength. 696 00:35:55,060 –> 00:36:00,060 Father, please make that the growing reality 697 00:36:03,020 –> 00:36:08,020 of all of our lives for the sake of your dear son 698 00:36:09,719 –> 00:36:14,719 who gave everything for us in whose name we pray. 699 00:36:15,919 –> 00:36:17,040 Amen.