Sermon: The foremost contentment (Phil 4:11b-13)

WHAT IS FOREMOST?
The Foremost Contentment (Phil 4:11b-13)
pdf
Dr. Paul Manuel—2011

(This sermon is part of Dr. Manuel's sermon series: "What is Foremost?" Links to
each of the sermons in the series will be found here as they are posted.)

Many people have secrets, things they do not want others to know, because they fear the consequences that exposure might produce, from persecution to prosecution, depending on the gravity of the secret.

Four psychiatrists were attending a convention and, during the dinner break, they decided to share a table at a local restaurant. While they were eating, one said, "People come to us with their guilt and fears, and we keep what they tell us in confidence, but we have no one to consult when we have problems. Since we're professionals, why don't we take some time now to hear each other out?" They all agreed.

The first psychiatrist confessed, "Some of my patients drive me nuts, and I'm often tempted to prescribe something that will put them out of their misery...permanently."

The second psychiatrist confessed, "I love expensive things, so I find ways to overcharge my patients to buy the things I want."

The third psychiatrist confessed, "I sell drugs on the side, and sometimes I get my patients to sell them for me."

The fourth psychiatrist confessed, "I know I'm not supposed to, but no matter how hard I try...! can't keep a secret."

Many people have secrets, things they do not want others to know. Some secrets are secure not because people do not want others to know them¹ but because people themselves do not want to know them. That seems the case for a secret Paul describes. Few people want to know it because of the expectation that comes with it.

In our expanding understanding of What Is Foremost?, we recognize that giving these priorities the attention they deserve can be difficult, especially when we become distracted by other, seemingly more pressing concerns. Today, we will examine what enables us to resist those distractions and to retain our focus on the right priorities. From one of Paul's epistles, it is...

XXVI. The Foremost Contentment²

...which is relying on...

• The provision of God (Phil 4:11b-13)

The apostle Paul did not have an easy life. In his second letter to the church at Corinth (A.D. 55), he writes...³

2 Cor 11:25 Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked.... 26b I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers.... 27b I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked.

Over the next few years, after writing this letter, Paul's situation does not improve. In fact, it gets worse, as his enemies become more determined to stop him, falsifying charges against him,⁴ even plotting to murder him.⁵ What is amazing is that the apostle is able to maintain a positive perspective on what most others would regard as a bleak situation.⁶ How does he do that? ...He explains in a letter to the church at Philippi (A.D. 61), six years after describing to the Corinthians that the litany of misery. Please turn to...

Phil 4:11b ...I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.⁷ 12 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. 13 I can do everything through him who gives me strength.⁸

At this point, Paul has been under house arrest in Rome for a year, having already spent the two previous years in a Caesarean jail,⁹ He is waiting for his case to come to trial, which will not happen for yet another year. While Paul thinks he may be released, he realizes that he may be executed instead.¹⁰ This uncertainty about the future, whether or not one will even survive the next few months, would be unsettling, even distressing, for most people. It is not for Paul. In fact, it seems to have quite the opposite effect. Rather than shake his faith, Paul's uncertain future seems to strengthen his faith, and he uses that confidence to encourage his readers, who are undergoing trials of their own. His experience gives him a certain authority in the matter of dealing with adverse circumstances.¹¹ He knows of what he speaks, and anyone would be hard pressed to equal what he has endured.

The Philippians have their own problems, individuals who would undermine the gospel by teaching that gentiles must become Jews and obey the law God gave to Israel in order to be saved.¹² Paul describes them in very uncomplimentary terms.

He says in...

Phil 3:2 Watch out for those dogs, those men who do evil, those mutilators of the flesh [which is what circumcision becomes when done for the wrong reason]¹³ .... 18b [They are] enemies of the cross of Christ.

In addition to teaching false doctrine, these men lead and promote an ungodly lifestyle that will result in their own condemnation.¹⁴ Paul goes on to say...

Phil 3:19 Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things.

These are the problems the Philippians face, and they are quite different from what the apostle is facing, yet because they can still be disturbing, the way to deal with them is essentially the same.¹⁵ So, Paul says...

1. Your set of conditions (situation) will be variable.

...and not the same as what someone else may be experiencing, but the way to face them is no different. God does not change, and...

2. Your source of confidence (strength) will be reliable.

So, do not become flustered by the circumstances you cannot control but remain focused on the Lord who controls them.

Paul's experiences, particularly his bad experiences, have been many and diverse. Few of us could match what he endured, which makes his counsel that much more compelling. Paul says he has learned two attitudes appropriate to every negative experience he has had, and those same attitudes can apply to any negative experience you may have.

• The first attitude concerns your response to difficulty.

• While each negative experience may be different, from danger to deprivation, your reaction can and should be the same, which is not to be upset or unhappy but to be "content." Paul is not referring to a bad situation you could correct but to a bad situation you cannot change. In that case, it would be futile, unsatisfying as well as unproductive, to try fixing what is not fixable, at least not by you. The first attitude concerns your response to difficulty: Recognize that you are limited in the matter, make the best of a bad situation, and concentrate on the second attitude.

• The second attitude concerns your resolve in difficulty.

• The key to being content—a solution so few people know that Paul calls it a "secret"¹⁶—is recognizing that the solution to dealing with each negative experience, like the response, is also the same, which is not relying on one's own resources and abilities but relying on God. Again, Paul is not referring to a bad situation you could correct but to a bad situation you cannot change. The second attitude concerns your resolve in difficulty: Remember that God is limitless in the matter, so rely on Him to help you.¹⁷

If you have ever felt powerless, unable to alter something that is obviously wrong but that is out of your control—be it your work environment or a relationship gone sour—Paul recommends this two-pronged approach to solving impossible problems—impossible for you.¹⁸

• First is realization:

• Admit to your limits, your inability to do impossible things. Recognize what you cannot change, no matter what you do.

• Second is concentration:

• Look to your Lord, who supports you in impossible times. Remember who is with you, no matter what anyone else does.

Amazingly, this is a "secret" few know, and probably few want to know, perhaps because they do not want to admit their limitations, that there are things they do not and cannot control. But this "secret" will keep you from wasting emotional energy and physical resources on trying to do what only God can do.¹⁹ It will also enable you, like Paul, to maintain a composure, confidence, and commitment even in the most adverse circumstances.

Despite the difficulty of Paul's situation, he is not distraught. Quite the contrary, he evinces an unusually positive attitude which he attributes to his having The Foremost Contentment. You are probably not going through anything close to what Paul went through, and it is easy to be content when life is good. There are probably moments, though, that are not so rosy, and the challenge is how you respond when life is tough, especially when you can do nothing to change it. Will you fret and fuss, or will you use that opportunity to develop your faith and focus your devotion on the one who is always positive? As Isaiah says...

Isa 26:3 You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.

In the end, adversity compels you to decide: Will you trust in God?

Having considered The Foremost Contentment, we will look next at The Foremost Concernment, which is evident in the preview of God, in Num 14:21.

For the Bibliography and Endnotes, see the pdf here.

(This sermon is part of Dr. Manuel's sermon series: "What is Foremost?" Links to each of the sermons in the series will be found here as they are posted)