İ1999 Larry Huntsperger
Peninsula Bible Fellowship
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7/11/99
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Key To Contentment
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Philippians 4:10-13
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7/11/99 Key To Contentment Pt. 2
Philippians 4:10-13
We have returned to our study
of the forth chapter of Philippians.
We actually returned to it last week,
but some of you don't know that
because your 4th of July plans
kept you away,
so I'll back up just a step or two
and remind us of what's
happening in this passage.
This is the last chapter of this short letter.
It is also the last major section of the last chapter,
beginning with verse 10 of chapter 4
and running through verse 20.
I mentioned last week
that this final section contains
two of the better known verses
from the New Testament Epistles.
One of them is 4:13:
Phil. 4:13 I can do all things through Him
who strengthens me.
And the second is 4:19:
Phil. 4:19 And my God shall supply all
your needs according to His riches in glory
in Christ Jesus.
As we study this passage
one of the things we want to do
is to put both of these passages
back into their context
so we can understand why Paul said
them
and what he meant by them.
Last week we started looking at the first half of this
passage,
Philippians 4:10-13,
and spent most of our time
on verses 10 and 11.
Let me read that passage for us once again
and we'll pick up our study
where we left off last week.
And just so we keep the whole thought together,
I'll read through verse 14.
Phil. 4:10 ¶ But I rejoiced in the Lord
greatly, that now at last you have revived
your concern for me; indeed, you were
concerned before, but you lacked
opportunity.
Phil. 4:11 Not that I speak from want, for
I have learned to be content in whatever
circumstances I am.
Phil. 4:12 I know how to get along with
humble means, and I also know how to
live in prosperity; in any and every
circumstance I have learned the secret of
being filled and going hungry, both of
having abundance and suffering need.
Phil. 4:13 I can do all things through Him
who strengthens me.
Phil. 4:14 Nevertheless, you have done
well to share with me in my affliction.
Paul begins his concluding comments
with a burst of gratitude
for the Philippians' kindness to him.
They helped meet some of his physical needs,
and even more, they encouraged his spirit.
Then we moved on to a statement
in verse 11 that does not fit well
with our American brand of cultural
Christianity.
Paul says,
Phil. 4:11 Not that I speak from want, for
I have learned to be content in whatever
circumstances I am.
And we saw last week
that Paul is telling us
that true contentment for the Christian
does not come from discovering
how to get God to change our
circumstances,
but rather it comes from learning how
to be content
in whatever circumstances we find
ourselves.
He doesn't deny God's ability
to change those circumstances
if it serves His purpose in Paul's life,
nor does he fail to take
whatever steps he can take
to better his circumstances for himself.
But having done what he can do
within what he understands to be
the life and leadership of Christ within him,
he tells us that he has then learned
to be content.
In fact in the next verse
he strengthens this even more
by telling us that he has learned the
secret...,
a secret he shares with us in the verse
that follows.
And before we closed last week
we saw that
if our worship of
and submission to our Lord
is dependant upon whether or not
He changes our circumstances,
then it is not true worship or submission.
Worshiping God for what He has done
is not the same thing
as worshiping Him for who He is.
Submitting to God
when He does for us
whatever it is we want Him to do
is not true submission.
Now I want us to pick up our study
right here were we stopped last week
and see where Paul goes with this
in the next verse.
And if our cultural Christianity
has problems with Paul's comment
in verse 11 about being content
in whatever circumstances we find
ourselves,
it gets even worse in verse 12.
Paul goes on to say:
Phil. 4:12 I know how to get along with
humble means, and I also know how to live
in prosperity; in any and every
circumstance I have learned the secret of
being filled and going hungry, both of
having abundance and suffering need.
Now keep in mind that
this is Paul the Apostle describing his own life
with Christ.
This is the most mature,
committed,
knowledgeable,
experienced believer alive.
This is the man
used by God
to establish and reveal the heart of true
Christianity
to all Christians for all time to come.
And look at this little mini-history
of his own life experiences with Christ.
He tells us that there have been times
when he has been forced...to get along with
humble means...
He then tells us
there have also been times
when he has lived...in prosperity...
But he doesn't stop there.
He says that there are times
when his walk with Christ
has resulted in his being filled,
but there are also times
when his walk with Christ
has resulted in his going hungry.
There have been times
when he has had an abundance,
but there are also times
when he has suffered need.
And just so that we don't misunderstand
what Paul is saying here,
I want to restate it as clearly as I can.
Paul says that there have been times
when his faithful submission to
the leadership of Christ in his life
has resulted in his going hungry.
There have been times when
Christ's involvement in his life
has resulted in his suffering need.
I'll bet you've never heard that preached
at an evangelistic service.
"Come to Christ and suffer need!
Place your life in His hands and go hungry!"
We are not always as accurate
in our presentation of the Good News
as we could be.
God, on the other hand,
has no such credibility gap
when He is presenting Himself.
Do you know what God said about Paul
to Ananias
at the time of Paul's submission to Christ?
He said,
Acts 9:15 "...he is a chosen instrument of
Mine, to bear My name before the Gentiles
and kings and the sons of Israel;
Acts 9:16 for I will show him how much he
must suffer for My name's sake."
... I will show him how much he must
suffer for My name's sake...
Do you remember last week
we were talking about
how uncomfortable our cultural Christianity
is
with the message Paul gives us in this
passage?
We are a success-oriented
and success-motivated society.
And success is measured
on the basis of whether or not
we have the freedom
and the resources to live the way we
want.
We have a national level of affluence
unparalleled in modern history.
It's not surprising that
when we Christians in our culture
formulate our presentation of Christ
we tend to present Him as a God
who will serve as our ally
in achieving our cultural success
goals.
The next statement Paul makes
in this Philippian passage
is an excellent example.
It's that frequently quoted verse
I told you we were coming to.
Phil. 4:13 I can do all things through Him
who strengthens me.
When we yank that verse out of context
and quote it to ourselves
and to others in our society
what do we usually mean by it?
We mean that with Christ's help
and His strength
I can achieve these success goals I value so
much.
But in context
what are the "all things" Paul is talking about?
Well, one of them is going hungry.
And another is suffering need.
And a third is getting along with humble
means.
Now itıs true that some of the others
are living in prosperity
and being filled
and having an abundance.
But there is an important distinction I want us to see
here.
When Paul says "I can do all things through Him
who strengthens me...",
he is not saying that Christ has equipped him to
ACHIEVE prosperity,
he is saying that Christ has equipped him to
LIVE IN prosperity.
He is not saying that Christ
will give every Christian
the ability to accumulate prosperity,
but rather he is saying that
if God brings prosperity into our lives
and if we are determined to follow His
leadership
our Lord can show us
how to live in that prosperity
without being destroyed by it.
And as long as I've gotten us into this area
let me take it just a little bit farther.
Every set of circumstances in life
contains its own potential enemies
to a healthy relationship with Christ.
Paul began this section
by telling us that He has learned
how to be content
in whatever circumstances he finds
himself.
He then goes on to tell us
that he has learned the SECRET
that enables him to do that.
It may help you to know
that this is the only time Paul ever uses this term.
In fact, it is the only time it is ever used
anywhere in Scripture.
This is strong language even for Paul.
He talks often about knowledge
and the need for knowledge,
and growing in knowledge about Christ.
But only once,
in this passage right here,
does he ever refer to
knowing or discovering the secret of
true contentment.
So what is it?
What is this remarkable secret he's discovered?
I can do all things through Him who
strengthens me.
So what does that mean?
Let me rephrase it
and see if it helps.
The secret of true contentment
is discovering that true contentment
does not come from what we are
experiencing,
but rather it comes from Who we are
experiencing it with.
And maybe if I state the lies
it will help make the truth more understandable.
When we are suffering need,
when our physical circumstances
are not what we would like them to be,
the great lie is believing
that the path to contentment will be found
through changing our circumstances.
And when we are living in prosperity
the great lie is believing
that if we can just figure out how to use our
prosperity correctly
it will then bring us contentment.
If I just buy this house
rather than that one,
if I just drive this car
rather than that one,
if I just move my investment from here to there,
then I'll feel secure
and be content.
If I just take this trip
or that vacation
then I will be content...
And Paul is telling us
that the secret to inner peace
is not found in the circumstances
themselves,
but rather it comes from living through
those circumstances
in the presence and love of Christ.
EX. In the fall of 1970 I was young,
single,
and broke.
I'd just returned from my second trip to Trinidad.
I was working at a restaurant in Seattle as a
busboy,
hoping a waiter position would open up
so that I could start making the really
big money.
I heard about a seminar in Portland that I wanted to
attend.
I had enough money to pay for the costs of the
seminar,
and a full tank of gas
to get me down there and back.
But I didn't have any other money.
I remember during the mid-morning break at the
seminar
watching all the people lined up at the vending
machines buying snacks.
When the crowd thinned down
I walked up to the coffee machine
and on impulse but my finger in the coin
return slot.
In that slot I found enough change
for a cup of coffee.
I remember the joy I felt
and the tremendous sense of contentment
at knowing my Lord Jesus loved me so
much,
that He wanted to buy me a cup of coffee.
Now, almost thirty years later,
I'm married,
and we live in a wonderful home,
and drive well-maintained vehicles,
and receive a very adequate regular
income,
and yet there is a sense in which
nothing has really changed
because I continue to know
the same depth of contentment today
that I knew in 1970,
a contentment that comes
from the constant presence
of my Lord Jesus Christ with me here, now,
in these circumstances
just as He was with me
as I stood in front of that coffee
machine so many years ago.
You see,
what the human spirit longs for
is not the illusion of security
that comes from careful control of our
circumstances in a way that makes us think we are
secure.
What the human spirit longs for
is the kind of contentment
that can only come from the secret Paul
reveals to us in this passage,
"I can do all things through Him who
strengthens me."
In other words,
no matter what circumstances I face
I know I face them with my Lord,
and with His strength
and His leadership as my solid
foundation.
And just one final observation
before I close.
Both poverty and riches
have their own unique risks for the Christian.
Poverty can sometimes bring with it
a feeling of resentment against God
because we do not feel as though
He has provided for us
the way we think He should.
And with affluence comes the tendency
to cling to our possessions for our emotional
security,
believing they have the power
to make us happy.
Neither poverty nor riches in themselves
can produce a healthy life in the Spirit.
The Book of Proverbs
says it far better than I can.
Prov. 30:7 ¶ Two things I asked of You,
Do not refuse me before I die:
Prov. 30:8 Keep deception and lies far
from me, Give me neither poverty nor
riches; Feed me with the food that is my
portion,
Prov. 30:9 That I not be full and deny You
and say, "Who is the Lord?" Or That I not
be in want and steal, And profane the name
of my God.