Order in the Church Series

#16 The Crown of Contentment

1 Timothy 6:6-8 (NIV) "But godliness with contentment is great gain. {7} For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. {8} But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that."

You are not in our target group." The words came as a shock to the young couple when they asked why they had not been incorporated into the activities of this congregation, about which they had heard very much. The church had become a model of vitality, and congregations everywhere had wanted to emulate its growth. But in order to grow and to minimize the problems of growth, this church had made a conscious decision to create a homogeneous church that appealed to one group within the large urban community.

The decision had a certain logic to it. The leaders had recognized that homogeneous churches have the greatest chance of growth because people feel most at home in communities where they have something in common with others. According to those who have studied the demographics of church growth, the more that people have in common with each other in education, social status, ethnic origins, and age, the more the people are likely to be comfortable with each other. Consequently, homogeneous churches are likely to grow, while differences in all of these categories sow the seeds for the tensions that destroy communities.

When we look at the churches established by Paul, we must admit that the experts on church growth have a point. Paul's churches were composed of rich and poor, slave and free, young and old-and they had problems! The issues that divided the church at Corinth were intensified, to say the least, by the divisions between the rich and the poor (1 Cor. 11:17-34) and the men and the women (cf. 1 Cor. 11:2-16; 14:34-36).

In Ephesians and Colossians, he addresses men and women, slaves and masters, and children and parents (Eph. 5:21-6:9; Col. 3:18-4:1) within the same church. His congregations were thus a cross-section of ancient society. At times the conflicts between social groups come into full view, as in Romans 14:1-15:13. At other times we are left to wonder how tensions could have been avoided when such disparate groups met together for worship.

The Pastoral Epistles reflect the diversity of the Pauline churches and the problems created by this diversity. The leadership of these churches appears to come from older men who have the means to receive members into their homes (cf. 1 Tim. 3:3). At the same time the church consists both of wealthy women who have expensive jewelry to wear (1 Tim. 2:9) and of indigent widows who require the church's assistance (1 Tim. 5:5).

According to 1 Timothy 6, the church consists both of slaves (6:1-2) and wealthy people who are not numbered among the leaders (6:17-19). Such diversity was sure to be the source of tensions, as the instructions in this chapter indicate. We can imagine the tensions that would have been created in a community where people of different social levels had been taught that they were brothers and sisters in Christ when in fact they knew that the social distinctions had not been erased. Slaves were still slaves, and the wealthy were still wealthy! Others who were not wealthy desired to change their social status.

In 1 Timothy 6, we observe Paul as he faces the problem of sustaining a community in the context of social and class distinctions. The issue in this chapter is the Christian's relationship to money and class and how community can be maintained in this context.

Christianity and Wealth

From the very first days, Christianity maintained an uneasy relation to wealth. At the annunciation of the birth of Jesus, Mary sang

He has put down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted those of low degree; he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty (Luke 1:52-53).

In the Sermon on the Plain, recorded in Luke, Jesus says, "Woe to you who are rich" (Luke 6:24). Jesus commanded his disciples, "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume, and where thieves break through and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven .. . (Matt. 6:19-20 )." Jesus said to the rich young man, "Sell all that you have and give to the poor" (Luke 18:22).

When the disciples asked Jesus about the meaning of this demand, Jesus replied, "How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God" (Luke 18:23, 25). In the gospel narratives the rich are frequently the villains, and the poor are especially favored (cf Luke 12:16; 16:19). The model disciples left everything to follow Jesus. The poor widow who gave her mite became the example for others (Mark 12:42). The first chapters of the book of Acts describe an idyllic situation where people shared their possessions to such an extent that "there was not a needy person among them" (Acts 4:34; cf. Deut. 15:4).

The accounts of sacrifice and the memory of the Savior who "had no place to lay his head" were the source of much debate in the early church, as numerous people asked, for example, if Jesus' demand to the rich young man was applicable only for a select few. Some resolved the problem by calling for a vow of poverty for the few. Others argued that Jesus' demand was not meant for all people in all generations.

In Alexandria in the late second century A.D., a church which included many wealthy people was already struggling with Jesus' words about wealth. Clement of Alexandria responded with an essay entitled "The Rich Man's Salvation," in which he argued that Jesus' words to the rich young man were not applicable to all.

The church continues to ask about the relationship between the Christian faith and material wealth, and we continue to hear a variety of answers about the way we deal with wealth. Some continue to take Jesus' radical demands as requirements for Christians of all times, while others take an opposite position, suggesting that wealth is a sign of God's blessing.

We sometimes even hear the suggestion that the practice of Christianity will actually result in material blessings! Some religious traditions regard wealth as a sign of God's special favor. Because such contrasting views on wealth and status have been held, Paul's comments in 1 Timothy 6 are especially appropriate for our consideration.

Christianity and Slavery (6:1-2)

The slaves in the early congregations apparently received a mixed message when they entered these communities. On the one hand, they were taught that "there was no longer slave or free" in Jesus Christ (Gal. 3:28 ). On the other hand, the institution of slavery continued to exist. Because Christians were scarcely capable of altering the institution of slavery itself, slaves continued to live "under the yoke of slavery" (1 Tim. 6:1). Some slaves labored under cruel and sadistic masters, while others lived in a household with Christian masters. We can imagine, therefore, the special temptations that slaves specially those who had Christian masters-would have faced. Having experienced a taste of freedom in Christ, they were probably tempted to assert themselves before their masters and demand a change in their status. Those who had Christian masters would have been tempted to "show less respect" (1 Tim. 6:2 NIV) for them as masters, knowing that they were brothers in Christ.

As in other New Testament passages (cf. Col. 3:22-25 ), Paul counsels the slaves to avoid their unique temptations. They are challenged not to look with resentment toward their masters, whether they were non-Christians (6:1) or Christians (6:2), but to show respect for them. Because Christian community would easily break down where those in a lower status maintained resentments and grudges, Paul addressed their own temptations and insisted that they live in community with those who had a higher status.

False Teachers and Status

The slaves are not the only ones who have a problem with status. Their special temptation must be seen in the larger context of the problems that grew out of the differences between rich and poor in the community. Indeed, the remainder of 1 Timothy 6 is focused on the problems in the church created by wealth. According to 1 Timothy 6:17-19, some Christians in the community were wealthy, while according to 6:10 others desired to be wealthy. These instructions indicate that wealth is a problem not only for the wealthy, but for those who aspire to wealth.

In 1 Timothy 6:3-10 we learn that teachers have their own problems with money. The false teachers, for example, have no right to speak about money. In 1 Timothy 6:3-10 the false teachers are described as "diseased." After enumerating some of the symptoms of the disease in 6:4 ("he is conceited and understands nothing; he has an unhealthy interest in controversies and quarrels about words"), Paul reaches the climax of the description of the false teachers when he says that they imagine "that godliness is a means of gain" (6:5 ).

We are not sure how this desire for gain became manifest among these teachers. Perhaps they were like the Sophists, a philosophical school of that period, who marketed their teachings for money and were accused of being more concerned with their income than with the truth. This disease is already present in the life of the church, for some of the teachers have been misled by the desire for money and have departed from the faith (6:10). This aspect of the disease leads Paul to provide a lesson on the Christian view of money in 6:6-10.

Verses 6-8 provide the appropriate Christian attitude toward possessions, an attitude that is suitable for people of all incomes and for every role within the church. Just as Paul affirms, against the false teachers, that both the marital relationship and food are part of God's creation and are to be received with thanksgiving (1 Tim. 4:5 ), so money is to be received with gratitude. However, the Christian has come to know the greatest "gain" of all: "godliness with contentment" (6:6). As in other passages in 1 Timothy, the greatest goal of the Christian's life is "godliness" (eusebeia). The term, which was the all encompassing term that the Greeks used for one's religion, involves both the Christian story (cf. 1 Tim. 3:16) and the conduct that grows out of that story (cf. 1 Tim. 2:2).

According to 1 Timothy 4:7, the Christians are like disciplined athletes who "train" themselves for godliness. Similarly, according to 6:6, godliness is the greatest gain of all. Those who set their minds on godliness will find it to be a benefit far greater than the financial advantage that others seek. In describing this gain, Paul introduces an important word into the Christian reflection about possessions: it is the word "contentment" in 6:6.

Contentment is the recognition that the satisfaction of our basic needs is enough. A form of this same word is used in Philippians 4:11, when Paul says, "Not that I complain of want; for I have learned, in whatever state I am, to be content." In 1 Timothy 6:8, Paul describes the nature of this contentment when he says, "If we have food and clothing, we shall be content with that."

But Paul knew that within the church not everyone-not even the teachers-understood the real meaning of possessions. Rather than being content, they "wanted to be rich" (6:9), and thus they had fallen into a trap that would lead to destruction. To them, Paul says that "the love of money is the root of all evils" (6:10). Paul's concern was not with those who possessed money, but with those who were possessed by the desire for money.

This concern with money is a major theme throughout the Pastoral Epistles. The difference between the community's leaders and the false teachers was nowhere as apparent as in their attitude toward money. Whereas the false teacher "teaches for base gain" (Titus 1:11), the church's leader is "no lover of money" (1 Tim. 3:3).

The Model Leader

Just as Christian elders must offer a contrast to those who "teach for base gain," Timothy is challenged to be a model of Christian behavior, a living demonstration of the life that does not suffer from the "disease" (6:4) affecting the false teachers. When Paul says in 6:11, "But as for you, shun all this," he is referring to the disease that affects the heretics, the disease of setting the heart on the acquisition of things. Instead, he is called on to show what he most desires.

In his advice of 6:11-16, Paul offers an alternative to the mentality that desires to be rich. Because one does not overcome the desire for things unless one's heart is set on a higher goal, Paul challenges the leader to a pursuit worthy of Christian discipleship. Indeed, the images once more resound with the language of athletics, for here Paul pictures the disciple as the athlete who disciplines himself for a worthy aim. In 6:11 Paul challenges Timothy to "pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness." In the verb "pursue" (dioko), used in Philippians 3:14 for the athlete who pursues the goal, Paul points to the intensity with which we seek our highest aspiration. In the words "fight the good fight of faith" (6:12), he once more describes the Christian as an athlete who devotes his full energies toward attaining the prize. With the reminder of the "good confession" in 6:14 and the beautiful doxology in 6:15-16, Paul recalls the message that calls forth this intense commitment. One who can proclaim the doxology of 6:16-17 has found the greatest gain of all.

Paul's contrast between the pursuit of gain and the pursuit of godliness is a special challenge to Christians who live in an affluent society in which the pursuit of wealth has been glamorized and sanctified. Unlike ancient or medieval societies, which disdained the sin of greed, our own culture encourages and applauds the single-minded pursuit of wealth. In many instances; the desire for things becomes the religion that drives us on, causing us to neglect both our families and our commitment to the faith. Paul's words remind us that we would do well to limit our pursuit of things and to recognize the greater need for God.

Richard Foster's books Freedom of Simplicity and Money, Sex, and Power have challenged Christians to practice the discipline of limiting their wants.

Our lives are marked by voluntary abstinence in the midst of extravagant luxury. We refuse to indulge in elegance and display in clothing or manner of life. Our use of resources is always tempered by human need.'

A church that is distinguished by its members' commitment to lower material expectations and withdraw from the competition for status would be genuinely counter cultural and a powerful witness to the way of discipleship.

What Shall We Do with Our Wealth?

The instructions to the wealthy in 1 Timothy indicate that Christians were neither required to give up their possessions nor taught to regard their wealth as a sign of God's special blessing. Paul assumes that a church has wealthy people and that they are not exempt from the special temptations that accompany their wealth. Verse 17 indicates the nature of their temptation and the Christian view of money. Instead of addressing them as "the rich," he addresses them as "the rich in this age." That is, their wealth is for "this age" only; they are reminded of the impermanence of their wealth. Verse 17 then adds two prohibitions which affect the wealthy in a special way. In the first place, they are told "not to be haughty" (6:17). They are not the only ones who face this temptation, for elsewhere Christians are made haughty by their ethnic pride (Rom. 11:25) or their spiritual gifts (Rom. 12:3,16). In the second place, they are told not to place their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who is the source of real wealth. The rich could easily be deluded about the real basis of their hope. In verses 18-19 Paul returns to the positive uses of wealth. In a way that is not available to anyone else, the wealthy Christians may be "rich in good works." The community benefits from the good works of both the widows (cf. 5:10)-the poorest of the poor-and the wealthy people in its midst. The rich are also required to be "liberal" and "generous" as they "treasure up for themselves a good foundation for the future." In other words, they can, in their own way, follow the words of Jesus, who counseled his disciples, "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth."

The rich Christians of Ephesus were not required to dispose of their wealth, but to come to a new understanding of the place of wealth in the work of the church. Their wealth was meant neither as a source of pride nor the foundation for their hope. It was intended as a means of service to others, and especially to a church which took on the special burdens of caring for others.

The wealthy do not dispose of their wealth, nor do they make it their ambition to acquire more. Their wealth is put in perspective. Paul would have approved neither the conspicuous consumption of our culture nor the restless need to acquire more.

The church has always benefited from those who had the resources to give. Today, when affluence is not concentrated in the hands of the few as it was in ancient Ephesus, money holds for most of us both a temptation and the potential for service to others. Even people with wealth can show that their treasure is in heaven.

Who Can Tell the Rich?

One may wonder why this directive to the rich is placed at the end of 1 Timothy. At first glance the instructions of 6:17-19 seem unrelated to the context. In 6:1-2 Paul has given advice to slaves; in 6:3-10 he has laid out the characteristics of the false teachers; and in 6:11.

16 he has reminded Timothy of the good confession that he had made.  In 6:20-21 Paul makes the final charge concerning Timothy's task.

However, one theme unites 1 Timothy 6: the issue of the Christian's attitude toward money. It is not only the rich who may have a problem with money, for greed is not a respecter of persons.

No one can give advice on the proper use of money who has not himself come to terms with the issue. Only when Timothy has provided a model of appropriate values can he speak to the rich about their attitude toward money. For this reason, the larger context of the instructions to the rich involve Timothy's attitude toward money.

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The word here used for contentment is autarkeia. This was one of the great watchwords of the Stoic philosophers. By it they meant a complete self-sufficiency. They meant a frame of mind which was completely independent of all outward things, and which carried the secret of happiness within itself.

Contentment never comes from the possession of external things. As George Herbert wrote:

"For he that needs five thousand pounds to live Is full as poor as he that needs but five."

Contentment comes from an inward attitude to life.

Long ago the Greek philosophers had gripped the right end of the matter. Epicurus said of himself: "To whom little is not enough nothing is enough. Give me a barley cake and a glass of water and I am ready to rival Zeus for happiness." And when someone asked him for the secret of happiness, his answer was: "Add not to a man's possessions but take away from his desires."

The great men have always been content with little. One of the sayings of the Jewish Rabbis was: "Who is rich? He that is contented with his lot." Walter Lock quotes the kind of training on which a Jewish Rabbi engaged and the kind of life he lived: "This is the path of the Law. A morsel with salt shalt thou eat, thou shalt drink also water by measure, and shalt sleep upon the ground and live a life of trouble while thou toilest in the Law. If thou doest this, happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee; happy shalt thou be in this world and it shall be well with thee in the world to come." The Rabbi had to learn to be content with enough.

It is not that Christianity pleads for poverty. There is no special virtue in being poor, or in having a constant struggle to make ends meet. But it does plead for two things.

It pleads for the realization that it is never in the power of things to bring happiness. E. K. Simpson says: "Many a millionaire, after choking his soul with gold-dust, has died from melancholia." Happiness always comes from personal relationships. All the things in the world will not make a man happy if he knows neither friendship nor love. The Christian knows that the secret of happiness lies, not in things, but in people.

It pleads for concentration upon the things which are permanent. We brought nothing into the world and we cannot take anything out of it. The wise men of every age and faith have known this. "You cannot," said Seneca, "take anything more out of the world than you brought into it."

The poet of the Greek anthology had it: "Naked I set foot on the earth; naked I shall go below the earth." The Spanish proverb grimly puts it: "There are no pockets in a shroud." E. K. Simpson comments: "Whatever a man amasses by the way is in the nature of luggage, no part of his truest personality, but something he leaves behind at the toll-bar of death."

Two things alone a man can take to God. He can, and must, take himself; and therefore his great task is to build up a self he can take without shame to God. He can, and must, take that relationship with God into which he has entered in the days of his life. We have already seen that the secret of happiness lies in personal relationships, and the greatest of all personal relationships is the relationship to God. And the supreme thing that a man can take with him is the utter conviction that he goes to One who is the friend and lover of his soul.

Content comes when we escape the servitude to things, when we find our wealth in the love and the fellowship of men, and when we realize that our most precious possession is our friendship with God, made possible through Jesus Christ.

(6:6-10) Introduction: every person strives for contentment. Contentment is the one thing we all want. We want to be fulfilled, complete, satisfied, completely self-sufficient. But when we look around, this is not what we see. What we see is a society and a world discontented, about as unfulfilled, incomplete, dissatisfied, empty, lonely, and restless as they can be. Why? Why are so many people discontented? Why are few people truly contented? This is the importance of this passage: the secret of contentment.

1. The secret to contentment is godliness (v.6-8).

2. The secret to contentment is not money (v.9-10).

Wealth does not bring contentment (v. 6). The word contentment means "an inner sufficiency that keeps us at peace in spite of outward circumstances." Paul used this same word later. "For I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content" (Phil. 4:11). True contentment comes from godliness in the heart, not wealth in the hand. A person who depends on material things for peace and assurance will never be satisfied, for material things have a way of losing their appeal. It is the wealthy people, not the poor people, who go to psychiatrists and who are more apt to try to commit suicide.

Wealth is not lasting (v. 7). I like to translate this verse: "We brought nothing into this world because we can carry nothing out" (see Job 1:21). When someone’s spirit leaves his body at death, it can take nothing with it because, when that person came into the world at birth, he brought nothing with him. Whatever wealth we amass goes to the government, our heirs, and perhaps charity and the church. We always know the answer to the question, "How much did he leave?" Everything!

Our basic needs are easily met (v. 8). Food and "covering" (clothing and shelter) are basic needs; if we lose them, we lose the ability to secure other things. A miser without food would starve to death counting his money. I am reminded of the simple-living Quaker who was watching his new neighbor move in, with all of the furnishings and expensive "toys" that "successful people" collect. The Quaker finally went over to his new neighbor and said, "Neighbor, if ever thou dost need anything, come to see me, and I will tell thee how to get along without it." Henry David Thoreau, the naturalist of the 1800s, reminded us that a man is wealthy in proportion to the number of things he can afford to do without.

The economic and energy crises that the world faces will probably be used by God to encourage people to simplify their lives. Too many of us know the "price of everything and the value of nothing." We are so glutted with luxuries that we have forgotten how to enjoy our necessities.

The desire for wealth leads to sin (vv. 9-10). "They that will be rich," is the accurate translation. It describes a person who has to have more and more material things in order to be happy and feel successful. But riches are a trap; they lead to bondage, not freedom. Instead of giving satisfaction, riches create additional lusts (desires); and these must be satisfied. Instead of providing help and health, an excess of material things hurts and wounds. The result Paul described very vividly: "Harmful desires . . . plunge men into ruin and destruction" (1 Tim. 6:9, niv). It is the picture of a man drowning! He trusted his wealth and "sailed along," but the storm came and he sank.

It is a dangerous thing to use religion as a cover-up for acquiring wealth. God’s laborer is certainly worthy of his hire (1 Tim. 5:17-18), but his motive for laboring must not be money. That would make him a "hireling," and not a true shepherd (John 10:11-14). We should not ask, "How much will I get?" but rather "How much can I give?"

(6:6-8) Contentment—Godliness—Wealth: the secret to contentment is godliness. "Contentment" (autarkeias) means to be completely sufficient, to need absolutely nothing. It means to be fulfilled, satisfied, and complete. Imagine a person who feels wholly complete and sufficient, who lacks absolutely nothing. This is what Scripture means by contentment; this is what Scripture means by the contented person. What makes a person content? What brings such contentment to the human soul? Scripture pulls no punches; it unequivocally states that it is godliness. Godliness alone can make a person content. Godliness alone can take a person and make him...

·          fulfilled

·          satisfied

·          complete

·          sufficient

Godliness alone can give man the sense that he lacks absolutely nothing. Imagine being so contented—so fulfilled, so satisfied, so completed, so sufficient—that you sense no lack. You just sense no need whatsoever within your innermost being and soul. This is exactly what godliness does for the human soul. This is the reason Scripture declares that godliness with contentment is great gain. No greater gain could ever come to a person than contentment.

Note that Scripture wants us to think about the three stages of life for a moment:

·         There is the stage of birth. At birth we brought nothing into this world. When we entered the world, we came with only two things: our bodies and life. Beyond these we were stark naked. We had nothing else.

·         There is the stage of death. Note that the fact of death is an absolute certainty. At death, we carry nothing—absolutely nothing—out of this world. We leave this world just as we entered it, with nothing.

·         There is the stage that is between birth and death—the stage of life. Life is entirely different from birth and death. There are some things that we need during life: necessities that we must have to sustain life. We need food, clothing, and shelter. The Greek word for raiment literally means covering: it is applicable both to clothing and shelter. In order to live and complete our lives upon earth, we need food, clothing, and shelter. But note: we need nothing else. We can live and sustain life if we have these things. Therefore, a person is to be content with these. Remember the point of these verses: the secret of contentment is godliness. Godliness with contentment is great gain.

The point is driven home by a series of statements taken from Matthew Henry:

"If a man [has]...enough to carry him through [this world], he needs desire no more, his godliness...will be his great gain."

"Godliness is itself great gain; it is profitable to all things."

"Wherever there is true godliness, there will be contentment."

"The highest pitch of contentment [is] godliness [which makes the] happiest people in this world."

"Christian contentment...is all the wealth in the world."

"He that is godly is sure to be happy in another world."

"Godliness with contentment, this is the way to gain."

"A Christian’s gain is great: it is not like the little gain of worldlings, who are so fond of a little worldly advantage."

"All truly godly people have learned with Paul: ‘I have learned in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content’ " (Phil. 4:11). (Matthew Henry’s Commentary, Vol.6, p.828.)

"Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content" (Phil. 4:11).

"But godliness with contentment is great gain....and having food and raiment let us be therewith content" (1 Tim. 6:6, 8).

"Let your conversation [behavior] be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee" (Hebrews 13:5).

"Better is little with the fear of the lord, than great treasure and trouble therewith" (Proverbs 15:16).

(6:9-10) Wealth—Riches—Money, Love of: the secret to contentment is not money. This is shocking, for the rich cling and hoard their money, and the rest of mankind is forever seeking to get more and more money. But God is clear about the matter: money and wealth do not bring contentment.

 Here is one of the most misquoted sayings in the Bible. Scripture does not say that money is the root of all evil; it says that the love of money is the root of all evil. This is a truth of which the great classical thinkers were as conscious as the Christian teachers. "Love of money," said Democritus, "is the metropolis of all evils." Seneca speaks of "the desire for that which does not belong to us, from which every evil of the mind springs." "The love of money," said Phocylides, "is the mother of all evils." Philo spoke of "love of money which is the starting-place of the greatest transgressions of the Law." Althenaeus quotes a saying: "The belly's pleasure is the beginning and root of all evil."

 Money in itself is neither good nor bad; but the love of it may lead to evil. With it a man may selfishly serve his own desires; with it he may answer the cry of his neighbour's need. With it he may facilitate the path of wrong-doing; with it he may make it easier for someone else to live as God meant him to do. Money is not itself an evil, but it is a great responsibility. It is powerful to good and powerful to evil. What then are the special dangers involved in the love of money?

 (i) The desire for money tends to be a thirst which is insatiable. There was a Roman proverbial saying that wealth is like sea-water; so far from quenching a man's thirst, it intensifies it. The more he gets, the more he wants.

 (ii) The desire for wealth is founded on an illusion. It is founded on the desire for security; but wealth cannot buy security. It cannot buy health, nor real love; and it cannot preserve from sorrow and from death. The security which is founded on material things is foredoomed to failure.

 (iii) The desire for money tends to make a man selfish. If he is driven by the desire for wealth, it is nothing to him that someone has to lose in order that he may gain. The desire for wealth fixes a man's thoughts upon himself, and others become merely means or obstacles in the path to his own enrichment. True, that need not happen; but in fact it often does.

 (iv) Although the desire for wealth is based on the desire for security, it ends in nothing but anxiety. The more a man has to keep, the more he has to lose and, the tendency is for him to be haunted by the risk of loss. There is an old fable about a peasant who rendered a great service to a king who rewarded him with a gift of much money. For a time the man was thrilled, but the day came when he begged the king to take back his gift, for into his life had entered the hitherto unknown worry that he might lose what he had. John Bunyan was right:

 "He that is down needs fear no fall, He that is low, no pride;

He that is humble ever shall Have God to be his guide.

I am content with what I have, Little be it or much;

And, Lord, contentment still I crave, Because Thou savest such.

Fullness to such a burden is That go on pilgrimage;

Here little, and hereafter bliss, Is best from age to age."

(v) The love of money may easily lead a man into wrong ways of getting it, and therefore, in the end, into pain and remorse. That is true even physically. He may so drive his body in his passion to get, that he ruins his health. He may discover too late what damage his desire has done to others and be saddled with remorse.

 To seek to be independent and prudently to provide for the future is a Christian duty; but to make the love of money the driving-force of life cannot ever be anything other than the most perilous of sins.

 There are four reasons why this is true.

1. Money tempts and enslaves. How can money tempt and enslave? The answer is clearly seen. A person with money...

·          can buy anything he wants when he wants.

·          can go wherever he wants when he wants.

·          can do just about anything he wants when he wants.

This is power within the world—what we might call worldly power. A person who has the power to buy anything, go anywhere, and do whatever he wants has worldly power.

The point is this: a person who has such power—the money to buy anything, go anywhere, and do anything—is always tempted. He is tempted to live selfishly and to hoard what he has. He is always tempted...

·          to keep on buying and buying.

·          to keep on going and going.

·          to keep on doing and doing.

The rich are far more tempted to indulge the flesh and to live extravagantly—far more tempted to live selfishly and to control and dominate people through the power of their wealth.

The rich and they who would be rich are never free from the bombardment of temptation. Therefore, the rich person never has peace. He never possesses contentment, not inward completeness and satisfaction. He never feels completely fulfilled and sufficient. This is the first reason money does not bring contentment. Money brings a bombardment of temptation, and it ensnares men in sin.

2. Money can cause many foolish and hurtful lusts. Think how foolish and hurtful some of these things are.

·          How foolish are closets full of clothing: a person can wear only one set of clothing at a time and there are only so many different kinds of clothing. How foolish is it to have closets full of clothing that we can seldom wear?

·          How foolish is extravagance in clothes? Labels on clothes? An expensive store and an inexpensive chain store will carry the very same clothing made by the same manufacturer. Is it wise or foolish to buy the expensive clothing because of a small label with a different name?

·          How foolish is extravagance in eating? Eating and eating and eating—training our bodies to crave and crave more and more food. Is it foolish or wise to damage the body?

·          How foolish is indulgence in smoking? Walking around like a smoke stack damaging our bodies.

 How foolish and hurtful is it to feed our desires and lusts with the things, possessions, and niceties of this world when millions upon millions are hopeless and helpless and going to bed hungry, cold, and sick—all dying from lack of food, clothing, shelter, and disease? And, most tragic of all—dying without Christ and without any hope of living eternally with God. As stated, money can cause many foolish and hurtful lusts.

3. Money drowns men in destruction and perdition. The word "drown" (buthizo) is a descriptive picture of wealth being "a personal monster, which plunges its victims into an ocean of complete destruction" (Donald Guthrie. The Ministeral Epistles. "Tyndale New Testament Commentaries," p.113). The idea is this: the person who falls into the foolish and hurtful lusts of this world shall be utterly destroyed and ruined, both in body and soul. And the destruction and ruin shall be for eternity (A.T. Robertson. Word Pictures in the New Testament, Vol.4, p.593).

4. Money—that is, the love of money—is the root of all evil. Note the three reasons why:

·          The love of money causes people to covet, and covetousness is idolatry.

·          The love of money causes people to wander away from the faith. It causes people to go after the lusts of this world.

·          The love of money causes people to pierce themselves through with many sorrows. The things, possessions, and lusts of this world do not satisfy nor fulfill a person’s heart and life. Money cannot bring contentment to a person. The love of money only consumes and eats a person with grief (A.T. Robertson. Word Pictures in the New Testament, Vol.4, p.594). It pierces the heart with a void—the void of emptiness and worry, anxiety, and insecurity. Money cannot buy love, health, and deliverance from death. Money cannot buy God; it cannot buy assurance, not the assurance and confidence of living forever.

The point is this: a person craves the necessities of life; his very nature craves them. However, once man has the necessities of life, he discovers that he still craves for more. The necessities do not satisfy his inner craving and emptiness—his void, hunger, and thirst—for something more. Therefore, man seeks to satisfy his craving by getting more and more food, clothing and everything else he desires. He eats and eats, buys and buys, and goes after more and more comfort, ease, pleasure, wealth, money, and everything else he wants. But what man overlooks is this: the craving within his heart—the void, the hunger, the thirst—is not for more material possessions. It is for spiritual satisfaction, the filling up of another part of his being. His craving is for godliness. Therefore, once he has food and raiment, he has satisfied his physical craving. Enough food and raiment for today brings contentment today—but only physical contentment. What he needs after that is spiritual food, the satisfaction of his spiritual hunger. Man’s contentment comes from having both his need for physical and spiritual food met. One without the other leaves him with some emptiness, some incompletion (Col. 2:8-9). True contentment comes only from godliness.

#21 The Crown of Contentment

· fulfilled

· satisfied

· complete

· sufficient

Þ there is the stage of birth. At birth we brought nothing into this world. When we entered the world, we came with only two things: our bodies and life. Beyond these we were stark naked. We had nothing else.

Þ There is the stage of death. Note that the fact of death is an absolute certainty. At death, we carry nothing—absolutely nothing—out of this world. We leave this world just as we entered it, with nothing.

Þ There is the stage that is between birth and death—the stage of life. Life is entirely different from birth and death. There are some things that we need during life: necessities that we must have to sustain life. We need food, clothing, and shelter. The Greek word for raiment literally means covering: it is applicable both to clothing and shelter. In order to live and complete our lives upon earth, we need food, clothing, and shelter. But note: we need nothing else. We can live and sustain life if we have these things. Therefore, a person is to be content with these. Remember the point of these verses: the secret of contentment is godliness. Godliness with contentment is great gain.

· can buy anything he wants when he wants.

· can go wherever he wants when he wants.

· can do just about anything he wants when he wants.

· to keep on buying and buying.

· to keep on going and going.

· to keep on doing and doing.

Þ How foolish are closets full of clothing: a person can wear only one set of clothing at a time and there are only so many different kinds of clothing. How foolish is it to have closets full of clothing that we can seldom wear?

Þ How foolish is extravagance in clothes? Labels on clothes? An expensive store and an inexpensive chain store will carry the very same clothing made by the same manufacturer. Is it wise or foolish to buy the expensive clothing because of a small label with a different name?

Þ How foolish is extravagance in eating? Eating and eating and eating—training our bodies to crave and crave more and more food. Is it foolish or wise to damage the body?

Þ How foolish is indulgence in smoking? Walking around like a smoke stack damaging our bodies.

Þ How foolish and hurtful is selling and giving our bodies over to intoxicating drink, drugs, immorality, and greed?

Þ How foolish and hurtful is it to...

· crave and crave?

· lust and lust?

· hoard and hoard?

· indulge and indulge?

· secure and secure?

· possess and possess?

Þ The love of money causes people to covet, and covetousness is idolatry.

Þ The love of money causes people to wander away from the faith. It causes people to go after the lusts of this world.

Þ The love of money causes people to pierce themselves through with many sorrows. The things, possessions, and lusts of this world do not satisfy nor fulfill a person’s heart and life. Money cannot bring contentment to a person. The love of money only consumes and eats a person with grief (A.T. Robertson. Word Pictures in the New Testament, Vol.4, p.594). It pierces the heart with a void—the void of emptiness and worry, anxiety, and insecurity. Money cannot buy love, health, and deliverance from death. Money cannot buy God; it cannot buy assurance, not the assurance and confidence of living forever.

The point is this: a person craves the necessities of life; his very nature craves them. However, once man has the necessities of life, he discovers that he still craves for more. The necessities do not satisfy his inner craving and emptiness—his void, hunger, and thirst—for something more. Therefore, man seeks to satisfy his craving by getting more and more food, clothing and everything else he desires. He eats and eats, buys and buys, and goes after more and more comfort, ease, pleasure, wealth, money, and everything else he wants. But what man overlooks is this: the craving within his heart—the void, the hunger, the thirst—is not for more material possessions. It is for spiritual satisfaction, the filling up of another part of his being. His craving is for godliness. Therefore, once he has food and raiment, he has satisfied his physical craving. Enough food and raiment for today brings contentment today—but only physical contentment. What he needs after that is spiritual food, the satisfaction of his spiritual hunger. Man’s contentment comes from having both his need for physical and spiritual food met. One without the other leaves him with some emptiness, some incompletion (Col. 2:8-9). True contentment comes only from godliness.

Last modified: April 18, 2006