I have learned the secret of being content…  The Apostle Paul, Philippians 4:12

In 2006, Rhonda Byrne wrote a self-help book on the “law of attraction” in which she argued that one's own positive thoughts are powerful magnets that attract wealth, health, happiness... and… did I mention wealth? On the flip side, she argued that negative thoughts are powerful enough to create terminal illness, poverty and even widespread disasters.  In other words, our own thoughts can change the universe – even things like getting the best parking spot at a crowded department store.  The secret she claims to have found is how each one of us can put ourselves at the center of the universe and make the realities of the cosmos adjust to fit our wants.  Millions of books have been sold with countless people trying to manipulate the universe to give them what they want – what they thought will bring them success, joy and contentment.  She provocatively called her book “The Secret.”

On one side, it’s mind-boggling to think of the implications of a worldview like hers – and what would happen if, for example, two people who know “the secret” both compete for the same parking spot.  But, I believe that, even if we mortals were able to manipulate the universe through our positive thinking and got everything we want, we would not be content.  But, Byrne is right in one point at least -- in what has led to her book becoming a best seller, i.e., people are looking for a secret to finding a better life.  That’s what I’ll be talking about today – but I’ll be pointing us to God’s book, not Byrne’s.  Today we come to a great text in the Bible, Philippians 4:10-13, in which the Apostle Paul also claims to have found the secret – twice he tells us he has found the secret of being content in any and every situation in our lives.

I.  Why We Need this Secret of Being Content

The reason why both the Apostle Paul and Rhonda Byrne would speak of a “secret” is that they know what we all know, i.e., most people have not found something we long for.  By contentment, the Bible is referring to a desire I think is deep within us all. It is something that has brought people throughout history to Jesus. For many of us—including your SP—it keeps us convinced that faith in Jesus Christ is real.

What is it?  It’s what German author Johann Wolfgang von Goethe wrote about it in his poem, Selige Sehnsucht, i.e., a “blessed/holy longing.” Goethe said that in the quiet and lovely evenings when we are alone by candlelight, we become aware of a longing for something to fill our inner beings.  Goethe wrote that we often wonder whether that longing can be filled with anything in this world.

C.S. Lewis wrote about this longing more than anyone else. He had experienced the longing that he called “joy” since he was a boy. For 25 years (until he was 31), Lewis tried to satisfy his deep longing—and failed. On a September evening in 1931, Lewis invited J.R.R. Tolkien to dinner. After dinner, they strolled through the gardens of Oxford, talking late into the night. Tolkien asked Lewis whether it might be possible that, if we have a longing for something that nothing in this world can fill, we might be creatures made for something beyond this physical world. Tolkien shared with Lewis that his own soul was satisfied through faith in Christ. 12 days later, Lewis wrote, “I have just passed on…to definitely believing in Christ.”

Lewis compared his conversion to waking up from a sleep, “a long sleep.” After his surrender to Christ, he experienced a peace and delight he had never known before. He told a friend that the skies seemed bluer and the grass seemed greener: If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world (Mere Christianity).

The search for contentment is what we experience from childhood on, i.e., the thought that something we might have or achieve will bring fulfillment… only to get it and find there must be more.  We sometimes think we’ll find it if we get a new job, have a fully paid for vacation, secure a new girl or boyfriend – but those things, as good as they are, don’t quite fill us up.

This is also what Paul discovered. It seems that Paul always had this sehnsucht and that, according to Romans 7:7ff, eventually brought him to Christ.  He wrote that he was reading the 10^th Commandment and recognized he was coveting something – longing for something.  But that longing and failure to secure what he longed for left him dead inside.  As we saw in Phil. 3, Paul testified, “I had all that my flesh was longing for but something was missing.  And all that I coveted and accomplished were never meant to fill what I found – when I met Christ.  Then, and only then, did I find life.  If I gave all that I coveted up and still had Christ, I would have lost nothing.  For me to live is Christ!”  That was Paul’s living letter.

            I too am convinced that you and I were made for something more than this world can fill.  We who are human have a longing for something that we have lost.  We need to find the secret to contentment.

II.  Where Most People Try to Find It

            A few of you may remember that, in my series on the Ten Commandments, I talked about the relationship between the 10^th Commandment, i.e., no coveting, and Paul’s words in Phil. 4:12-13.  I pointed out that the 1^st Commandment is first for a reason and the last is the last for a reason.  The first says, “No other gods.  Nothing in God’s place.”  The last tells us not to covet things that we might put into God’s place.  The 10^th Commandment is not about stealing or adultery.  It’s about that longing inside that thinks, “I’ve got to have this or that in order to live.”  It’s our human inclination to want other things more than God.

            And Philippians is constructed much like the Commandments.  It has ch. 1 telling us that to “live is Christ” and at the end we are told that we will only find contentment in him.  So, what is it in this world that we think might bring contentment apart form Christ?  The 10^th Commandment describes three broad areas that are as accurate now as they were thousands of years ago:  People, possessions and power.

#1:  People – Deut. 5:21 speaks of coveting a neighbor’s wife – which we often think of only in sexual terms.  And surely that is an issue.  Many, many people think that if they could have a sexual experience with a certain person, life would be complete.  But, we know there are many ways that we imagine, “If I only had a relationship like that one, I would be content.”  And, we pursue that relationship – long for it – dream of it.  But, even if we attain it, we find the other person simply cannot bear the weight of fulfilling all we expect out of that relationship.  No person has been made to be able to fill the place of God in our lives.

#2:  Possessions – The 10^th Command speaks of coveting a horse or donkey.  And we would probably speak of a car, a 60” flat screen TV, or lucrative 401K plan.  But that car will someday fall apart (even those in our LAC classic car shows), the flat screen TV will be out of date as technology changes, and the 401K plan…?

            Notice that when it comes to possessions, Paul's contentment was incredibly flexible.  Paul said the secret he learned was a contentment that allowed him to have plenty or to have nothing.  Those who have little think that if they only had a bit more, then they would find life.   Those who have much believe that only a bit more will be real living.  Paul says that we could have no possession and many possession and still not be content.

It is Biblical to be able to rejoice when God provides in abundance.  There's no virtue in being poor and miserable just for the sake of it.  That's not what Biblical contentment is about. But, let’s face it: whether we have much or little, possessions tend to possess the heart of the possessor.  And, then they leave us empty when they are discovered to have been less than we longed for.

            1^st C. BC Roman philosopher Marcus Cicero wrote about this even in his time.  He said that the person with no horse or cow dreams of having one animal thinking it will be all he needs.  The one with 5 dreams of 10.  The one with 10 only knows he needs more.

            We all experience this over and over again.  Our whole lives, we may dream of going to Hawaii or to Egypt or… Then we go.  And when we are headed home, we can only dream of going back again.

            And the society we are in feeds that desire.  A consumers’ culture must make us constantly long to buy something newer or bigger or it cannot thrive.  A consumers’ culture must leave us in a perpetual state of dissatisfaction with what we have or – or the market will drop hundreds of points in a day. 

            There is a true story circulated by the AP a few years ago about a canary in a cage in Australia.  A snake got into the house through a window and found the canary cage, went through the bar, and devoured the canary.  However, with the canary bulging in its neck, the snake couldn't get out of the cage.  When the owner of the house returned, he found the snake halfway into the cage with its head stuck in the bars.  He chopped it off with a pair of garden shears.  That's being a "prisoner of appetite."

            There are so many times when we are similarly trapped by our desire for things. Possessions are a part of God’s created world.  God himself owns the cattle on a 1000 hills.  But, material things cannot fill our eternal souls.  So, we seek contentment though people, possessions and…

 

#3:  Power – The 10^th C. speaks of not coveting others’ houses or lands probably because they were symbols of influence and authority. On one hand, this addresses the “culture of competition” becoming increasingly prevalent in our world.  You know what I mean.  Either we want influence or we want our children to have it:  “Tiger Moms” and “Tiger Dads” fight for the best schools for their kids, weep when another child speaks or walks before their own, and live their lives through their children’s achievements.  I imagine Paul’s upbringing was like that.  “Our son is going to study under Gamaliel – he’s the best.  And he, of course, will be a rabbi – and a ruling elder as well…”  They must have been devastated when he gave it all up to carry the message of Jesus to Gentiles.  They must have wept as their son ended up in a Roman prison.

            I must speak carefully here.  Just as Paul had learned to be content with much or with nothing, so too achieving success in our schools or places of work is not bad.  The Bible doesn’t call us to mediocrity, or complacency or, still less, to laziness.  But, our achievements can never take the place of God.

And, of course, this message takes on directly the power and status and celebrity attraction so strong here in Southern California.  Let me simply read you a very telling editorial written by Cynthia Heimels:

I pity [celebrities].  No, I do.  The minute a person becomes a celebrity is the same minute he/she becomes a monster.  (Three well-known celebrities) were once perfectly pleasant human beings with whom you might lunch on a slow Tuesday afternoon.  The night each of them became famous they wanted to shriek with relief.  Finally!  Now they were adored!  The morning after the night each of them became famous, they wanted to take an overdose of barbiturates.

All their fantasies had been realized, yet the reality was still the same.  If they were miserable before, they were twice as miserable now, because that giant thing they were striving for, that fame thing that was going to make everything okay, that was going to make their lives bearable, that was going to provide them with personal fulfillment and (ha ha) happiness, had happened.  And nothing changed.  They were still them.  The disillusionment turned them howling and insufferable. (from The Village Voice)

The Bible tells us contentment is not to be found in those places where almost everyone is looking – and where our culture says they surely must be found.  Then, where is it to be found?

III.  Where contentment is to be found -- 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.  I can do all this through him who gives me strength (Phil. 4:12-13).

            The circumstances surrounding this passage are quite interesting.  The church people in Philippi were generous in spite of the fact that they were very poor (which is often the case).  Paul, as was common courtesy, felt he should send a note of appreciation for a gift.  And yet, Paul seemed to find this to be a difficult task.  It’s painfully amusing to see the stumbling way in which Paul tried to say, "I’m glad for what you’ve done.  You really didn't have to do it, you know."

            Paul didn't mind collecting relief funds for other poor Christians, as we know from 2 Cor. 8-9. But the Philippians had sent money to him personally and that was a different matter.  So, Paul wanted to say thank you but he feared that too much enthusiasm about it could be misinterpreted. Paul had been in trouble in prison and they had helped him, really helped him.  In quiet dignity, almost a P.S., he acknowledged their kindness.  But, at the same time, he wanted them to know that Christ is a better security than any amount of money in the bank.  He wanted them to know that for all the gratitude he feels, that he is content.  Content.

            What is the source of this contentment?  That’s what we need to learn.  Look at v.13.  This source of contentment is available to anyone.  It comes through faith in Christ.  But then, according to Paul, there is something we all must learn as we follow Christ.  What is it?

Lesson 1:  Determine that contentment cannot be found in anything in this world -- Yes, it must be learned ‑‑ but it is not self‑manufactured.  In fact, as Tim Keller has put it, “Until you recognize you are incapable of making yourself content, you will not be content.”  So, contentment starts when we put away all the self-help books.  We start by calling it out: “I thought I could be content by getting this or doing that.  I thought I could find it by having -- by accomplishing… by getting that relationship… but I know I cannot.”  Let me tell you: You will have to come back to this point again and again.  We fallen mortals intuitively go back to thinking, “If only I had X or Y, then…”  Daily remind yourself that this is not so.

 

Lesson 2:  Don’t Dabble in the faith – go full in.  Countless churchgoers nibble at the edges of following Jesus.  It’s the 1^st Command – God first.  It’s “for me to live is Christ!”  It’s not a vow that says, “for better or not quite so bad…”  “For richer” or even if I only get to upper middle income level.”  It’s Jesus is Lord!

Paul sat in his prison cell ‑‑ damp, hungry, and lonely.  But he didn't grit his teeth to bear it.  He had something that flooded his personality with glorious joy ‑‑ so powerful in its potential.  Whether rich or poor outwardly, he had something that satisfied him in his soul.  He could do all things through Christ ‑‑ who gave strength.  It’s the 1^st Commandment question again – Is the one and only God, the only true God, your God.  Or, is something in his place.  Is there something you are holding out and not surrendering?  Jesus will be Lord of all – or you will not have contentment at all.

Lesson 3:  Learn Dependency – confident, joyous dependency on Christ.  All week, I’ve spoken with people here at LAC who have told me about times of hardship or failure or loss you’ve gone through -- and each time you have told me something like this, “Those hard times forced us to depend on Christ in ways we never had before.  He was always there.  It was so sweet.  Now that things are better, we are praying we will not forget the joy of depending on Christ.”  “I can do all things in Christ – the one who gives me strength.”  Paul is talking about being content whatever the circumstances when he said that – not the strength to win the Olympic weightlifting competition. 

            Of course, the Bible’s message isn't advice that we throw out glibly to someone just diagnosed with terminal illness or who has just lost his/her job.  The Bible says that to tell a hurting person "Jesus satisfies" without helping him is hypocritical.  So, Phil. 4 isn't advice for the prosperous to smugly offer the poor.  This is the testimony of a man in a prison.  "I have learned," he said, "to be content through Christ who gives me strength."  This is a testimony that money can't buy or talents achieve.  It's Christian contentment.

            So the question God’s Word puts to us is, "Are you content in Christ?" Content with who you are and what God has given ‑‑ that is what God asks about.  Contentment is what all human beings long for.  It’s that “Sehnsucht” that even the irreligious and a-religious have in their beings. 

The key to the 10^th commandment is… the 1^st commandment.  The way to avoid a life of unending coveting and unquenchable longing is to put God first.  That’s what we find in Philippians too.  When Christ is our life (1:21) – when nothing is put in his place – then we can be content (4:12-13).

C.S. Lewis wrote about this so often. He had always had a longing for something and was surprised when he found it, not in this world, but in Christ.  As he entitled the book that is his testimony, he was Surprised by Joy” when he trusted Jesus. Let me close with his description of it from his Weight of Glory:

In speaking of this desire for our own far-off country which we find in ourselves even now, I feel a certain shyness… I am speaking of a desire for something that has never fully appeared in our experience. We cannot hide it because our experience is constantly suggesting it… The things that we thought might fulfill the longing may be good images of what we really desire; but if they are mistaken for the thing itself they turn into dumb idols, breaking the hearts of their worshippers. For they are not the thing itself; they are only the scent of a flower we have not found, the echo of a tune we have not heard, news from a country we have never yet visited.     

Our hearts were made to be filled by God.  What our longing points to is the inner need to know Christ.  He is the true “secret” – the only one who can give us the abundant life God made us to have.