The Art of Divine Contentment - Part 4

The Art of Divine Contentment: An Exposition of Philippians 4:11

"I have learned, in whatsoever state I am in, therewith to be content." Philippians 4:11

"Highlights" from Chapter 10 A Suasive to Contentment...

"Discontentment is sin. It labors to hide itself under some mask or vindicate itself by some apology."

Apologies & Replys...

Apology: "I have lost a child"
Reply: Oftentimes, our love to relations is more than our love to religion. We must be content, not only ehen God gives mercies, but when He takes away. look not so much upon a temporal loss, as a spiritual gain. O, be not discontented that a mercy is taken away from you, but rather be thankful that is was lent you so long. Be thankful of the loss of burden or the saving from future evils. Think of the mercies you still enjoy. Christ hath given you His only Son. Why complain of losses if you have Christ? He is his Father's brightness (Heb.1:3), his riches (Col.2:9), his delight (Ps.42:1). Is there enought in Christ to delight the heart of God? Then there should be enough in Him to ravish us holy delight.
He is wisdom to teach us, righteousness to acquit us, sanctification to adorn us; He is all in all. Why then are thou discontented? Though the child be lost, yet thou has Him for whom all things are loss.

Apology: "I have a great part of my estate largely melted away"
Reply: God hath taken away your estate, but not your portion. Honor and estate are rather luxuries than essentials. Be content; if God dam up our outward comforts, it is, that the stream of our love may run faster another way.

Apology: "It is sad with me in my relations"
This apology branches into two particulars...
1st: "My child goes in rebellion"
Reply: a) The child's sin is sometimes the parents sermon. Look upon your child's rebellion and mourn for your own rebellion.
b) To see him undutiful is your grief, yet not always your sin. Hast thou seasoned his tender years with religious education? Thous canst do no more; parents can only work knowledge, God must work grace.
Weep for the child, pray for him; but do not sin for him by discontent.
2nd: "My husband takes ill courses"
Reply: Mourn for his sins but do not murmur. God hath placed you in your relation; you must not quarrel with God. God often turns the sins of others to our good; and makes our maladies our medicines.

Apology: "My friends have dealt unkindly with me"
Reply: Why should we think it strange to have the same measure dealt out to us as Jesus Christ had? Look upon the unkindness of thy friend, and mourn for thy own unkindness against God; shall a Christian condemn that in another, which he hath been guilty of himself? You have a friend in heaven that will never fail you. Pr.18:24

Apology: "Disrespect from the world...I have not that esteem from men as is suitable to my quality and grace."
Reply: Honor is in him that gives it. It is better that God approve, than men applaud. Discontent arising from disrespect savours too much of pride; a humble Christian hath a lower opinion of himself.

Apology: "I meet with very great suffering for the truth"
Reply: Your sufferings are not so great as your sins. Shall we not with much constancy and patience devote ourselves to injuries for religion, and rather suffer for truth than the truth suffer for us?

Apology: "The evil of the times: heresy & impiety"
Reply to heresy: It should make us mourn when every man's opinion is his bible, but let us not murmur through discontent. God can make the errors of the church advantageous to truth; some had never so studied to defend the truth by scripture, if others had not endeavored to overthrow it by deceitful reasoning.
When we see others have the "leprosy in the head", how thankful are we to God that he hath not given us over to believe a lie and so be damned?
Reply to impiety: It is indeed sad to live among the wicked, yet, we ought, if there be any spark of divine love in us, to be very sensible of the sins of others, and to have our hearts bleed for them.

Apology: "My sins disquiet & discontent me"
Reply: Be sure not to lie to God or yourself; a man's disquiet about sin may be beyond its bounds, in 3 cases...
1. When it is disheartening, that is, when it sets up sin above mercy.
2. When sorrow is indisposing, it untunes the heart for prayer, meditation, and holy conference. This is not sorrow but rather sulleness and doth render a man not so much penitential as cynical.
3. When it is out of season. This is when God calls us to be thankful for a special mercy and Satan puts us to mourning; therefore God looses the acknowledgment of mercy, and we the comfort.