Preacher: Jeremy Herbert
Theme: Contentment
Text: Philippians 4, 1 Timothy 6
Notes:

* Focus on godliness

* “godliness with contentment is great gain”
* Deuteronomy 8:18, “the Lord your God…it is he who gives you power to get wealth”
* God is both the source and the object of our joy and contentment
* Godly contentment doesn’t preclude wise and holy ambition–it simply precludes making wealth the source or object of our happiness


* You can’t take it with you, but you can send it ahead

* 1 Timothy 6:7, “we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world.”
* Luke 16:9, “make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth,”


* Learn to live without so that we can learn to live with

* 1 Timothy 6:8, “if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content.”
* We learn to focus on spiritual joy when we are distracted by things
* “The soul that is only content with things will never be content”


* We must watch our desires

* We must avoid distraction from present reality
* We must avoid attempting to fill soul emptiness with temporal wealth
* We must avoid seeking status in temporal wealth


* Craving wealth always ends badly

* 1 Timothy 6:9, “those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.”
* Jeremiah Burroughs, ‘The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment’, having much is more dangerous than having little, because you can afford harmful temptations
* When you cling tightly to things it hurts more when they are taken away
* Wealth tempts us to be prideful
* Wealth tempts us to oppress others
* Micah 2:1-2


* Wealth tempts us to trust ourselves

* Hosea 13:6, “but when they had grazed, they became full, they were filled, and their heart was lifted up; therefore they forgot me.”
* Contentment results in generosity
* 2 Corinthians 9
* Matthew 6:19-27