Contentment
Published by Stanley Pouw in 2025 · 9 March 2025
Hebrews finally resolves in a series of practical exhortations, and we were reminded again of a principle of before there is ever exhortation to duty, there is instruction regarding doctrine. Doctrine is always the foundation upon which duty is built. Your obedience to a standard doesn’t mean anything unless there’s a reason for that standard; and so position always precedes practice.
He has presented Christ, and said, “You can cling to Christ. He is sufficient; He is superior; He’s all you ever need.” And to sum it up, He says, “Now that you have Christ, here is how you ought to live.” But again we see that same principle: The practical life is only possible when we have come to a knowledge of Jesus Christ, and have a foundation of sound doctrine.
We not only are instructed to really live the kind of Christian life that the standards of which are set down in Hebrews 13 for the sake of witness, but secondly, for the sake of our own personal joy. You can’t sin and disobey all of God’s standards and be a happy Christian. My greatest joy is when I know I’ve been obedient in responding to the standards of the Lord.
“The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart. The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eye.” Obeying God’s standard brings joy, that’s exactly what it says. Psalm 64:10 says: “The righteous shall be glad in the Lord.” In other words, the man who lives a righteous life is a happy man. Psalm 68:3 says: “But let the righteous be glad; let them rejoice before God.”
God’s standards are given then, number one: so that you may live a life that is a clear testimony to the world. Two, so that you might have joy. Happy people are people who obey God, that’s what it is saying. And then, Psalm 119:111 says, “I have your decrees as a heritage forever; indeed, they are the joy of my heart.” The word “decrees” means the commandments, the law of God.
It all boils down to that one word in the whole Christian life: obedience. And let me tell you something: these two are inseparable. When you clearly communicate your faith to somebody else, that becomes joy too. They’re interchangeable. 1 Thessalonians 2:19-20, “What is our hope or joy?” Paul says, “When people get saved, that’s what makes me happy. 20 For you are our glory and joy.”
Well, is that the only thing that made him happy? No, suffering made him happy too. Philippians 2:17 says, “But even if I am poured out as a drink offering on the sacrificial service of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you.” The joy of Paul was the salvation of others. The salvation of others came about because Paul’s life matched his words. Joy and witness are inseparable.
Now in Hebrews 13, He lays down the principles of conduct that can bring about the salvation of others and joy to our own selves. I told you last time that there are three things that we want to look at in this chapter. One is ethics, two is example, and three is energy. If we’re going to live the kind of life we ought to live, we need to know the ethics: “What are the standards?”
Secondly, we need to have an example; we need a pattern to follow. Thirdly, we need to have the energy or the power to do it. First, what were the ethics? Well, last time there are three categories of practical Christian living. One, in relation to others. And that he begins the chapter with verse 3. And He lays down two basic features of Christian conduct toward others.
The first one was sustained love that we saw that in verse 1: “Let brotherly love continue. Be not forgetful to entertain strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unaware.” Now in this particular passage we have something that we might call an overall principle. Love precludes the necessity of all those other rules. Let me remind you that love is not an emotion, it’s a principle.
It’s a principle of self-sacrifice. Love is a basic principle, and it’s the principle of self-sacrifice based on humility. Now love comes immediately when you’re saved. “The love of God is shed abroad in our hearts.” So the love is given, all you’ve got to do is keep it. You don’t need to say, “Oh, God, give me more love.” There’s no more to give, He gave you all He had. And it never changes.
And it’s not just for your benefit either; maybe they have a tremendous need, and a word of love from you can turn a life around. There’s a second ethic that we want to mention by way of review. Not only sustained love, but sympathy. Verse 3, “Remember those in prison, as though you were in prison with them, and the mistreated, as though you yourselves were suffering bodily.”
Sympathy is to suffer with, empathy is to feel what somebody feels. You have to be a selfless person to do that. In your own body, do you know what people go through when they go through pain? And sympathy can be shown in three ways. 2 Timothy 1:16 says, “May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, because he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains.”
There’s a third way to show sympathy to somebody and that’s by prayer, praying for them in Colossians 4:18. Paul closes Colossians with these words: “Remember my bonds.” Hey, he says, “Don’t forget I’m in jail; pray for me.” Now this is our basic obligation to other people: to love them with full care and sympathy. That’s the only rule you need in terms of other people.
Look at Romans 13:8, “Do not owe anyone anything, except to love one another, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.” There’s only one debt we’re to owe people, and that’s the debt to love them; the more you pay, the more you owe. For the law says, ‘Don’t commit adultery, don’t kill, don’t steal, don’t bear false witness, and don’t covet.’ Together, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
Hebrews 13 doesn’t need to list a whole lot of things. All it needs to say is just love, and that will take care of the law. If a man loves, he won’t kill; for a lover never seeks to destroy. If a man loves, he’ll never steal; for love doesn’t take, what does it do? It gives. And if a man loves, he will never covet; for covetousness means the uncontrolled, inordinate desire for self-satisfaction.
What about the Christian’s conduct in relation to himself? How do I conduct myself toward myself, to live the kind of life that is witness to the world and joy to me? Number one: Sexual purity. Now the word “sex” has become taboo in the past. And now sex is everywhere. There’s another taboo today. You know what word is taboo today? Death. Death is the thing nobody wants to face.
People have gone crazy in the area of sexual fulfillment. When two people allow their passions to run away with each other, it is not that they love each other too much, it is that they don’t love each other enough. It is that they love each other too little to respect each other’s purity before God. His love hasn’t developed where the most important thing in his life is your beauty, purity and holiness.
Personal purity is always a battle. It’s a battle for everybody. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 9:27, “I beat my body to bring it into subjection.” And Satan tempts with all the media, you have a hard time getting away from it. But there comes a time when you need to. So many Christians have had their testimony destroyed and their own personal joy sucked out of them because of sin in this area.
Verse 5, “Keep your life free from the love of money. Be satisfied with what you have, for He himself has said, I will never leave you or abandon you.” The second thing of an ethic really involving ourselves is satisfaction. Be content with all things that you have. Just because you’re married doesn’t mean that Satan doesn’t sometimes tempt you to long after the forbidden one.
That’s covetousness and it is a terrible evil. Whether it’s coveting a neighbor’s wife or whether it’s coveting money, or things or possessions, it’s all bad. In 1 Timothy 6:6 it says, “But godliness with contentment is great gain.” Be happy with what you have. Spurgeon said, “I’ve heard a lot of people share their sin.” But I never had one person confess the sin of covetousness to me.”
But that’s a sin that all of us fights. Be honest: the bigger thing, the better thing, more money, promotion, bigger house, bigger car, nicer clothes, this is a temptation for all of us. God says, “I want you to be satisfied.” Godliness with contentment is really being rich. The rich man is the man who has all that he needs, and the knowledge that God has everything he will ever need.
If a man has everything and has not Christ, he has nothing. If he has nothing and has Christ, he has everything. Now you’re going to lose it anyway, either here now, or in the next few weeks, or in a few months, or when you die, or when Jesus comes. I’ve often wondered to myself how people can amass fortunes in this world and then die, when you could invest it all in God’s work.
Remember what covetousness did to Judas. And look what covetousness did to Ananias and Sapphira, who lied to the Holy Spirit and dropped dead right in the front of the church? Covetousness is a very serious sin, and God deals with it very seriously; believe me. Now the most common form of covetousness is the love of money: lusting after material riches.
If you love money, you are sinning against God. You know what the result will be? Ineffective testimony, and lack of joy in your life. Luke 12:15 says, “Jesus then told them, “Watch out and be on guard against all greed, because one’s life is not in the abundance of his possessions.” The Bible doesn’t say money is the root of all evil. It’s says, “The love of money is the root of all evil.”
Deuteronomy 8:18 says, “God is the one who gives you power to get wealth.” And some of the wealthiest men in the world were godly men: Job, Abraham; and even today. But here’s the key exhortation: Psalm 62:10 says, “If wealth increases, do not set your heart on it.” That’s the key. You may get it. If you get it, don’t love it. And that’s exactly where this advice needs to be given.
John D. Rockefeller one time was asked how much money he wanted. He said, “A million dollars.” He made a million. The same guy said, how much you want?” He said, “I want another million.” Here you see, the law of decreasing satisfaction. Ecclesiastes 5:10 says, “The one who loves silver is never satisfied with silver, and whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with income.”
And then He quotes verse 6 from Psalm 118:6: “The Lord is my helper. I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?” Some people express their love of money in building it up, making more. Some people express their love of money in keeping it, where every dime they give is like blood. Others express their love of money by throwing it around in front of everybody.
How do you get content? First, contentment comes when you realize God is good. Paul said, “All things work together for good to them that love God.” Paul said, “My God shall supply all your needs.” Do you know God’s good? If He’s good, will He take care of you? If you want to be content, realize that God is omniscient. He knows what you need before you ever ask Him.
What do I really deserve? Genesis 32:10 says, “I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies.” Is that right? Everything I have I don’t deserve. I’m rich. Let me give you something else: Realize God’s supremacy. That is realize God will give you what He thinks you need, and He’ll supply what you need for all the things in your life. And realize that He has a plan.
First Samuel 2:7 says, “The Lord brings poverty and gives wealth; He humbles and He exalts.” Did you know that? The Lord’s in charge of all that. Verse 8, “He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the trash heap. He seats them with noblemen and gives them a throne of honor. For the foundations of the earth are the Lord’s; He has set the world on them.
God brings people up who come from nowhere and earn fortunes. He’s omniscient; He knows who gets what. And He’s also powerful. He gives who gets what. He’s supreme. The fifth thing to realize is what true riches really are. You know who’s really poor? The world. Colossians 3:2, “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” Do you really know true riches? You’re rich in Christ.
Contentment then comes from realization of all those things. Then, secondly, it comes from communion. Do you spend time with God? Let me tell you something: the longer you concentrate on His glory, the less you’re going to care about money. When you’re lost in Jesus Christ, you are so overwhelmed with how rich you are, that you could care less about anything else.
Well, the world’s going to pass away and everything in it, right? So you don’t want to lay up treasure on earth; lay it up in heaven. God set some standards for you; we just got through our review. Next time we’re going to take up the next standard for the believer’s life which is steadfastness. We need to continue to stay close to Christ with our lives and our deeds. Let’s pray.