General Session #7
Nathan Busenitz
People have turned Philippians 4:13 into personal empowerment, personal prosperity, and athletic success. If you read Philippians 4:13 in isolation, apart from its context, it seems to be a statement of personal declaration. It is treated as a spiritual boost of self-confidence – this is not a blank check promise for whatever is desired – in context, it is a verse about contentment. The verse is not about winning the football game, but about what happens in your heart when you lose the game, don’t make the team, or get injured. This verse has nothing to do with improving your circumstances at all; it is about being content in all circumstances, especially those that are hard and out of our control.
True contentment cannot be experienced apart from Christ. Contentment is not only possible for the Christian, but is what we must become (Philippians 4:9). We must work towards cultivating a heart of quiet thankfulness for any circumstance. Discontentment is a protest against the sovereign providence of God.
Fruit of discontentment: Complaining inwardly or outwardly; greed; love of money; thinking about money; wanting for ourselves what God has given someone else (comparison kills contentment); Worry; Fear; a lack of joy; a lack of patience.
Is your happiness and contentment contingent upon the changing of circumstances or the unchanging character of Christ?
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