Great Gain: Godliness with Contentment

1 Timothy 6:1–10

Py Pastor John Thompson

I love movies. The creativity involved in telling a great story can be amazing—the characters, the scenes, the laughter, the joy, and even the tears. At the same time, I find that many movies are fairly predictable. Once you recognize certain patterns, you begin to know where the story is headed long before you reach the ending.

One of those patterns goes something like this: the main character desperately wants something. Maybe it is popularity, wealth, power, recognition, or some other form of success. Usually, the desire seems innocent enough in the beginning. They simply want a better life for themselves or their family, so they work hard and begin climbing toward their goal. Somewhere around the middle of the movie, they finally get what they wanted.

Then the real problem is revealed.

What they wanted isn't enough.

They have success, but they need more success. They have money, but they need more money. They finally receive the recognition they craved, but now they need even more people to recognize them. No matter how much is gained, it never satisfies.

Eventually, that discontentment begins destroying the things that really matter. Relationships suffer. Families are neglected. Friendships fall apart. Sometimes the character even sacrifices his integrity in pursuit of more.

It makes for a good movie because, in some way, it is the story of all of us. We struggle with contentment.

As Paul continues his letter to Timothy, he addresses this struggle directly. He shows us that contentment affects both how we view our position in life and how we view our possessions. Instead of constantly pursuing more, Christians can learn to recognize God's purpose in where He has placed us and find our ultimate satisfaction in Christ.

Be Content with Your Position

The first part of this passage deals with the relationship between slaves and masters. None of us today is living under the system of slavery Paul was addressing, but there are still principles here that help us understand how Christians should approach work and those who have authority over us.

Paul's primary concern is the Christian's witness.

When people see us at work, what does our work ethic tell them about Jesus? What does our attitude toward our employer communicate about the faith we claim to possess?

There is always a temptation to resent those who have authority over us. We can become frustrated with our position and begin thinking we deserve something better. We want our boss's position, salary, respect, or influence. When that discontentment takes root, it often begins affecting how we work. Some people start cutting corners or doing the bare minimum. Others may get the job done but make themselves a constant thorn in the side of their employer. The problem underneath all of it is often the same: we are not content with where God has placed us.

There is certainly nothing wrong with wanting to excel. There is nothing sinful about pursuing a promotion, developing your skills, or seeking greater responsibility. But for the Christian, success can never be our highest goal. Our greatest desire should always be to bring glory to God.

That forces us to ask a different question. Is reaching the top of the ladder necessarily where I can bring the most glory to Jesus? Is it always the person at the top who can most clearly display Christ's humility, servant heart, patience, and joy? Or is it possible that God has placed you exactly where you are so that you can display Christlikeness there?

Paul connects the behavior of these workers directly to the reputation of God's name and the teaching of the gospel. In other words, how we conduct ourselves in the positions God has given us affects how others perceive the Christ we proclaim.

Christians should therefore strive to be among the hardest workers and the greatest encouragements to their employers. We should work with integrity even when no one is watching. We should show respect even when we disagree. Ultimately, we work as though we are working for the Lord because, as Christians, we are always working for the Lord.

Paul takes this even further when both worker and employer are believers. Whatever distinction may exist in the workplace, both stand on equal ground before Christ. They are brothers and sisters who have submitted themselves to the same Lord. That should give us even greater reason to work for one another's good.

God has not given us new life so that we can spend it constantly worrying about increasing our position. He has placed us where we are so that our lives can bear witness to Jesus.

Be Content with Your Possessions

Paul then turns from our position to our possessions, and he begins by confronting false teaching. There were people who imagined that godliness was a means of financial gain. Unfortunately, that teaching has not disappeared.

Today, we commonly refer to a version of it as the health, wealth, and prosperity gospel. It teaches that enough faith and godliness should result in material prosperity. If you are faithful enough, believe strongly enough, or give generously enough, then God will reward you with greater health, wealth, and success.

The problem is that this turns godliness into a transaction. Instead of pursuing God because He is worthy, we pursue Him because of what we hope He will give us.

Paul warns us against exactly that kind of thinking. Godliness was never intended to be a tool for accumulating wealth. The Christian life is not about manipulating God into giving us the life we desire.

The danger of this teaching goes beyond bad theology because it feeds one of the deepest struggles of the human heart: greed.

People who are determined to become rich fall into temptation and a snare. Greed becomes a trap because it is never satisfied. No amount of money can finally silence the desire for more. Once wealth becomes our source of satisfaction, the finish line keeps moving.

It rarely stops with money either. The desire for more possessions can quickly become a desire for more power, more recognition, more influence, and more pleasure. Eventually, people can sacrifice friendships, families, integrity, and even faith in pursuit of something that promised satisfaction but could never deliver it.

Paul is not teaching that money itself is evil. Money can accomplish tremendous good. It can provide for a family, support gospel ministry, care for people in need, and bless others. The problem is not possessing money. The problem is loving it.

When we begin believing that more money will solve the deepest problems of our hearts, money has become another symptom of our spiritual problem.

Money cannot solve a sin problem.

Only Jesus can.

Godliness is not just a means for gain, but Paul says, "Godliness with contentment is great gain."

The world tells us that gain means having more. Paul tells us that true gain is learning to be satisfied in God.

There is tremendous freedom in being able to say, "What God has given me is enough." There is freedom in being thankful for the position He has given you and the possessions He has entrusted to you without constantly comparing yourself to someone else.

Contentment does not mean we stop working, dreaming, or growing. It means those things no longer control our joy. We can pursue godliness simply because we love Jesus and desire to honor Him, rather than seeing God as a means of getting something else.

As Pastor John Piper has famously said, "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him."

That is the great gain Paul wants us to discover.

Conclusion

In those movies I mentioned earlier, there usually comes a moment when the main character realizes that everything they spent the story pursuing was never going to be enough. The fame was not enough. The money was not enough. The success was not enough.

At the climax of the story, they finally recognize what really matters.

There comes a point when each of us needs to make that same discovery.

In the story of your life, have you realized yet that the things of this world will never be enough? You can always find another position to pursue, another possession to purchase, another accomplishment to achieve, or another person to impress. If your satisfaction depends upon getting more, you will spend your entire life chasing something that always remains just beyond your reach.

Jesus offers something better.

He offers Himself.

Our greatest gain is not found in accumulating more but in discovering that Christ is all we need. When our satisfaction is found in Him, we can hold our positions and possessions with open hands. We can receive God's blessings with gratitude without depending upon them for our joy.

Don't spend your life discovering that "more" was never enough.

Put your faith in Christ. Find your satisfaction in Him. Pursue godliness, learn contentment, and discover the great gain of knowing that in Jesus you already possess all that you will ever need..