The Meaning of Contentment
by Jerry Fite

Paul reminds us that the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And, in order to avoid many sorrows and more importantly, the falling away from the faith, we are to cultivate the attitude of godliness with contentment. Money is not our gain, but “godliness with contentment is great gain” (I Timothy 6:6).

Contentment is experiencing the events of life with the attitude that we are “sufficient” for the occasion. Paul says “having food and covering, we shall therewith be content” (I Timothy 6:8). What this means, is that I look at my situation and see that my basic needs are being supplied. I have a roof over my head, and food in my stomach. Therefore, I am good for another day. But wonder if that roof over my head is a cardboard box, and the food is just half a sandwich. Must I feel sufficient for the moment? Yes, I need to be content, but this does not mean I must like my present situation.

Some will equate “contentment” and “like.” But they are not the same. One, in order to be content, must not necessarily like the situation he or she is in.  I do not have to like the fact that my covering is a box and my meal for the day is half of a sandwich, but I am to think that for this moment, I have food and covering and will be content.

The soldiers in John’s day were to be “content with their wages.” This does not mean they had to like what they were making, and never ask for a raise, but that they were to be sufficient for the moment. They were not to allow greed to move them to use their position of power and “extort” from others “by force” or “accuse any one wrongfully” in order to satisfy discontent with their wages. They did not have to like their wages, but they were to be content with their wages.

Paul was in prison when he wrote about his contentment. “Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therein to be content” (Philippians 2:11).Surely, Paul did not like the fact that he was in prison, and not able to be free to spread the gospel, but he was content. He was sufficient for the moment and even was able to teach those he was around in prison (Philippians 1:13, 4:22, Ephesians 6:19-20).

Contentment was not about how much Paul had, for he learned how to be content regardless if he was “abased” or living in “abundance” (Philippians 4:12).  It was about “sufficiency.” He was sufficient for any occasion because he lived in the Lord. Paul says, “I can do all things in him that strengtheneth me” (Philippians 4:13).Regardless of how much or how little, Paul had the Lord with him to make him sufficient for the moment.

Life can be difficult when you are facing financial issues, or health issues. You are pinching pennies here and cutting back there. It is not a pleasant experience, and sometimes very difficult. When you have lost some of your health, and the remedial treatments make you weak and sick, it is often demoralizing.  Contentment does not mean that you have to like the fact that you have lower wages or that you are not enjoying the health you once had, but it is about looking on your present situation and knowing you have the Lord with you strengthening you along the way. He is here with you.  With him you can be sufficient for anything, even those things you do not like.

Postmodern Thought in the Church
by Jerry Fite

You may have a concept of “Postmodernism” that there is no such thing as truth which leads to rejecting all moral values, reducing them to mere preferences. One Postmodern spokesman takes exception to this characterization of his belief. 

Brian McLaren, who hosts a website dealing with postmodern Christianity, says that maybe some crazed graduate students have advocated the idea of no such thing as truth, but such is not the case from his postmodern view of truth. Since we never want to so generalize that we distort postmodern thought, we offer his view concerning truth with some observations.

He says that sometimes we speak of truth as REALITY. This is what is “really out there,” or what is “really, really, real.” He offers no comment of this view of truth or illustration that shows such truth actually exists. He says further that a second use of truth is human PERCEPTION of truth. For example he attests that only God could swear to “tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.” as we are at times called to do in a court of law. The best a human could do is “an honest and full accounting of what you perceived.” Since in his thinking, there is a gap between reality and our perception of truth, he offers a third category of KNOWLEDGE where he says we weave our “perceptions of truth” into coherent generalizations and call it knowledge. Then he says there are PROPOSTIONS of reality which takes the imperfect knowledge we have generalized and state them with imprecision and pass them on with new layers of imprecision.

It is therefore inaccurate to paint with the broad brush and say postmodernists do not believe there is truth. But after reading McLaren’s own words, it is accurate to say that while truth or reality exists in the mind of some so-called postmodern Christians, no one can really know it for sure. At best they can have their own perception of it, have imperfect knowledge of it and state it with imprecise propositions. In other words, Truth exists, but you can never be certain you have it.

Such thought is among us in the church today. Some claim there is “a Scriptural norm,” but practically speaking, we will never find it. For if we do, then we have developed a “Sectarian Creed.” The best we can do then, is let each local church follow its own view of truth.

Paul delivered the same truth to “all the churches” and had confidence that Timothy would remind his readers in Corinth of the very same ways in Christ (I Corinthians 4:7).When it comes to the truth of the Gospel, Paul did not think that the very truth he taught could not be accurately and precisely communicated to others. To Timothy he writes, “And the things which thou has heard from me among many witnesses, the same commit to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also” (2 Timothy 2:2).

In our postmodern world of questioning any proposition of absolute truth, we need to be assured that God has delivered truth in the gospel of Christ (Jn. 14:6, Eph. 1:13, Col. 1:5). We can know it, and have the responsibility to understand it (Eph. 3:3, 5:17).Truth at best is relative in postmodern thought. May we not succumb to such thought in the church which paves the way for fellowshipping absolute error.

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