Tuesday Evening Service 14/10/25

Christian Contentment And How To Attain It - Part 4

Watch the Full Sermon HERE.

Well tonight we come to the last of four teachings from Jeremiah Burroughs’ work ‘The Rare Jewel Of Christian Contentment’. Which, believe it or not, we started back in mid-August.

Over the weeks we have spoke on what Burroughs writes, which takes up almost half of his 136 page work, which is that of a murmuring heart.

Burroughs base text in his teaching is:

Philippians  4:11 LSB

Not that I speak from want, for I learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am.

I remind you again what Burroughs defines as Christian contentment:

It’s that sweet, inward, quiet gracious frame of spirit, which freely submits to and delights in God’s wise and Fatherly disposal in every condition.

I not as eloquently defined it as this:

It’s a consistent deep joyous security that comes from complete trust and abandonment to God, and nothing outside Him.

Before we go into the final part this subject lets again read from our puritan prayer, and we are sticking with the prayers from the ‘Valley Of Vision’ called the subjects namesake ‘contentment’ – on page 294 of the leather version, or 163 of the paperback:

HEAVENLY FATHER, If I should suffer need, and go unclothed, and be in poverty, make my heart prize thy love, know it, be constrained by it, though I be denied all blessings. It is thy mercy to afflict and try me with wants, for by these trials I see my sins, and desire severance from them. Let me willingly accept misery, sorrows, temptations, if I can thereby feel sin as the greatest evil, and be delivered from it with gratitude to thee, acknowledging this as the highest testimony of thy love. When thy Son, Jesus, came into my soul instead of sin, he became more dear to me than sin had formerly been; his kindly rule replaced sin’s tyranny. Teach me to believe that if ever I would have any sin subdued I must not only labour to overcome it, but must invite Christ to abide in the place of it, and he must become to me more than vile lust had been; that his sweetness, power, life may be there. Thus I must seek a grace from him contrary to sin, but must not claim it apart from himself. When I am afraid of evils to come, comfort me by showing me that in myself I am a dying, condemned wretch, but in Christ I am reconciled and live; that in my self I find insufficiency and no rest, but in Christ there is satisfaction and peace; that in myself I am feeble and unable to do good, but in Christ I have ability to do all things. Though now I have his graces in part, I shall shortly have them perfectly in that state where thou wilt show thyself fully reconciled, and alone sufficient, efficient, loving me completely, with sin abolished. O Lord, hasten that day.

For the last part of Burroughs work I want to share some of Burroughs thoughts from his chapter he calls ‘How Christ Teaches Contentment.’

Then I will conclude with Burroughs final chapter. Which he calls, and what we have called the overall teaching ‘How To Attain Contentment.’

It’s hard, after what we heard at the weekend on being fishers of men, to see where this fits in to what I said. However, I will simply say it like this: A contented Christian is a healthier fisher of men.

Burroughs in his chapter on how Christ teaches Christian contentment shares nine points. I will share only three of those. Then three from the final chapter.

Note again that contentment must be learned, Paul learned to be content. It’s not something we simply have, we must both work at it, and work at the things, and get honest with the things that stop it. We did much of that in the previous sessions.

How Christ teaches contentment:

Point 1:

Self denial

We can’t get away from it, it is the vein that runs through much of what we need to truly serve Christ and live a fruitful life.

Burroughs goes into eight in-depth points within this one point on self-denial and how Christ teaches it at the very core of our faith.

Self-denial is to live as if you are nothing unto yourself.

Burroughs says:

The man or woman who indeed knows that he or she is nothing, and has learned it thoroughly will be able to bear anything.

Isn’t it true that a whole lot of lack of contentment comes from what we think we deserve but don’t get, or what we want but don’t get?

If you think you’re deserving, you will always be at a loss with anything but your wants and desires.

Yet as Burroughs reminds us:

We are worse than nothing, by sin we became a great deal worse than nothing.

Burroughs adds:

A man who is little in his own eyes will account every affliction as little and every mercy as great.

Burroughs quotes Jesus’ words at this point from John 15:5

I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

Apart from me you can but do nothing but sin.

Burroughs writes:

If a man is selfish and self-love prevails in his heart, he will be glad of those things that suit with his own end, but a godly man who has denied himself will suit with and be glad of all things that will suit with God’s end.

The man or woman that can’t deny themselves will only believe that happiness and joy and peace will come when they get what they want.

When in truth, true happiness, joy & peace, will only manifest when self-denial has been executed and God is Whom you chose to please.

Okay…

Point 2:

(In how Christ teaches contentment)

He teaches us to understand the one thing that is necessary.

Burroughs then shares the encounter Jesus has with Martha.

Luke 10:40-42

But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the preparations alone? Then tell her to help me.” But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things, but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.”

Martha was busy trying to do stuff, and get things in order. And make things neat and prepare for serving. And it’s not so much the wrong thing, it’s that she made it the thing.

Nothing is more important than spending time with Jesus.

As a church we were flat out busy all the time, always doing, but in the doing we were not sitting at the feet of Christ; all doing and no contentment.

Martha is like so many, who can’t be content until everything is done. Some people are not content until everything is perfect. And they become obsessed with the fixing, and not the devotion.

Your contentment, your peace, your security is not found in doing, or in others doing. Note how Martha also wanted Mary to step away and do also. Discontented people also hold others responsible for their contentment: “you need to help me! You need to stop that and get on board what I need done to make me feel good.”

Okay…

Point 3:

Last point on this, and maybe the most vital.

Christ teaches the soul whom He brings into this school in knowledge of their own hearts.

Thats a bit wordy, so in a nutshell: in order to be content, you need to know your own heart.

Burroughs says:

Be a student of your own hearts.

And adds:

You might not all be scholars in the arts or science… ...But you may all be students of your own heart.

I truly believe this is one of, if not the greatest stumbling blocks to a life of freedom; that of truly not fully going to town on yourself. And testing your own heart, and looking intently into the mirror.

Over the years I’ve found that people who don’t do this, almost always end up in a truly discontented place. Where they mostly decide what the problem is and what the solution is.

People that are not students of the heart almost always misdiagnose their problems, and therefore never get to the root.

It’s no wonder they can find no contentment, because they misunderstand every affliction and battle.

Burroughs says:

Carnal men and woman do not know their own spirits, and therefore fling and vex themselves at every affliction that befalls them.

In other words, someone who knows not their own heart, has no ability to see clearly, or act clearly. They are driven all over the place by their feelings and emotions, that dictate their reality.

Okay, now three points on Burroughs final chapter ‘How To Attain Contentment’. Which we have borrowed the title from.

Point 1:

The things we lack are very small in comparison to the things we have.

Ephesians 1:3-7

Blessed be the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before him in love, by predestining us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of the glory of his grace, which he graciously bestowed on us in the beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our transgressions, according to the riches of his grace

We have every spiritual blessing, not earthy, not worldly, but heavenly.

Even all affliction, all trials, all persecution, is heavenly blessing. All we truly have as believers is heavenly blessing, everything else is a vapour, it’s nothing, it’s futile.

Paul, said “ I’m a free man but for these chains.”

Point 2:

How to attain contentment:

Consider you have little time in this world.

Burroughs writes:

If you are godly you will never suffer except in this world.

‘This too shall pass’ is a wholly other level for a believer.

It’s nothing compared to eternity. Hence why Paul talked so much the Corinthians who were obsessed with the now. To set their minds on the things above.

Afflictions are but for a moment, tears are but for a moment, pain is but for a moment, loneliness is but for a moment.

One martyr said to his fellow martyr:

Shut your eyes, for a moment, and the next time you open them, you will be in another world.

Okay last point…

Point 3:

Consider all the experiences of God doing good to you.

Count your blessings brothers and sisters.

Amen.