Christian Contentment

Aim: To be diligent pupils in the school of Christian contentment.

Doctrine: Christian contentment is a learned virtue that is very hard to come by, and that hedges us from extreme dangers.

Exegesis: The profound lessons that foster Christian contentment: we should learn to live beyond need (vv. 10-11), circumstances (v. 12), and limitations (v. 13).

Further application: How to learn the art of Christian contentment: first, we must accept the fact of real suffering; then, we must relish the reality of divine provision.

Key verse: v. 11 ''Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content...''