The Contentment in Christ Jesus!

‘Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?”’ – Hebrews 13:5-6 NIV

The world urges us to love money all of our heart, soul, mind and strength. For this reason, many people want to get rich, enough to buy anything they want, in order to satisfy their lives. However, God, the Creator (Genesis 1:1) and our heavenly Father (Ephesians 4:6) simply declares, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” (Mark 12:30-31) This is because the word of God states, “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. (Matthew 6:24) Therefore, we should choose the love of God rather than the love of money even though sometimes it is quite tempting and hard (Matthew 16:24-27), especially for those who want to follow Jesus Christ and gain eternal life. “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23) Thus, for this reason, the word of God declares,

Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever. And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him. (1 John 2:15-17, Hebrews 11:6)

Hence, we should continue loving our God with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength, and then loving our neighbours as ourselves, which means loving everybody even our enemies (Luke 6:27-36). This is because love can be defined as God (1 John 4:7-8); thus, for this reason, love is the law of the Spirit (Romans 13:8-10). This means that without love, we are not able to do anything (1 Corinthians 13:1-3). The main reason for this is Jesus Christ is the true vine and we are the branches (John 15:1-17). Furthermore, loving others should be happening to everybody, since each one of us are members of Christ Jesus (1 Corinthians 12:27) and temples of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 3:16-17) If we are members of Christ Jesus and temples of the Holy Spirit—we are basically members of one another (Romans 12:4-5; 1 Corinthians 12:12-13). This is why the word of God states,

Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit. (Ephesians 2:19-22)

Last of all, we should be content with what we have rather than gaining all we want, like Apostle Paul stated in Philippians 4:11-13. This is because if we are gaining all we want, then we become the lovers of money. Thus, we should overcome the world (1 John 5:1-5), since the word of God states, “The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” (2 Corinthians 4:4) In addition, we should only be the managers of God, since we are created in His image (Genesis 1:27) and everything is all of God’s creation (Psalm 24:1). “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.” (Romans 8:29) Thus, for this reason, we should keep our eyes only to the Lord, even though it is hard (2 Corinthians 4:16-18). This is because the word of God says, “In their hearts humans plan their course, but the LORD establishes their steps,” (Proverbs 16:9) through the Holy Spirit (John 14:15-27). Moreover, the word of God points out many times that He will never abandon or forsake us. However, we feel abandoned or forsaken by our heavenly Father, especially while He is disciplining us for our good (Hebrews 12:5-11). Nevertheless, we ought to trust the Lord with everything (Proverbs 3:5-6).

Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus. (Matthew 6:33, Philippians 4:19)

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. (Hebrews 12:1-3)

Hence, let’s be like Apostle Paul when he declares,

But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.

Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:7-14)

While I was writing this devotional, I have been thinking about my New Zealand church, Windsor Park. This is because my church is doing series on Mark 12:30-31. In addition to this, I believe all of us need to remind what two greatest commandments of God are and learn to how to apply them throughout our lives. Therefore, I have created a public Facebook group this morning and want everyone to join in, especially for Windsor Park members. Thus, they are possible to study the church series daily as well in their ministry groups and home/life groups. Its URL is: https://www.facebook.com/groups/780466682052486/. I am creating the daily questions in every morning apart from New Zealand Sundays, so everybody are able to discuss what Mark 12:30-31 really means.