Godliness With Contentment Is Great Gain
Paul writes that “Godliness with contentment is great gain” (1 Timothy 6:6). In the passage before that, he warns Timothy to watch out for false teachers. False teachers are conceited and lack understanding.
Paul will later write that false teachers fixate on controversy and argue about the meaning of words (2 Timothy 2:14 and 2 Timothy 2:23).
In doing so, they produce all manner of conflict. Paul concludes his warning with the announcement that they think godliness is a way to make money.
Great Gain
In view of those who think godliness is a means for financial gain, Paul says that godliness with contentment is great gain. That is, pairing godliness with contentment produces an even better outcome.
Godliness is living a life aligned with God; it shows reverence, devotion, and obedience to him. Godliness views and treats others the way God does. It demonstrates our Lord’s love.
When false teachers put on an air of godliness, they don’t do it for God or for the people. They do so to financially enrich themselves. They’re greedy.
Paul doesn’t criticize them for their behavior. He criticizes them for their motivation. They want money; they want more.
It’s in response to this that Paul links contentment with godliness. Pursuing them in tandem is the way to great gain.
When Paul says great gain, however, he doesn’t refer to the financial gain that the false teachers seek.
Instead, he means an even more important result, which is spiritual gain. We benefit from spiritual gain in both this world and the next; it is physical and eternal.
Godliness
Godliness is how we live our lives. Contentment is our attitude toward the life we lead.
We’re wrong to view godliness as being a life of sacrifice. It’s not something to suffer through but something to rejoice in. That’s why we need to be content. We must seek contentment in the life we live.
To put things in perspective, Paul says that just as we brought nothing into this world when we were born, we’ll take nothing from it when we die.
The possessions, property, and money we strive for in this life will mean nothing to us when our life ends.
Contentment
Instead, we should aim for contentment. We should be happy with what we have. Contentment, however, runs counter to today’s materialistic world that strives for more.
People want more things. And to buy more of those things they need more money. Many also seek power and prestige in their quest for more.
Though there’s nothing inherently wrong with any of these, the unrestrained pursuit of them is a dangerous force that drives our behavior and distracts us from what matters more. Most critically it distracts up from God.
Therefore Paul’s prescription is a life of contentment. We should aim to be satisfied with what we have; we should strive to be content.
To give an idea of what we should be content with, Paul says if we have food and clothing that should be enough (1 Timothy 6:8). This is certainly something to contemplate.
Paul has learned to be content whatever the situation (Philippians 4:11-12). We should strive to do the same.
Our godliness and contentment will result in great gain. Let us pursue both.
Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront a status quo faith and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.
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