WEBVTT 00:01.100 --> 00:04.800 Grace and peace to you from God, our Father and from the Lord and 00:04.800 --> 00:05.200 Savior 00:05.200 --> 00:06.300 Jesus Christ. 00:07.000 --> 00:07.600 Amen. 00:09.700 --> 00:13.600 I'd like to tell you today about a happy coincidence that I 00:13.600 --> 00:15.800 experienced a little more than a month ago, 00:15.800 --> 00:16.900 back in August. 00:17.400 --> 00:21.000 Now I'm using the word coincidence intentionally so that none of you 00:21.000 --> 00:27.400 accuse me of being a raving charismatic, but this was a very happy 00:27.400 --> 00:29.100 coincidence that I experienced. 00:29.900 --> 00:34.200 Well first, before this experience, just to let you know about me and 00:34.200 --> 00:35.500 my family and friends. 00:36.100 --> 00:40.300 When I first came to Concordia Seminary so many years ago, I'm not 00:40.300 --> 00:44.600 going to say when exactly. I left behind in Southern California, my 00:44.600 --> 00:47.400 family friends and acquaintances. 00:47.900 --> 00:52.000 And since coming to the Seminary, I have gradually become for my 00:52.000 --> 00:57.100 family, friends and acquaintances there sort of unofficial Bible and 00:57.100 --> 01:02.200 theology answer man. And all of you students here should brace 01:02.200 --> 01:06.400 yourself for the day when that happens to you. I would get calls first 01:06.400 --> 01:09.300 year of Seminary second year, vicarage, fourth year, grad 01:09.400 --> 01:09.900 student, fourth year, 01:09.900 --> 01:10.600 pastor 01:10.800 --> 01:14.600 now, professor. Whenever I get a call from somebody from the old days 01:14.600 --> 01:15.600 I'm always wondering 01:15.900 --> 01:17.700 do they have a question for me? 01:18.500 --> 01:20.300 And I've got one particular friend. 01:20.300 --> 01:21.800 I've known for a long time. 01:22.200 --> 01:25.600 I know every single time this guy has called me up 01:26.200 --> 01:29.800 I think it's because he had a question to ask. And it would always be 01:29.800 --> 01:33.800 we'd start talking for about five minutes catching up and then almost 01:33.800 --> 01:36.200 abruptly in the middle of the conversation 01:36.200 --> 01:39.300 he would suddenly stop and say hey Dave I got a question 01:39.500 --> 01:43.100 for you. And then bang the question. Like one time 01:43.100 --> 01:43.400 it was 01:43.400 --> 01:45.000 Hey, Dave, I got a question for you. 01:45.600 --> 01:50.800 Why didn't God kill David son with Bathsheba and not David? David's the 01:50.800 --> 01:52.400 one who said, that's not fair. 01:53.100 --> 01:54.600 I'm not going to talk about that one today. 01:57.700 --> 02:03.300 Rather about a month ago in August, I was working in my home office, I 02:03.300 --> 02:07.600 got a very important email, it's an email that we professors receive 02:07.600 --> 02:08.800 three times a year. 02:09.199 --> 02:13.600 I looked into this email, it led me to a document that I downloaded 02:13.800 --> 02:17.000 and the document lead then led me to a passage of scripture. 02:17.400 --> 02:20.500 And I remember reading through this scripture passage about five times 02:20.500 --> 02:24.400 in the English than opening up Logos and beginning to study it in the 02:24.400 --> 02:24.900 Greek. 02:25.400 --> 02:30.000 And then suddenly my cell phone rang. And I looked and it was this 02:30.000 --> 02:33.600 guy, this old friend of mine from Southern Cal. And I happily picked up 02:33.600 --> 02:37.300 the phone and I'm wondering okay, I know it's coming and what is the 02:37.300 --> 02:38.500 question today? 02:39.000 --> 02:42.000 And so we talked about 5-10 minutes and then very abruptly 02:42.000 --> 02:42.600 he stops 02:42.600 --> 02:48.300 and he says, hey Dave, I had a question for you. And then he says is 02:48.300 --> 02:52.100 contentment a signed of faithlessness. 02:53.500 --> 02:55.800 I remember thinking about that question thinking, I heard it wrong. 02:55.800 --> 02:57.100 So I said, can you say that again? 02:57.500 --> 02:59.700 And he said, yeah, yeah, is contentment a 03:00.000 --> 03:04.900 sign of faithless? And I remember letting that question stew in 03:04.900 --> 03:08.300 my mind. I was thinking, what? I mean is contentment a sign of 03:08.300 --> 03:11.500 faithlessness? Is contentment a sign of faithlessness? 03:12.000 --> 03:16.100 Is contentment a sign of faithlessness, not faithfulness 03:16.100 --> 03:20.100 but faithlessness it's like what is going on? 03:20.600 --> 03:23.600 And so I asked him then hey what's going on? 03:24.300 --> 03:30.500 And he told me. And so he told me that he was very pleased to find 03:30.500 --> 03:35.100 himself in a place in his life in which he was content. 03:35.800 --> 03:39.500 He said, Dave, when I pray these days, I find that I find myself 03:39.500 --> 03:45.000 thanking God, more than I ever did before because of all the that he 03:45.000 --> 03:49.400 has done for me. And he said, first and foremost, he sent his Son to 03:49.400 --> 03:50.100 redeem me. 03:50.400 --> 03:54.200 And if I left this world with nothing else, but that, that would be 03:54.200 --> 03:54.900 enough. 03:55.500 --> 03:58.700 But on top of that, he's blessed me and so many other ways. 03:59.100 --> 04:01.400 He said, I got an awesome wife, I love her. 04:01.400 --> 04:05.200 I've got awesome kids my daughter's married to an awesome guy. 04:05.200 --> 04:07.200 My son is married to an awesome girl. 04:07.400 --> 04:08.800 I live in a nice house. 04:09.000 --> 04:10.300 I've got a good job. 04:10.400 --> 04:11.900 My wife has a good job. 04:12.200 --> 04:14.800 We've been able to take care of our parents in their old age. 04:15.200 --> 04:18.100 I am blessed, and I'm content. 04:18.399 --> 04:21.200 And if I were to go today, I would die happy. 04:22.000 --> 04:25.900 And I was thinking well, I almost envied him, his contentment. 04:26.400 --> 04:30.300 I thought this is a sign of Christian maturity but then he continued. 04:30.300 --> 04:30.700 Yet 04:30.700 --> 04:36.000 he said, there are people out there who act and speak as if I'm wrong 04:36.400 --> 04:37.600 for being content. 04:38.100 --> 04:40.700 And he said, this isn't just aimless voices out there. 04:40.700 --> 04:45.800 He said, these are members of my family members of your family, 04:46.100 --> 04:51.300 friends, co-workers, they act, and they live as if I'm wrong. 04:52.000 --> 04:55.500 And they told me specifically, he'd been debating friends at work who 04:55.500 --> 04:56.900 are telling him that indeed. 04:56.900 --> 05:02.300 He was faithless because he was content with what God had given him. 05:02.800 --> 05:05.900 Then suddenly occurred to me, this is actually a pretty good question 05:06.000 --> 05:06.800 these days. 05:07.500 --> 05:11.500 And so the idea of these friends were that the Christian Life should 05:11.500 --> 05:16.100 be characterized not by self-denial taking up your cross and following 05:16.100 --> 05:22.400 Jesus, but by an endless striving and seeking from God ever more and 05:22.400 --> 05:27.400 more blessings. Each one better than the next and the true Christian 05:27.400 --> 05:31.400 witness is not the person who lives and follows Jesus, but the one who 05:31.400 --> 05:35.400 has such an abundant life characterized by blessings, that other people 05:35.400 --> 05:38.400 are going to see that and say, I want that too. And then they could 05:38.400 --> 05:44.300 say, let me tell you about Jesus. They take John 1 verse 16, you know, 05:44.300 --> 05:48.700 out of his fullness we have received Grace upon Grace and they go with 05:48.700 --> 05:52.200 the NIV translation that says, instead of Grace upon On Grace. 05:52.200 --> 05:56.600 It's one blessing after another. Can almost see the Southern 05:56.600 --> 05:57.100 California 05:57.100 --> 05:59.800 preacher saying that. One blessing after another. 06:00.800 --> 06:04.400 It's no longer about how God's grace revealed in the old 06:04.400 --> 06:08.300 Covenant is fulfilled by God's grace and the New Covenant in Jesus 06:08.300 --> 06:09.100 Christ. 06:09.400 --> 06:12.600 But it becomes this idea that God is he's given you life and 06:12.600 --> 06:13.300 salvation, 06:13.300 --> 06:13.900 sure. 06:14.100 --> 06:17.000 But upon that he's going to give these physical blessings and even 06:17.000 --> 06:20.100 better blessings and then even better blessings. 06:20.600 --> 06:23.600 He said one of his friends at work said that the Christian life should 06:23.600 --> 06:27.500 always be characterized by trading up. God's given you a good 06:27.500 --> 06:31.700 blessing, but if you trust and If you want it he can give you a better 06:31.700 --> 06:32.500 blessing. 06:33.000 --> 06:34.500 Why drive that minivan? 06:35.100 --> 06:40.500 When he can give you a 1964, Ford Mustang convertible. And why be happy 06:40.500 --> 06:40.900 with that 06:40.900 --> 06:45.000 Mustang convertible, when he can give you a Lamborghini. God wants you 06:45.000 --> 06:46.000 in that Lamborghini 06:46.000 --> 06:47.700 but do you realize this? 06:47.700 --> 06:52.500 I mean, do you have the faith to ask God and reach out and demand one 06:52.500 --> 06:54.000 blessing after another? 06:55.300 --> 06:59.200 This is a view of the Christian life that is out there among the 06:59.200 --> 07:03.600 American churches, and it can be a very powerful temptation for us. 07:04.200 --> 07:06.700 Because this view of Christianity mirrors 07:07.000 --> 07:08.300 American society. 07:09.000 --> 07:12.400 In other words, American society is not about deny yourself 07:12.700 --> 07:14.900 take up your cross and follow Jesus. 07:15.300 --> 07:19.500 But in a sense, it's about seeking one blessing after another. 07:20.500 --> 07:22.200 I even heard of Southern California, preacher 07:22.200 --> 07:26.400 once say, if God were on Earth, he would not be driving a Volkswagen. 07:26.800 --> 07:28.300 He be driving a Lamborghini. 07:29.400 --> 07:32.800 And then I thought what a stupid thing to say, because when God was on 07:32.800 --> 07:35.500 Earth, well he didn't drive anything, there weren't cars around in 07:35.500 --> 07:41.400 those days. That he wrote a donkey into Jerusalem and then kicked off 07:41.400 --> 07:45.600 the chain of events that led him to carrying a cross to Mount Calvary. 07:46.400 --> 07:49.400 If he drove something, I imagined to be a bus big enough for at least 07:49.400 --> 07:50.900 13 passengers, right? 07:52.300 --> 07:53.600 But not a Lamborghini. 07:55.100 --> 07:56.000 Well, you know, my friend 07:56.000 --> 08:00.100 I don't think that he was moved at all by these words that he heard, 08:00.300 --> 08:03.900 but he was concerned enough that he called me and he was looking for a 08:03.900 --> 08:04.800 response. 08:05.100 --> 08:08.900 I Remember saying, Dave, is there some place in the Bible that speaks to 08:08.900 --> 08:12.600 this clearly and well, this is where the coincidence kicks. 08:12.600 --> 08:16.000 In that email, I got was from Chaplain Dr. 08:16.000 --> 08:16.900 Jon Vieker. 08:17.100 --> 08:20.800 It was the chapel schedule for fall semester and then you know I 08:20.800 --> 08:23.900 opened up the document found my name and then to the right of my name 08:23.900 --> 08:24.800 was first Timothy 08:24.900 --> 08:29.500 chapter 6. I began reading that over and over five times in 08:29.500 --> 08:34.500 English, now I was studying it and Logos and then my friend calls. And he 08:34.500 --> 08:37.400 says, is there a Bible passage that addresses this? 08:37.799 --> 08:41.000 And I said, hey Steve, let me read something to you. 08:42.100 --> 08:45.200 I actually moved, I kicked back three verses earlier from where our 08:45.200 --> 08:50.700 tax begins. But Paul writes if anyone teaches a different doctrine, it 08:50.700 --> 08:53.900 is not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ. 08:54.200 --> 08:57.800 And the teaching that accords with godliness, he is puffed up with 08:57.800 --> 08:59.700 conceit and understands nothing. 09:00.000 --> 09:04.700 He has an unhealthy craving for controversy, and for quarrels 09:04.700 --> 09:08.400 about words, which produce envy, dissension, 09:08.700 --> 09:14.000 slander, evil suspicions, and constant friction among people who are 09:14.000 --> 09:17.400 depraved in mind and deprived of the truth. 09:17.900 --> 09:21.700 Imagining that godliness is a means of game. 09:23.000 --> 09:28.000 But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing 09:28.000 --> 09:32.200 into the world and we cannot take anything out of the world. 09:32.700 --> 09:37.300 But if we had food and clothing with these, we will be content. 09:38.200 --> 09:42.700 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and into a snare 09:43.000 --> 09:47.000 and too many senseless and harmful desires that plunge, people into 09:47.000 --> 09:49.000 ruin and destruction. 09:49.800 --> 09:53.500 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. 09:54.100 --> 09:57.700 It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith 09:58.100 --> 10:00.700 and pierced themselves with many pangs. 10:01.600 --> 10:07.800 But as for you, o, man of God, flee, these things pursue righteousness 10:08.200 --> 10:14.200 godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. Fight the good fight 10:14.200 --> 10:14.900 of faith 10:15.300 --> 10:18.700 take hold of the eternal life to which you were called. 10:19.700 --> 10:23.800 And then I finish the pericope and after I finish reading this text, 10:24.100 --> 10:27.200 there was a pause and then my friend to began to laugh. 10:27.700 --> 10:28.600 It was a good laugh. 10:29.200 --> 10:30.300 He's got a really good laugh. 10:30.300 --> 10:34.000 It wasn't like a uneasy laugh but it was like a really good hearty 10:34.000 --> 10:39.400 laugh and then he said hey Dave thanks. He said that's really clear, 10:39.700 --> 10:40.500 isn't it? 10:41.300 --> 10:43.400 And then he said I'm going to mark that passage down 10:43.400 --> 10:47.700 it's really clear. And then I told them, I said yeah, he said he 10:47.700 --> 10:49.200 wondered, how did he find that so fast? 10:49.200 --> 10:52.500 And I well, I just happened to, I was assigned this to preach and 10:52.800 --> 10:53.800 thank you for the sermon. 10:58.900 --> 11:02.900 The Paul's words to us to you are pretty clear. 11:04.600 --> 11:09.400 The Lord God our heavenly Father has called you to Godliness with 11:09.400 --> 11:15.000 contentment. And He's called to you to see that this is great gain. 11:16.100 --> 11:21.100 He did not spare for you, his only Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, but 11:21.100 --> 11:27.800 gave him up for you that you would experience salvation new life, the 11:27.800 --> 11:32.300 hope of eternal life and that you would now be his children. 11:32.900 --> 11:37.600 And as his children, we can approach him with prayers of every kind, 11:38.400 --> 11:42.400 second, third article, prayers, first article prayers. 11:42.800 --> 11:43.700 He is our God, 11:43.700 --> 11:49.900 He is our father, and yet he calls for us to be content as we await 11:50.100 --> 11:54.700 the coming of our Lord, Jesus Christ, when all things will be 11:54.700 --> 11:55.700 fulfilled. 11:56.400 --> 11:59.900 And so it is on this side of the cross that we don't experience 12:00.000 --> 12:02.600 the fullness of every blessing, we will. 12:03.200 --> 12:07.200 But we await that day when our Lord will come back, raise us from the 12:07.200 --> 12:07.800 dead. 12:08.100 --> 12:13.500 And then we will live with him forever in the new heavens and the new 12:13.500 --> 12:14.000 Earth. 12:16.400 --> 12:20.200 So godliness with contentment is great gain. 12:22.000 --> 12:23.700 May the Lord God our heavenly Father 12:24.300 --> 12:30.400 keep you steadfast in your faith and in this contentment both now and 12:30.400 --> 12:32.600 unto the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 12:33.600 --> 12:34.200 Amen. 12:35.800 --> 12:36.300 May the peace 12:36.300 --> 12:37.900 that passes all understanding. 12:38.100 --> 12:40.600 Keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. 12:41.200 --> 12:41.600 Amen. 12:43.200 --> 12:43.900 Please stand.