“Godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.”
The passage continues (verses 8-11), explaining we should be content when our basic needs are met. If our life goal is acquiring riches, we’re headed away from God. Verse 11 tells us to “run from all these evil things. Pursue righteousness and a godly life, along with faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness.”
Our culture regularly tells us that we deserve things we haven’t worked for, or it tells us that acquiring riches is the main goal of our lives. Either of these attitudes destroys faith because genuine faith isn't about making money. It's about living a life that is pleasing to the Lord.
In Luke 12:16-21 we read about a man who spent his life storing up surplus grain planning to one day sit back and enjoy his wealth. But he died before that happened, and God said, “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.”
God isn’t saying that all selfish rich people will die before enjoying their wealth. He’s saying that anyone, rich or poor, who focuses on wealth is wasting their lives.
So let’s regularly evaluate our goals and make sure our focus in on God.
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For more encouragement to make the right choices, see The Freedom of Contentment and Thou Shalt Covet.
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