• con·tent·ment /kənˈtentmənt/ noun

1. A state of satisfaction, peace, and gratitude arising from acceptance of one’s circumstances, possessions, or condition.
2. In Christian usage, a settled confidence in God that enables a believer to remain satisfied in Christ regardless of external circumstances.
Example:

“Godliness with contentment is great gain.”
1 Tim. 6:6.

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Many of us are familiar with contentment and its usage in relation to greed and the acquisition of possessions, but today’s study takes us through a different path.

Bringing it to a more unfamiliar terrain, contentment is important in spirituality, too. Scripture tells us that “godliness with contentment is great gain“ (1 Tim. 6:6). When I first heard this, I thought that this was a tautology. Godliness already encapsulates all that God stands for, and surely greed is not one of them. So why should contentment be singled out? It is because even in the pursuit of godliness, many people have gone beyond the boundaries.

The problem is not the desire for more; it is the lack of contentment with what God has given. One of the biblical examples of people who lacked this kind of contentment is Eve. Part of the reason the serpent was able to deceive her because she was not content with what God had already given her. She became dissatisfied with the boundaries God had set and desired what God had withheld from her (Gen.3).

This is the issue many believers now face: they allow itching ears to get the best of them such that they are no longer satisfied with the simplicity of the gospel (2 Tim. 4:3-4). And many false teachings continue to gain traction because the believer is dissatisfied with Christianity as plain, simple, and ordinary as it is. They want secret revelations, deeper mysteries, hidden knowledge—most of which cannot be traced to the Bible. Paul was familiar with such cravings, so he warned us repeatedly to avoid such dissatisfaction.

In Colossians 2:8, he warns us to see to it that we do not get swayed away with philosophies or such things that may sound very intellectual, very spiritual, but are far from being rooted in Christ. The gospel is enough.

The danger of these so-called “deeper things” is that they often contradict the gospel. They teach us—albeit subtly—that what Christ has done still needs something more to make it perfect. But in Romans 1:16, we are told that the gospel is the power of God to save. Only this gospel, as “simple” as it may be, has the power to save anyone and everyone.
Still, in 1 Corinthians 2:1-5, to emphasize his point, Paul tells them that they didn’t preach with eloquence or some carefully crafted speech. It was the plain gospel.

If the message of Christ has this much power, why do we assume there is something beyond it? In the quest to get more power, many have even found themselves in occult groups and secret cults they can’t get out of. We must have the understanding that there is no greater revelation than Christ and His gospel, which we have received. Paul goes as far as saying that anyone who teaches something contrary is under a curse (Gal. 1:8).

In the same vein, there is nothing we can do to supplement the work of salvation. When Jesus did it all, He said, “It is finished”. That means there is nothing left to add, nothing requiring adjustment, nothing requiring supplementation. Some of the early Christians almost made this mistake by trying to make it a point for the Gentiles to be circumcised before they could “truly” be saved, but Paul called them out on it very quickly, saying that by doing that, they would be discrediting the sacrifice of Jesus and saying it is not enough (Gal. 2:11-21; 5:1-6).

Believers must embrace the simplicity of the gospel and be content with it, without mixing it with culture, personal preferences, and traditions from the religions Christ has saved them from. It is of critical importance that we disabuse our minds of those practices that make us feel that something more must be done for true salvation to be attained. Salvation is by the finished works of Christ alone.

In Colossians 2:9-10, Paul emphasizes that we have been made complete in Christ, and so that should be enough for us. We don’t need more than Him, not in this world and definitely not in the world to come. We must be content with who He is, the message He presents, and the grace He gives (2 Cor. 12:9).

Contentment is being satisfied with the sufficiency of Christ. It is acknowledging and accepting all that He is for and to us, and all that He has done. Hebrews 1:1-2 gives us an understanding that God’s final and fullest revelation is Jesus Christ.
So here’s the takeaway: Christ is enough. His gospel is enough. His sacrifice is enough. His salvation is enough.