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Burroughs--Contentment, a Gracious Frame of Spirit

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This matter of Christian contentment is a matter of the soul. Today (p.5-6)we will see three things about this "inward, quiet frame of spirit".

First, we see that it is a "grace that spreads itself through the whole soul." What Burroughs means by this is that contentment begins in the soul's understanding (reason, judgment, cognition) and satisfies the thoughts. Then as the thoughts are satisfied it moves to the will--which submits to the understanding. Then as the will submits the affections follow. Therefore, true Christian contentment penetrates through the entire soul.

Some have only a partial contentment. They are able to get their understanding and therefore their thoughts in check but for whatever reason they cannot seem to harness their affections. A great example of this would be Psalm 42. David has a settled disposition but yet his soul is still downcast. Yet even without having his affections settled he is in a far better state than the soul who cannot be settled in his understanding. But if we are to have true Christian contentment then it must penetrate all of our soul.

Secondly, we see that "spiritual contentment comes from the frame of the soul." What Burroughs means by this is that contentment does not come from outward help but from "the disposition of their own hearts". "When a Christian is content in the right way, the quiet comes more from the temper and disposition of his own heart than from any external argument or from the possession of anything in the world".

To help us to see this Burroughs gives an example of a man with cold clothes. He can get his clothes warmed by two different ways. Either by sitting by a fire (outward) or by wearing them for awhile and letting his natural body heat warm them (inward). This is compared to the differences in many men. Some are ill and their natural body heat will not warm them. They can go to the fire but it will only warm them for awhile. Only while the outward help is upon them, but when left to themselves their "contentment" will soon dwindle. The one who has true Christian contentment will at first field the coldness of the affliction but after awhile will warm up to it and become content under the trial. This will continue because it came from the inward state. Therefore, "when it comes from the spirit of a man or woman--that is true contentment."

Lastly, we see that this frame of spirit "shows the habitual character of this grace of contentment". By this Burroughs simply means that contentment is no mere flash in the pan. It is a lasting endeavor. It is not fixed upon moods or seasons. True Christian contentment will find itself as the "constant tenor and temper of their hearts". If we are to call it Christian contentment then it must be persevering.

What then can we learn from Burroughs today?

  • I am especially challenged by Burroughs second point. Thinking of all the different "fires" that might warm me I realized that I can be tempted to find comfort in things other than Jesus. We know, as does Burroughs, that true contentment only comes from the soul's satisfaction with God. That is where this "inward soul-warming" comes from. I am challenged then to discover the areas in my life where my "contentment" only comes from outward blessing and not inward satisfaction.
  • It is also challenging to determine whether or not our attitude is continually contented or is it shifting with our various moods and cirumstances.
  • Therefore, we must cling to Jesus to teach us this mystery of contentment.

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    • Jude--Fighting for Mercy

    Posted by Unknown

    "But you, beloved, build yourselves up in your most holy faith; pray in the Holy Spirit; keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life."
    These verses will probably be best understood if we first look at them backwards. I take Jude's goal to be the same as it has been throughout this letter. To keep his readers in the most holy faith, that they might contend for and preserve this blessed gospel; preserved in their own lives and for the generations to come. But, how will they "keep [themselves] in the love of God"? What hope do they have in waiting for the Jesus to give them mercy and lead them into eternal life? It will be because they have built themselves up in the gospel and have prayed in the Spirit. These two things are vitally important for our battle to persevere in the faith. These exhortations are in sharp contrast to the false teachers that will not inherit eternal life. Therefore, if we are to have eternal life then we must follow the way of the gospel and not the way of the false teachers.
    Whereas the false teachers have crept into the church and have perverted the gospel and are causing divisions, the believers are to do just the opposite--build one another up in this most holy faith. "Faith" is the same "faith" that was mentioned in verse 3. It is a reference to the body of doctrine--to the gospel. Jude is urging his readers to build their lives upon the gospel. Certainly this is held in contrast to the false teachers who built their lives upon their dreams and visions and their ungodly passions. But it also serves as a sharp rebuke for those of us today who consider the gospel no more than the elementary aspect of our faith and that from there we move on to deeper things. What Jude is saying is the same thing that Paul said--Jesus Christ and His Gospel is the foundation of all Christian living and ministry. (1 Corinthians 3:11) As Martin Luther said, "The gospel cannot be preached and heard enough, for it cannot be grasped enough...Moreover, our greatest task is to keep you faithful to this article and to bequeath this treasure to you when we die." This is precisely what Jude is saying. Do not leave the gospel to go on to some special knowledge. Do not leave the gospel ever. It is your foundation and everything must spring from the gospel roots going deep in your life.
    Next, Jude wants his readers to "pray in the Holy Spirit". This is in contrast to the false teachers who proclaim to have prophetic utterance but they are obviously not Spirit-led believers. Christians should pray under the instruction and guidance of the Holy Spirit.
    This type of prayer is the means that God uses to bring about our perseverance. Even though as we will see in a couple of days it is the Lord who is our keeper, the means that he uses to keep us is prayer. If we are not a praying people then it is quite likely that we will not persevere. Perhaps we could go into a discussion of what it means precisely to pray in the Spirit. We will not do that here. It will suffice for now to say that it does not mean speaking in tongues because Paul uses the same language in Ephesians 6:18 and says to do so "always". We are not commanded to speak in tongues constantly. So it means something different. But it does mean to pray in such a way that the Spirit Himself is moving us to pray and guiding our prayer. This is where Christ-exalting, God-glorifying prayer comes from. Therefore, let us pray in the Spirit, who searches all things, and intercedes for us, and is passionately consumed with glorifying the Godhead.
    And the last thing that we will see today is that we must continue to fight and fight and wait and wait for the mercy of Jesus Christ to be revealed to us. We must keep ourselves in the love of God. This is not saying that you will lose your salvation--it is simply saying that the Christian life is a battle and we must cling to Jesus and hope in His precious salvation daily! Let us do just that today. Today you are exhorted to:
    • Cling to the gospel
    • Pray in the Spirit
    • Allow your gospel roots to go deep
    • Fight the fight of faith

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