Are you content? Are you happy with your possessions and your circumstances? Admittedly, it is difficult for us to be completely content all the time, but that is no excuse because discontentment is a sin. A sin we often overlook, but one we need to deal with.

In my next few posts, I will deal with this sin. But before we deal with discontentment as a sin, we need to realize it is not always sinful to be discontent. There is a healthy form of discontentment, which we will look at today. Before we do, let’s get started by defining discontentment.

Discontentment Defined

Discontentment occurs when we are dissatisfied or unhappy with our life, whether that be our circumstances, money, or possessions.

Healthy Discontentment

There are areas in which we can be discontent and not sin. Here are a few:

(1) Spiritual Growth – Not being satisfied with our spiritual growth is a form of healthy discontentment. If we are to continue to grow in our Christian walk, then we cannot be completely satisfied with our current growth. For if we are, we will remain stagnant.

(2) Injustices and other evils – We should not be content with injustice, nor should we be content with the evil in the world. Rather, we should be discontent with the way the world is currently, which should cause us to long for the world to come. It should also motivate us to work to eradicate as much injustice and other evils as we have power.

Looking Forward

While there are certain areas in which we should be discontent, there are other areas we should not. When we exhibit discontentment in these areas, we are sinning. I will look at these areas in my next post.

Questions for Reflection

1. Are you content with your spiritual growth?
2. Are you content with your churches spiritual growth?
3. What can we do to continue to grow spiritually?
4. What can we do to eradicate injustices and other evils in the world?
5. Can you think of other areas where it may be healthy for us to be discontent?

Resources

Post adapted from: Jerry Bridges, Respectable Sins, 71-77.

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