Discontentment Starts with Lies

Stephen Altrogge:

Hebrews 3:13 says, “But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called ‘today,’ that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.” Sin is an expert in propaganda. It skillfully crafts lies and half-truths. Our hearts are trying to deceive us into believing lies. Discontentment starts when we believe sinful lies—lies about God, lies about ourselves, lies about the world, and lies about others. If we’re going to defeat the sin of discontentment, we need to be able to spot its lies. We need to be able to recognize propaganda.

For starters, the following are some of the most common lies:

1. God is withholding from me. If we don’t have something we desire, it’s not because God is withholding good from us. God didn’t spare his Son one stroke of misery. He won’t withhold any good thing from us.
2. God owes me. The discontented man complains because he isn’t getting what God “owes” him. The contented man is astonished that God would bless him for doing his duty.
3. If I get it, I’ll be happy. We won’t be fully satisfied when we get what we want. Because God loves us and wants us to find our satisfaction in him, he won’t allow us to be satisfied. To believe that we’ll finally be happy when we get what we want is a lie.
4. I know what’s best for me. God is the one who restores our soul. Sometimes he restores us by giving us what we desire, and sometimes he restores us by withholding it. In either case we can be assured that God knows the best path for us and that he’ll lead us on that path.