#84. Godliness With Contentment
Then he said to Gehazi his servant, “Call this Shunammite woman.’”When he called her, she stood before him. And he said to him, “Say now to her, Look, you have been concerned for us with all this care. What can I do for you? Do you want me to speak on your behalf to the king or to the commander of the army?’” She answered, “I dwell among my own people.”
II Kings 4:12-13 NKJV
What would you do if someone close to the President of the United States came to you and asked if there was anything you would like to request of or say to the President? If you are at all like me, perhaps you could think of 5-10 things in a matter of seconds. The opportunity to have the ear of someone in power is rare for the majority of people and it would be very desirable to take full advantage of it.
The Shunammite woman had shown kindness to Elisha and his servant Gehazi. Elisha, desiring to honor the Lord and repay the kindness in some way, called the Shunammite woman to him and asked, “What can I do for you?”
Elisha had stood before great kings and generals. He had their ear. He could make a request before the king on behalf of this woman from Shunem and have reasonable expectation the thing would be done. Surely there was something the Shunammite woman would desire for Elisha to say to or request of the king or general.
After several verses exemplifying the virtues of this godly woman, yet another virtue is demonstrated in her interaction with Elisha. She was a woman of great humility and contentment. In her opportunity to have sway over the leaders of Israel, her response was simply, “I dwell among my own people.” Matthew Henry expounds on her statement in this way, “It is a happiness to dwell among our own people, that love and respect us, and to whom we are in a capacity of doing good; and a greater happiness to be content to do so, to be easy, and to know when we are well off. Why should those that live comfortably among their own people covet to live delicately in kings’ palaces?”
Some years later the Shunammite woman would have need of the king’s lawful assistance and would turn to him for help (II Kings 8:1-6). But in the special favor Elisha was offering she was content in serving the Lord where He had put her.
“Godliness with contentment is great gain” (I Tim. 6:6). The Shunammite woman had gained contentment. In the courts of men, there was nothing for which the Shunammite woman had need, for the Lord had satisfied her soul with the great treasure of contentment.
The Lord has given us that which we need most by giving us the Messiah who is Christ the Lord. In contrast to the Lord Jesus Christ, all else is but rubbish. Eternal life and salvation is found in Christ alone; all else is quickly perishing. With this truth set before us, may we run the Christian race with contentment in all situations. Whether the Lord see fits to give us much or little, a life of public influence or a life of quietness, may we bless the name of the Lord and offer our thanks to Him with contentment.
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