Be Grateful and Content – A Kingdom Catechism

Be Grateful and Content

A Kingdom Catechism

The tenth commandment counsels gratitude and contentedness.

Q 129: What is the substance of the tenth commandment?

A 129: The substance of the tenth commandment is that we must receive with thanksgiving and contentment whatever it pleases God to distribute to us or bestow upon us. (1 Tim. 6:6-8; Eccl. 7:14; Eccl. 2:24, 25; Phil. 4:6, 7, 11, 12)

Believers overcome covetousness through the practice of thanksgiving (Rom. 12:21). Thanksgiving must at all times be the Christian’s first line of response, in every situation resisting the temptation to grumble, complain, become angry, or covet by turning our eyes to God in gratitude for His sovereignty and gifts. Thanksgiving, as Paul explains, produces peace—the context of the Kingdom—and peace is the hallmark of contentment. Thus, every temptation to covet should be received as an invitation to give thanks and to wait upon the Lord for a fuller realization of His Kingdom peace in our lives.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.