The paper will examine the Puritan understanding of Christian contentment and way anything else is a wickedness against God. Attention will be given to the practical arguments for contentment and the steps to achieving it from Burroughs and Watson.
The Puritans produced a body of literature to rival any in church history. Much of what they wrote is of urgent need today. The body of Christ experiences problems and anxiety on par with the unbelieving world. The vision of Christian contentment espoused by the Puritans encapsulates their understanding of the Christian life. They believed that the well-lived life was a life of complete contentment. The practical nature of their writings on contentment, especially Jeremiah Burroughs and Thomas Watson, projects beauty and attractiveness that modern believers desperately need.
This paper will examine the Puritan vision of contentment from the vantage point of Burroughs and Watson. The paper will address the Puritan pathway to achieving contentment and the theology of why it is essential for the believer. Comparing and contrasting Burroughs and Watson will reveal the common threads of Puritan contentment. These commonalities include: 1) resting in God’s sovereignty; 2) personal spiritual discipline; 3) dwelling upon the beauties of Christ; 4) submission in sufferings; and 5) soaking in the Word of God.
Watson asserted that to be discontent is to quarrel with God’s providence. The Puritan contention was that discontentment in a believer’s life was utter rebellion against a kind and benevolent Creator.