By William B. Fullilove, TGC.
“There is nothing new under the sun.” So begins the speaker of Ecclesiastes, and his refrain is certainly true in the history of philosophy, ancient or modern.
Stoicism, a philosophical school focused on maximizing self-control as the way to achieve inner peace, is on the rise once again. Organizations as diverse as The Gospel Coalition and The New York Times have noted this trend, especially among young men disillusioned and frustrated by the world.
Like most other errors, Stoicism has emotional and practical appeal precisely because it comes close to a biblical truth. Stoicism taps into the real virtue of contentment. After all, who wouldn’t want to be unflappable in the face of circumstances, patient when faced with setbacks, able to maintain his or her compass when life seems to be spinning?
Even the apostle Paul initially sounds like he’s endorsing Stoic thought in Philippians 4 when he talks about contentment “in any and every circumstance” (v. 12). A closer reading, however, shows that, far from endorsing Stoicism, Paul undermines it, declaring that the gospel of Jesus Christ offers a better answer to life’s problems and challenges.
Paul’s Surprising Word Choice
In Philippians 4, Paul at first blush seems to endorse the Stoic approach. Writing in Greek, he uses a term that dates back at least to Plato and Aristotle: the verb arkēo, which means to be satisfied. He writes, “Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned, in whatever situation I am, to be content” (v. 11).