AM Sermon preached at Central Christian Church March 25, 2007
God’s Top Tep –the 10th commandment “Keeping Our Heart’s Desires In Check”
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As I was writing this morning’s message, I couldn’t help but think about The Flying McCoys comic strip someone had clipped out of a newspaper and laid on my desk a few weeks back. It pictured Moses coming down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of stone containing the Ten Commandments on them ---as this group of people standing around the bottom of the mountain were watching him. In the middle of the crowd one man speaks up and says “Then it’s agreed. We don’t let him go up that mountain anymore.” Well friends I can tell you that you don’t have to worry about my taking you up on that mountain in this sermon series again for a look at an eleventh commandment. Because there isn’t one. So, relax, take a deep breath and savor the moment ---because we’ve made it. Today’s the last message in our God’s Top Ten sermon series. If you have your Bible with you I encourage you to open it to the book of Exodus and turn to chapter 20. While you’re doing that let me tell you a story---
Her husband had skillfully amassed a multi-million dollar fortune. When her husband learned that he was dying he asked only one thing of her---he told her the entire fortune is yours but please do this one thing, have a will drawn up. He said something to the effect----Since we have no children everyone will try to dip their hand in the till. So please draw up a will. You can have it all given to charity if you wish---just don’[t let any of it get into the hands of those conniving no good relatives of ours who’ve always been trying to mooch off of us.” But after his death she had no will drawn up. Years later at the age of 81 Mrs. Henrietta Garrett died in her Philadelphia home on the night of November 16, 1930. She left behind a $17 million dollar estate and no will. She had at the time of her death only one known relative a second cousin---and she had less than a dozen friends still living. But at the news of her death, the vultures descended. It wasn’t dozens or even hundreds of people who claimed they were entitled to some of the estate---it was thousands---in fact to date more than 26,000 people from 47 of the United States and from 29 foreign countries have staked their claims. Over the course of time more than 3000 lawyers have been employed on the case.
In their efforts to get some of this money---alleged relatives and friends have committed perjury, forged family records, altered church records, changed their names and concocted all kinds of stories of illegitimacy. Twelve have been fined, ten sent to jail, two have committed suicide, three have been murdered. In the meantime the estate’s grown to over $30 million.
Before God ever created the first man and woman, He knew that humans would crave and run after things that were not rightfully theirs. Before God breathed that first breath of life into Adam, He knew that the people He was making would desire forbidden fruit and off limits relationships. That’s why He gave us this tenth commandment.
I’d like for us to read it together…. [SCRIPTURE SLIDE]
Exodus 20:17 "You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor."
George Barna is famous for the church related surveys and polls he conducts. He took one on the Ten Commandments and according to his survey 53% of the Christians that responded claimed they weren’t guilty of coveting. When I first read that one side of thought –hey that’s pretty cool---over half of the Christian population has a handle on this one. Almost immediately though---I started feeling kinda bad because I know that I’d have to put myself in 47% that doesn’t have a handle on it. But before this whole thing became a real downer for me---I remembered that in that same poll 91% of the Christians who took the poll said that they lie regularly.
Do Christians covet? We sure do. But let me let you in on a not so well known truth. All coveting is not evil. The literal meaning of the word “coveting” is “to pant after.”
The fact of the matter is the word covet is as morally neutral as the word money. Money itself is not evil. Money can be used to bring about good or evil. For example---our money can be used to feed the hungry, provide housing for our family and support the church’s work. Or our money can be used for things like buying illegal drugs, renting pornographic movies and paying for spray paint that’s used to graffiti a wall in a public place. Like our money, our coveting can bring about good or it can bring about evil. For you see---the primary meaning of the word covet is desire. When we covet something—we desire it. We want it. Sometimes we want it so bad we can’t get it out of our mind and it preoccupies all of our thoughts. When we covet something, we feel as if we need it, possibly even feel as if we can’t live without it.
If you jump back a few verses in Exodus 20 you’ll notice that that some of the commandments are very simple, straightforward and contain little detail. God says “Don’t kill.” “Don’t steal.” “Don’t commit adultery.” But notice God doesn’t say “Don’t covet.” (period) And the reason is simple----not all coveting is wrong. God says it’s wrong to covet your neighbor’s house---your neighbor’s wife---his manservant or maidservant---or his ox or donkey--- are you seeing a pattern, a common denominator here? [SLIDE] Your neighbor---and what is his…
By the way---since our neighbors don’t have menservants or maidservants or oxen or donkeys---we might think we’ve got about half of this commandment licked at the get go---but I think we’d be missing the point if we did---you see menservants and maidservants might be brought into our culture in terms of things that make his or her life easier----for example don’t covet you’re neighbors new riding mower; you know the one that makes yours look like a billy goat in comparison—don’t covet the fact you have to do your own housecleaning and they can afford to hire a professional service to come in----and as for that ox and donkey stuff…think of it in terms of how they make a living---don’t covet your neighbor’s higher paying occupation or the fact they get all those extra perks like free vacations and you’re lucky in your job if they give you Christmas off. Here’s the bottom line----God concludes this tenth commandment with a catch all phrase ---God says don’t covet “anything that belongs to your neighbor.” That takes in everything---including their Sports ability, bank accounts, their car, their popularity at school----if this was Kentucky I’d add don’t covet your neighbor’s pick up truck, shot gun or hunting dog----but this isn’t Kentucky so let me add don’t covet your neighbor’s SUV, their Cardinals season ticket or their walk in closets. The truth is I threw that last one in for me. We don’t have a lot of storage in our house and I was a little bothered by this one’s preacher’s remark about wanting more storage space. He said---maybe we don’t need more storage but instead we need less stuff. When I read that I thought---ouch he’s getting personal!
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At the core of this tenth commandment is the need for you and me to keep a close watch on the desires of our heart. Through this commandment God is telling us “I don’t want you harboring desires for those things and relationships which I have said are off limits to you.” Is it wrong for a person to want to own their own home? No, not at all. But it is wrong for a person to want to take their neighbor’s home out from under him. Is it wrong for a man to desire his wife? Of course not. But it is wrong for him to want another man’s wife.
You see the intent of this last commandment is not different from the other commandments which spell out things God says “no” to. All of the commandments that forbid sinful behavior also invite God-honoring behavior. God says to us---Don’t use my name as a curse word---but do speak and sing my name in worship. Don’t tell lies about your neighbor---but do speak the truth in every area of life. Don’t steal things that don’t belong to you---but do be generous with the things you have. And here---don’t desire forbidden fruit---but do desire what’s right and good.
All he ever really wanted in life was more. He wanted more money, so he parlayed inherited wealth into a billion-dollar pile of assets. He wanted more fame, so he broke into the Hollywood scene and soon became a filmmaker and star. He wanted more sensual pleasures, so he paid handsome sums to indulge his every sexual urge. He wanted more thrills, so he designed, built, and piloted the fastest aircraft in the world. He wanted more power, so he secretly dealt political favors so skillfully that two U. S. presidents became his pawns. All he ever wanted was more. He was absolutely convinced that more would bring him true satisfaction. Unfortunately, history shows otherwise.
[He] concluded his life … emaciated; colorless; sunken chest; fingernails in grotesque, inches-long corkscrews; rotting, black teeth; tumors, innumerable needle marks from drug addiction. [SLIDE] Howard Hughes died,… believing the myth of more. He died a billionaire junkie, insane by all reasonable standards [Bill Hybels, “Power: Preaching for Total Commitment,” Mastering Contemporary Preaching (Portland, OR: Multnomah Press, 1989), 120-121].
I think everyone of us would agree that Howard Hughes had a problem----his heart was filled with desires run amuck---[SLIDE] but what about us---how are we doing in the “got control of wrongful desires area?” Let’s give this some careful thought----I’m sure most of us have heard some of Jeff Foxworthy’s “You just might be a redneck…” jokes. Using that kind of approach but without the humorous punch lines---let’s think about whether or not we are desiring the wrong things in our heart.
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If you often find yourself depressed because your neighbors or friends drive more expensive cars or wear more expensive clothes than you do---you just might have a heart problem.
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If you have no difficulty hurting with your neighbor when they’re going through tough times but you do find it hard to rejoice with them when something great has happened in their life—you just might have a heart problem.
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If you’ve been known to withdrawal from others and pout because of something you want but can’t have---you just might have a heart problem.
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If you’re the eternal pessimist, live by Murphy’s law---always see the glass as half-empty rather than half-full---and always thirst for more---you just might have a heart problem.
Now again friends---these things aren’t meant to be funny---they’re meant to make us think and do some soul searching……
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If you’re constantly badmouthing others who have something you wish you had---you just might have a heart problem.
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If you have trouble showing appreciation---and the gifts you receive never seem to be quite good enough----you just might have a heart problem.
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If your idea of success is having the biggest pile of the newest and most expensive stuff or if you hate the fact your collection isn’t quite complete and someone else’s is---you just might have a heart problem.
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If you tend to believe that all you need is a little more, then you’ll be happy---you just might have a heart problem.
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Reminds me of a story told on Nelson Rockefeller ----he was being interviewed and the reporter asked him, “Mister Rockefeller, how much money doe it take to be happy?” And the wealthy tycoon answered “It always takes a little bit more.” He may not have died the same kind of death but if Rockefeller honestly believed that happiness comes from having a little more---then was just as crazy as Howard Hughes.
The Bible’s sheds some light on the insanity of buying into the myth of more. [SCRIPTURE SLIDE] “Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless. As goods increase, so do those who consume them.” Ecclesiastes 5:10-11
Because this is true God advises us---- [SCRIPTURE SLIDE] “Do not wear yourself out to get rich; have the wisdom to show restraint. Cast only a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle” (Proverbs 23: 4-5).
Okay, okay, okay. We get the point right? So how do we overcome these wrongful desires--- Let me very quickly share with you some biblical and practical advice.
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1. Put God first. I know I’ve said this in just about every one of these Ten Commandment sermons. There’s a reason I’ve done it too. It’s because getting our relationship with God right is THE KEY to getting all of our other relationships right. It’s also the key to overcoming wrongful desires and bad attitudes. King David came to realize that---you see he had put himself on a fast downhill spiritual track---it began when desired his neighbor’s wife more than remaining in a right relationship with God---from there it was just a small step to committing adultery with her---then in order to take her from her from his neighbor, David conspired to have her husband killed—then he lied about it and brought dishonor upon himself and his family. In the process of doing these things David broke nine of the Ten Commandments! After being caught I this web of sin, David cried out to God for help---asking God to create a clean heart in him---asking God to wash away his sins and to restore joy to his life. Because David was sincere God granted David his request. And God will do the same for us, when we humbly go to Him in prayer.
This tenth commandment takes us full circle back to the first for when God’s first we’re not running after the wrong things---on the other hand when we’re running after the wrong things it’s obvious we aren’t putting God first.
The Bible tells us that we should seek first the things of God---and one of the ways we do that is to be very intentional about our thoughts and actions. If our neighbor’s wife lays out to get a sun tan than we need to avoid looking out those windows where we can see her. If we’re constantly wanting to buy new clothes, new electronics and more stuff---we need to throw away the Sunday ads before we look at them. You know don’t you that those ads are part of a trillion dollar industry whose sole purpose is to make you discontent and to suck you into the myth of more?
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1 John 2:15 (NIV) we read --- “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.”
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And in Colossians 3:2 we’re told--- “Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.” (NKJV)
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2. Another very important thing we can do to help us overcome coveting things our neighbor has is thanking God for what we have. I’m talking about getting very specific in our prayers---listing in our hearts—maybe even on paper the ways we know God has blessed us. Yeah maybe our car’s not new, maybe by local standards it’s really old. But is it paid for? Can we be thankful we don’t have a monthly installment check to write out? Maybe we don’t have a large home but even the worst homes in our area provide nicer accommodations that what the majority of the world’s population goes home to at the end of the day. So they messed up your drive through order and gave you a regular cheese burger instead of the bacon cheeseburger you paid for---at least you won’t have to go to bed with an empty stomach like millions do every night. [SCRIPTURE SLIDE] Paul writes in Philippians 4: 8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.
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3. And while we’re thinking about all the things God has blessed us with, let’s be sure to zero in on the most important gift God has given us, a renewed relationship with Him made possible through Jesus dying for us. The things we treasure so much in this world---don’t last. I remember when we first got our 1995 Windstar minivan. I thought it was pretty awesome. It was a program vehicle but it still had that new vehicle smell. It had a great sound system. It was all bright red, shiny and new. And in addition to all that it had two bench seats in the back so Shannon and Adam didn’t have to share a seat anymore. We thought that that would end the constant backseat battling. We were wrong. I’m still driving that same van. The new smell’s gone---in fact I’m not sure the smell it now has is even identifiable! It’s approaching the 180,000 mile mark and it runs really rough these days. And the last time I put gas in it I noticed some rust near the back wheel well, gently kicked it and a small chuck of metal dropped off. That’s the nature of things in this world. God created them so they wouldn’t last. And He did it, I think to cause us to think about the things that do last. At least to me that’s what Jesus is saying to us in Matthew 6:19-21 (NIV)
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"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
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And remember this---even those things that do seem to last---we leave behind when we die. 1 Tim 6:6-7 makes that clear “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.”
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Go back to that interview with Nelson Rockefeller. Remember his answer to how much money is needed to make a person happy? “a little more.” [SLIDE] Shortly after Rockefeller died a reporter was trying to learn how large of an estate Rockefeller had built up during his life time and so he asked one of Rockefeller’s accountants… “exactly how much money did Mr. Rockefeller leave behind.” [SLIDE] The accountant very coolly replied, “all of it.”
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One last illustration and then we’ll have the praise team lead us in our hymn of decision.
The story is told of young Charles Darwin that one day he was eagerly holding one rare beetle in his right fist, another in his left when suddenly he caught sight of a third beetle that he simply knew he must have for his collection. What to do? In a flash he put one of the beetles in his mouth for safekeeping and reached for the third beetle with his now free hand. But the mouth-imprisoned beetle squirted acid down Darwin’s throat--so that in a fit of coughing he lost all three beetles. --James S. Hewett, Illustrations Unlimited (Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc, 1988) p. 26.
The Bible makes it very clear when it comes to wrongful coveting---even if you do like young Darwin did and you get the thing you coveted after---in the end it will leave a bad taste in your mouth. But not so with God. When you covet a great relationship with God---when in the same way a dear pants for water---you long for God---and you drink in the One who calls Himself the Living Water---you’ll find that He truly satisfies. I encourage you—if you’ve never turned your life over to God and sought His forgiveness and have never been baptized into Christ to do it today. Do as David says in Psalm 34 [SCRIPTURE SLIDE] “Taste and see---the Lord is good---“ and as for overcoming wrongful coveting David adds, [SCRIPTURE SLIDE] “those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.”
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NOTE TO THOSE WHO READ AND OR CHOOSE TO MAKE USE OF ANY OR ALL OF THIS SERMON: I am sharing this sermon with the hopes it will be an encouragement to others. I apologize for any blatant typing errors! If you find any I’d appreciate hearing from you so I can correct them. I try to give credit where credit is due, noting writers and or sources to the best of my ability. I have for years been drawing from a wealth of sources including this website. I recognize that my mind and writing processes are fallible. I may occasionally fail to properly identify a source. Please do not take offense if you see anything of this nature. I never intend to plagiarize. Having said that I want you to feel free to draw from my message. When appropriate I hope you will give credit as I do. But most of all I hope Christ will be lifted up and God will receive the glory in all things.
