EXODUS 20: 17
THE TENTH WORD: SANCTIFY YOUR DESIRES
[Luke 12:13-34]
Today, we come to the last of the 10 Commandments. In these Laws of God governing our daily living here on earth, we have seen that God has a high standard that He expects His people to strive for in life. I trust that as we have moved along through these verses, that you have seen some area in your life maybe where you recognized the need for some correction and have made the efforts necessary to change, in order to come in line with God’s Word.
As God wraps up the list of His “Top 10" . . . what does He want to conclude with? “You shall not covet.” We all have ambitions... we all should have goals... Covetousness though is an excessive desire for something. There’s nothing wrong w/ wanting certain things, like something better for your family, a better job, education, etc. But coveting is an inordinate craving that eventually causes compromises of convictions in trying to obtain what you want. It is also an envious desire for what someone else has...desiring what they have to be yours. It is like greed in terms of the desire for more and like envy in terms of the desire for what someone else has.
....which reminds me of a joke. Did you hear the one about the guy who found a BOTTLE ON THE BEACH, and when he pulled out the cork, out popped a genie? The genie gave him 3 wishes, but said, “Be careful what you wish for– because who you envy most will receive twice as much as you do.” The guy wished for 5,000,000 dollars. *POOF* It appeared at his feet. At the same moment, miles away, 10 million appeared at the feet of who he envied most. Next he wished for the largest most exquisite diamond in the world. It appeared at his feet. But the man who he envied most got 2 of them. As the man realized how well his enemy was doing, he got more and more frustrated trying to think of what to wish for next. Finally, he turned to the Genie and said, “OK – I’m ready. Scare me half to death.”
Though it may be natural to desire things, even when they belong to others, when that inner desire that becomes inordinate or excessive it becomes coveting. Coveting then fuels our inward desires for what is not needed or wrong. God forbids coveting because it sets my heart on things of earth rather than on things of heaven (CIT). It removes our trust away from God and makes us discontent with what He has provided for our life. The Bible teaches us that we are to live a life that is content and trust God for all our needs.
Exodus 20: 17 states, “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife or his male servant or his female servant or his ox or his donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”
I would like for us to notice three things about covetousness:
I. THE ONSLAUGHT OF COVETOUSNESS
II. THE OUTCOME OF COVETOUSNESS
III. THE OVERCOMING OF COVETOUSNESS
1ST, THE ONSLAUGHT OF COVETOUSNESS. (Where Does It Come From?)
Jesus said, “For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornication, murders, thefts, covetousness . . .” (Mark 7:21, 22). Ezekiel cried out, “...with their mouth they shew much love, but their heart goeth after their covetousness” (Ezek. 33:31).
Covetousness is an inner desire that gets out of control. When we allow a covetous heart to dominate our lives, we will become slaves to the things that we want. When this happens, we will be guilty of placing the Lord in second place in our lives. There is nothing wrong in possessing things, but we fall into sin when things begin to possess us!
There is the story in Luke’s Gospel of two fellows who were fighting each other over an inheritance. Jesus said, “Take heed, and beware of covetousness, for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth” (Luke 12:15).
Jesus then told of the rich man who talked about “my crops,” “my barns,” “my good” and “my soul” (see Luke 12). He went on to tell the parable of a man who spent so much time and energy storing up his grain and goods. He built bigger barns to store them up, so that he can then truly enjoy life. Even before he can enjoy life, God took him. Jesus says, in Luke12:20, “’You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’
Covetousness is a Deceiving Sin—usually the covetous person doesn’t know they are that way. It’s hidden within. Right now the covetous are thinking they really don’t need this message. Spurgeon said of the thousands he had seen saved he never heard someone say they were saved from the sin of covetousness. LaSalle, a famous priest of the middle ages, said this sin was never confessed to him.
And yet this is a common sins! One cannot read the Bible without finding incident after incident where men wanted that which wasn’t theirs. In the Garden of Eden, Eve coveted the forbidden fruit and brought sin and death into the world. Lot coveted the best land, and mankind is still fighting over that land today! At Ai, Achen coveted some gold, silver and expensive garments and brought defeat to a nation and death to himself and his family. Ahab coveted Naboth’s vineyard and committed murder in his attempt to grab what belonged to another. David coveted Bathsheba, Uriah’s wife, and as a result brought the sword of God into his household for generations to come. Judas coveted 30 pieces of silver resulting not only in the Savior’s death, but his own death! Ananias and Sapphira also died because of it. The list goes on and on. There are many, who if they were honest, would have to admit that they possessed a covetous heart!
Guess how much money was spent on marketing – commercials, catalogs, etc. in 2005 in the US? $1.074 trillion. That’s because they know that they can make people want it. They can make it look like everyone else has it and THEY are happy! So, you need it too! SO they lure you into debt for something you can’t afford and really don’t need!
Covetousness has even invaded the church. A current false doctrine is that God will just grant you whatever you believe for – that what God is interested in is making you successful and rich and healthy. A name it and claim it type of faith teaching’s abounds in some churches. You can have what you want if you just have no doubt.
The last few commands that we have looked at have been kind of short on details or further elaboration, but this command goes into a little more detail. It talks about different categories of things that we might be tempted to covet.
House – To some people, having the right house in the right neighborhood is the ultimate in satisfaction.
Wife – “Why can’t you be more like that!?” (This could go for husbands too!”)
Servants – Ok, so maybe you don’t covet servants as much these days. But how about their dishwasher, or their microwave? Or their car? It’s the servant that gets them places – do you covet their Mercedes, or their Corvette?
Ox, donkey – To the people of Moses’ day, an ox, donkey or some other beast of burden was essential if one was going to make a living. They were his source of income. Without them, he could not bring in his crop. It’s very easy to covet another man’s job – another man’s source of income.
“My next door neighbor makes twice as much as I do, and he spends most of his time out on the golf course with his clients. And I have to put up with a supervisor who cusses all day long and criticizes me even when I am not at fault!”
Anything – So far, we’ve seen that you can covet a house, personal relationships, possessions that make life easier and more prestigious, and a different kind of job. But there are a lot more things that you can covet, and rather than try and list them all out, God closes these verses with the catch-all of “anything”. That just about covers it all. It leaves you to investigate yourself and your own desires. Let’s see if we can’t come up with some other things that we might have a problem with. How about these; do you covet someone else’s sports ability, their marriage, their clothes, their bank account, their figure, their kids – “Why can’t you kids be more like the neighbor’s kids!?” Do you covet someone else’s teaching ability, or their singing ability or anything that you feel like they can do better than you can do?
All of the things that we have talked about so far have at least one thing in common. Each and every one of them is a part of this life. They are temporary. They are a part of the world that I will leave behind when I die. The question is not “What am I building here?” but “What am I sending on ahead of me into eternity?”
When the Father sends Jesus down to get us, He will not drag you to heaven. He doesn’t want us to hesitate when we hear the trumpet blow. He wants us to be in such an attitude that we are looking forward to His coming and that we anticipate it every day.
II. THE OUTCOME OF COVETOUSNESS (Where Does It Lead?)
Americans, though rich by comparisons, can be some of the most dissatisfied people on earth! Our whole prosperity is built on encouraging greed and need – to get something we don’t have, and probably don’t need, but we must have. Advertisers are always sending messages of “You won’t be happy until you get our product”, etc.
As Christians we really need to evaluate our sense of happiness, what it is based on. Who could speak more realistically about the illusion of a yuppie value system than ALEXANDER SOLZHENITSYN, who suffered deprivation of all that money can buy? In "The Prison Chronicle" he says, as few of us can, "Don’t be afraid of misfortune and do not yearn after happiness. It is, after all, all the same. The bitter doesn’t last forever, and the sweet never fills the cup to overflowing. It is enough if you don’t freeze in the cold, and if hunger and thirst don’t claw at your sides. If your back isn’t broken, if your feet can walk, if both arms work, if both eyes can see, and if both ears can hear, then whom should you envy? And why? Our envy of others devours us most of all. Rub your eyes and purify your heart and prize above all else in the world those who love you and wish you well." -- As reported in Christianity Today, submitted by Rich Hardison, Tabernacle Church of Norfolk, Virginia.
When 15-year-old Michael Thomas left home FOR SCHOOL, he couldn’t have been prouder. On his feet, thanks to his mother’s hard work, were a pair of spanking new Air Jordans—$100 worth of leather, rubber and status that to today’s youth are the Mercedes-Benzes of athletic footwear.
The next day it was James David Martin, 17, who was strolling down the street in Thomas’ new sneakers, while Thomas lay dead in a field not far from his school. Martin was arrested for murder.
For the Baltimore school system, Thomas’ death was the last straw. He was the third youngster to have been killed over his clothes in five years. Scores of others had been robbed of name-brand sneakers, designer jogging suits, leather jackets and jewelry.
Today’s youngsters, from New York’s poverty-ridden South Bronx to Beverly Hills have become clothes fixated. They worry over them, compete over them, neglect school over them and sometimes even rob and kill for them.
This obsession with clothing, say those who study it, is fueled by the visual media and advertising, is nurtured by overindulgent parents and is reinforced by youthful peer pressure and the child’s overriding desire to fit in. You cannot serve two masters. You cannot serve God and Money.
Coveting is not just something that happens to the poor, coveting is a problem for all humans.
Take King Ahab for example, though much richer than his neighbor Naboth, he covets Naboth’s vineyard, he had to have it.
Ahab, the wicked king of Israel, one day saw NABOTH’S VINEYARD. He coveted it and approached Naboth about selling it. Because it was an inheritance, it could not be sold. His coveting was so powerful that he couldn’t feel happy unless he got what he wanted, it didn’t matter that he already had enough or more than Naboth. This is the nature of coveting, it is never satisfied
So Ahab pouted and sulked until Jezebel, the wicked-hearted queen, cooked up a scheme to have Naboth killed. The moment he was dead, Ahab rose up and took possession of Naboth’s vineyard. His covetousness led to stealing and murder. Yet God saw it all. So He sent Elijah to the vineyard and announced to Ahab, “In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick thy blood, even thine” (1 Kings 21:19).
We always think the grass is a little greener just down the road. If I can get this thing, or that job, or this much money in the bank, then I will be happy.
It will never happen! The more we have, the more we want! Humans by nature are greedy and self-centered, always trying to grab more than they can hold. This attitude poisons life and creates a sourness of heart and a bitterness of disposition. The covetous person is never content, but they are always reaching out for more.
III. OVERCOMING COVETOUSNESS [BE CONTENT WITH WHAT YOU HAVE]
What is the opposite of Do not covet...? Be contented... The fuel of coveting is DISCONTENT. When we allow discontent to enter our spirit it is only a short time before we find ourselves coveting what others have, and coveting leads to all kinds of sins and broken commandments.
In the end coveting not only destroys others, but it destroys our own happiness as well since we keep looking for happiness to come by getting something we feel we should have but don’t.
[Covetous men become the victims of Satan, for their grasping greed neither lets them enjoy life nor escape from the second death. They are held by their own selfishness as surely as beasts with cords, or fish with nets, or men with chains. They may be likened to those foolish apes which in some countries are caught by narrow-necked vessels. Into these corn is placed, the creatures thrust in their hands, and when they have filled them they cannot draw out their fists unless they let go the grain. Sooner than let go they submit to be captured. Are covetous men then so like to animals? Let them ponder and be ashamed. -- Charles Haddon Spurgeon, The Quotable Spurgeon, (Wheaton: Harold Shaw Publishers, Inc, 1990)]
Ahab got the vineyard he wanted, but he did not get the satisfaction from it he had hoped. God also told him that there would be consequences for his choice to feed his coveting, it would cost him his own life! In the end Ahab will lose far more than he ever gained through coveting. This is always the case with coveting!
Ahab’s callousness is evident in that he not only takes Naboth’s vineyard once his wife Jezebel has Naboth killed, but has Naboth’s children killed (see 2 Kings 9:26) so there are no descendants left to claim the land at any point. Note too that Ahab and Jezebel are later both killed, and all their descendants are also killed much like what Ahab does to Naboth’s family. Coveters tend to get back the same pain they give others. There are still a lot of Ahabs around, but their sin will find them out, also.
He needed a heart change, and so do we today. The heart of the problem is the human heart! We need to make a commitment to Christ. Then we need to find contentment in Christ.
Hebrews 13:5 say, “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”
So how do we fight coveting from taking over our lives?
1ST, ASK GOD TO FORGIVE YOU.
When we are possessed of a covetous heart, we have ceased to trust the Lord to meet our needs and instead are looking to acquire that which belongs to another. This kind of attitude will ruin your life.
When archeologist were unearthing the ancient city of POMPEII, where 20,000 died during the eruption of Volcano near by, they uncovered the bodies of many of the dead. Among them, they found the well preserved bodies of people who were caught totally off guard by the explosion of this powerful volcano. People were found sitting at their dinner tables, their food still on their plates. Others were found in their beds sleeping. One woman, however, stands out from among all the victims of Pompeii. When the scientists uncovered her body, they found clutched in her hands 10’s of thousands of dollars worth of precious stones. It seems that as death rained down from the mountain above, she risked her life trying to save a couple of handfuls of her wealth. Now 2,000 years later, those things she tried so vainly to hold onto, are the property of another!
So it is with covetous person in our day! In the end, those things we deemed so valuable, will be absolutely worthless. Don’t allow a covetous spirit to dominate your life.
2. REALIZE THAT THINGS WON’T SATISFY.
Proverbs 23: 4-5 says, “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”).
Ecclesiastes 5:10-11, “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.”
A successful BUSINESSMAN AND HIS FRIENDS were talking and laughing together and enjoying success. The businessman told of his childhood of poverty. Someone had given him a big coin. To have a coin was rare for children then, and his little sister begged to hold it. He laughed over the memory of all the chores he could get her to do for him just to get to hold the coin. He told of a day when she minded the cows all day for the privilege of holding the coin, only to have to give it up at the end of the day. All of the men laughed again at the childishness of the sister.
Just then, one man not laughing, reminded the businessman that all he was doing now in labor and service was for the privilege of holding onto a few possessions. “The end of the day is coming, and you will have to give them up like your little sister did.”
That is exactly how it is with all of us. Jesus warned, “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in Heaven . . .” (Mt. 6:19,20).
3. BE THANKFUL.
1 Tim 6:6-11 says (NIV), But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness.
Your feelings come from your attitudes. Your attitudes come from your thoughts. You can’t control your feelings, but you can control your thoughts.
So think thankful. Thankfulness will begin to reprogram your attitude. And that will change your feelings!
4. ENJOY THE LIFE GOD HAS GIVEN YOU
A rich businessman found a fisherman relaxing by his boat. "Why aren’t you out there fishing?" he asked.
"Because I’ve caught enough fish for today."
"Why don’t you catch more fish than you need?" the rich man asked.
“What would I do with them?" said the fisherman.
“You could sell them for more money" came the impatient reply. “You could buy a bigger and better boat, go into deeper water, catch even more fish and make lots of money. Soon you could have a fleet of fishing boats and be rich like me."
The fisherman asked, "Then what would I do?"
"You could sit down and enjoy life," said the businessman. The fisherman looked at him and said, "What do you think I’m doing now?"
God wants us to enjoy the life He has given... and not only that, but to introduce others to this new life we have in Christ.
5. START DESIRING THE RIGHT THINGS.
(Phil 3:8,10 NIV) What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ . . .
I encourage you to covet to strongly desire – the things that will last! The goal that I have is to be able to kneel before Jesus, the ultimate judge of the greatest race of all, have him place a crown on my head and hear him say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”
CLOSING RESPONSE
There’s nothing wrong with having things. It’s when you are dependent on things and the want of more things that it becomes sin. Listen today to Jesus: “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you” (Mt. 6:33).
Our problem is not that we have too little, nor is it that we possess too much. Our problem is that we want more than we need. We need to search our hearts this today and see what motivates us. Are we always talking about money? Are we always feeling jealous because someone has something we think we need? Are we guilty of going after things instead of the Lord? Do you need to come to this altar and confess to the Lord that you are guilty of the sin nobody will admit to? If you have a covetous heart, it will be your downfall, unless you make it right with God. Will you come to Him and allow Him to get real big in your vision while other things are allowed to shrink? Let’s just be honest with Jesus today.
Let me tell you the story of A FAMOUS MAN. 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. 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].
