I was doing OK. Really, I was. Life was pretty good. But then, I heard that if I want to feel right, I need to get a Bowflex. I don’t have a Bowflex, so, I suddenly realize I’m not as healthy as I should be. I can’t be. That guy in the ad has better abs than I do – better abs than I used to have too.
Then, I saw an ad about what I need to do to be stylish. I need to drive a Mercedes convertible. We still own a minivan! Real men drive 2-seater convertibles. But now I’ve learned that I can’t be stylish with the cars I have. No matter how nice my car is or how well it runs, there’s no way it’s a nice as that Mercedes.
Then, an ad came in the mail. Macy’s is having a sale – for spring, because, spring is coming, and you need to dress for the spring season…if you’re going to be fashionable. Last year’s spring fashions are, well, so “last year” now. I didn’t have time to go shop at Macy’s this week. Even though the weather was warmer, I just wasn’t correctly dressed for it, and spring isn’t as…springy.
Then, I got a phone call. I’m not sure how they got my number, or how I even entered the contest… but I won! I was selected. My wife and I are going on a 3-day cruise in the Caribbean, and it’s free! All I have to do is respond, give them my credit card information, and then find out how much it will actually cost me to go on the free trip I’ve won. I didn’t call back. I suspect that they called some other people too. Probably, other people will be going…hundreds of others…but not me. Not now. Now, no matter what I do in April, there’s no way it will be nearly as cool as the cruise I’m not taking.
My computer is now over 2 years old. You realize, don’t you, that makes it a dinosaur? My computer is just as fast as when I first got it, but now there are much faster computers, so it’s not fast enough. My computer’s hard drive still has a lot of space on it, but it could have a much bigger hard drive now. I’m afraid my computer just isn’t good enough. Funny how it got that way without changing.
Even though my computer isn’t good enough, I checked my Facebook page. Wow, I thought my life is good – it says there on Facebook I have 400 friends now. I’m not sure how much all those people really are my friends, but I have 400 of them! But, then, I see how some of my friends have over 1,000 friends, so I’m way behind in that game. I just don’t feel as “friendly” anymore.
I thought I loved my wife enough. But, I didn’t go to Jarret’s, and I didn’t buy her a diamond necklace. In fact, I was informed by I can’t even be romantic with my wife unless we use Sylvania light bulbs. Turns out, we use GE and some off-brand.
By the time I was finished hearing from the TV ads, the magazines, the mail, the phone messages, and the Emails, I have too many reasons to be unhappy to think I’ll ever get there. Contentment? Really? That’s something the other guy has. Just look at how happy he is, and how perfect are his abs!
Some years ago, U.S. News and World Report did a report on the so-called American Dream. Apparently that includes owning your own home and having your basic needs met, and then also it includes being able to do the things you really want to do. The story said that Americans with what was then an average income, when polled, figured it would take about double their current income to live the American dream. And people whose incomes were already in that range, when they were polled, figured it would take…just about double their income to live their version of the American Dream.
Perhaps none of the Big 10 is better suited to our age than #10. This command shares a distinction from the other 9: It’s the only command aimed at just the heart rather than a person’s actions. It’s the only law in history against coveting. It is simply a command that says, “Don’t feel or think this way.” It shows us that really all the Big 10 aren’t just about our actions; they’re aimed at our hearts.
• Achan coveted some silver, gold and a new robe from Babylonia
• David coveted another man’s wife
• Gehazi coveted a little silver and 2 sets of clothing
• Ahab coveted a vineyard.
• Ananias and Sapphira coveted the recognition of others.
If the first command provides the motivation for keeping the other 9, command #10 provides the explanation of why we break the other 9. It makes clear what the other 9 commands have all been assuming: sin starts inside. Maybe you’ve been thinking that the point of re-looking at the 10 commandments was to change the appearance of our actions. My hope is, by the end of this message, we’re going to clearly see that where we need change the most is on the inside.
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."
The opposite of coveting and the positive subject for today is contentment.
For some, that’s a negative image. Some people think of being “content as a cow,” and picture ol’ Bossie lying in the sun, chewing her cud. But that’s not the kind of contentment at hand. Some of the most discontent people are also some of the laziest people.
Not being able to really understand it in a positive light is another indicator that we, as a society, have lost the secret of being content.
I. When Did I Lose It?
Ill – Driving back from a hospital call in Cincinnati one day, it was hot, it was rush hour. I was stuck in a jam for about 20-30 minutes, just creeping along. Suddenly, it dawned on me that my car was leaning. I got out and checked. Sure enough, one tire was flat as a pancake. I hadn’t noticed it because I was moving so slowly. Still, this was Cincinnati. No one had yelled to me, “Hey, you lost the air in your tire!” And I looked at that poor tire and wondered, “When did I lose that?
When did it happen? When did you cease to be a content person. I’d have to suggest that it began for most of us the moment we left the womb. Life was fine and dandy, and then suddenly, it all changed. There’s that smack on the bottom, bright lights and cold air, and breathing to be done, and what’s that strange feeling in my stomach? Result? Discontent! I don’t like what I’m going through. This doesn’t feel like I want it to! So from the moment we draw our first breath in this world, the noises that follow it are an indicator that we aren’t satisfied about how things are.
I know there are moments of contentedness shortly after that, but as soon as we’re able to understand that there’s a prize inside the cereal box, something happens. All of us have been through, or still live in, discontent.
Now, if you have been or are guilty of coveting, don’t feel foolish. It’s foolish only if you don’t change it. Actually, it would be a wonder if we’re not all caught up in it to one degree.
Advertising is based on this! Think this through: the whole purpose of advertising is to create a perceived “need”; to impair our self-control just long enough to make the sale. Every year, billions of dollars are spent on it. Every billboard, every TV or radio commercial, every magazine ad, every brand label on clothing and shoes is painstakingly created to make you be discontent or to convince you that you won’t be content unless… It’s what underwrites the sports industry, because endorsements and TV ads are all part of this amazing web of power woven to convince you that you’re not satisfied, you’re not complete unless some product is a part of your world.
When did you lose contentment?
It wasn’t because you ceased to have enough stuff. In fact, many couples look back to the early years of marriage when they had very little and yet were content, and they long for those days when there wasn’t much. So, you didn’t lose contentment because you have fewer things now. In fact, it wasn’t because of any changes outside yourself. It was because of change inside you.
James 1:14 each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed.
That’s when you lost it: when you allowed your own desires to entice you and drag you away – when what you wanted in life became #1 on your list of what matters. And you lost it. You lost contentment right in the middle of your comparatively affluent American lifestyle.
Now, we’ve all lost things. Sometimes it really doesn’t matter. This one matters.
II. What Has It Done?
(that is, what has losing contentment done?)
Let’s give attention to what happens as a result of coveting and see if it deserves anymore attention.
1. It separates us from others
Ill – Abe Lincoln was out with his 2 young sons, were fussing at each other. Someone asked what was wrong with the boys. Lincoln said, “I have 3 walnuts and each boy wants 2.”
I’m so glad that’s limited to children, and that when we’re older we outgrow that kind of thinking…
• Like when someone else at work gets a raise and you don’t,
• or when someone else on the team gets played and you don’t,
• or when someone else finds a good husband and you don’t,
• or when one of your friends gets a new car like you’ve been wanting, but you don’t.
Admit how that affects your relationships. Coveting separates us from other people.
2. It separates us from God
Everyone who covets is also violating the 1st command – to have no other Gods before God Almighty. Coveting is saying “I’m #1. God is less.” It’s for this reason that Paul writes:
Colossians 3:5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.
Ephesians 5:5 For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person--such a man is an idolater--has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
Coveting is actually the ultimate act of idolatry. It’s saying, “God, You short-changed me. I deserve better than what You’ve given me. I deserve a better spouse / car / job / status than what You gave me.” And we end up worshiping our desires more than the God Who created us. We drive a wedge of resentment between us and God.
Ill – You get a note from your son’s teacher – imagine it – a note of concern. Dear Mr. & Mrs. Smith, I am sorry to have to write this note, but I am very concerned for Hector’s well-being. He says that he never receives a good breakfast before school. He also said that he never has any clean underwear or socks to put on in the mornings. Would you please be sure to take better care of him?”
It isn’t true! Now, wouldn’t it be frustrating? You work hard to make sure Hector has good breakfasts. His mother makes sure that he has clean clothes to wear. How frustrating to find out that he has been telling people just the opposite! Not only that, but imagine how difficult it would be for him to face his parents when you find out that he has been saying such things.
And how frustrating it must be to God when we indicate to anyone that what God has given to us isn’t enough. How difficult it must be for us to face Him and speak with Him when He knows we’ve been saying such things. A wedge between ourselves and God.
Church-growth experts report that in almost every case when a church determines to make changes for the sake of reaching the lost, the strongest resistance comes from people of the church who have given their time and money and who feel like the church should focus on meeting their own needs. They’re jealous, and it leads to resentment and quarreling. There’s another name for that: coveting.
3. It becomes a heartless taskmaster
Ill – I don’t know who counted these, but it has been suggested that 100 yrs ago, if you asked him, the average Joe would have about 72 wants. If pressed, he might list about 16 “basic necessities.” Today, the average Joe would have about 487 wants, and about 94 of those would be called “absolute necessities.” 100 years ago, without a commercial-driven economy, there were about 200 objects that were pressed on people for sale. Today, there are over 32,000. Total up all the brands and varieties, and it’s closer to 360,000.
The acquisition of stuff hasn’t quelled our appetite for it. It has increased it. “If only I had a faster computer, if only I had a better car, if only I had a prettier wife, if only I had a better job, if only my health were better, if only I had a bigger house…” and the list never ends.
No wonder Jesus warned,
Luke 12:15 "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions."
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. And what benefit are they to the owner except to feast his eyes on them?
Discontent becomes a heartless taskmaster that drives people to bitterness, overwork, and finally to their graves. That’s what losing contentment does for us.
We need it back. We need that lost gem of contentment that Paul writes about while he’s a prisoner:
Philippians 4:11-13 I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
So, I’m naturally wanting to know
III. Where Can I Find It?
The problem of coveting is a heart problem. It should come as no surprise that the cure – contentment – is a heart change.
The OT predicted the end of the Old Covenant. It was going to be replaced with something better – a new covenant.
Jeremiah 31:31-33 "The time is coming," declares the LORD, "when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel… "This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time," declares the LORD. "I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts.”
We need to engage in some honest-to-goodness heart changing to get out from under the cloud of discontent. Let me suggest 4 actions to take that will help anyone to take up contentment more successfully:
1. Distinguish between the temporal and the eternal
2 Corinthians 4:18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
Colossians 3:1-3 Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.
One man put it this way, “Whatever advantage you have must be used for the sake of the Kingdom or it will corrupt you.” Whatever it is you must determine to use it for the Kingdom and not just for yourself.
Ill - An American Jew went to visit the Holy Land and to visit a famous teacher Rabbi Chaim. When the American entered the Rabbi’s home, he was amazed at how little there was. All the rabbi had was a table, a bench, and a little pallet. “Rabbi, where is all of your furniture?” And the Rabbi said, “Where is all of your furniture?” “I don’t have any furniture with me, I’m just passing through.” “So am I.”
Quote – GK Chesterton, “There are 2 ways to get enough. One is to accumulate more and more. The other is to desire less and less.”
We need to learn to be able to look at earth-bound things as just that – earth-bound things.
2. Distinguish between wants and needs
story – the Quakers are remembered for their very simple way of life. One day, a Quaker was watching as a wealthy man moved into a house next to him. After watching load after load of the very finest furniture and things going into the house, he saw the man of the house and told him, “Friend, if thee have need of anything, come and see me and I will teach thee how to live without it.”
We need to remind ourselves, constantly, that there’s a difference between wants and needs.
1 Timothy 6:6-8 …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.
What was Paul saying? He was challenging us to consider what really is necessary in life. He was saying that there’s a difference between wants and needs.
If we could boil our lives down to these 2 categories – what we need and what we want - we’d find ourselves desiring less and less.
3. Ask God to change how you think
(Ephesians 4:22-24) You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
We need God’s help to be made new in the way we think, especially when it comes to contentedness.
I’m afraid that too many people equate being content with an old cow, sitting in the grass, chewing her cud. To many, the whole concept of being content means having no life, no spirit, no drive – just sitting back and being satisfied with the status quo, good or bad. But God doesn’t tell us to be lifeless lumps of zero enthusiasm!
In fact, Jesus said,
• “Happy are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness…”
• “Seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness…”
• “Ask and it shall be given to you. Seek and you shall find. Knock and the door will be opened to you.”
• Paul wrote to the Romans, “Be excellent at what is good…”
• The disciples cried out to the Lord, “Increase our faith!”
• Proverbs 4:7-8) Wisdom is supreme; therefore get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding. Esteem her, and she will exalt you; embrace her, and she will honor you.
• Heb 11:6 says, “anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”
The word tells us that being a person of character means really having some deep desires – some dissatisfaction with things remaining as they are.
In other words, we need to have a certain lust for things – for the right things – for the things that God desires for us. We might say that being content means aligning your desires with the things God desires you to have.
So ask God to change how you think. Ask Him to help you be wrapped up with the right things.
4. Learn all about grace again
Notice the subject here – this passage is about God’s grace…
Titus 2:11-14 For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope--the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.
There were several occasions where the Lord taught discontented people about His grace.
• Jonah wasn’t content that the city of Nineveh wasn’t destroyed. Of course, Jonah had been given a 2nd chance after he ran from God’s command to go and preach to them. So, God gave Jonah a lesson in grace.
• In the parable of the Prodigal Son, the older brother of the prodigal wasn’t content that his brother would receive a party and special treatment. The father took him aside and reminded him about grace – that not only would the younger brother be welcomed back home, but that the older brother already had the same special place in their home all the time.
• Jesus told another parable about a man who hired vineyard workers at different times of the day, but at the end of the day he paid the agreed amount to the guys who worked the longest and then paid the same to those who worked only a few hours. Needless to say, the guys who had worked all day protested. They needed a lesson in God’s grace.
Don’t fall into the trap of thinking, “I deserve better,” especially when it’s because God blesses someone else. Thank God for His grace that let you and me get out of bed this morning and draw a breath. Thank God for His grace that allows a stained person, like me, to be cleaned and made new and fit for heaven by the blood of Jesus! No, I don’t get what I deserve, and I praise God for it!
Conclusion:
Put a picture of what you want out in front of you. Just make sure it’s the right thing. Jesus did: who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Jesus had a goal out in front of Him as He hung on the cross.
You and I need to crave and to long for the things He longs for – enough that He would die for them.
God wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. All men – all people. Does that include you? Then you need to hear it again. God desires all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.
