Sermons from Lone
Rock Bible Church "Thou Shalt Not Covet: the Key
Commandment" (Part 2) How is it that the internal tug of covetousness is what the tenth commandment is all about? To grasp what is going on here, we do well to understand the following:
Exodus 20:17 I went to Bible college quite a while back.
I had a class in how to preach. We had an “old school” teacher. There were
twelve students in that preaching class. It went for a whole school year. Very simply he
said, “The first semester I talk; the second semester, you talk.” Of the twelve of us in that class, we each
had to preach eight times to the rest of the class. One semester – I heard 96
sermons. I go there to go here. Other than the ones that I had to come up with, I remember
one. It was not even begun by a student in our class, but a student in our class invited a
fellow classmate to come and to provide the introduction for his sermon. The fellow who provided the introduction,
by the way, has been wonderfully well used of God as pastor in the state of Montana for
many years now. He said, “Let me tell you how I started out as a young adult.”
He listed an itemized spate of vehicles he had owned up to the time he was about 21. There
had to have been a dozen of them. He said, “I started out with this and I got rid of
that. I bought this and got rid of that. And I bought this and got rid of that – on
and on and on it went.” The problem wasn’t mechanical or
aesthetics, that he wanted a prettier one or a newer one or a different or a faster one.
He simply wasn’t satisfied. He simply could not be satisfied. That’s the problem with coveting. What
is reflected in this tenth commandment, you shall not illegitimately desire anything God
has not given you. Dissatisfaction with anything God provides is what leads to the
violation, not just of the tenth commandment, but actually springboards into all the other
nine. It’s for that reason this tenth commandment, to my way of thinking, stands
apart as the key to the rest. It opens the door not only to the other nine commandments
but also opens the door to the disposition of the human heart and what we find there is
not good. When we look at the human heart and say it is not good, what should we do? Cry
out to God for a new one. That’s the whole point of the
commandments. That’s where they all take us. Last week we talked about the first two of
the above points. Today we’re going to take a good run at the next two. Understand
ourselves We need to understand ourselves. Here, I am
afraid that many Christians step off the bus of what is a biblical view of the human
heart. We try so hard to make it better than the Bible says it is. That is our pursuit. We
just cannot bring ourselves to face, in many cases, what the Bible clearly says about the
human heart. Our view of the human heart, this human
disposition toward God, toward self, has much to do with how we view all of life. Not just
religion, but with how we view world events. One of the founding fathers of our country
was Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson was the one who held the pen to author the Declaration of
Independence. Thomas Jefferson was a strong proponent of human freedom, except in the case
of his own slaves, but that’s another story. He was a champion of human rights in his
day. Thomas Jefferson believed in the French Revolution. He felt it was ok if forty
thousands heads rolled in the name of freedom and it was Jefferson who said that the tree
of liberty from time to time it was well if it were watered with the blood of patriots.
Interesting point of view. Thomas Jefferson, after he retired from
public life, on into the first couple decades of the 1800’s, was appalled and aghast
with the second Great Awakening in the United States. As the Spirit of God swept New
England and on into the South through the preaching of men committed to the Scriptures,
Jefferson could not believe what he was seeing and he did not like it a bit. Why? -- Because for the Gospel to be embraced, for
people to be born again, requires a second look at the human heart that says, “I need
God’s grace. I deserve God’s wrath.” That went absolutely counter to
Jefferson and many of his day who felt that the human race is fine as it is. As a matter
of fact, is capable of taking care of itself at a higher and higher level down through
history. History progressed. We had, not many years
after the death of Jefferson, the publishing of The Origin of the Species, the industrial
revolution. People on a much larger scale began to reject the truth of the Bible, what it
said about God, what it said about the human heart – and began to think beyond that
and relegate the Scriptures to obsolescence, irrelevance, and so forth, and believed that
the ditty that was embraced by western culture up to a point was this: Every day and every
way, man is getting better and better. People believed that. That was the hallmark
of the Victorian Age. All is well, as a matter of fact, kind of like the Weekly Reader of
the nineteenth century. Everything is getting better until World War I, until tens of
millions were slaughtered on the battlefields of Europe. People began scratching their
heads, thinking, “What? How can we do this?” Human problems are always traceable
to the heart. What did Jesus say about us? Don’t you
agree that the place to begin, the place to go for truth, is what did Jesus say? After
all, He was raised from the dead. He got God’s seal of approval. Wouldn’t He be
correct? The Cross really should say it all. Why did Jesus die on the Cross if people were
fine? Why did Jesus go to the cross if we could fix our own problems? If, in fact, every
day and every way man is getting better and better – what is the point of the cross?
There would be none. The cross should say it all. The teaching of what has been called in
history total depravity, the total depravity of the human race. It does not mean people
are as evil as they could be. It does not mean that there is never any legitimate love
outside the Christian faith. Total depravity does not mean people are all a bunch of
little Hitlers. Total depravity simply means that on a total scale across the human race
there is not a soul born of woman who can make his or her own way to be right with God. It
is totally impossible. Why? Because there is something wrong with God? Because there is
something wrong with the Bible? Because we can’t read?
No, the problem is in the heart. It always comes back to the heart. What did Jesus say? Let’s remind
ourselves of what He said. There are a couple places in the New Testament where we are
going to look. Matthew
15 He correctly says the source is in the
human heart, which is not as evil as it can be. It is simply powerless to change itself
toward God and is always inclined toward self. We are not wicked people as much as we are
self-centered people. In Galatians 5, the apostle Paul puts his
finger on the very same truth. 19 Now the deeds of the flesh are
evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20idolatry,
sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, The problem of course lies within. Maybe it said no better by
anyone than James, the brother of Jesus. In James 4 he asks the question: 1 What is the source of
quarrels and conflicts among you? Is not the source your pleasures that wage war in your
members? There is nothing wrong with desire. It is only when desire
springs from a heart of dissatisfaction toward our Maker, our Redeemer. That’s the
problem. When we are not satisfied with who God is nor with what God does. That’s
what coveting actually means -- wrong desire, desire springing from dissatisfaction. If we
are envious, if we cannot be satisfied, that is a window to our hearts we do well to open.
Go there. That is God’s point in
putting it in the text – to cause you and I to see what our needs truly are. Not more
education. Not more money. Not more opportunity. Not more enlightenment. We need a new
heart. There is a fascinating passage in Ecclesiastes, written by
Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived, also one of the greatest mysteries who ever lived.
He began well; he finished poorly. He finished his life with God at a distance and that’s
probably putting it kindly. Solomon was in a different class than we are. Solomon could
have anything he wanted, anything, in whatever amount. He was the king. He was not as
though he had won the lottery and finally could get what he wanted out Cabelas, much more
than that. This is what Solomon has to say as he is discussing his
futile view of life. In Ecclesiastes 2: 9 Then I became great and
increased more than all who preceded me in Jerusalem. My wisdom also stood by me. 10 All that my eyes desired I did
not refuse them I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure, for my heart was pleased
because of all my labor and this was my reward for all my labor. I wanted it and I took it! Pulled
out all the stops. It amounted to nothing! He is making his choices outside of
God and seeking to feed his covetous heart and is going to the well and coming up empty
and he has everything. Our soul should be restless until it finds its rest in the
living God. This is where Solomon was. If we find ourselves, our hearts taking us in a
direction of dissatisfaction, we are not then just dissatisfied with our circumstances. We
are dissatisfied with God Himself. It is a statement we are making from our hearts that
says God himself is not enough for me. He is not providing for me. He is not taking care
of me. He is not there for me. It’s all about me and He is not coming through. That is an attitude of mistrust. Another word for mistrust is
unbelief. That is not the attitude of faith or trust or belief. This is a serious, serious
spiritual checkpoint and we have not better let it get past us. If we are dissatisfied, we
are not trusting. We are not people of faith at that juncture and the Bible says in
Hebrews 11:6 that without faith it is impossible to please Him. Please understand that if there is any being in all the
universe that we would want to please it ought to be the maker of it. If we are not
pleasing God, we are in serious jeopardy. Is God inadequate? No. Is God late? No. Does He
come up short? No. Did He not cover all possible plans? Sure, He did. Did He ignore our
sins? No, He dealt with them through His Son. Has He kind of left history to itself so that we are kind of
on our own here, we just sort of hope it ends up ok? No, He is right on time and He is
taking human history to its perfect end in its perfect time. He has not gone away. He is
here. So what is the problem? How could I be dissatisfied? The problem is me. I believe there is a relationship between envy or coveting on the one hand, and worry on the other. I think they are related. I think they come together at the point of whether or not we are satisfied with who God is and what God has done. Worry, it seems to me, is a self-centered fear of losing something I do have, while coveting is a self-centered desire to gain something I do not have. In either case I am not happy with God. I am not satisfied with God. If we are not satisfied with God it is not His problem. That is why this last of the Ten Commandments is so critical. It takes us directly back to Him, where we need to go. If I am a worrier or a coveter, if I am dissatisfied with God, I am not trusting Him. The Bible now gives us a window to our soul, which we ought to open. It is a mirror. The Bible is like a mirror. We hold it up to ourselves to see what is wrong. It is a spiritual checkpoint and that is why this commandment is our friend. It will take us, if we let it, to a right relationship with God. Walk with me down a shopping list. I’ll just read it to you. I am convinced that this Tenth Commandment, Thou shall not covet your neighbor’s house, your neighbor’s wife, neighbors, slaves, neighbor’s critters. Thou shall not covet anything of your neighbor’s, is that Commandment which addresses our natural and internal dissatisfaction with God. I believe it is connected to each of the other nine. This would be an interesting discussion point and maybe it ought to be in our small groups on Sunday evening. The First Commandment says you shall have no other Gods before Me. Do I want anything more than I want God Himself? In my heart of hearts, do I really think something else would satisfy? If so, I have just violated number one. The Second Commandment has to do with making graven images. That was a fun one to talk about in sermons, at least I thought it was, about how it is that we reduce God to tactile something or other, wood, stone, object, whatever. Whenever we do that, we undervalue Him. We will always be wrong and we will always represent Him as far less than He ought to be. Graven images, then, are out. Why would I reduce God to an image if in fact I didn’t want something from Him I don’t already have? That’s why there is idolatry, because we have a certain way we want to live. The God of heaven who cannot be seen says no. That’s not in keeping with My character. That’s outside My will. So I guess I need to find another god if I want what I want. Down through the history of humanity this is where people have gone. Exchanging the truth of God for a lie, the Bible says in Romans 1, and worshipping a creature, something made, rather than the creator who is blessed forever, amen, Paul says. Why would I reduce God to an image if I didn’t want something from Him I didn’t already have? By the way, gods we create, whether we are pagans or some sort of civilized religious person, the gods we create are always gods we choose to want to live with. We choose. So -- no graven images. If you do a graven image, you have a problem with dissatisfaction. Third, you shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain. Do not use God’s name emptily, lightly, frivolously, or in a self-centered fashion. Using God’s name emptily, then, means that I desire to use God for my own ends, perhaps, or I desire to ignore God as God and continue my own way. Fourth, remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. Remember then Lord’s Day. He rested on a seventh day. You rest on the seventh day. Recall that when we talked about this Commandment we mentioned this business of not working on the Sabbath Day – that business of working means your livelihood working. Be sure you take a day for God and get away from your livelihood. You need to rest. Why would I desire to pursue my livelihood on the Lord’s Day if I am content with what the Lord has given. The Fifth Commandment – honor your father and mother. The honoring of your father and mother is the first line of defense in God’s scheme of authority. That’s the point of putting father and mother in there. It is the institution God ordained to create among people, as we say in the wedding vows, home life and social order. It starts with Mom and Dad. Respect for Mom and Dad and honor for Mom and Dad reflects how we fell about God, actually, since He is the One who put them there. Not honoring God’s authority indicates, then, I think I know better. I think I deserve better. I think I could do better. And I am dissatisfied. Sixth, murder. You shall not murder. You probably do not need me to tell you that murderers are malcontents. Malcontents, people who are not contented, who are not happy, who want something more or who want circumstances to be different so that life, at least for them, can be better. If you are a murder, you are a coveter. You are dissatisfied. Seventh, you shall not commit adultery. Coveting and adultery are obviously closely linked. Think of David, who rather than being with the troops in the spring of the year going out to war, instead was lounging about on his balcony, eyeing chicks. He saw what he wanted. And in the wanting of it, that was the first problem, and in the taking of it, covetousness and adultery went hand and hand. By the way, any adulterous partner, man, woman, doesn’t matter, is, or should be, or some day will be, someone else’s spouse. That person we are coveting. A reflection again of dissatisfaction. Theft – Achan said this in Joshua 7, “I saw among the spoils there of Jericho all these goodies. I saw them, I coveting them, and I took them and I hid them. Coveting always precedes theft, always shows dissatisfaction with what God has provided. Finally, you shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. Why would I bear false witness if I am not trying to get one up on someone else, somehow improve my own position. Again, a reflection of dissatisfaction. Oftentimes even liberals, even people who do not care about the integrity of Scripture or who would not believe in it, love the Sermon on the Mount. It just sounds so good to talk about turning the other cheek and going the extra mile and so forth. And having a sincere heart because people are under the mistaken impression that if our heart is only sincere God will think we are fine. No, we can be sincerely wrong. That certainly isn’t fine. In Matthew 5, Jesus has a bit of a review of some of the Ten Commandments in Sermon on the Mount. 21"You have heard that
the ancients were told, 'YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER' and 'Whoever commits murder shall be
liable to the court.' 22"But I say to you that everyone
who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; Anger is internal. What Jesus does in this portion of the
Sermon on the Mount is He takes those Commandments that tend to be visible and He
internalizes them to show that the problem is not the rule. The problem is you. “I
say if you are even angry you are guilty.” Ouch. 27"You have heard that it was said, 'YOU
SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY'; 28but I say to you that everyone who
looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. Isn’t this something – how Jesus takes these
surface issue Commandments that are popularly perceived anyway, and says no, don’t
you get it? The error begins in the heart. What is His point? You need a new one. That’s
His point. That’s where this is going. He talks about vows and He talks about this and that, but His
point is this: A right relationship with God, He is saying, is bottom line a matter of the
heart, not in keeping rules. We all need a new one. Coveting just makes it clear. When we
find ourselves dissatisfied, pray to God that He will send some sort of bell ringing in
your head. God’s reminder that we are registering dissatisfaction and need to get
back and humble ourselves before Him. In Romans 7, the apostle Paul is talking about his own
experience and how it is that he came while he was raised as a very strict Jew and a very
good one, that he had the right pedigree and he was very good at keeping the rules. He
would have been in the same league with the rich young man that Dave mentioned a while
back who would have said, “I kept those.” Paul even says of himself in the book
of Philippians as to the law, found blameless. Things were fine on the outside with this
apostle. Things were good. He was a stellar player in the world of his religion and well
on his way to great heights and notoriety. Let’s look at Romans 7:7 against that backdrop. This is
Paul talking: 7 What shall we say then? Is
the Law sin? May it never be! On the contrary, I would not have come to know sin except
through the Law; He understood something we need to get a handle on. for I would not have known about coveting if the Law had not said,
"YOU SHALL NOT COVET." His eyes were opened at the point of the internal
Commandment. How we view the human heart affects everything. To the extent that we
understand our own hearts in light of Scripture the more we are going to understand what
he is going through in Romans 7. The Bible says that the heart is deceitful above all things
and desperately wicked, who can know it. The Bible, by the way, is not complementary of
the human heart. You look long and hard before you one, if at all, that says “Oh, you’re
fine. Just be sincere. Just try harder. Just don’t kill anybody. You’re ok.”
That’s not in the Bible. You may find that elsewhere, but you won’t find it in
the Bible. The Bible says (Romans 5:10) that we are natural enemies of
God. When it comes right down to it, if it’s God’s way or my way I have a
natural, automatic, built-in aversion to God’s will. It’s kind of like on the
basketball court or the football field or even on the battlefield. If we know what the
other side wants, our first inclination is to do the opposite because we want to win. We
never collaborate with the enemy. We always go counter to what the enemy wants. What does Paul say? If in fact, could we just assume for a
second biblically, that God represents the enemy – and He does to the natural heart.
The enemy says you shall not covet and Paul says, “I found my heart coveting.”
Just like that, because the enemy has spoken and my natural inclination is to covet. He
said that caused me no end of grief. I could not fix it. I could not make it go away. I
could not do it right. You can read the rest of the chapter and see the frustration
and the turmoil that this man was going through. He says I would not have known about
coveting if the law had not said you shall not. All of a sudden I find myself coveting
every time I turn around. Sin taking opportunity through the Commandment produced in me
coveting of every kind. He was fine with the other nine. God hits him with this one
because he was convinced he was righteous on the outside. He indeed was not. He said I was
fine apart from the Law, then the Commandment hits me and I am in deep trouble. Sin taking
opportunity through the Commandment deceived me, through it killed me. And He says so the
Law is holy and the Commandment is holy and righteous and good. That is the problem
because I am not and I find myself antagonistic toward it. “Therefore to that which is good become a cause of death
for me.” No. Verse 13 – rather it was sin in order that it might be shown to be
sin by effecting my death that through the Commandment sin would become utterly sinful. He
says I finally saw it for what it was. I finally saw my heart accurately. He goes down
through the rest of the chapter talking about his frustration and the tug and pull of
wanting to this but instead doing that and not wanting to do that and instead doing this.
He ends up by saying “Wretched man that I am. Who shall set me free?” And then,
“Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ.” That’s the point. That’s where this goes. That’s
how it is that coveting is our friend, in a twisted sort of way. The Bible says in Galatians 3:24 that the Law is our
schoolmaster to take us to Jesus and when we see our sin in the mirror of the Law exactly
as Paul did, we know what to do. We know we cannot fix it. We cannot change it and there
is nothing wrong with the Law, the problem is me and I need to get to Jesus just as fast
as I can and bow before Him and beg Him for grace and mercy. The good news is He meets us
there. God’s character – that’s the Ten Commandments, an expression of His
character and His will. The vast distance between Him and us. You will notice as you read
beyond the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20 that God speaks from thunder and lightening and
the people flee. That’s the point. Because there is distance and it needs to be
bridged and it can only be bridged as He takes the initiative, and He has. We flee to Him.
We flee to Him for grace and for mercy and for forgiveness because He has given us His
Law. "Scripture
taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Jim Carlson 2006, Lone Rock Bible Church, Stevensville Montana, USA |