YouTube video sermon

Exodus 20:17

Let me invite you to take your copy of God’s Word and turn with me to Exodus 20:17. For those of you that may be visiting today, we’ve come to the end of a series on the 10 Commandments. Interestingly, I’ve had a number of you send me e-mails, or stop me in the hall, or call me on the phone to say that you’ve really enjoyed this series. In fact, some of you have said you wish there were more commandments so that we could keep going. Personally, I’m having a hard-enough time with the ones we have; I’m glad there aren’t any more. (Amen??)

Nevertheless, we appreciate God’s Word and its relevance for our lives today. I’ve pondered why that is. Why is it that we’ve generally resonated with this particular series, and I suspect that it’s because we long for its truths to be evident in the culture and society. First, and foremost, they’re God’s instructions to us – His people. Yet, there’s something elementary and basic and guiding in these commandments. And when the world is so chaotic and topsy-turvy, it’s good to be reminded of these truths. They’re grounding. They’re firm. They’re never-changing. And I think that many of us have been looking for something morally solid to hang onto, and these 10 Commandments are just what the Lord provided.

Of course, as we’ve studied these commandments, we’ve also discovered what we always knew was true; that is, we’ve broken every single one of them (and sometimes regularly). It’s amazing how we tend to pick up the list and say, “Oh, I haven’t murdered anybody. I haven’t stolen anything. I don’t make it a habit of lying. I don’t take the name of the Lord in vain.” All-in-all, we think we’re pretty good folks. But upon further investigation we realize that we still fall woefully short of the holiness and righteousness that these commandments require. And that recognition, that awareness causes us to be all the more excited about the gospel, and all the more gracious for the gift of Jesus Christ. Amen!?

Hopefully, you’ve found Exodus 20:17. Let’s read this 10th commandment together: “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 is your neighbor’s.”

“Our God and our Father, as we undertake this final commandment, we pray that it might please You to, once again, enlighten us and remind us of our great need for a Savior. Lord, that we might conclude this study of Your holy law and be encouraged to live it out, to influence others by it, and to confront our society with it – not as a legalistic endeavor but in humble obedience to You, as recipients of grace through faith in Christ Jesus. In who’s name we pray, amen.”

His wife couldn’t make very much of him. He’d come home, and he was obviously in a really bad mood. He didn’t want to eat his dinner and went immediately to his bed. His wife clearly understood that the problem was not with her, nor was it with any other member of the family. The gentleman had been involved in a business negotiation which had gone bad. He wanted to secure a piece of property adjacent to his own, and although he himself had plenty of property, the other man’s pasture was looking greener than his, and he determined that he would gain control over this piece of his neighbor’s property. The man who owned the property wouldn’t accept cash or barter for it, and consequently, this man found himself at home and in his bed, and he was disgusted, and he was annoyed. His problem was that he had a covetous heart.

Now, his wife might have been a help to him if she’d endeavored to talk him out of it. But instead, her sin only made it worse. She told her husband not to worry; she would make a way for him to get the property. And she arranged, at a special function, for their neighbor to be confronted by slander and dishonor, so much so that he lost not only the title to the property but his own life.

Now, the story is so common that we might anticipate it coming from the local news. But, in fact, it comes from 1 Kings 21, and it’s the account of Ahab and his wife Jezebel, and their neighbor Naboth and their reaction to the splendor of Naboth’s vineyard.

Just as there is a clear distinction between a healthy appetite and gluttony (as so many of us learned this week), so there is all the difference in the world between appreciating what somebody else has – their belongings – and coveting those things. And the 10th commandment confronts us with a problem which, if we are very honest, all of us wrestle with. The 10th commandment forbids wrong attitudes towards the possessions and positions of other people. It teaches us to be content with what God has given us.

Now, the last several commandments: adultery, murder, stealing, and lying. They all dealt with actions – things that can be seen and noticed externally by others. This one, however, is hidden. This one can go undetected because it’s at the level of the heart, the level of the soul. It’s an issue with our intentions and our attitudes. It strikes at our desires.

Watch your children and grandchildren when you buy them a vanilla ice cream cone. They’re perfectly content until they see somebody else’s banana split. That’s what happened when your pastor was just a little fella. James and Melissa enjoy telling the story (it’s one of James’ favorites). They had just started dating. I was about 3 years old. They took me out to Dairy Queen in their Oldsmobile Cutlass convertible one summer evening, and they ordered me a plain vanilla ice cream. Apparently, everything was fine until I saw James’ banana split, then I said (as only a 3-year-old can), “I want that one.” Guys, James was really being a gentleman and trying to impress Melissa, ‘cause I ended up with the banana split and James ended up with the plain vanilla ice cream cone. (I’m not sure it would still work out that way today.)

The degree to which we’re able to score victories at the level of the ice cream determines what’s going to happen to that 3-year-old in his teenage years, his college years, and the kind of husband he’ll be to his wife. That’s why when we talk about baby dedications and “bring[ing] them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4, KJV) we’re not just using a bunch of phrases. We’re actually talking about something that’s intrinsically important in the rearing and developing of character in children. If we raise greedy kids, then we’ll walk our greedy daughters down the aisle and place them in the hands of some greedy man, and the two greedy individuals will spend their lives living consumed by covetousness.

Now, it would be bad enough if everybody recognized that this was a problem. But the trouble is, we don’t. And indeed, our society is so driven by materialism that it cashes in at every turn, especially now, in these days/weeks leading up to Christmas. So, while many churches are celebrating the first Sunday of Advent, and people’s attention is already turning towards shopping and presents and all the rest, perhaps it’s not so bad that we’re considering this 10th commandment.

This morning I want us to see the evidence of coveting, the effects of coveting, and the elimination of coveting.

The Evidence of Coveting

The evidence is clear. The verse identifies it for us. It outlines a number of ways in which we’ll see the evidence of coveting. Coveting focuses on a number of things. It may focus on money. Certainly, the Bible is replete with references to those who were consumed by a concern for money. So only one reference is needed.

We’re all familiar with the story of the rich young ruler in Matthew 19. This particular story has a direct connection with Exodus 20:17 because, as you might remember, Jesus tells him to keep the commandments and the rich young ruler asks which ones. And Jesus says, “You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not bear false witness, honor your father and mother,” all of the commandments that we’ve considered recently, and the young man said, “All these I have kept. What do I still lack?” Jesus said to him, ‘If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.’ When the young man heard this, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions” (Matthew 19:18-22).

But maybe it’s not money, per se. Perhaps we want clothes. We read in Joshua 7, the story of Achan and how in the conquest they are able to pull together this vast amount of plunder. And the word of God to the people of God is “Don’t touch any of that stuff.” Achan determines he knows better; he takes it, and he buries it. And the servant of God comes to him and says, “Achan, what have you done?” And Achan says, “Truly I have sinned against the LORD God of Israel, and this is what I did: when I saw among the spoil a beautiful cloak from Shinar, and 200 shekels of silver, and a bar of gold weighing 50 shekels, then I coveted them and took them” (Joshua 7:20-21).

You been to the mall recently? You had any of those feelings? “When I saw that beautiful robe, when I saw that wonderful stuff, I said to myself, ‘I must have it.’” And guess what? They gave me a card to take the waiting out of wanting. In fact, to grease the skids of my covetous heart, they allow me to have it now and pay forever.

Coveting money. Coveting clothes. Coveting people. Here I have my wife from my youth. She grows. She develops. She bears my children. She nurtures me. She guides me. She counsels me. And society buffets me with visual images of the kind of wife that you should have. She looks different. She acts different. She is different. And the idea, the desire, worms its way into the mind of man to discard his wife or her husband and go for another. And every day across our nation, it happens again and again and again. It stems from a covetous heart.

And it’s not just limited to things, to tangible stuff, it also manifests itself in our desire for positions and power. “If only I was one further rung up this corporate ladder, I would be a happy guy. I don’t like it here. I don’t like this office. I don’t like how many windows it has. I don’t like the fact that it has no windows. If I could get one rung up, boy, I’d be good. And you know what? That joker one floor up from me, he shouldn’t be there anyway. Everybody knows that, especially me. I resent him. I resent his car. I resent his income. I resent the fact that he’s in my office.” Have you ever felt like that at all? It’s a covetous heart.

Is the Bible relevant to our day? Of course, it is! It’s powerfully applicable to our day. It gets to the very heart of the issues.

The Effects of Coveting

Now, if the evidence of coveting is plain for all to see, what about the effect of coveting? What effect does coveting have? Let me say four things that coveting will do.

First, coveting spoils relationships and lies behind many of our disagreements. You take a couple of youngsters who tracked together through school. They were the best of friends. They spent overnights together. They did homework together. They were neck and neck all the way through. They graduated together. They went on to college. They were still neck and neck. But after college, one of them became quite successful in financial terms, and the other one went on a slower track. The slower-track fellow can’t stand the success of his friend, and so when he calls, he’s no longer as interested. Their friendship is no longer cemented. Their care for one another is no longer what it was, ‘cause this guy has got a covetous heart, and he can’t stand the success of another.

That happens between brothers and sisters in a family. It happens in churches. It even happens between pastors. Pastor X and Pastor Y are in the same town, perhaps even the same denomination, and they fellowship with one another and minister side-by-side. They enjoy having lunch and comparing sermon notes and discussing ministerial highs and lows, and joys and woes. And one day, Pastor X leaves his church for a larger congregation across town, and now the two of them don’t talk because Pastor Y is nursing a covetous heart.

Second, covetousness breaks the summary commandment of Jesus: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Mark 12:31). It’s impossible to really love somebody and to be coveting their stuff. When we should say, “My, that’s a very pretty color on you,” our covetous hearts say nothing, and we get in our car saying, “I don’t know why she got that.” We can’t have a covetous heart and genuinely love our neighbor.

Third, a covetous heart makes me selfish, makes me always ask what’s best for me: “How will I do in this, how am I going to come out of this, what will happen to me in this deal?” Covetousness turns otherwise ordinary business transactions into cut throat, back-room, underhanded deals.

Fourth and finally, a covetous heart makes us think that life is all about material things, that the abundance of life is really what we’ve got, that he who dies with the most toys wins, that we buy the whole package. Nelson Rockefeller, interviewed by a newspaper reporter, on one occasion was asked, “How much money does it take to be happy?” and Rockefeller replied, “Just a little bit more.”

Think about it. Think about it when you were a child. Your father says you can have this much of an allowance. You’re really thrilled. You’re pleased! After all, you had nothing before he said it. Then he said it and he gave it to you. You’re thrilled. Till you walk outside, and you say to your friend, “Hey, my dad gave me an allowance. He gave me a dollar.” Your friend says, “My dad gave me two.” Now you’re gonna find out what kind of covetous heart you’ve got. You can’t be content with a dollar in your pocket for worrying about the fact that the guy next to you has got two bucks in his. That’s what happens in churches. That’s what happens in companies. That’s what happens in families.

The Elimination of Coveting

Well then, the question is obvious. If the problem is as endemic as that, if it’s as deep-rooted as that, if it’s as crucial as that, how in the world are we going to eliminate it? What are we gonna do?

Well, the answer is that we need to bring an eternal perspective into the discussion. And in order to do that, I want to take you to a story recorded for us in Luke 12. The story begins with these ominous words, “Someone in the crowd said to [Jesus], ‘Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.’” Words that every estate lawyer loves to hear. There you have it. The table has been set. There’s the perfect recipe for a covetous heart. One guy has it and doesn’t want to give it away. The other guy doesn’t have it and he’ll do anything to get it. It’s so bad that they bring it to Jesus. So, the guy says, “Tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” And Jesus says, “Hey, look, I’m not in the business of dividing up inheritances. That’s not why I came. There are people who can take care of that.” Then Jesus gives this one line of counsel. He says, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions” (Luke 12:15).

He then tells them this parable: “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”’ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God” (Luke 12:16-21).

How do we eliminate the sin of coveting? We live with an eternal perspective that continually reminds us that this very day, this very night, could be the moment when God calls us to account. Today… Tomorrow… In the next 5 minutes… Or the next 5 years… At any moment we could be standing before the Lord Jesus Christ, and what then? Desiring our neighbor’s house, or our neighbor’s wife, or our neighbor’s contractors, or our neighbor’s cars, trucks, boats and RV’s, or anything else that belongs to our neighbor will be an extremely hefty price to pay when our souls are lost for all eternity.

Rather, might we find immense satisfaction and contentment in knowing and savoring our relationship with Jesus Christ. May we grow more and more eager to please Him, to live for Him. May we be reminded of Paul’s words to a young minister by the name of Timothy, when he said, “[G]odliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world” (1 Timothy 6:6-7).

As the old gospel song says:

This world is not my home I’m just a passing through
My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue
The angels beckon me from heaven’s open door
And I can’t feel at home in this world anymore
Oh, Lord, you know I have no friend like You
If heaven’s not my home, then Lord what will I do
The angels beckon me from heaven’s open door
And I can’t feel at home in this world anymore

What in this world is worth coveting when, as believers in Jesus Christ, we have the greatest treasure anybody could ever imagine? The truth is – nothing. But the sad fact of the matter is that many of us have forgotten just how precious our salvation is, and how blessed we already are. So, as we conclude this series and prepare for Advent, let’s take a moment and loosen our grip on the things of this world, and the things that our neighbor has that we don’t have, knowing that at any moment we could be face-to-face with the King of kings and the Lord of lords. Might we trust that in Jesus we have all that we’ll ever truly need in this life and the next.

“O God, how we’ve been reminded of our need for You, as we’ve studied these 10 Commandments. We have such a tendency to think we’re pretty good folks, especially when compared to the next guy, to the next gal, but when we stare into the pure holiness of Your Word and Your standard as outlined here, we know that apart from the sacrifice of Jesus Christ and our faith and trust in Him we’re never going to achieve perfection. So, we thank You and praise You for the blood of Christ that washes us clean and restores us to a right relationship with You.

Father, I pray that we would all take stock of our hearts and consider the ways in which we crave more stuff, more influence, more prestige, more more more, and in the process You and Your Word get pushed further and further to the back. Enable us, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to desire greater godliness and contentment in You. Lord, would we not trade a moment in the splendor and beauty of Your holy presence for the trinkets and tinfoil of this world. In Jesus’ name, amen.”