Discover The Word

Friday, July 31, 2009

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s” (Exodus 20:17).

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, and you shall not desire your neighbor’s house, his field, his male servant, his female servant, his ox, his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s” (Deuteronomy 5:21).

IDEA: We are wise to avoid the inducements to coveting found in our society.

PURPOSE: To help listeners see the responsibility they have not to cultivate covetousness.

Spurgeon said that you can’t help having the birds fly over your head, but you can keep them from nesting in your hair.

What about the birds that land on your hair but don’t really nest in your hair? Are you responsible for them?

I. We have to understand that we’re not dealing with birds. We are dealing with desires or temptation. They don’t land from without.

In other words, are we responsible for desires that fall short of action?

Can we help it if we glance at another person’s house or spouse and then begin to desire them?

II. Theologians have argued about this.

Catholic theologians are a bit more permissive.

They distinguish among three kinds of desire: spontaneous desires, nurtured desires, and fulfilled desires.

They hold that we are responsible only for the last two–the desires we allow to become a nest in our hair.

Reformed theologians are a bit more strict in that they hold us responsible for spontaneous desires as well.

III. How does this apply to coveting?

Both the Catholic and Reformed theologians are telling us something. While we may not be responsible for the enticement, we can be responsible for cultivating the enticement.

There is a seduction in the mall that can lead you to coveting and spending.

There is an enticement in the car dealership that makes you dissatisfied with the car you have and makes you desire what you don’t have.