10 Commandments: Do no Covet

This week we started a new series on the 10 commandments. What follows is more or less what I said as I preached the first sermon, preceded by an introduction that attempts to explain why we are studying the 10 Commandments at this time.
We're basing the series on J. John's book, Just 10

Why study the 10 Commandments?

In the Great Commission, Jesus told his disciples to: “go and make disciples of all the nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you.”
That's our task.
How are we going to do it?
We sit here in the church, and usually we think about our immediate neighbourhood, our parish, and wish that more of the people who lived in these houses round about would join us here in church. And we try to invite them to things. Sometimes they come, like to the Carol Service, or Searching for Faith. But not many of them keep coming, and we might feel frustrated, or dispirited.

Occasionally we think about people further away – in the wider world, and we do some things, we give some money, we pray for people working overseas, or for the Street Pastors or Future Hope in Hertford, who reach out further than our immediate circle.

But if that's all we ever think of, it's very hard for us to actually ever do much. Because some of us don't even live in this neighbourhood, and some of us who do, don't spend much time here – most of our waking hours we're out at work. And what's the point is saying to a work colleague, “would you like to come to my church?” They might come as a one off, but there's no way they could ever belong to this church, is there? So we're beginning to think differently. You'll have heard me talk this last year or so about our frontline. Because there is somewhere that is neither the parish nor the wider world, where we have our greatest impact on pother people – and that's our frontline. And what we're trying to do is to think how we can be as effective as possible for God on our frontline.

Last August, we had a discussion service in which we thought about all this, and now we're acting on something that came out of that service. One little group said, “What about the 10 commandments?” 

And I'm very glad they did, because I firmly believe that we have our greatest influence with people, not just by what we say, but by who we are, and the way we do things. If we're people who live life God's way, we're going to be a little bit different, a little bit special. Perhaps we'll be a friend in need, or a listening ear, or someone who can be trusted to do the right thing by our colleagues, or friends, our acquaintances. So as we look through the 10 commandments, we will notice how they are not the world's way of doing things. And we'll notice as well, that although they may be hard, they are worth it, because they add up to a better way of living.

We're going to study them in reverse order, so today it's Commandment number 10:

Do not Covet

The National Lottery prize this week reached a new record: £60 million. The website tells me that if you had won, you would be able to say 'Hello' to a fortune to better Adele, who is worth £50M. You would also be able to ace Andy Murray who is worth £48M and drive much further than Rory McIlroy who is worth £38M.


And yet, 90% of those who win a jackpot keep playing. That's the power of covetousness.
According to Oxfam, the richest 1% of the world's population now own as much as the other 99%.
And they keep on getting richer. Very very few ever seem to say, “I think I'm rich enough.”

What's wrong with coveting?

Essentially, we are letting things, not God be the centre of our hearts and our minds and our wills.
When we become Christians we admit that God is our heavenly Father and that he knows what is best for us. By making him our Lord we accept that he is the wisest judge of what is good for us. But coveting takes our lives away from his rule, saying not “He knows best,” but “I know best.”

Coveting leads to other sins.

If we start thinking that we would like things we haven't got, it won't be long before we are tempted to lie or to steal or to be unfaithful in order to get what we want.

Coveting also prevents us being generous. It stops us from loving our neighbour because it makes us put self first. Jesus said “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”
Better to be outward-looking than inward-looking.
Better to be generous than to be selfish.
It's hard to imagine how you can have a sharing and caring community of people where coveting is the rule of life. It will corrode a church.

Finally, coveting cheats us of contentment.
Let's not forget that the 10 commandments aren't hoops that God sadistically expects us to jump through – they are actually for our own good.
If we give in to coveting, we will never be satisfied. It's like trying to walk to the horizon, or looking for the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. It can never be reached.
Jesus said, “Don't store up treasure on earth, store it in heaven – it'll never get moth-eaten, or go rusty, or be stolen by thieves. And where your treasure is, there will your heart be.”

How do we change? 

The trouble with coveting is that it's everywhere. It's thoroughly approved by society and it's easy to do.
No one can tell when you covet – it's the invisible sin.
You can even do it in church while pretending to listen to a sermon(!)
We need to realise that while there are good desires, there are also bad ones. We need also to realise that the society that we live in shapes our desires and wants to encourage us to covet.
But the source of the problem is not advertising, or the media; it is our own hearts. The heart of the human problem is the problem of the human heart.
Perhaps I can suggest that during the next week we evaluate ourselves and try to answer the following questions.

1. What are my main desires?
2. Are they good or bad?
3. To what extent do they control how I live, how I relate to others and how I spend my money?
4. Do I really believe that having these desires granted would give me contentment?
5. What are my priorities?
6. What should they be?

It's a new year. It's a good time to take a look at yourself, and see if God suggests that something needs to change.

We must realign our desires

When a plane drifts off course the pilot will carefully change direction to get the aircraft back on its true course.
We need to do something similar with our lives.
Let’s practice reminding ourselves again and again that our true purpose is to know God through Christ and our only lasting joy is to be found there.
Whenever the temptation to desire something that is not ours to have comes upon us, we need to remind ourselves that Jesus alone gives a real peace of mind.
To those who come to him Jesus makes a wonderful promise. 'So do not worry, saying, "What shall we eat?" or "What shall we drink?" or "What shall we wear?" For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well'

If you serve Jesus you can have your cake and eat it.
If you don't serve Jesus you will find that you neither have the cake nor get to eat it.

We must keep our hearts in shape 

But it is not enough to do this only once.
You do not stay fit by running one race; you need to keep your fitness by exercise.
This is true here.


Let me give you some tips.

First, acquire an attitude of gratitude. 

Learn to thank God for what he has given you. The Apostle Paul said, 'I have learnt to be content whatever the circumstances'
He was in prison when he said this, but he was able to rejoice in his difficult circumstances.
It is sometimes trite and simplistic to say 'count your blessings'. Nevertheless the idea of listing the ways we have been blessed is one that is very valuable.
Now doing this may be an act of the will; it may be something that we have to force ourselves to do. But as we do it is very likely that our hearts will follow.
We need to practice being grateful.

Second, be a wise steward. 

It is often a temptation to look out for more when we are unable to look after what we have already.
Linked with this should come the healthy realisation that the more we have we been given the greater that we are responsible for.

Third, focus on relationships, not things. 

'Better to be poor and reverence the Lord than to be rich and in trouble.’ ‘Better to eat vegetables with people you love than to eat the finest meat where there is hate' (Two Proverbs from the Bible).
Relationships have a lasting value.
God desires for us to have good relationship not only with him but also with each other.
The call is to love people and use things; so often we do it the other way about: love things and use people.
If someone looked at your lifestyle, at your time, at your bank statement, what would they show about the value you put on relationships?

Finally, be a giver. 

The best antidote to coveting is a brutal one: it is to be freely generous with what we have already. The best remedy for covetousness is to be someone who gives away generously, whether money or possessions.
Jesus talked a great deal about giving.
The weed of covetousness finds it hard to become rooted in the soil of a generous heart.


We all have a choice.
We can covet - and we will find we have cheated ourselves.
Or, we can let Christ live in us and clean us - and we can be contented; both in this life and in the life to come.