← Back to sermon library

Okay, you can turn to the book of Deuteronomy as we continue, or finish up rather, tonight on the Ten Commandments. Just by way of reminder, as you're turning to Deuteronomy chapter 5, the book of Deuteronomy is a series of exhortations by Moses. Chapters 1 to 4 is a historical review where they had been and what God had done. in terms of delivering them from bondage in Egypt. The second section, the longest section, is the section we're in, chapters 5 to the end of chapter 28. It's basically a long exhortation to pursue covenant loyalty, and foundational to that is the Ten Commandments, or the Ten Words, or what we sometimes call the Decalogue, which simply means Ten Words. And then after that section, in chapters 29 to 30, there's a summary and conclusion, and then chapter 31 is the succession of Moses, and then 30, succession rather of Joshua, and then the death of Moses in chapters 32 to 34. So tonight our focus will be on verse 21 in chapter 5, but I'll read the section.

Beginning in verse 1, and Moses called all Israel and said to them, excuse me, I picked up a cold in Arizona. Actually, probably the plane, as I told Steve, another reason why I don't like to travel. You're in a tube with sick people, and sometimes it just overspills onto you, so forgive my voice tonight. So 5-1, Moses called all Israel and said to them, hear, O Israel, the statutes and judgments which I speak in your hearing today. "'that you may learn them and be careful to observe them.

"'The Lord our God made a covenant with us in Horeb. "'The Lord did not make this covenant with our fathers, "'but with us, those who are here today, "'all of us who are alive. "'The Lord talked with you face to face on the mountain "'from the midst of the fire. "'I stood between the Lord and you at that time "'to declare to you the word of the Lord, "'for you were afraid because of the fire "'and you did not go up the mountain. He said, I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.

You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself a carved image, any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them nor serve them.

For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate me. but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love me and keep my commandments. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.

Observe the Sabbath day to keep it holy as the Lord your God commanded you. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work, you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your ox, nor your donkey, nor any of your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates, that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you. And remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out from there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm. Therefore, the Lord your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.

"'Honor your father and your mother, "'as the Lord your God has commanded you, "'that your days may be long, "'and that it may be well with you, "'in the land which the Lord your God is giving you. "'You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, "'you shall not steal, "'you shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. "'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. These words, the Lord spoke to all your assembly in the mountain, from the midst of the fire, the cloud and the thick darkness with a loud voice. And he added no more. And he wrote them on two tablets of stone and gave them to me. Amen. As I mentioned, this is foundational to the exhortation that follows in terms of covenant loyalty.

Remember that the law, God is divided in a threefold sense. You've got the moral law, you've got the ceremonial law, and you've got the judicial law. And after we leave the Ten Commandments, we're going to see a lot of the various functions of those laws. We'll see judicial law, how The people of God are to live in the land that the Lord is giving them. It's the civil law of Moses. Ceremonial law regulates worship and the things necessary for temple, for priesthood, for sacrifice, all those particular things.

So the moral law is foundational. It is abiding. It is perpetual, as our confession says. The ceremonial law is done away with, not because it was bad, but it was fulfilled by our Lord Jesus Christ. Our Confession says, the Reformed tradition highlights, that the judicial law expired with the Commonwealth of Israel, but there is a general equity in perpetuity. Those things we see in the Old Testament civil laws have application, not one-to-one in terms of absolutely the case, but we learn wisdom from those particular judicial laws of Moses.

I think you see it very vividly, that three-fold division, I don't want to say even more so, but kind of even more so in the book of Exodus. So in Exodus chapter 20, moral law, Exodus chapters 21 to 23, judicial law, Exodus 24, ratification of the covenant, Exodus 25 to 40, you've got ceremonial law.

You've got a long extended treatment by God through Moses on how to do worship, how to approach the living God. Again, tabernacle, priesthood, sacrifice, and those sorts of things. The book of Leviticus deals primarily with that ceremonial law. It goes in even more detail in terms of sacrifice, priesthood, and tabernacle worship.

And here in the book of Deuteronomy, again, we have an amalgamation of all of them, but foundational is the Ten Commandments. If you look again at verse 22, the very end of verse 22, it says, and he wrote them onto tablets of stone and gave them to me. So men have seen or observed that the moral law, the Ten Commandments, are written by the finger of God. This is indicated as well in Deuteronomy 4, 13, Deuteronomy 9, 16, Deuteronomy 10, 4, and then Exodus 24 11, 31 18, and 34 28.

Not that God didn't give the ceremonial or judicial law, but I think it highlights the specificity of moral law as a foundational element. And again, it's not just for the old covenant. The moral law reveals to us the very nature and being of God, so it transcends covenant. In other words, it's not just an old covenant thing, but it is for us and governs us in the new covenant as well.

So we'll summarize that at the end when we look at the use of the 10th commandment. Now, with reference to the commandment, we'll proceed as we have, first looking at the prohibition of the commandment, and then secondly, the positive aspect of the commandment.

And in the first place, what does it mean to covet? Webster's 1828 describes it or defines it this way, to desire inordinately, to desire that which it is unlawful to obtain or possess. One commentator, Harmon, says illicit desire was the root from which all the other sins would spring.

In other words, the Tenth Commandment sort of is a capstone over all the others, and it shows us that all the others cannot be kept strictly in an external sense. In other words, those things that are violations of commandments 1 to 9 spring from a heart that's defiled. And so the 10th commandment speaks specifically to that defilement of heart. And as we proceed, we need to remember that not all sin is crime and not all crime is sin. The Tenth Commandment is a sin. It's not a crime. It shouldn't be punished by the civil authority. We don't want thought police. We don't want investigations of what we're thinking. And if we're not thinking properly, then they punish us. But with reference to God, all violations or all transgressions of His law are sins. And the Tenth Commandment certainly is a sinful thing.

The word covet can also be used in a general sense, desiring, wanting, or craving. So the objects specified indicate what is sinful covetousness, i.e., anything that is your neighbor's. If you look at the end of verse 21, well, verse 21 gives us specific categories. We're not supposed to covet neighbor's wives. We're not supposed to desire our neighbor's house, his field, his male servant, his female servant, his ox, his donkey. But then notice, or anything that is your neighbor's, anything that is your neighbor's. So if it's not indicated in that particular list, it doesn't mean it's okay for you to covet it or to desire it inordinately.

As I mentioned with reference to the relation to the other commandments, the 10th deals with the heart. The tenth deals with the heart. Every inner instinct that leads up to the act is also included by God as a sin. So it's not just the act of murder, but it's that heart disposition that brings a man to that place where he actually ceases another person's life or stops another person's life.

As well, the sin of covetousness often leads to an act of transgression. You can turn to Micah, the prophet, Micah chapter 2, where you see this connection very vividly, but it's not necessary in order to have violated the sin of the transgression of the Tenth Commandment. In other words, it often, and more often than not, leads to an act of other external form of transgression, but it does not necessarily have to. You can covet, not act upon it, you've still sinned against God, but you haven't committed that additional sin, or then a crime.

But if you notice in Micah 2 at verse 1, woe to those who devise iniquity and work out evil on their beds. At morning light they practice it because it is in the power of their hand. They covet fields and take them by violence, also houses and seize them. So they oppress a man and his house, a man and his inheritance.

So the prophet there isn't just condemning the external act, but he's also condemning the internal disposition that led these people to that particular act. As Craigie says, it is this dimension of the commandments that is taken up in the teaching of Jesus in Matthew chapter 5, verses 21 to 28. With reference to the sixth commandment, you're not supposed to call your neighbor Raka, you're not supposed to call him fool, you're not supposed to assassinate his character, and as well, you're not supposed to lust after your neighbor's wife. He says, not only the act, but also the desire is condemned, partly because the desire is what leads to the act, and partly because whether or not the desire leads to the act, it betrays the same wrong attitude toward a neighbor. So it's not just the external act, but it's also that internal disposition, and that's precisely what the Tenth Commandment is governing or speaking to. The 10th commandment is linked by Paul to the 1st commandment in the book of Ephesians. In Ephesians 5, 5, and then Colossians 3, 5. You can turn there. Ephesians chapter 5, specifically at verse 5. For this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man who is an idolater has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. A covetous man who is an idolater. There's a close connection between the first and the tenth.

If we have these inordinate desires about things that we don't presently possess, they're in the possession of our neighbor, it shows, one, discontentedness with God and his providence. God didn't give me that which my neighbor has, and I desperately want what my neighbor has. It's ultimately a problem that you have with God. It's not so much a problem that you have with man. And then as well, it's idolatry. It's a mixing of categories. It is a setting oneself upon the creature rather than the Creator, who is God, blessed forever. And so I think that's the link that the Apostle makes there.

And again, he says essentially the same thing in Colossians 3, 5, Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth, fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. Because of these things, the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them." And then with reference to the prohibition proper, the Westminster Larger Catechism asks the question, what are the sins forbidden in the Tenth Commandment? The sins forbidden in the Tenth Commandment are discontentment with our own estate, It's a big one, and that's one that we're going to look at in detail, or not detail, but we're going to mention that several times tonight. Envying and grieving at the good of our neighbor together with all inordinate motions and affections to anything that is his. And when we compare Exodus and Deuteronomy, we see not a difference in kind, but we see a difference in order. In Deuteronomy 21, the neighbor's wife comes first. In Exodus chapter 20, the neighbor's house comes first.

Don't know why that is. I don't think one is more important than the other. The prohibition is obvious. Whatever is your neighbor's is your neighbor's. It was given to him by God. And if you have an inordinate desire for that, that doesn't mean, boy, my neighbor has a nice car. That's not condemned. My neighbor has a nice car and I desperately want that car. My neighbor has a nice car and I desperately don't want him to have it. That's envy and we'll speak to that in just a moment. So first, in our commandment, the inordinate desire of a neighbor's wife.

Remember that neighbor doesn't mean somebody that is living next door to you. Neighbor doesn't mean somebody that's in your particular orbit. Neighbor doesn't mean somebody that you're necessarily close to. It's anyone with whom you have to do. So the prohibition is with reference to any and all people out there. The coveting of another man's wife is directly related to the lust condemned by Jesus. You can turn to Matthew because that's what Jesus is speaking specifically to in Matthew chapter 5.

And there he's not elevating the law. There he's not strengthening the law in the sense of making it more comprehensive or more inclusive. Rather, he is simply expounding the moral law of God over and against the Pharisaic misinterpretation of that law.

The Pharisees and the scribal tradition taught that as long as you didn't commit the external act, then you weren't necessarily guilty. As long as you didn't actually engage in adultery with your neighbor, or your neighbor's wife, or as long as you didn't actually put a knife to your neighbor's throat, you weren't really guilty. So Jesus is showing the spirituality of the law as it had always been. It's not the case that in the Old Covenant you could hate your neighbor in your heart. It's not the case that in the Old Covenant you could lust after your neighbor's wife as long as you didn't engage in the sin of adultery. Jesus speaks very specifically concerning this. Notice in Matthew 527, you have heard that it was said to those of old, you shall not commit adultery.

But I say to you, and again the contrast there is not Moses and Jesus. It's Moses' bad interpreters and Jesus. When he says, you have heard that it was said to those of old, I think at times people assume that's Moses. Well remember, Yahweh spoke by Moses, and there's no antithesis between Jesus and his father.

When he says, but I say to you, he's not saying, you know, I'm going to elevate Moses. I'm going to strengthen Moses. I'm going to internalize the law of Moses. That's not what he's doing. He is saying that the interpreters of Moses have erred. They have failed with reference to teaching the spirituality in the internality of the law.

If you look upon a woman and you lust after her in your heart, you're guilty of breaking the 10th commandment. Verse 28, I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. Of course, that applies to women. You can't lust after men. In other words, it's not the case that you can say, well, I'm not a man, so that doesn't apply to me. Jesus is speaking in general principles. Certainly we're supposed to think through those general principles and to see that it goes both ways. It's not okay for a woman to be taken up in whatever form of pornography or whatever form of lusting or covetousness that she might have a proclivity to.

He goes on in verse 29, if your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you. For it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish than for your whole body to be cast into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you. For it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish than for your whole body to be cast into hell.

I maintain that Jesus is speaking metaphorically. I know there have been those in the history of the church, I think the church father origin took this seriously and emasculated himself, but I don't think that's the point. The point is, deal radically with your sin.

Don't give it any safe haven. Don't give it any place to grow. Don't give it any place to flourish. Pluck out your right eye. Cut off your right hand. Do those things that are necessary so that you do not fall prey to this sin of covetousness, which may then lead to the external act of adultery.

And the coveting of another man's wife is not only an offense to God, but it's an offense to your own spouse. It's an offense to your neighbor, and it's an offense to your neighbor's wife. So when God in the 10th commandment says you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, certainly the primary reference is God is displeased with lawbreakers, but it does have a wretched effect upon society, as we prayed just a moment ago for the nation of Kenya. and as Naftali requests us to pray, if there's not honesty, if there's not integrity, there's no social fiber, there's no cohesiveness, there's no ability for persons to function in a situation of lawlessness. So the inordinate desire of a neighbor's wife is certainly condemned here in the 10th commandment.

As well, the inordinate desire of a neighbor's goods. And again, verse 21 indicates that. Your neighbor's house, his field, his male servant, his female servant, his ox, his donkey, all those things belonging to your neighbor, you're not to have this inordinate desire of. admiring your neighbor, saying, wow, that's a nice farm that you have. That's not condemned. It's the inordinate desire for that, which often leads to envy, which means I want to see him deprived of that particular thing because it's just not right that I don't have it. It's a really vicious and vile mindset with reference to the world around us.

And in this, God's not condemning having stuff. In fact, I would argue that the 10th commandment, along with the 8th commandment, legitimizes private property. It legitimizes private property. Notice that God doesn't say, don't covet your neighbor's wife, don't covet his field, don't covet his servants, because that's all community property and it already belongs to you anyway.

No, socialism and communism are not correct political theory. How do I know that? Because the Bible tells me so. You shall not steal. Socialism and communism are built on theft. You cannot maintain a society functioning for the long term when it's built or founded upon theft. It just doesn't work.

And that's not the primary reason. It's condemned by God. That's the primary reason. But with reference to this, it legitimizes private property. If a man works hard, he's got a good wife, he's got a good field, he's got a good house, God blessed him. And that's up to God. And that's not for us to say, well, you know, it's just not right that this guy got all those things that I'm entitled to or that I should have.

Sort of a victim mentality, it's a discontentedness, and it really does reek of an inner disposition that is just wrong. As well, the presence of covetousness often leads to the act of transgression, as already mentioned before. Genesis chapter 3, Eve saw the fruit, that it was able to make one wise. It was that covetousness, that desire to make one wise, that caused her to reach out and take that fruit.

Remember Achan in the book of Joshua, I saw the good stuff. Once I saw the good stuff, I took the good stuff and I hid it in my tent. 2 Samuel chapter 11, the kings go out to battle except for David. David goes up onto his rooftop. He looks over and he sees his neighbor Bathsheba bathing in a pool.

It was the covetousness that ultimately leads to adultery and then conspiracy to murder to cover up that sin. 1 Kings chapter 21, Ahab wanted Naboth's vineyard. and Ahab was discontented when he didn't get it, and he was sullen and sulking, and so Jezebel says, get in there and take that vineyard. I'll show you how. So they basically hire people to blaspheme, or to accuse, rather, Naboth of blasphemy, and they execute Naboth so that Ahab can take his vineyard. It's just a wretched, wretched thing.

Proverbs chapter six, with reference to the woman, or a man looking upon a woman, do not, Do not covet her in your eyes. James chapter 1, verses 13 and 14, he deals with the anatomy of a sin. In fact, you can turn to the book of James, James chapter 1, where I think that covetousness is obviously located in that progression that ultimately ends in an external transgression. But again, the argument is that even if it doesn't end in that external transgression, the act of covetousness itself is a sin. In other words, an internal disposition that is bent toward evil, whether that evil is realized or not, is still wrong. Sometimes you'll hear it today, even in churches, that homosexuality, as long as it remains in the heart or head, is not condemned by God.

It's only when one acts upon it. Well that does not stand up under biblical scrutiny. The very act of it is wrong and sinful. James 1 verse 13, Let no one say when he is tempted, I am tempted by God. For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.

But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. We all have our own desires, and we all have our own enticements out there. Your sin might not be my sin, my sin might not be your sin, but we have sin, and we let that covetousness sort of grow, and we nourish it or nurture it. Then notice in verse 15, then when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and sin, when it is full grown, brings forth death. So when it comes to the inordinate desire of a neighbor's wife or his goods, the Bible strictly condemns that and forbids that kind of an approach to life in God's world.

As well as I've mentioned, it expresses discontentedness. If I want what Steve has to the degree that I'm upset that Steve has it, and all I can think about is getting it from Steve, or I should have it and not Steve, what is that saying in my relationship to God? I'm not happy with what God's given me. I'm not content with what the Lord has blessed me with. I'm not content with however God in His infinite wisdom has determined to dispose His things.

Psalm 24, one, the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof. So anything that we have is an allotment from God. We're not owners in an absolute sense. We are stewards of those things that God has entrusted to us. And if God has given us something and it doesn't measure up, then our beef ultimately is with God. So the desire for anything that is our neighbor's reveals a heart of discontentedness at what God has given or not given. And this can be very subtle. This can lead to comparisons.

In a marriage, for instance, why aren't you more like sister so-and-so? Why aren't you handier like brother so-and-so? I'm not handy. Not that my wife chides me for that, but she sure could. She could make a whole host of comparisons when it comes to that. But we have a tendency to that, don't we? Oh, you're not like that, or you're not doing that, or you're not doing what I think you should be doing. It's covetousness. Now, that's not to say that in a marriage, for instance, there's encouragement and feedback and talking and exchange of information. That's fine.

But a discontentedness that results is sinful. Hodge says it includes the positive command to be contented with the allotments of providence. So this prohibition against do not covet, as Hodge says, it includes the positive command to be content with the allotments of providence and the negative injunction not to repine or complain on account of the dealings of God with us or to envy the lot and possessions of others. Again, when we have that sort of a mindset, our problem is not with one another, our problem is with God and His divine allotments. And I would suggest as well prohibited, after the inordinate desire of wife, goods, expression of discontentedness, as I mentioned, the expression of envy.

Envy is bad. Jealousy with a malicious intent to see our neighbor deprived. In the previous illustration, if I want what Steve has and I'm jealous, that's bad. I'm not suggesting it's not. But if I'm jealous and want what he has, but I don't want him to have what he has, that's envy. And that's just a bad way to live. Gary North says, envy is the desire to see a successful person brought low.

Even when, should the person be brought low, the envious person does not benefit directly. You see that with the eat the rich slogans in campaigns. Well, if you eat the rich and you don't get their riches, what difference does it make? Shouldn't the emphasis be on feed the poor, help the downtrodden and poor, ameliorate the downtrodden and poor? The deprivation of someone else's goods reveals a heart that's not right. It reveals something wrong. The condemnation of envy is widespread. You see it in the vice lists in the New Testament. Romans chapter 1, verse 29, 1 Corinthians 3, 3, Galatians 5, 21, 1 Timothy 6, 4, James 3, 14 to 16, all specific condemnations of the sin of envy.

And then as well, it's the absolute antithesis, or it's absolutely inconsistent with love. Hodge again says, as envy is the antithesis of love, it is of all sins the most opposed to the nature of God. It's not a bad observation. 1 John tells us God is love. And so envy is the exact opposite of love. If we want to make ourselves counter or opposite or contrast with God, envy is the pathway. So as envy is the antithesis of love, it is of all sins the most opposed to the nature of God and more effectually than any other excludes us from his fellowship.

Turn to the prophet Jeremiah, Jeremiah chapter 32, just to see the mind, the heart, the nature of God as revealed toward His people. Jeremiah chapter 32, it's an extended sort of discussion or prophetic statement concerning the new covenant. and God says what He's going to do. Notice in 32, 36.

Now therefore thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning this city of which you say it shall be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence. Behold, I will gather them out of all countries where I have driven them in my anger, in my fury, and in great wrath.

I will bring them back to this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely. They shall be my people, and I will be their God. Then I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear me forever, for the good of them and their children after them. And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from doing them good, but I will put my fear in their hearts, so that they will not depart from me. Newton didn't make up, "'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear." Newton obviously understood Jeremiah 32, 40. I will put my fear in their heart so that they will not depart from me.

But just prior to that, I will not turn away from doing them good. That's the nature, that's the being, that's the perfection of God. And then it goes on in verse 41. Yes, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will assuredly plant them in this land with all my heart and with all my soul.

So when we covet our neighbor's wife or his goods or anything that is our neighbor's, we're acting contrary to the very nature of God himself. It really is an expression of what you see Jesus describe the devil as in John 8, 44. You are of your father the devil. He was a murderer from the beginning. He's a liar. And there's no truth in him. That's what characterizes that is the nature of the devil. Well, murder, obviously we think of the external act, but what precipitates murder? It's that covetousness, it's that evil desire, it's that intention that is definitely wrong and bad.

Turn to Romans chapter 12. Romans chapter 12. We have a specific address or exhortation by the Apostle Paul to not envy, and this isn't a vice list, this is exhortation after the explanation of the gospel in chapters one to 11. Chapter 12, I beseech you, verse one, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Think about the world, think about advertising. Isn't it the 10th commandment they're praying on?

You know, drink this beer and you'll get this girl, drive this car and you'll get this job. It's about covetousness. It's about exploiting the most darkened places in the hearts of people. I'm not suggesting all advertising is that way. I don't want to be taken out of context here, but do not be transformed, conform rather to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

But specifically, notice in verse 15, rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep. That's conduct consistent with Christian behavior. That's conduct that is consistent with our high calling in the gospel. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. We don't weep over somebody else's joy. That's envy, a desire for deprivation. They got it, I didn't. They shouldn't have it, I should. No, don't do that.

Rejoice with those who rejoice. Somebody gets a job promotion, instead of saying, well, I didn't get promoted. Praise God. Brother so-and-so got a job promotion. Weep with those who weep. Don't celebrate the death of somebody that you know. You need to rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep. Covetousness turns this on its head. We rejoice with those who weep, and we weep over those who rejoice.

It's a rotten internal disposition. And it's one of those things that's, you know, unfortunately part and parcel of life in this world. It's the heart of man. We have an inclination, even as redeemed people of God, we are prone to wander, prone to leave the God that we love.

And we need to guard our hearts against that. And we need to make sure that we're seeking restraint. We're seeking to pray for the Holy Spirit to guide us so that we don't rejoice with those who weep. We don't weep with those who rejoice, but we are consistent. in a manner that is according to the gospel of our salvation. So the prohibition, pretty simple. Don't do it. Don't covet. Don't have that inner disposition. Don't have that attitude. Don't have that mindset. It leads to discontentedness. It leads to envy.

It can lead to a whole host of other external sins, external crimes even, if you're so covetous in your heart that you go out and commit adultery, or you're so covetous in your heart that you go out and commit burglary or robbery or you engage in some other offense against man, you are only compounding and complicating things in a way that God forbids.

Now, in terms of the positive aspect, Westminster Larger 147, What are the duties required in the Tenth Commandment? The duties required in the Tenth Commandment are such a full contentment with our own condition and such a charitable frame of the whole soul toward our neighbor as that all our inward motions and affections touching him tend unto and further all that good which is his. That makes sense as well. If I'm not supposed to want to take from somebody, I should be content and happy with the fact that that somebody has those particular possessions, a portion to them, by God in divine providence. So I would suggest first the recognition of God's sovereign ownership of all things.

I already mentioned Psalm 24.1. It's a good operating assumption. God owns everything. Everything that we have, Again, I believe in private property.

I'm not talking about in the horizontal level. I mean, you can't just walk into my house and, you know, take my wife. You can't just walk into my house and take my food. You can't do that. God protects me in the Eighth Commandment. But with reference to our stuff, with reference to our lot in life, with reference to our vocation, with reference to our calling, We have been given that by God.

Again, this does not mitigate trying to better oneself. It doesn't mitigate night school. It doesn't mitigate hard work. It doesn't mitigate trying to make it further in your company or own more companies. It doesn't mention that. There's no condemnation. Again, God's not against success in business. Do you see a man who excels in his work? Solomon says he will stand before kings. That's a blessed thing.

First Timothy chapter 6, Paul tells Timothy, when you come to the Bible study and it's all the rich people, the admonition isn't tell them to divest themselves of their riches. Tell them it's not fair for them to have it, Timothy, and that you should have it. It's not fair for them to have it, Timothy, so they should give it all to the widows. It's not fair. No, he doesn't say that. He doesn't tell them to get rid of their wealth. He doesn't tell them to get rid of their riches. God owns everything and he allots it as he sees fit.

I mean, it may not be the best thing for you or me to find a bag of money. It may not be the best thing for us to move further in a particular direction. I've heard, I don't know, there's probably statistics out there, some of you might know them, but people that win the lottery, they win millions and millions of dollars and a year or two later they're broke. We think, well, if I just had a million bucks, I'd be okay. Really? Maybe not. Maybe you might be alongside of those other people that you wouldn't be okay. Maybe the internal disposition is still in an ungodly place.

So the recognition of God's sovereign ownership of all things. Secondly, the recognition of God's promise and provision. You can turn to the book of Hebrews, Hebrews chapter 13. Hebrews chapter 13, a specific admonition to contentedness with what we have. Hebrews chapter 13, so the recognition of God's promise and provision. Hebrews 13, again a series of commands, a series of illustrations or applications of all that has been said.

So verse one, let brotherly love continue. That's the general admonition or the general exhortation and then he gives specific concrete examples. How do we let love? or brotherly love continue? Well, verse two, do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels. Be kind to strangers. Verse three, remember the prisoners as if chained with them, those who are mistreated since you yourselves are in the body also. That's how you let brotherly love continue toward the prisoners.

Verse four, how do we let brotherly love continue in the context of marriage? Verse four, marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled, but fornicators and adulterers God will judge. As well, how do we let brotherly love continue in our relationships with one another according to verses 5 and 6?

Let your conduct be without covetousness. Be content with such things as you have. You see the direct opposition there, the direct contrast, covetousness, contentedness. A contented man isn't covetous. A covetous man isn't content. You just can't have those two things hanging out in your heart. It just doesn't happen. Let your conduct be without covetousness. Be content with such things as you have.

And I love this, for he himself has said, I will never leave you nor forsake you. Now, that text is oftentimes applied in a spiritual sense, and I don't think there's anything wrong with applying it in a spiritual sense. I will never leave you nor forsake you. That's a blessed promise of gospel salvation. God saves us. He puts his fear into our hearts. so that we may not depart from him.

There is a reality there. We call it the fifth point of Calvinism, the perseverance of the saints. But here, specifically and contextually, it has to do with temporal provision. It has to do with those things necessary for life in this present world.

So let your conduct be without covetousness, be content with such things as you have, for he himself has said, I will never leave you nor forsake you. In other words, you may not have what your neighbor has, but God has promised or covenanted to sustain you. You may not have all of his niceties, you may not have all of his riches, you may not have all of his conveniences, you may not have all of his luxuries, but God has promised and purposed to keep you and provide for you, so we may boldly say, the Lord is my helper, I will not fear, what can man do to me?

Turn back to 1 Timothy, 1 Timothy chapter six. Just before we look at the section I want to look at, I'll just read the section where I mentioned that Timothy would teach rich people, and this would be his lesson. First Timothy 617, command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God who gives us richly all things to enjoy. Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share, storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.

Again, the absence of any command to the rich to divest themselves of their riches. Paul was not a communist, Paul was not a socialist, Paul did not say it's not fair that these certain brothers in the church in Ephesus have all that money, they have all those riches, they have all those luxuries, tell them to get rid of it. I mean he does kind of indirectly when he says that they be rich in good works, ready to give, but he doesn't say give it all, he doesn't say divest yourself wholly and completely, command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty. which is probably a symptom of or a potential sin with reference to being rich, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God. Again, if you have all the money in the world, it might come into your heart to not trust God.

Isn't this what the Proverbs writer says? I think it's Ager in chapter 30, give me neither poverty nor riches. Why? Because if I'm poor, I'm going to go out and steal and dishonor the Lord. But if I'm rich, I'm going to forget God. That's some good self-assessment there. That's some, you know, down to the wire, grade A self-assessment. I know my propensity. If I'm poor, I may go steal. If I'm rich, I may forget God. So God, keep me where I need to be so that I can fulfill what you've called me to do. I think that threshold is higher for some people. A guy that can't handle a million bucks, God's not gonna give him a million bucks. Are there guys that can handle a million bucks? Sure, and they will probably get a million bucks. I don't think it's formulaic, so don't leave here saying, well, I can handle it, so God, let's deliver.

I've thought this of a Spurgeon. Spurgeon preached with much effect. Spurgeon preached mightily, powerfully, and wonderfully blessed of God. I don't think that, you know, a man that didn't have the characteristics of a Spurgeon is necessarily able to do that.

In other words, pride's a reality, and some men might see great blessing on their ministry and get vaulted up with pride. Well, when God gives a man success, I think He gives him the requisite graces and the requisite gifts to be able to manage and deal with that success. I think that's God's divine allotment.

Some people are really good at business. Some people are really good at preaching. Some people are really good at certain things. Well, where did they get those good things? They got them from God. So when God gives those good things, I suspect he gives additional good things so that they don't become pompous, so that they don't forget God, so that they don't get haughty, so that they don't trounce on others around them.

Now, with reference to contentment, notice in 6.1, I'm sorry, 6.3, if anyone teaches otherwise and does not consent to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ and of the doctrine which accords with godliness, he is proud, knowing nothing, but is obsessed with disputes and arguments over words, from which come envy, strife, reviling, evil suspicions, useless wranglings of men of corrupt minds and destitute of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain. From such, withdraw yourself. Paul doesn't pull any punches. He doesn't say, well, I don't want to offend them. I don't want to hurt their feelings. No, if that's you, you're going to get what Paul has coming to you.

Now, amplifying on that last statement with reference to who suppose that godliness is a means of gain, he goes on to say in verse six, now godliness with contentment is great gain. Godliness with contentment. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out, and having food and clothing, with these we shall be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.

For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil." Again, that's not money. Money is amoral. Money is a tool. Money is a thing. It's not money. Money doesn't go and, you know, commit adultery. Money doesn't go and rob banks. Money doesn't go and assassinate people. Money is just a tool. We don't blame a wrench if somebody bashes somebody's head in with a wrench. I guess we do, we blame guns.

But when it comes to this, it's the love of money. The love of money, right? That inordinate desire, that covetousness, that, you know, I've got to have this. The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

So the recognition of God's sovereign ownership of all things, secondly, the recognition of God's promise and provision, I would suggest, thirdly, the recognition of the surpassing importance of eternity to come. In other words, there's much more beyond this. We're busy coveting our neighbor's wife or coveting our neighbor's goods. We're not thinking about, we're not reflecting upon our destination in Emmanuel's land.

You can turn to Luke's gospel, Luke chapter 12. Luke chapter 12, specifically at verse 13. And one from the crowd said to him, teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me. But he said to him, man, who made me a judge or an arbitrator over you?

And he said to them, take heed and beware of covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses. Simple principle. There's more to life than what you have under your roof. There's more to life than what you have in your garage.

Then he spoke a parable to them saying the ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. And he thought within himself saying, what shall I do since I have no room to store my crops? So he said, I will do this. I will pull down my barns and build greater. And there I will store all my crops and my goods. And I will say to my soul, soul, you have many goods laid up for many years. Take your ease, eat, drink, and be merry.

This guy's problem was he needed more places to store his stuff. That's a first world problem. I need more garages. I need more sheds. I mean, in some ways, it's all of us, right? We need another shed. We need another cabinet. We need another cupboard. It's like if you've ever moved, you realize how much extraneous stuff you have. Like, why do I need snowshoes when I'm living in southern British Columbia?

Not that I have snowshoes, but we just, we store stuff. That's what this guy's doing. I mean, he tips us off right at the beginning in verse 16, the ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. He's a success. He's good at it. And again, the condemnation isn't that he's good at it. The condemnation isn't that his ground yielded plentifully. What do you do with the patriarchs? What do you do with the men of old? What do you do with people that have been successful? It's not condemned by God to be good at what you do and to yield plentifully.

It's the mindset. All he thinks about is this present situation. I will say to my soul, verse 19, soul, you have many goods laid up for many years. Take your ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said to him, fool, this night your soul will be required of you. Then whose will those things be which you have provided? So is he who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.

It's obvious, right? That's a divided heart. He's an idolater. It's the stuff in his barns that captivates his heart. It's not the God of absolute glory, honor, and majesty who in his providence has given him that gift to be able to yield plentifully a particular piece of ground to appreciate the gifts that God has given to them, hold them with a loose grip, realizing that these things can come and these things can go, but what ultimately matters is my destination in Emmanuel's land. He didn't have that. He was devoid of that. So the recognition of the surpassing importance of eternity to come. I would suggest fourth, the appreciation for the happiness of others.

Again, Romans 12, 15, rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Covetousness exactly reverses this. Rejoicing with those who weep and weeping with those who rejoice is a bad thing. If you are that person or I am that person, we are in a bad place.

We need to confess our sin, we need to forsake our sin, and we need to trust in the mercy of God. That's Proverbs 28, 13. Don't hide it. Don't try to rationalize it, don't try to justify it, but rather confess it, forsake it, and you will find mercy from God.

The appreciation for the happiness of others. That's the contrary to the covetousness or the envy that we might have toward others in their prosperity. I would suggest fifthly, the cultivation of biblical contentment. Biblical contentment, we just saw that in First Timothy chapter six. If covetousness and contentment are polar opposites and God forbids, prohibits, and has a word, specifically the 10th, that commands us not to covet, then it should be upon us to want to cultivate contentedness that is the contrary of covetousness.

And then I would suggest, sixthly and finally, the exercise of a charitable spirit. Again, Ephesians 4. You can turn to Ephesians 4. The exercise of a charitable spirit. We saw that in 1 Timothy 6. Ready to give, sharing with those who have need. Well in Ephesians 4, conduct worthy of a new man in Christ Jesus. He gives again a series of exhortations.

The sixth word, the eighth word. Notice in verse 25, therefore putting away lying, let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor, for we are members of one another. Be angry and do not sin, do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil.

Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need. Again, like the covetous contentedness thing, contrary, polar opposites. If my predilection is to covet, I should instead try to be giving, charitable, kind. Instead of wanting to covet from people, I should want to give to people to try and disabuse myself of that covetous attitude.

So just some things to think about with reference to the 10th commandment. When it comes to an application of all the commandments, as I said, threefold division, moral law, Ceremonial law, judicial law. But in the Reformed tradition, we also have what's called the threefold use of the law. Three ways that we use the law with reference to the Ten Commandments.

First, the civil. How does the Tenth Commandment affect the civil use?

Well, I would suggest, again, we live in a materialistic, affluent society. And if we don't watch our hearts, it's always got to be the newer, bigger, better, brighter thing. Now, if the newer, bigger, brighter thing is within our means, it doesn't entail covetousness, it doesn't entail the deprivation of it from someone else, it's within our ability, again, God's not saying don't get things that may help you. But this attitude that is prevalent among us where it's just so materialistic, I think that we see that in modern society, at least here in the first world.

As well, the societal decay that results from a rejection of the First and Tenth Commandments. I think those are intimately bound. I think that when we've got a covetous attitude, our problem is with God. It's with God in terms of divine allotment and providence, and it's with God in terms of our priority. We want stuff more than we want God.

Christopher Wright says, when a society has so profoundly and deliberately abandoned the first and tenth commandments, the moral vacuum that results from the loss of all those commandments in between soon follows. Let me read that again. When a society has so profoundly and deliberately abandoned the first, having no other gods before God, and tenth commandments, you shall not covet, the moral vacuum that results from the loss of all those commandments in between, so two to nine, are sure to follow.

When we're built on that kind of discontentedness, when there's that envy structured into our very DNA, when it's preached to us from political pulpits, when it's preached to us as economic theory, I mean, it's a political theory of envy. And you just don't build society on envy. The second use of the law is what we call the pedagogical use, the child tutor function of the law. And interestingly, we have a specific example of this in Matthew 19. You can turn there. Matthew chapter 19.

Verse 16, now behold, one came and said to him, good teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life? So he said to him, why do you call me good? No one is good but one, that is God. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments. He said to him, which ones? Jesus said, you shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not bear false witness. Honor your father and your mother, and you shall love your neighbor as yourself. So notice what commandment is missing. Anybody notice? This is the second table of law. He doesn't deal with the first four, but what commandment is missing? What's that?

Covetousness. So note what the man says in verse 20, the young man said to him, all these things I have kept from my youth. What do I still lack? Jesus said to him, you shall not covet. Right? If you want to be perfect, go sell what you have and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven and come follow me.

When the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful for he had great possessions. Now, when Jesus says that he is not counter, you know, being contrary to the rest of Scripture that teaches justification by faith alone. Jesus is not saying, you know, have a garage sale, go through the closets, go through the cupboards, go through the cabinets, get rid of everything, sell it, just get rid of it all, and then you will be saved.

He's preaching the law. This is the pedagogical or child tutor function of the law. It's to show the sinner their sin. This guy thought he was perfect. This guy thought he was a great commandment keeper. This guy thought that he had everything down. So Jesus invokes the 10th commandment to show him, no, you're a sinner and you need the gospel. The law leads us or shows us our sin and misery and Christ saves us at the cross. Romans chapter 7, the apostle says the same thing. I think I've shared with you before, there's a theory out there that Paul was the rich young ruler. I'm not sure of that. I don't necessarily endorse that, but I don't think it's completely without merit, especially with what he says in 7-7.

What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not. On the contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law. That's the pedagogical use. What was it for Paul? For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, you shall not covet. So in Paul's experience, it was that 10th word that showed him that he was in need of redemption through the blood of Jesus Christ.

So the pedagogical use of the law, it drives us or leads us to the cross. How do we know our sin and misery? Because the law of God tells us. And then finally, what we call the normative use of the law. the normative use of the law. What the 10th commandment shows us is that the spirituality or the internalness of the law, and it's not just the 10th, but I think the entirety of the Decalogue, Dabney says the five commands of the second table cut off the streams of transgression. This deals with the fountainhead. In the tenth commandment, then, we have the crowning spirituality of the law, thus making it complete in every way worthy of God and adapted to man as a rational, free agent. As well, I think the 10th commandment shows us it's not just our external actions, but it's our thoughts, it's our mindset, it's our disposition, it's our predilections, it's our desires.

All those things fall under God's law. They're not separate entities. No, all of us are always under the entirety of God's law, externally and spiritually. And then I think, normatively, it ought to promote a constant and diligent watch over our own souls.

And I don't think that, you know, covetousness is located in one class of people. Well, it's just the poor that have that predilection. Really? Rich people don't covet? Rich people who have lots don't look over their neighbor's backyard and say, wow, I'd really want that to the point where he didn't. There's no competition amongst the rich. It's not uniquely fitted to only poor people. It's not uniquely fitted to only rich people. It's uniquely fitted.

To all of us, all of us dead in Adam, all of us redeemed by Christ, we need to fight the good fight of faith, pray for the ministry of the Holy Spirit, do what Solomon says, keep our own hearts with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life. So the Ten Commandments show us our need for the Savior. They show us as well the pattern of life we're supposed to have or walk in with reference to our life in Jesus by the Spirit. Well, let us pray.

Our Father in heaven, we thank you for your word. We thank you for the comprehensiveness of these 10 words in the Decalogue. We thank you, God, that Jesus Christ kept these things perfectly. We thank you for his death on the cross, his resurrection again the third day, and that we, by grace, have life in his name. We thank you for that forgiveness of sins. We thank you for that righteousness given to us.

We thank you for the ministry of the other comforter, the Holy Spirit, and we pray that you would help us to take these things to heart, help us to check our own hearts, and help us to have a proper understanding of your providence, help us to have a proper understanding of the restrictions you place upon our minds and hearts with reference to other people's stuff. We ask that you would go with us, keep us in the remainder of this week, bring us together on the Lord's day, that we may worship and glorify and praise you, and we ask in Jesus' name, amen.

Any questions or comments? You look contemplative. Okay, go ahead. What do you got? status. Oh, sure. Right. Right. That's absolutely positively true. Yeah, it can be anything. And it can be everything. So we need to keep our hearts. All right, all right. Good to be back on Wednesday night.