The Heart of the Problem: What Does It Mean to "Covet"?

The following message from Pastor Greg Laurie is made possible by harvest partners, helping people everywhere know God don't want to hear from you. Would you consider emailing me you can reach me at greg@harvest.org again that's Greg harvest.org and you can also make me one of your friends on Facebook and drop me a comment, a means to desire wrongfully in order without due regard for the rights of others. Pastor Greg Laurie warns us about coveting work will be his leaving eyes, the mind admires it will goes over to it and the body moves in to possess and to coven is to be devoured by desire for something that is not yours can destroy your life and will come down with a case of the me this nearly every advertisement feeds that whatever they say would be really mean is you want one of the new car loan out today on a new beginning. Pastor Greg Laurie points out the biblical reference to coveting even beyond the Gammage. I don't just want one.

I want yours today will see it's addressed to get the other day talking about the 10 Commandments that I said I will give $10 to the grandchild who knows all of the 10 Commandments in their proper order. I have to admit I was very impressed.

They had pretty much all of the Commandments, but they didn't have them quite in the exact order, but then one of my younger grandchildren said pop up what is it me when the Bible says you shall not commit adultery is that means you should not kiss anyone but the person you're married to one of my older grandkids said Maj. shouldn't cheat on your spouse and let go. That's actually technically true, so those of the Commandments and why did God give us these 10 Commandments low for a lot of reasons. Number one. There, the foundation of all morality here. The absolutes were looking for, so we know right from wrong up from down there are guardrails given to us so we can live happy lives are given to us for our own protection. Their walls of protection to keep us safe and one last thing I'll say about the Commandments. They are absolutely impossible to keep on your own. The Commandments are sort of like a moral mere.

Have you ever looked in the magnifying mirror you know you look in the regular mirror and you think I look good then you look at that magnifying mirror with extra light and you realize you don't look nearly as good as you thought you looked because a magnifying mirror. Put your flaws on display. When I look at these 10 Commandments given to me from God. I realize how far short I fall it so there are moral mere sending me into the open arms of Jesus.

Now you remember the first four commandments you shall not have another God before them. You shall not have a graven image, or worship, graven image, you shall not take the Lord's name in vain and you should keep the Sabbath day. The first four have to do with my relationship with God. The final six have to do with my relationship with people and that's what I want to focus on right now.

The final Commandments in the 10 Commandments. Let's go to commandment number five detected this chapter 20 verse 12 honor your father and mother, that your days may be long in the land which the Lord your God is giving you commandment number six you shall not murder.

Commandment number seven you shall not commit adultery commandment number eight you shall not steal commandment number nine you shall not bear Paul's witness against your neighbor or don't lie and finally the last commandment about the way I think this is the hardest of all 10 to keep predicates harder to keep then you should not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not take the Lord's name in vain. It's harder than all of because it's a matter of the heart. The title of this message is the heart of the problem was in the best the heart of the problem is the problem of the heart.

What is the final commandment here it is. You shall not covet.

Exodus 2017. Don't covet your neighbor's house or his wife or his manservant or maidservant, or ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor coveting is not simply desiring something we don't have that could just be admiring to covet is to be devoured by desire for something that is not yours.

It actually means to eagerly desire that which belongs to another or to said your heart on something the New Testament translates the Hebrew word for coveting what the word lost and it can be translated to pant after something camped out or something to think of a dog.

You know, panting after its food. You know you put food in a dog's dish. The dog wants to eat that food, you better not touch that food that's at dog food if it panting after I must have this thing. That thing must be mine. Remember the Lord of the rings of film series and there was a little creature called Gollum and he was obsessed with getting the ring from Frodo and he called during my shifts had to have the ring he was obsessed with the ring. That's a coveting is like you become obsessed with something you feel that you must have this thing heard about a Roman Catholic priest to her the confessions of some 2000 people. He said every imaginable sin was confessed, including adultery and even murder.

But this priest said I never heard one person admit to committing the sin of coveting I think that's because we don't really know what it is we don't understand how bad it can be out of coveting work will basically be eyes look at an object.

The mind admires it the will goes over to it in the body moves in to possess it. That's coveting bridge that you might admire your neighbor's new car and gone by one exactly like it. That's not coveting that's actually copying that may irritate him, but I don't think that's a sin, though my dog a little bit but coveting this different. It's when you admire your neighbor's car and then you say can I take it for a spin around the block and you never come back again. That's coveting likely that's also Grand Theft Auto. But the point of it is you've taken something that belongs to another.

I so would somebody else had. I decided I wanted that thing for my self no matter what it cost me or any body else that's coveting words and he can destroy your life reading of Judas who betrayed the Lord for 30 pieces of silver. First Timothy 610 says the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.

While some have coveted after, there's a word. While some of covet it after they veered from the faith and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

It's not a sin to want to be successful in your business and make a good living, but when you become obsessed with it when you're willing to do whatever it takes to get there when the most important thing to you in life is that thing instead of wanting to see The Lord coveting is turned into idolatry. Colossians 35 warns us and says covetousness is I Dollar Tree maybe one of the best examples of this is King David Mrs. amend was very successful. He was the King over Israel. He was loved by his people and he was on the grounds of his beautiful balance. Back in those days.

On the top of their policy with a little garden that walk around on never actually been to Israel and they have the city of David that they've unearthed and excavated and you can see the general area were David's policy wasn't so there at that elevated spot Dave is looking over his kingdom and he happened to see a beautiful woman named Bathsheba.

Ironically, taking a bath so you know you saw a woman bathing herself and that was something that obviously had an effect on him and he began to lust after her, so we should have just repented taken a cold shower and called it a day but instead he says I want the woman brought up to my chambers. They have sexual relations together. She gets pregnant and then instead of admitting this in the Lord. He tries to cover it up by bringing her husband back from battle to have relations with his wife and the husband name Uriah doesn't do what David wants him to do so. David effectively has him killed and then he marries Bathsheba to look at all of these things that happened. It started with coveting seemed something that belonged to someone else I should say someone that was the wife of another started there.

Then they gave way to adultery. And that gave way to murder and then he lied to cover it up.

He broke four commandments but it started with coveting our first parents in the garden of Eden, Adam and Eve. They were given the run of the garden. The Lord said you can eat of any tree of the garden but don't eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil seemed to her at the tree that they're not supposed to be by and the devil comes along and he says, is God really said what you think. He said why didn't you go ahead and eat of this fruit in the shows on the forbidden fruit that we don't know what it was.

Sometimes we will think when Adam and Eve ate the apple. The Bible never says he ate an apple. It was called forbidden fruit. I imaginable pulsated with flight had its own theme song.

Who knows, it was really appealing. The Bible says it was pleasant to look at with the eyes and desirable to make one wise.

So what were they doing, they were coveting they were wanting something that was not theirs. They took it. You know the rest of that story. Sin entered in to the human race so it starts here it starts with controlling our minds and shuttling our thoughts toward the Lord Mr. Greg Laurie will have the second half of this message just a moment.

So many listeners have commented on the help they received from these daily messages were administered often gets them through some dark hours. Sorry for the lot right right really not angry.

You love the Lord that I struggle with the type of survivor guilt.

Mildred and Terry and I are only 11 currently appearing hours before her cardiac arrest unitedly waiting for her 21st birthday 390 pounder on bed anything for help emergency reminders were able to get a little to the hospital where drastic measures complain because my brain that you not read the order was very clear about not wanting to live with meeting to anything we had to let her go. It's been five years and I think you can hear me weeping. I like that you never really get over it.

Get early the Lord will get me to the globe that robbed me of fully he got to bring her home. No more trials are just around the corner so I need to learn how to completely learn to take myself out of the equation crumpled on me.

I pray for you that you will continue to preach the importance of having to clean God when he like it or not.

May God continue to bless you and your family after great.

Thank you so much probably get you so starts like this. Knowing that this broadcast is helping. Would you like to share your story with pastor Greg: 1-866-871-1144.

Once again, 866-871-1144 were considering the 10 Commandments as pastor Greg brings his message today called the heart of the problem.

So in conclusion, have you broken any of these commitments have you committed adultery have you lusted after a man or a woman. Have you hated someone have used stolen.

Have you lied, have you coveted the answer is, of course you have liver restated. Of course we have. We've all broken these commandments God does not give us these commandments to make us righteous, but to show us how unrighteous we actually are. It's painful to have this searing white light of the Holy Spirit shine on an area of your life that you know needs to change is sort of like going to the dentist.

I don't know how many of you enjoy them to visit the dentist and by the way, I've a great dentist but I still don't like to go. I don't like drills and all that stuff but maybe you go for a checkup of red teeth cleaning and also the dental assistant comes in before that Dennis may become Zen in their checking around the 00 we have a little problem a doctor to come in from 00 know something is says yes I think there were going to have to do routine now now now now now echo no no you don't like the news but it's better than the alternative. So sometimes we have peen in our life and we say why the way have this pain if the teen of sin in your life you're experiencing the implications of sin. You don't want to just get rid of the pain you want to get rid of the problem that causes the pain right here is a problem. It sent again as I said earlier the heart of the problem is the problem of a heart. You can't control your heart. The Bible says the heart is deceitfully working above all things you can know it. Sometimes people say I'll just follow my heart. I'll do it. My heart tells me to do. I hope not because your heart to mislead you, but God can change the human heart, but I have to say to him. I know why I fall short. I know that I'm not good enough.

Some people say I live by the 10 Commandments that's all the religion I need and you'll say okay you know the 10 Commandments.

I do not, but I believe in then yeah the 10 Commandments again are given to drivers into the open arms of Jesus who died on the cross and took the penalty for every sin you and I have committed.

And then he rose again from the dead three days later and now he stands at the door of our heart. If you will, and he knocks and he says a full hear his voice and open the door he will come in, have you been trying to be a good person. Have you been trying to be a moral person.

Have you even tried to be a religious person and you fall short list and I'm not talking to you right now about religion I'm talking to you about our relationship with God through Jesus Christ of friendship with the Lord but is more than a friend. He becomes your father, he becomes your God, he becomes your Lord. He's your protector is your provider. All of those things and more, but he wants to enter into your life and show you. She is planned that he has for you, but you have to ask him in.

You know sometimes you hear it said all children of God. Well, actually that's not technically true, we are not all children of God know were all created by God were all loved by God with the way you become a child of God is when you are adopted into the family of God. That happens when you believe in Jesus Christ.

The Bible says, for as many as received him, he gave them the power to become children of God.

So if you want to know that you're a child of God. You must receive him.

You must ask Christ to come into your life as an illustration, let's say that I said I meant to give you my supercool dream Bible with all these extra ribbons. I mean look at it there's three ribbons there.

I'm in a give you this beautiful green Bible and you say I love the Bible I accepted and you reach out and you take the gift from me, you receive the gift that I've offered to even more the Lord to some of the give to you eternal life. I want to give to you the forgiveness of your sin. I want to come and live inside of you. Do you want this gift we say yes and you receive it is a hell by prayer the prayer you say Lord come into my life. I know I'm a center I know I broken the commandments. I know I fall short of your standards and I'm sorry for my sin and I want Jesus Christ to come in to my heart be my Savior and my Lord, would you like to do that right now in a moment him and lead you in a prayer that I would ask you if you want to know that you go to heaven when you die if you want your guild taken away if you want your sin forgiven, if you want to be ready for the return of Jesus. I want you to pray this prayer after me. Is it a great one. We need to pray this prayer after you because the Bible says whoever will call upon the name of the Lord will be say.

So that's what you're doing when you're praying your calling out to God, you're acknowledging your need and you're acknowledging that God has what you need in your accepting and receiving the gift that is offering you so if you want Jesus coming to your life if you want to go to heaven when you die if you want him to build a big hole inside of you pray this prayer after me right now. Just pray these words.

If you would, Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner but I know that you are the Savior who died on the cross for my sin and rose again from the dead three days later without Jesus. I turn from that sin that I choose to follow you from this moment forward is my Savior, my Lord is my God, my friend in Jesus name I pray for Pastor Greg Laurie those were making a change today, in their relationship with God.

And if you just prayed with Pastor Greg and asked Jesus to be your Savior would like to follow-up with you by sending a free resource.

It's our new believers] will send it to you to help you begin to live this new life. Just ask for it when you write a new beginning. Box 4000, Riverside, CA 92514 or call us at 1-800-821-3300 where here to take your call around-the-clock, seven days a week. So again, dial 1-800-821-3300 or just go online to harvest.org and click know God as it say what address you can get an instant replay of today's message of study called the heart of the problem. Again, go to harvest.org or call us for a CD copy, 1-800-821-3300. That's a 24 hour phone number 1-800-821-3300 and then were so pleased to mention the pastor Greg's new film, a rush of hope.

Watched by over 1.8 million people over Labor Day is now on DVD by popular demand.

It's a powerful presentation of the gospel, along with some outstanding music for four that's working in country Mercy me and Jeremy All featured in a rush of hope and pastor Greg you also highlight moving moments of several recent films important films, you know that's right Dave, I don't just mean showing film clips I've written a narrative taking what I think are key moments from three films produced by the Erwin brothers John and Andy Irwin and the films are Woodlawn. I can only imagine and I still believe that present the gospel in a compelling artistic and powerful way and or some other resources included with this rush of hope DVD including a booklet that I wrote called life's most important questions answered and a special piece that we wrote, telling you how you can host a watch party you can show this film in your house are in your backyard or somewhere else as an outreach to your neighborhood, your community so many ways you can use it. So for whatever you can send us financially rush to your own copy of a rush of hope so. Thanks in advance and God bless you. Your generous donation couldn't come in a more strategic time.

It really will help us change lives as we move into 20, 21, also with the bonus resource were sending along with the DVD will include a digital download code so you can download the film to your computer or smart phone or tablet.

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