TOO MUCH WANT

PASTOR RYAN LADEN – DEVOTIONALS

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For those that have been following along with our study of the ten commandments, we finally made it to the last command as heard in Exodus 20:17, “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.” (NIV11) We are going to spend some time on the big ideas found within the concept of coveting over the course of the next few devotionals. 

Language

For today, we are going to look at the basics of the command, starting with the language used in this prohibition. The two Hebrew words that make up this command are those of “Lo ta-chamad” (לֹ֥א תַחְמֹ֖ד). 

“Lo,” the first of those two words, carries the meaning of an extreme prohibition. Meaning, under no circumstances should you ever…

“ta-chamad, or chama,” carries the meaning that we translate into the idea of covetousness. 

Distortion

As with every other form of sin and rebellion against God, the emotion at the heart of covetousness was and is a gift from God that has subsequently been distorted by our sinful flesh and hungry world. 

The root of the word we see being used here also carries the meaning of being pleasing and beautiful in our sight. It is only a short hop from seeing the beauty in someone or something to allowing that appreciation to turn into a form of hunger or lust. 

This idea of God honoring appreciation can be heard in Psalms 19:10, “They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the honeycomb.” (NIV11) The same term used to refer to coveting can also be used to describe how something can be good and pleasing. 

First Act

But as we can see in the following passage, this same appreciation of something pleasing and beautiful can lead us into places of rebellion and sin.

6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. (Genesis 3:6 NIV11)

This is the first recorded act of coveting. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil was seen as something to be appreciated for its beauty. But this appreciation did not last long in the hearts of the first man and woman. They quickly distorted God honoring appreciation into personal gain.

Not Ours

To covet is to want what is not ours and what the Lord has not provided. We can appreciate another person’s beauty, but when we set our eyes on that person in hopes of possessing them and acting on our desires for them, we cross over into the sin of lust and covetousness. 

We can enjoy the beauty of a new car or house but when we replace this natural enjoyment with a hunger to possess that which is out of reach for us, it leads us to be dissatisfied with the life that the Lord has currently provided. We stray into coveting. 

Values

Remember this, the Lord wants us to mirror what we see in his heart and learn of his values. Each of the commandments teaches us another piece of the heart of God, shows us another example of a principle that the Lord holds to be true and valuable. 

As those who are called by his name, we ought to see this commandment as proof that the Lord cares tremendously about who we are on the inside, in our hearts. God cares about what desires abound in our hearts because he knows that to allow our desires to win would only lead us into more and more pain. 

Prayer

Lord Jesus Christ, we thank you for giving us the capacity to love and to appreciate beauty. With this gift, we have the freedom to observe your creation and reflect its glory back to you. But with this gift, I have allowed my desire for others, for things, for advancement, for more and more treasure and recognition to lead me into places of coveting. Help me see these areas of need and move in me today to help me turn away from wanting more than what you have provided. 

In Christ, 

Ryan Laden

PASTOR RYAN LADEN

Works at MTN. CHURCH

Former Senior pastor at Warnbro Community Church

Studies at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary

Studied at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary

Studied at Baylor University

Studied at Texas Tech University

Went to Castle Hills First Baptist

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