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Coveting

DarkHorseRising

DarkHorseRising

Member
One (or two, depending on who you ask) of the ten commandments is that you shall not covet things that belong to your neighbor.

What are we as a Christian community doing to prevent and denounce people from coveting things? In a world where even our politicians covet things, it's clear that there is a very organized campaign in society to promote coveting. As some examples:


- The media focuses on it despite coveters being small percentage of the population. There's even been short video clips spliced in between television shows, encouraging people to covet things including their neighbor's money or other goods that their neighbor may have.

- John Edwards, among many other high-profile politicians, coveted his neighbor's wife. Same with Clinton. Probably more that we don't even know about

- Coveters have an agenda. Despite small numbers, they appear to be louder than other groups


So who will stand with me in denouncing this covetous conspiracy? We need to stand united against those who would teach our children it is okay to covet... before you know it, we might end up with closet coveters in our own churches. Perhaps it has already started! How do you know the person watching your child in the church nursery doesn't go home and covet your oxen all day long?
 
covetousness: an envious eagerness to possess something. Marked by extreme desire to acquire or possess:

We are all guilty of this to some degree or another, and it's something we deal with every day. The media is also very good at playing this up, pushing our buttons, whispering in our ear; "your life would be better if you had thissssss"

Personally I teach my own kids about this and how the world is really run largely on this very sin. Covetousness is economics 101. It is the demand part of supply and demand, but I suppose it covers supply as well. as for the church? Well that depends on what "church" we are talking about.

There are many churches today run by the devil himself and disguised as Christian churches who preach covetousness every Sunday and say it's not only OK, but in fact God endorses it as a "blessing", and that he wants you to have the things you desire.

Shall I list some of those preachers and churches?
 
Danus said:
covetousness: an envious eagerness to possess something. Marked by extreme desire to acquire or possess:

We are all guilty of this to some degree or another, and it's something we deal with every day. The media is also very good at playing this up, pushing our buttons, whispering in our ear; "your life would be better if you had thissssss"

Personally I teach my own kids about this and how the world is really run largely on this very sin. Covetousness is economics 101. It is the demand part of supply and demand, but I suppose it covers supply as well. as for the church? Well that depends on what "church" we are talking about.

There are many churches today run by the devil himself and disguised as Christian churches who preach covetousness every Sunday and say it's not only OK, but in fact God endorses it as a "blessing", and that he wants you to have the things you desire.

Shall I list some of those preachers and churches?
Click to expand...
Sure, but only if you start another topic. ;)
 
Vic C. said:
Sure, but only if you start another topic. ;)
Click to expand...

That's OK, I don't want want to start a new topic, but the OP did asked a good question; What are we as a Christian community doing to prevent and denounce people from coveting things?

I'd say very little if you look at pop-Christianity today, and by pop-Christianity, I'm speaking on the trendy preaching shows and cult personalities we are seeing more and more of, with their message blatantly saying that God wants us to have what we want to have. They have turned "coveting" into God's blessing.

They fill up stadiums with people every week, who are looking for a God who will fulfill "THEIR" every desire and wish; a God that will simply comply with them, and what they have decided is their need.

We have men and women today who are saying they are preachers of the word speaking on this very topic of covetous saying, not only is it OK, but that God wants you to have what you want, and they say that for him to do that you have to first give; you have to invest in God then he will bring you more. More what? Oh' more money and magical health, new car, house....whatever you "NEED"....and few Christians speak out against this.

In fact I'd say there are many churches who have adopted bits of the same message when it comes time to pass the plate. after all; "you can'y out GIVE God" True, true.

The ten commandments are a great yard stick to measure what is good and right by.
1. No other Gods
2. No graven images
3. Honor his name
4. Remember the Sabbath
5. Honor your parents
6. Don't kill
7. No adultery
8. Don't steal
9. No false witness
10. No coveting

We could write books on each of these, but the 10th commandment regarding coveting seems almost lost today. It is about having your own desires and working to that end rather than God.

Why does God want us not to covet? because it takes us away from him. It places our trust in us, and what we do rather than in Him and what he does. Not only as the OP points out, are we bombarded by the world to indulge in our own desires, we are getting messages today from so called Christianity that says it's OK, because God wants us to be "happy".

I've posted on this site before, the houses, jets, cars and blatant excesses from WOF teachers before, and much of the response has been that those are only blessings from God onto those preachers; and who am I to say otherwise? I've been told from members on this site that they know that God does in fact bless them in this way when they give a dollar in "FAITH", they get back $2, and that it really does work. :sad

Blessings......I could go get myself a cold drink of water right now if I want. I could put ice in it, and right now I would not consider it much of anything like a blessing. I could do the same thing after mowing the lawn and value it more, but if i'd been in the desert for day's parched and thirsty and I come upon the same thing, either by someone or just there for the taking, I'd fall on my knees and give thanks to God for it.

That is how we should view of relationship with God; not something we get out of a tap when we want it, but something we get from him when we truly need it.
 
DarkHorseRising said:
One (or two, depending on who you ask) of the ten commandments is that you shall not covet things that belong to your neighbor.

What are we as a Christian community doing to prevent and denounce people from coveting things? In a world where even our politicians covet things, it's clear that there is a very organized campaign in society to promote coveting. As some examples:


- The media focuses on it despite coveters being small percentage of the population. There's even been short video clips spliced in between television shows, encouraging people to covet things including their neighbor's money or other goods that their neighbor may have.

- John Edwards, among many other high-profile politicians, coveted his neighbor's wife. Same with Clinton. Probably more that we don't even know about

- Coveters have an agenda. Despite small numbers, they appear to be louder than other groups


So who will stand with me in denouncing this covetous conspiracy? We need to stand united against those who would teach our children it is okay to covet... before you know it, we might end up with closet coveters in our own churches. Perhaps it has already started! How do you know the person watching your child in the church nursery doesn't go home and covet your oxen all day long?
Click to expand...


Lust and Coveting, are evil twins connected at the heart.
Advertising, in case you didnt know it is designed to get you to lust and covet.
Market research is designed to find the best way to create exactly the right high def commercial to cause you to lust for that new Ford Camaro that you coveted before you went out and bought it..
The position of products in a department store is designed to get you to lust to covet.
Very few "new things" you have ever purchased for your entertainment, were not purchased because you coveted/lusted for them.

Do you have a new car/late model or a nice big LCD Flatscreen or a fine Apple product such as an Iphone, Ipad, or Imac , or Laptop?
Why did you have to have it?
For your work????:thumbsup;)

So, in this Lust of the Eyes world, the fact of life is that you are going to want some stuff,...God knows this,.... and the key is not to let this become your life.
You have to understand and recognize the line there and make sure you dont cross it, even it this means not spending your house payment on that hot tub you can "flex pay" from the Home Shopping Network;)




K
 
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Though I feel you Dark, and appreciate the message, I gotta wonder, what country are you looking at? Because when I look at the country I live in I see a sea of coveting. Every advertisement on TV seems to beckon for you to covet.

'GET GOLD!'
'Own this wicked awesome car that you cannot afford nor do you even need!'
'Buy this and we will give you a second gift for just the low price of 5.99 shipping handling!'
'Your lawnmower is inferior to your neighbor's, you had better sabotage his lawn and then get an even better mower!'

I'm just as bad as anyone else! My heart tries to hide the truth from me, but I know I'm coveting the things of others. 'Man if only I had won that lottery (which I didn't play) instead of him! I'd do so much goood!!!' or 'Why can't I have rich parents who can buy me my own car not once, but twice!? I am so jealous!' or 'I wish I had that guy's computer, than I could play video games with my friends.'

The reason it isn't talked about is two-fold. The first part, as danus says is because the loud voices in the room all rely on people's desire for what isn't theirs in order to get large audiences and to make huge sums of money even though they are entirely 'non-profit'.

And the second reason is the same reason we don't address so many things that are wrong and very widespread in the world; we christians don't like to point out and condemn things that we do or have done.

But we should. We should go and tell people that coveting is wrong, but not only that it is wrong, but that we are also offenders of that law. You see the key here is, and I feel many Christians do not understand this key difference, that as a Christian we break sins periodically, but we do not dwell in a state of habitual sin. We cannot and will not be perfect beings until we see Christ beyond that glorious river, and until then we will break down and sin from time to time, some more than others, some sins more often than others, but we will always get back up and praise God for the help up and praise God for the forgiveness that He grants us through His awesome grace.

"I COVET THAT CAR, AND THAT GUY'S WIFE, AND THAT HUGE TV! But darn it, that isn't right! Wanting other people's stuff isn't right! Heck, wanting anything but the love of Jesus and to glorify His name isn't right! Anything I get is because God loves me so much and because He wishes to magnify His name and give me even greater cause to glorify His name!"

And as I sit here, about to hit the submit button, it occurs to me that even TV shows make us covet. Top gear comes to mind, as it is a show I watch. They show wicked cars that I can never own, but they put a desire into my heart that I may have them. That isn't right, thats coveting. The only desire in my heart should be Christ.
 
Our very society teaches us the practice of coveting. They seek to entice us with a variety of things we can have...can you say advertising?

We also live in an extremely rich environment who live in the West.

Think about the choices in rural Africa. "Will that be wet straw or dry straw????" or..."Get a load of those mud floors!!!"


So we must keep in mind that where we live is NOT indicative of where most people live. So we don't need to keep up with the Jone's.
 
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