IDEA: Coveting is a sin against our neighbor. TEXT: "You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor's" (Exodus 20:17).
"Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. For the commandments, 'You shall not commit adultery,' 'You shall not murder,' 'You shall not steal,' 'You shall not bear false witness,' 'You shall not covet,' and if there is any other commandment, are all summed up in this saying, namely, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law" (Romans 13:8-10).
PURPOSE: To help listeners understand why covetousness not only hurts them but hurts those who are close to them.
C. S. Lewis once observed that he had no time for simplicity this side of profundity, but he would give a great deal for the simplicity on the other side of profundity. What do you think he meant by that?
I. The whole law is summed up in two statements: You should love God and love your neighbor as yourself.
Think of all the things the law teaches. Do you think those two simple statements sum it up?
If that's so profound, why didn't God give those two statements and save us a lot of time reading the Bible?
Unless you appreciate the vast responsibilities we have that are given in the law, you have no idea of what it means to really love your neighbor. It's a profound principle that needs the specifics to show you its profundity.
II. In Romans 13:8-10, Paul brings the principles and the particulars together.
Look at the commandments that Paul lists and tell me how, if you love your neighbor, you fulfill the command.
You shall not commit adultery.
You shall not murder.
You shall not steal.
You shall not bear false witness.
Paul says, "You shall not covet." How does coveting hurt my neighbor? Why is it a lack of love for my neighbor to covet?
We need to take that command seriously because not only can it hurt us, but it affects the relationship we have with others.