Covetousness
Central Thought: Take heed, and beware of covetousness.
Hymn: “My Hope Is Built On Nothing Else”
Text: 1 Kings 21:1-16; Luke 12:13-15; 2 Timothy 3:1-2
This present world system is class conscious. Everyone is driven by various desires, to get the most of the world either legitimately or illegitimately. While this is the spirit of the age, 2 Timothy 3:1-3, the Christian is warned against covetousness, and is expected to live their life daily faithfully trusting the Lord. The sin of covetousness has permeated every facet of our society, government/offices, business/professions and religious circles. The Scriptures are replete with people who fell for this and the dare consequences that befell them. Hence every believer should strive to resist and overcome the spirit of covetousness.
Lesson Objectives:
- To explain the word “covetousness”.
- To identify the things people covet.
- To give example of characters in the Bible who were covetous and how they ended.
- To identify the consequences of living a covetous life
- Discuss how the present day believer can overcome the spirit of covetousness.
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What is covetousness?
The word “covetousness” is form the verb “to covet” and the Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary explains it to mean “to want something very much, especially something that belongs to someone else”. Thus, covetousness means having a strong desire for the things that other people have. In the Scriptures, this attitude of the heart is labelled as sin. It is the tenth commandment in the Mosaic Law, Exodus 20:17. It is a display of evil heart desires, Psalm 10:3.
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What are the things people covet?
From Exodus 20:17, it is clear that virtually every earthly resources has the propensity to be coveted by man, hence, man is warned against it. They include neighbor’s houses, wives, domestic servants and animals, their land, etc., Deuteronomy 5:21. In our modern work, things like cars, clothes, position, electronics, and businesses can be coveted. However natural admiration of something good, if not allowed to agitate the heart, does not translate to covetousness. The sin of covetousness is evident when someone deliberately decides to dispossess another person of his rightful belonging without his/her consent, 1 Kings 21:17-19.
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Why is a covetous spirit on the rise today? 2 Timothy 3:1-2
The upsurge in the operation of the spirit of covetousness is consistent with end-time prophecy. Satan is fighting his last battle to lead man to hell even, through the subtle sin of covetousness. The spirit of greed sets in when one loses heavenly focus. Some believers today are not living with eternity in view. Thus, to get the most of life, they go into inordinate accumulation of wealth, Philippians 3:17-20. The change in societal value in our world today tends to promote a covetous spirt among men. Success in life is not measured by the amount of riches that people have, irrespective of how the wealth was made. The statement of the Lord Jesus remains an incontrovertible truth, “for a man’s life consists not in the abundance of things which he possesses”, Luke 12:15b.
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Using the following examples, discuss the consequences of covetousness.
-Lot and his wife:
In Genesis13:10-13, it was covetousness that made Lot to choose the well-watered plain of Jordan first before his uncle, Abraham, who was far older. In the process, he found himself in an ungodly and wicked society. He never lived a happy life among them, 2 Peter 2:6-8. In fact, Lot and his family were at a time captives of war when the neighboring communities invaded Sodom and Gomorrah where they dwelt, Genesis 14:11-12
-Balaam, 2 Peter 2:14-16
Balaam, the son of Beor, a controversial prophet, was hired by the king of Moab, Balak to curse the children of Israel, Numbers 22:6, with an enticing “reward of divination”. He was forbidden by God to curse the children of Israel, Numbers 22:12. However, Balaam could not resist the temptation to go to Moab but loved the wages of unrighteousness hence God used his own donkey to rebuke him.
-Achan, Joshua 7:21, 25
Achan, an Israelite solder, coveted a very attractive Babylonian garment, silver and gold, and took them from the battle field. This was an act of disobedience to God’s instruction not to take any spoil from the war with Ai. Apart from Israel recording heavy casualties in war, Achan, his wife and children were killed and buried along with all their earthly possessions.
-Ahab, 1 Kings 21:17-19
Ahab, king of Israel so coveted his subject Naboth’s vineyard the he lost his peace. Naboth was conspired against and killed, and his vineyard taken over by king Ahab. As a punishment for his sin of covetousness, he died in battle, and the wife Jezebel, the mastermind of Naboth’s death, was violently killed in a palace coup.
-Gehazi, 2 Kings 5:20-27
Gehazi was Elisha’s servant. He coveted Naaman’s precious gift which his master had earlier declined to accept. He went for it without his master’s permission. As a consequence, he was afflicted with Naaman’s leprosy for life.
-Judas Iscariot, Matthew 26:14-16, 27:5
Judas Iscariot was one of the twelve disciples of Jesus Christ. He was so overwhelmed with the spirit of covetousness that he betrayed his Master with a sinful reward of thirty pieces of silver. He suffered from depression and committed suicide.
5a. Read 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 and Ephesians 5:5 and identify the eternal consequence of a covetous spirit/life.
Covetousness is sin. Every sin has its consequence. The above verses of Scripture, clearly states that the covetous will never inherit the Kingdom of God. The covetous will inevitably earn their place in the lake of fire that burns with fire and brimstone, which is called the second death.
5b. How can the believer resist and overcome the sin of covetousness? Proverbs 3:5-6; Matthew 6:33; Hebrews 13:5-6
The sin of covetousness is a very subtle one that some believers have been implicated in. To avert it, Christians should constantly judge the motives of their actions. Believers should learn to be content with what they have, while still believing God for more of His blessings, Hebrews 13:5-6. They should also continually trust the Lord as their source of supply, Matthew 6:33; Philippians 4:19. Believers should always remember that, “…a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things he possesseth”, Luke 12:15. We should always remind ourselves that we brought nothing into this world and it is certain we will not remove a pin out of it.
Finally we should remind ourselves that all our actions on earth will be judged, hence we should live with eternity in view.
Daily Living Application:
The Christian must live a life devoid of covetousness. Our God is the creator of all things. He knows our needs and He can meet us at every point of our need. Therefore, we should be content with that which we have, and believe God to meet our needs as they arise.
Memory Verse:
Luke 12:15 – “Take heed, and beware of covetousness for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.”