Coveting, Part 2

Today on Fellowship in the Word, Pastor Bill Gebhardt challenges you to become a fully functioning follower of Jesus Christ.

This is a good test for us. Just one verse. He says it in verse 15. He says, rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep.

That's a pretty short verse. But here's a good question that helps you with covening. Do you celebrate other people's success? Do you celebrate it when other people succeed, people you know? Do you celebrate with them? Do you rejoice with those who rejoice?

You see, you have to ask yourself that. Thank you for joining us today on this edition of Fellowship in the Word with Pastor Bill Gebhardt. Fellowship in the Word is the radio ministry of Fellowship Bible Church located in Metairie, Louisiana.

Let's join Pastor Bill Gebhardt now as once again he shows us how God's word meets our world. You know, when you were young and you know, it's always an interesting thing, but you had a totally different emotional reaction to the first of anything. Remember when you got your like my first car? There's never been a car quite like that. That was the first car. Now, the reason was it meant you were growing up and it meant you had freedom. But the other idea is my last car infinitely better than my first car in every measurable way.

The joy lasted a very short time. It becomes your car. Your house is your house, your clothes are your clothes. In other words, when you try to covet other stuff, you find the law of diminishing returns taking place. It doesn't last for long. What you thought would make you feel so happy only keeps you happy for a short time.

And now you're out the cupboard for something even more than that. He said that's what ends up happening when we compare ourselves with ourselves. In First Corinthians, for Paul said to me, it's a very small thing that I'd be examined by you or by any human court. He said, I don't even examine myself. I'm conscious of nothing against myself.

He said, yet I'm not acquitted. But the one who examines me is the Lord. Paul says the only person I care about who really examines my life to see whether it's worthy is the Lord.

He said, I don't even examine myself because I'm biased to myself. He said, I'll just let that up to the Lord. That's why Paul doesn't covet.

Where does this coveting come from? Turn with me to James Chapter three. James Chapter three. In verse 13.

Notice what he says. He said, Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show by his good behavior, his deeds and gentleness of wisdom. He said, But if you have bitter jealousy or selfish ambition in your heart. Do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth. This idea of the jealousy. And he says the ambition goes right with envy, coveting. He said, If you have that in your heart, he says, Do not be arrogant.

So lie against the truth. This wisdom is not that which comes down from above. It's earthly. It's natural. It's demonic. So where's my coveting spirit come from? He said, It doesn't come from heaven. It doesn't come from God. He said, It's earthly. It's natural.

And then he even goes one step further. It's demonic. By the way, if you think about it, what did Satan want? He coveted the position of God. I will be like the Most High.

I covet that. He didn't accept the graciousness of God. He said, For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing.

He says, Whenever you are an envying, coveting, jealous person, you have disorder in your life, in all your relationships. You'll never have peace. You'll never have joy.

You'll never have hope. And it certainly doesn't come from God at all. I guess the question would be, What pushes your envy button? You see, what is it that you envy? What is it that you covet that you want in your life? I mean, some of us are so shallow, it's just more stuff.

If I just had a little more stuff, just more stuff. But a lot of us is a lot of different things. It's relationships. It's all kinds of things that we covet what we don't have. It's an interesting thing. You see, the scripture says, Stop exposing yourself 24-7 to the very things that make you covet.

You need to do that. But there's another thing the scripture said that's very important. Go with me to Romans chapter 12 and verse 15 now. Romans 12 and verse 15.

This is a good test for us. Just one verse. He says it in verse 15. He says, Rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep.

That's a pretty short verse. But here's a good question that helps you with coveting. Do you celebrate other people's success? Do you celebrate it when other people succeed, people you know? Do you celebrate with them? Do you rejoice with those who rejoice? You see, you have to ask yourself that. Have you ever noticed sometimes, and I'm not saying it applies to you in all situations, but in any situation, have you ever find yourself in a situation where you hear some bad news about somebody and you never admit it to anybody, but you kind of feel good about it?

When is that? See, that's comparing myself and my life. Somebody else has to do poorly for me to feel better about myself.

That's certainly not of the Lord. He said you need to rejoice with those who rejoice. You see, the whole idea is I don't want my life to be about me. That's the heart of envy and coveting. My life's only about me.

If that's how you view your life, I can almost promise you you will not be happy. Maybe I can define it this way. Envy is resenting God's goodness in other people's lives and ignoring God's goodness in your own life. Envy is resenting God's goodness in other people's lives and ignoring God's goodness in your own life.

See, that has an enormous effect. It's an attitude that you have. Turn with me to Proverbs chapter 15. Proverbs in the Old Testament, chapter 15 and verse 15. This will speak, by the way, to your nature. And if you don't believe this about yourself, you might want to ask somebody else, like a spouse or a child or a good friend, because my experience has been there's a couple different kinds of people in the world and they're both reflected in this verse. Proverbs 15 and verse 15.

Solomon writes this. He said, all the days of the afflicted are bad, but a cheerful heart has a continual feast. Now, the bad part of that is the word afflicted. I don't think that's a great word. The Hebrew word is ani, and normally ani means despondent.

So let me read it that way. All the days of the despondent are bad, but a cheerful heart has a continual feast. You know the despondent. Life stinks. My life stinks. Our lives stink. The whole world stinks out there. It's a terrible day.

Looks like rain. It's bad. I mean, it's just bad. By the way, if that's your attitude in your life, you will find enough to be despondent every single day of it. If you want to look for what's bad in people's lives, you can be unhappy. Every day of your life you can be unhappy. You can be unhappy in your marriage. You can be unhappy with your kids.

You can hate your job. You can find it every day, and that's what Solomon is saying here. He says all the days of the despondent are bad. It's just bad days. He said, but a cheerful heart has a continual feast. It's a party. Notice a cheerful heart. The cheerful heart sees it in a completely different kind of way.

The cheerful heart sees the goodness of God everywhere, in all kinds of people's lives, celebrating with people, happy for people. It's an amazing thing. That's what can happen to us. That's how we control our attitude. But it's easy to be despondent.

You see, you can find something good in everything. How about this one? I hate my stupid car. I just hate it.

It's not really reliable. A 78 Ford Pinto, nobody seems to think too much of them. Those kinds of things. But think about it this way. 8% of the people in the world have a car. 8%.

92% of the people in our world do not have a car. Now you have a choice. You want to be thankful or you want to be despondent. You see, that's your choice.

Now you know how bad that can bet. Not only do we have cars, but then you see the new models every year and you think, oh boy, mine's old now. Look at that.

They have a new model. Put us right back on this whole idea of coveting something else. How about this one? My house is too small. My house is too old.

That's really hot right now, by the way. My house is so 80s. Okay, when your house is 80s, it's something you should be ashamed of. Okay, you should be ashamed. Your kitchen and bathrooms look like they're from the 80s. You should be ashamed. 50% of all the people in the world live in a place where there's no indoor plumbing.

50%. So what are you ashamed of? What bothers you?

What do you covet for something more and something new? You can see how this works. You can see the goodness of God or you can complain about anything and be as despondent as you like. I even hear people say, you know, I'm just so busy, I'm so busy. I have, my goodness, I have to work and take care of the house and then I have kids and I have soccer practice and ballet and then they have piano lessons and they have all this stuff. Instead of saying, wow, am I blessed with relationships or what?

God has put significant people in my life to do so many wonderful and different things. It's all matter of perspective. So let's stop coveting and entering what other people appear to have.

Let's kill the comparison idea. Let's rejoice with those who rejoice. Let's cultivate gratitude because Christ is all we need. That's what we should pursue with all our heart because only he is going to feel, as Blaise Pascal said, that God-shaped vacuum in your soul.

He's the only one that's going to give you contentment and I'm going to give you one more good reason. If you don't, you can expect a disciplining hand of the Lord. I want to go lastly to Numbers chapter 11. Numbers chapter 11. Simply to say this, God hates the idea that we covet and envy other stuff.

You have to understand God sees it as a personal insult and that his provisions are not enough for you. This is in three quick Acts. Verse 4 to verse 10, Act 1. They covet what they don't have. The rabble who were among them had great greedy desires. The rabble, he says, who were among them had greedy desires.

That word rabble is an interesting word. It says mixed multitude, I think, in the New International Version. But it means they had mixed marriages, not like you and I think. Never in the Bible will the Bible ever condemn mixed marriage on bases of race.

The Bible does condemn mixed marriage on the bases of faith. And that's what they had. They married Egyptians and it caused them trouble. And it says, and also the sons of Israel wept again and said, who will give us meat? Now they're coveting. What do we want? We just want meat. We remember the fish which we used to eat in Egypt and the cucumbers and the melons and the leeks and the onions and the garlic. See, that's what happens whenever you covet. It's an astounding thing when you think about it from that point of view.

They have what I would call selective memory. Remember how great it was? Remember that?

Cucumbers, melons. Wait, wait, how about this? Slave for 400 years. You were slaves.

You were owned by other people. No, we never mentioned that. We missed the meat. There's no evidence by the way the Egyptians ever fed their slaves well at all. In their case, it's really sad. But just like you and I, you have a selective memory.

You remember only what you want to. It says, but now our appetite is gone. There is nothing at all to look at except this manna.

Let's see, God is supernaturally providing two and a half million people food for every day of their lives. Now the manna was like a coriander seed and its appearance was like that of bedelium, which means pearl-like. God sustained them supernaturally every day in the wilderness.

They said that's all we have. The people would go about and gather it and grind it in between two millstones and beat it in its mortar and boil it in a pot and make cakes with it. And its taste was the taste of cakes baked with oil.

And when the dew fell on the camp at night, the manna would also fall on it. We just want meat. I just want more. I want something else. Now Moses heard the people weeping throughout their families and each man at the doorway of his tent.

Imagine that. Two and a half million people laying in their tents crying. We want meat.

We want meat. Moses is hearing this. But it says also there, and the anger of the Lord was kindled greatly. He is very upset. He has given them a tremendous provision and notice what they're doing. They want something else.

Wow. Now we move to Act 2. And in Act 2, whenever you covet something, God may do this for you. He may give you exactly what you want.

And that's what He does. First of all, listen to Moses. Moses said to the Lord, Why have you been so hard on your servant? Why have I not found favor in your sight that you have laid the burden of all these people and me? Come on, God. Why do I have to lead them?

It gets worse. Was it I who conceived all these people? Was it I who brought them forth that you should say to me, Carry them in your bosom as a nurse carries a nursing infant to the land which I swore to your fathers? Where am I going to get that meat to give all these people? He said, For they weep before me, saying, Give us meat that we may eat. I alone am not able to carry all these people.

It's too burdensome for me. And now watch what he says. So if you're going to deal thus with me, please kill me at once. You've got to love that. He said, If I have found favor in your sight, do not let me see my own righteousness. Look, I know I shouldn't feel this way, but I hate these people. I just can't stand them anymore.

All they do is drag me down a wine and whine about what they don't have. So what the Lord ended up saying to him was he said, Look, we'll put other men in charge. You won't have to do it for yourself. We'll make it even better for them. Now, God then speaks in verse 19.

God says, You shall eat not one day nor two days nor five days nor 10 days nor 20 days, but a whole month until it comes out your nostrils and becomes loathsome to you, because you have rejected the Lord who is among you and you have wept before him, saying, Why did we ever leave Egypt? Notice God's view. You want it, you're going to get it. If that's what you want, that's exactly, he said, what I'm going to give you to have.

You're going to get all that you could possibly want. Act Chapter three, notice Act three, the consequence, verse 31. Now they went forth for a win from the Lord and it brought quail from the sea. And they let them fall beside the camp about a day's journey on this side and a day's journey on the other side. He said all around the camp, it was about two cubits deep on the surface of the ground. They had quail this deep for about 10 miles.

Now remember, this is before refrigeration. You've got quail this deep. You want quail, there you go. All the quail you could possibly admit, but watch these people. The people spent all day and all night and all the next day and they gathered the quail. He who gathered the least gathered 10 homers, 60 bushels. That's the person who did the least, got 60 bushels of quail.

There's no refrigeration, but now you have 60 bushes. And they spread them out for themselves all around the camp. Look at all the quail we got.

I got everything I could possibly want here. While the meat was still between their teeth, before it was chewed, the anger of the Lord was kindled against the people and the Lord struck the people with a severe plague. And so the name of the place was called Gibroth Hatavah, which means graves of the cravers. They died. They got all the meat they could possibly want, but they died in huge numbers.

And it says that from Gibroth Hatavah, the people were sent out to Hazeroth and there they remained at Hazeroth. The consequence was they got exactly what they wanted. You see, when you're a covening type person and a believer, God may give you what you want. You want more, He may give you more.

But I'm going to tell you something. Go ahead and get the more, but I'm going to tell you, you will not be satisfied. If more is what you want, you will always want more, no matter what you get. You can't stop. The covening heart is, God, I don't really want your provision.

I want more than what you provide. That's what a covening is. That's why it's so personal to God. I'm going to take care of you. Now, how God takes care of each of us, that's up to God. All of us have different kinds of wealth. Some of us are financially wealthier than others. Some of us have more relationships than others. Some of us have better health than others.

That's up to God. But God says, my provision for you is enough. Paul said, look, that's why I've learned a secret of contentment. Because I've had wealth and I've had poverty.

I've been in the palace and I've been in prison. You see, I've had relationships and lost relationships and all that, I'm still content. Because my contentment comes to Christ. Let me close by asking you three questions. Only you can answer them in your own heart. One, am I a covetous person? Do you covet? You see, do you spend your time thinking about what you might have and spending time thinking about what other people have? Do you covet things? Secondly, am I reaping the consequences of my covetous lifestyle?

What do you mean by that? Does your life lack joy and peace and hope? You see, are you kind of miserable and despondent?

It may be because you covet. And lastly, am I willing to repent? Am I willing to stop comparing myself to others? Am I willing to nurture and cultivate gratitude in my lives? Am I willing to learn the secret of contentment? Am I willing to say as Paul, I can do all things through him who strengthens me?

Let's pray. Father, thank you for our time together and I pray for those who struggle in this area. We live in a day and age where we are inundated with the obsession of more, more of everything we could possibly have. We pray, Father, that we each seek out our own heart and ask ourselves, am I the kind of person that's coveting for something more in my life? Has it really hamstrung my spiritual growth? And has it made me deny the goodness that you have in my life, all the provisions as my good Father that you have given each and every one of us?

Has it made me thankless? This we pray in Jesus' name. Amen. At that website, you will find not only today's broadcast, but also many of our previous audio programs as well. At Fellowship in the Word, we are thankful for those who financially support our ministry and make this broadcast possible. We ask all of our listeners to prayerfully consider how you might help this radio ministry continue its broadcast on this radio station by supporting us monthly or with just a one-time gift. Support for our ministry can be sent to Fellowship in the Word, 4600 Clearview Parkway, Metairie, Louisiana 7006. If you would be interested in hearing today's message in its original format, that is as a sermon that Pastor Bill delivered during a Sunday morning service at Fellowship Bible Church, then you should visit our website, fbcnola.org. That's F-B-C-N-O-L-A dot O-R-G. At our website, you will find hundreds of Pastor Bill's sermons. You can browse through our sermon archives to find the sermon series you are looking for, or you can search by title. Once you find the message you are looking for, you can listen online, or if you prefer, you can download the sermon and listen at your own convenience. And remember, you can do all of this absolutely free of charge. Once again, our website is fbcnola.org. For Pastor Bill Gebhardt, I'm Jason Gebhardt, thanking you for listening to Fellowship in the Word.