Loving God With Our Desires

Minister:
Date: AM
Text: Galatians 5:16,24; Lord's Day 44
  1. The description.
    1. To "covet" is to judge something to be desirable, and then to long for it in order to possess it.
      1. It is a natural activity for a creature and it is not in itself sinful.
      2. After the fall into sin, coveting can be either right or wrong.
    2. Coveting is wrong and sinful when ...
      1. When what we desire does not harmonize with seeking the highest Good.
      2. When we continue to desire a good thing which God shows us we are not to have it.
      3. When the good thing we desire belongs to my neighbor.
      4. When my coveting of a good thing is immoderate - called a “lust.”
  2. God promises punishment.
    1. The seriousness of this sin.
      1. It is called “idolatry” (Eph. 5:5) and it leads to hell (I Tim. 6:9).
      2. It is a mother sin, giving rise to many other evils.
      3. Coveting is especially serious for those in positions of authority (I Tim. 3:3).
    2. This sin is very offensive to God.
      1. Man was made to know and enjoy God, filled with love for Him.
      2. Covetousness is an act of worshiping earthly things rather than Him.
      3. Covetousness can take over the heart of the redeemed momentarily or for a while.
      4. Covetousness destroys relationships with jealousy.
  3. What do we do to avoid this sin?
    1. Learn from Israel’s coveting in the wilderness (I Cor. 10:6).
    2. There are spiritual exercises which help us resist this sin.
      1. Seek the things above, cultivating your interest in God’s Word and in the hope of eternal glory.
      2. Consider the poverty of the things of the earth.
      3. Crucify “the flesh with the affections and the lusts” (Gal. 5:24).
    3. Salvation in Christ means forgiveness of our coveting and freedom from having to covet.