Romans 7:7
What does it mean to covet?
The Larger Westminster catechism explains it this way:

Q-146: Which is the 10th commandment?
A: Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbors.
Q-147: What are the duties required in the 10th commandment?
A: The duties required in the 10th commandment are, such a full contentment with our own condition, and such a charitable frame of the whole soul toward our neighbor, as that all our inward motions and affections touching him, tend unto, and further all that good which is his.
Q-148: What are the sins forbidden in the 10th commandment?
A: the sins forbidden in the 10th commandment are, discontentment with our own estate, envying, at the good of our neighbor, together with all inordinate motions and affections to anything that is his.

Notice that this commandment, to a greater degree than the others goes to the core of our being.
It is not enough just to not steal- don’t covet what your neighbor possesses.
It is not enough to not commit adultery- don’t covet your neighbor’s spouse.
It is not enough to not murder- don’t hate your neighbor!

Now also notice- the Westminster catechism stresses contentment. What is this contentment? Is it wrong to desire to better ourselves or improve our condition? No, not at all. However, we must guard against making the increase of wealth our main concern in life or setting it up as the object of our hope. We also must guard against lustfully desiring what position, goods or lot in life God has entrusted to our neighbor.

The New Testament teaches productivity and investment. It teaches diligence and industriousness.
It takes for granted that the fruit of labor leads to the increase of goods. It only mandates that that increase is received with thanksgiving, charitableness and proper perspective.
To idolatrously hoard and lust after things is sin. On the other hand, to receive things from the Lord’s hand with gratefulness and charity is God glorifying.

The heart is the heart of the matter. Guard your heart.
Because of grace,
Tim

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Today we come to a text that reminds us of the binding nature of the marriage contract. It is not to be entered into lightly or ill advisedly- but reverently, soberly and in the fear of God!

Dearly beloved, we are gathered together in the sight of God and in the presence of this company, to join together this man and this woman in holy matrimony. Marriage is an honorable estate, instituted of God, blessed by our Lord Jesus Christ, and thus held to be honorable among all men. It is not therefore to be entered into lightly or ill advisedly; but reverently, soberly and in the fear of God.
“A married woman is bound by law to her husband while he lives…”
Romans 7:2

Marriage has fallen on hard times in America. The hook-up culture of flippant sexuality, shacking up to experiment and then if it doesn’t work out- no fault divorce to dissolve it; hasn’t led to societal bliss, only lives filled with chaos and insecurity. Although adults are left with shattered lives; it is truly the children that bear the brunt of the carnage.

We need to maintain a commitment to our vows. If you are married, I can guarantee you will go through ups and downs in your relationship. There will be times of hard feelings and unfilled expectations. There may be times when you question your sanity in having gotten married in the first place. Friends and loved ones may tell you to throw in the towel and call it quits. Don’t yield to that temptation and don’t let yourself even begin to think of divorce as an alternative.

By God’s grace you can weather the storms and with perseverance and grit you can emerge from times in the valley to experience the very best in what God intended marriage to be. Read God’s Word about marriage- commit to living it out and put God to the test if He won’t bless His Word by giving you the best of relationships and His blessing along the way.
I guarantee you will look back and say it was worth the effort.

Because of grace,
Tim

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The dictionary defines temptation as: “To try to make a person do something wrong by the offer of some pleasure or reward.” Let’s analyze the definition for just a moment.
Every temptation involves a provocation to do something we know is wrong. Why would we want to do something wrong? Because the tempter always lies to us!

The carrot that he uses is some pleasure or reward. However, if you read Genesis 3, which details the first temptation of mankind, you will find that the carrot quickly evaporates when we yield.According to the Bible there are three sources of temptation: My own sinful desire (Mark 7:14-23; James 1:12-16), the world system (I John 2:15-17) and Satan himself ( Acts 5:3, I Peter 5:8,9, Luke 4:1-13). Therefore, the Bible presents a complicated picture of how temptation works.

Temptation lurks at every corner (Proverbs 7:6-8), looking for an unsuspecting person to lure into its trap. The world’s values and beliefs become a powerful magnet that conspires with our inherent sinful heart to trap us into all sorts of sinful behaviors.

When we are facing strong temptation, rationalization is meaningless. In a saner moment we would recognize how foolish it is to yield to temptation, but in the conflict of strong passions it becomes very difficult to resist. Conversely, the more often we have yielded to the same temptation in the past, the more powerful temptation becomes. Thus we become increasingly dependent and enslaved to sin.

Is there no way out? Thankfully, God has given us both the resource and the wherewithal to win this battle. Don’t let sin reign in your mortal body to obey it in its passions. This is the Word of the Spirit speaking to us through the Apostle. This morning we learn again the “how”.

Because of grace,
Tim

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