Genesis 9:6 – “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image.” Exodus 20:13, Deuteronomy 5:17 – “You shall not murder.” In two different books following the book of Genesis, God gives Moses the 10 Commandments at Mount Sinai. These are so important … Read more
““You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”” – Exodus 20:17
Q: What is the tenth commandment?
A: You shall not covet your neighbor’s house, your neighbor’s wife, or anything that is his.
What does this mean?
Because we worship and love God, we shouldn’t desire to have the things that belong to other people, but instead we should help them protect what is theirs.
Coveting is all about our desires. But are all desires wrong? Can you think of some desires that are good?
It’s good to desire to eat. If we didn’t, we would eventually die. It’s good to desire a place to live. No one wants to be homeless. It’s good to desire clothes to wear. Who wants to run around naked!?!
There are lots of good things to desire but most of all, God wants us to desire him. God is greatly glorified when we desire him over and above all these other things in the world. He wants us to find our greatest satisfaction in him and him alone.
When we covet, it’s like we are saying to God, “I want this thing more than I want you.” God knows that that will make us miserable in the end so he is so loving to tell us to be consumed with him instead. God wants us to desire him. Doesn’t it make sense that we should desire the greatest thing in the universe? Well, what is greater than God?
In this sense, coveting things that we don’t have is like eating a nasty, moldy cheeseburger that we found in the garbage can (Yuck!) when we could have a really tasty, fancy dinner of all our favorite foods! God doesn’t want us to settle for things that don’t last and are less than the best. God is the best! Let’s only settle for him!
Read Psalm 73:24–26:
You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will receive me to glory. Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
1. According to the Psalmist, can anyone take God away from him?
2. How do you think you could increase your desire for God?
3. In what ways is God way better than all the things we are tempted to covet?
Prayer
Our Father, thank you that you have given yourself to us. May you be our greatest desire in all the world. We know that our desires are often disordered and sinful. Forgive us when we fail and may your glory be that which consumes us. Thank you for the cross and the empty tomb. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
““You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”” – Exodus 20:17
Q: What is the tenth commandment?
A: You shall not covet your neighbor’s house, your neighbor’s wife, or anything that is his.
What does this mean?
Because we worship and love God, we shouldn’t desire to have the things that belong to other people, but instead we should help them protect what is theirs.
“I wish I was like her.” “I wish I could do what he does.” “I wish my house was like theirs.” “I wish my wife was like his wife.”
Do these statements sound like they come from someone who is at peace? They don’t, do they? They sound like they come from someone who is quite unsettled.
That is what coveting does. It makes us anxious and uneasy. It robs us of the peace that God want for his children because we are constantly looking outwards at all the things we want. A restful heart would say with ease, “God, I am so thankful for what you have given me. It is enough for me.”
In today’s culture, many of us are extremely busy due to envy and covetousness. We want something really bad so we work long hours so that we can earn the money to get it. The problem is that once we get it we find something else to covet and we continue to work to get that. See how this causes our life to be a never ending cycle of being too busy because we are envious and covetous?
This is not the peaceful and restful state that God loves to see in his children. Envy will makes us miserable in the end.
Read 1 Timothy 6:9-10:
But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.
1. What is it that ruins people?
2. How is the love of money closely related to covetousness?
3. What are some things that you are tempted to covet?
Prayer
Our Father, we want to peacefully rest in your provision for us. Banish from our hearts any love of money but rather, help us to be thankful for what we have. We don’t want to work ourselves to death in pursuit of that which does not satisfy. Only you satisfy. Forgive us because of Jesus when we fail. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”” – Exodus 20:17
Q: What is the tenth commandment?
A: You shall not covet your neighbor’s house, your neighbor’s wife, or anything that is his.
What does this mean?
Because we worship and love God, we shouldn’t desire to have the things that belong to other people, but instead we should help them protect what is theirs.
Imagine going to a birthday party. It’s for your best friend and you tried to come up with a gift that they would really love. You thought and thought about it and finally decided on something really cool.
The day of the party arrives and you give this gift to you friend. They seem to appreciate it but very soon after opening it they say to you, “Thanks for the gift but I honestly deserved a better gift than this.”
How would that make you feel? Understandably, that would probably make you feel pretty bad and maybe a bit angry, right?
But what would be a good term for the attitude of the person who said that? The Bible calls that type of behavior “pride”. What it means is thinking so highly of yourself that you think you deserve more than what you have.
This is how we treat God when we covet. It’s a way of communicating that we think we deserve better than what he has given. Just like we would feel dishonored if our friend said those words to us, we dishonor God when we fixate on what others have instead of what God has graciously given.
Consider Proverbs 16:18, “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.”
1. What happens when we are prideful?
2. Are there ways you have been prideful by thinking that you deserve better than what you have?
3. How do you think we can fight pride together?
Prayer
Our Father, you have been so good to us. May we not think more highly of ourselves than we should. Help us to not think about ourselves at all but rather how good you are and how we can be loving towards our neighbors. Help us not to covet their things. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”” – Exodus 20:17
Q: What is the tenth commandment?
A: You shall not covet your neighbor’s house, your neighbor’s wife, or anything that is his.
What does this mean?
Because we worship and love God, we shouldn’t desire to have the things that belong to other people, but instead we should help them protect what is theirs.
Human beings love to compare things. How high can you jump? How fast can you run? How strong are you? These are things boys usually like to talk and argue about when they are little.
We love to compare. This is the heart of coveting or envy.
As we get older we might be tempted to compare other things. “They have such a good marriage!” “Wow, I can’t believe how much money she makes. It’s way more than me!” “She has such beautiful hair. I wish I had that.” “Look at his car! My car is rusty and falling apart.”
We love to compare. Why do you think God wouldn’t want to us to be consumed with comparison?
One of the reasons might be because he wants us to take our eyes off of things that are not eternal and fixate on that which is. Many of the things that other people have that we might be tempted to covet are things that will pass away with time. Beauty is fading, money never lasts, cars break down, and houses fall apart over time. But God wants us to be consumed with him because no one can take him away from us.
Read Luke 12:13–21:
Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” But he said to him, “Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?” And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.” ’ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”
1. Did the rich man have his heart set on things of this world or things that are eternal?
2. Can you relate to the rich man? Do you think he was envious?
Prayer
Our Father, may we stop constantly comparing the things that you have given us against the things you have given others. Help us to be content. May our vision of you be so grand that the things of this world pale in comparison. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”” – Exodus 20:17
Q: What is the tenth commandment?
A: You shall not covet your neighbor’s house, your neighbor’s wife, or anything that is his.
What does this mean?
Because we worship and love God, we shouldn’t desire to have the things that belong to other people, but instead we should help them protect what is theirs.
Have you ever wanted something really bad that was not yours? What was it?
This is what it means to covet. It means having a really strong desire for something that is not yours. Why do you think this would be a problem?
One of the reasons this is a problem is that is shows a heart that is unthankful for what you have received from God. God loves to give good gifts to his children and when we are more focused on what others have than on what we have it communicates to God that we think he is a bit stingy.
How would you feel if you gave someone a gift and right after you gave it to them they immediately started talking about how they wished they had a different gift that someone else had. That probably wouldn’t make you feel very good would it? It would show how unthankful they were wouldn’t it?
Let’s honor God in the way that we fixate on his blessings to us and not his blessings to others.
Consider James 1:17, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.”
1. Where do all good gifts come from?
2. What are some good and perfect gifts that you have received?
3. How could you thank God for these?
Prayer
Our Father, we want to honor you by recognizing that you have given all that we need. Help us with contentment and thankfulness. We deserved Hell and you gave your very life for us. May we be first and foremost thankful for this. Everything beyond that is a bonus! Incline our hearts to see things this way. We need your help. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.” – Exodus 20:16
Q: What is the ninth commandment?
A: You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
What does this mean?
Because we worship and love God, we shouldn’t deceive, betray, or speak badly about other people, but instead we should defend them, speak well of them, and build them up.
If God hates lying, what would be the opposite of that? Speaking the truth! God loves the truth. In fact, Jesus said that he is the truth (John 14:6).
Sometimes it’s hard to speak the truth, especially when you need to say something to someone that might not be fun to hear.
We all need correction. Children need correction from their parents, husbands and wives need correction from each other, and Christians in a church family need correction, called “rebuke”, for the sake of healthy community.
But if we are going to do that, we have to be willing to speak the truth. Sometimes it’s easier to just keep quiet or say something that is a bit more comfortable so that the person to whom you are speaking doesn’t get their feelings hurt.
It is very important to be sensitive and gentle in the way we communicate the truth, but we still need to communicate the truth to others if we are going to grow in the ways that God wants us to grow. We also should be able to receive the truth from others when they speak it to us!
Read Ephesians 4:15–16:
Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.
1. Why does Paul say that we should speak the truth in love?
2. How have you seen the correction of your parents be a form of this type of truth telling?
3. Sometimes, it’s hard to admit, but wouldn’t you say that this has been a blessing in your life? (Parents might need to do a little coaching here.)
Prayer
Our Father, may we be humble enough to give and receive the truth in a way that honors you and helps us grow. Help us overcome our temptation refrain from truth-telling or to tell a falsehood because we fear the opinions of other people. May we only fear you. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.” – Exodus 20:16
Q: What is the ninth commandment?
A: You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
What does this mean?
Because we worship and love God, we shouldn’t deceive, betray, or speak badly about other people, but instead we should defend them, speak well of them, and build them up.
Did you know that God exists as a community? What does that mean? It means that God is a Trinity. He is the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. God in three persons. Not three different Gods, but three persons, each fully God, that make up one God. It’s hard to understand, but by faith we believe what the Bible teaches even though it is hard to understand.
What is important to understand is that each member of the Trinity has a selfless love for the other persons of the Trinity. They exist as an interconnected relationship for the sake of blessing those who love and fear God. Just like a husband and wife are two distinct persons but yet are one, the beauty of their relationship is seen in how they love and serve each other. Out of the overflow of this love, they love and serve their children really well.
Do you think the Son ever lies to the Father? Or the Holy Spirit speaks a falsehood to the Son? No way! They are interconnected as one and would never want to do anything to hurt that loving relationship. Would it be good for a husband to lie to his wife? Never! They are interconnected and would never want to hurt that loving relationship.
As the church, God says we are supposed to act the same way. Since we as Christians are united as a family, the church, we should put away falsehood (which is just another way of saying bearing false witness or lying). Since we are all responsible for the health of our community we have to take seriously God’s call to speak the truth and only the truth to one another. If not, how could we love and serve those who don’t know Jesus? How could we call people to come join us in following Jesus if we were lying to each other all the time?
Consider Ephesians 4:25, “Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another.”
1. Why does Paul want us to put away falsehood?
2. What does being members of one another have to do with lying?
3. Since God calls us to live as a loving community, how does lying destroy that?
Prayer
Our Father, help us to remember who we are as members of your community, the church. May we love each other well as family. Keep our mouths pure with words of life that can be a blessing and not words of falsehood that tear away at our community. We love your church. Thank you for promising to build it. May we build it up as well in the way we speak. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.” – Exodus 20:16
Q: What is the ninth commandment?
A: You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
What does this mean?
Because we worship and love God, we shouldn’t deceive, betray, or speak badly about other people, but instead we should defend them, speak well of them, and build them up.
“Did you hear what she did?” “Did you hear about him?” “Do you know where they were last night?!?!”
Have you ever been in a conversation that started like this? Did it pique your interest?
Usually when someone starts a conversation like this they are about to engage in what is called, “gossip”. Gossip is telling a story about someone that may or may not be true. Usually people gossip because they feel bad about themselves and if they can draw your attention to someone else then they won’t have to fear you finding out things about them that they wouldn’t want shared.
Gossip usually contains lies or partial truths that are harmful to the person being talked about. In addition, it tears communities apart. When you gossip about someone, the person listening to you gossip has a new perspective on that person. For example, if I were talking with you about another person at school that you had never met and I said, “Hey! Did you know that so and so comes from a poor family and I heard that they used to live on the street! Isn’t that crazy!? I wonder if they are kind of smelly?” As a result of this conversation you would have a perspective about that person before you even had the chance to meet them. You might think things about them that were not true because you don’t know them. If you were the person being gossiped about, would you like to be treated that way?
Of course not. This is why gossip hurts people and grieves the heart of God. It’s a form of bearing false witness.
Consider Proverbs 18:8, “The words of a whisperer are like delicious morsels; they go down into the inner parts of the body.”
1. Why do you think the author of the proverb says that gossip tastes so good?
2. What do you think you could do if someone approaches you with a story that is simply gossip?
3. Why does gossip hurt people?
Prayer
Our Father, help us to use our words to love and serve people and not to spread lies about them. May our communities that bear your name resemble you in the way that we speak. Bring life to our conversations so that they may be a blessing to all those who hear. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.” – Exodus 20:16
Q: What is the ninth commandment?
A: You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
What does this mean?
Because we worship and love God, we shouldn’t deceive, betray, or speak badly about other people, but instead we should defend them, speak well of them, and build them up.
Do you know what the legal system is? It is our system of government in the United States where we attempt to make sure people follow the laws of the land. If people break those laws they get in trouble. The legal system exists to make sure that innocent people don’t get in trouble and guilty people do get in trouble and have to pay for their crimes.
In our country, this system is very complicated and many people can get involved, but in the times when the Bible was written, things were simpler. In those days, what was most important were witnesses. These were people who saw a crime take place. They would be expected to tell the truth about what they saw. If two or three people were united about what they saw then a judge would usually bring punishment on the person who committed the crime. Sometimes this punishment was very serious, like the death penalty! In this way, it was all about the witnesses.
In light of this, can you see why it would be important to follow the ninth commandment?
Consider Proverbs 25:18, “A man who bears false witness against his neighbor is like a war club, or a sword, or a sharp arrow.”
1. Why would the author of this proverb use such strong and violent language in this verse?
2. How would you feel if you were accused of something you didn’t do and had to bear the penalty for it?
3. Do this remind you of the Gospel? How so?
Prayer
Our Father, thank you that you died for people who are liars. Thank you that Jesus took our place and suffered, as a liar, where we should have suffered. He had accusers bear false witness against him and as a result bore our punishment. This is amazing grace to say the least. Because we love your grace to us, may we never lie in order to hurt someone or cause them to be unjustly punished. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.” – Exodus 20:16
Q: What is the ninth commandment?
A: You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
What does this mean?
Because we worship and love God, we shouldn’t deceive, betray, or speak badly about other people, but instead we should defend them, speak well of them, and build them up.
Do you think lying is a big deal? If so, why? If not, why not?
According to the Bible, lying is a really big deal. You know why? Because Satan is called “The Father of Lies”. Who wants to be a child to the Father of Lies? It would be would be pretty horrible to have Satan as your Dad. But when we lie, we are acting like Satan is our Father and not God. We are acting like we are in the family of Satan and not the family of God. Sounds pretty bad doesn’t it? It is. And that is what lying does.
God commanded his people in the Old Testament and his people today to not lie because lying breaks down relationships as well. How could you have good relationships with other people if people constantly lied to each other? You couldn’t. Everyone would be suspicious of each other and constantly on edge.
This is the essence of what it means to bear false witness. It means lying and since God always tells the truth, he wants his people to imitate him by always telling the truth as well.
Consider John 8:44, “You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”
1. Can you think of ways that Satan is shown to be the Father of Lies in the Bible? (Garden of Eden, Tempting Jesus with lies in the wilderness)
2. In what ways have you been tempted to lie?
Prayer
Our Father, thank you that you have given us the truth and that that truth sets us free. May we live in light of the truth of the Gospel so that we don’t find ourselves in a prison of lies. You have been so good to us to show us a better way than the way of lies. Help us to love other people well so that lies never come out of our mouths. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
“You shall not steal.” – Exodus 20:15
Q: What is the eighth commandment?
A: You shall not steal.
What does this mean?
Because we worship and love God, we shouldn’t take other people’s money or property and cheat them, but instead we should help them improve and protect what belongs to them.
Imagine a stress-free person relaxing on the beach and enjoying a cold drink while the warm ocean air lightly caresses their skin. Does that sound good? If there was one word to describe what the person might be feeling, what do you think it would be?
A word that might come to mind would be the word, “content”. To be content means to be peacefully happy. The Bible speaks about contentment in reference to our possessions and generosity. It says that contentment is something that we should pursue and that we should define contentment as God defines it, not as the world defines it.
God says that our greatest blessing will be found when we are content with the simple things in life that he has provided.
If we are not content in God and with what God has graciously provided to us, we might be tempted to try and find our contentment in other things, and if necessary, steal to obtain that which we think will help us feel content. God knows that will make us miserable in the end and so he calls us to be content with what we have.
Consider 1 Timothy 6:6 which says, “But godliness with contentment is great gain…”
1. What reason does Paul give for why godliness with contentment is great gain?
2. How could this verse help us battle a desire to steal?
3. Do you feel content with what you have right now? If not, what do you need to be content?
Prayer
Our Father, we want to be godly. You have promised that in godliness we will have great gain. May you incline our hearts to pursue gain as you define it and not as our sinful hearts are tempted to define it. Help our unbelief. We know that apart from you there is nothing good or of eternal value. We want to be content in you. In Jesus’ name, Amen.