In this sermon, we explore the nature of covetousness through the lens of Joseph’s trials in Egypt and the later teachings of Jesus and Paul. Highlighting the deep nature of the intentions of the heart, the sermon illustrates how covetousness extends beyond mere sight to encompass a deeper, wrongful desire to have what is not rightfully ours. By examining Biblical passages, the sermon provides guidance on overcoming such temptations and stresses the importance of aligning our desires with God’s will to lead a righteous Christian life.

Automatically Generated Transcript
[00:00:00] Our topic tonight, we’re going to look into, from the point of view of it being illustrated, first of all in an Old Testament story. And the topic really comes about because Jesus, in describing how he wanted us to live Christian lives, made a point about covetousness. And he talked about covetousness in the context of sexual attitudes, and particularly sometimes what we do when we look where we shouldn’t look, or we desire what we shouldn’t desire. And a little bit that’s important in understanding what Jesus said, that gets us out of a bit of trouble. Because some people take those statements of Jesus to mean that you must not let yourself see anything that you shouldn’t have, and they put people in bondage if they accidently so did. The actual meaning of governess-ness is a little bit different. We will get to that
[00:01:08] first of all by seeing an illustration of what is forbidden in the story of our friend And Joseph is not here, is he? Good. No, that’s a different Joseph. But this Joseph is an Israeli and the story of him being brought down to Egypt eventually to be on deck to help the situation of the great food shortage and the people dying and the Israelite people being able to survive. And he ended up in jail, and he eventually is a person who is on deck to help the salvation of Israel. But in the steps to him getting into that position includes this story line, and it’s in Genesis and Chapter 39. You can follow it on the screen as you can up there. Or you can read it in your own scriptures. Now Joseph had been brought down to Egypt and Potiphar, that’s a man, an officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the Guard was Potiphar an Egyptian had bought him from the Yishmaelites
[00:02:20] who had brought him down there. And the Lord was with Joseph and he became a successful man. and he was in the house of his Egyptian master, his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord caused all that he did to succeed in his hands. So Joseph found favor in his sight. So the first thing that we see in the story of Joseph in Egypt is that God has rescued him from the slavery he was sold in to by his brothers somebody who’s given a rather important position, and it is because God is with him. And the leader, this fellow who had a big time job, recognised that it was to his advantage to
[00:03:09] let Joseph be there, working for him. And so, just going on ahead to the next part of the story line. Joseph was handsome in in his form and appearance. That’s where we go next, which is what verse is that? I think that’s verse 7 or 6 in verse 6. So Joseph was handsome in form and appearance and after a time his master’s wife cast her eyes on Joseph and said, lie with me. She was tempting him but he was there in the house for a while but she saw him as a desirable person. This is one of the illustration points as to what it is to be covetous. A lot of people have got that idea of what is coveting wrong. They think it is something where your eyes has caused it because you noticed the wrong thing or you were looking in the wrong place. That may be a circumstance that does, is a part of what being covetous is but actually what
[00:04:26] made it covetous is something that happens in a person’s desire and heart, and it is when you want something that’s not your’s to have. But you go on wanting it and you get to try to set scenes, through the eyes at least you’re taking it when it’s not your’s to want or to have. And so, Kabbalah says actually a little deeper in the person’s intentions then just the fact that they saw something. I mean the doctors don’t need to worry that all heaven is tutting them because they have to see people in different degrees of dress in
[00:05:09] order to put the dressings on. There is something more about what you do to set up a scene in which you then want something that’s not yours to have. And it can be not only an area of sexual desire, but also in things where you want something in life and when you want it when it’s not yours to have is the opportunity of it becoming coverlessness. In one of my kids’ role in high school, running was a big deal and she used to win a lot of races but there was another girl who also was good and there was a little bit a race in the race, if you know what I mean, as to who would get the major accolades at the end. And there was a moment where the other girl told a lie about something to do with the
[00:06:04] whole thing. Anyway, because she acted on how can she get in front, and she remembered at times of cross-distance races where my child came in first and was coming in behind, and she wanted to win the prize. Now, there’s nothing wrong with wanting to win the prize. What is wrong, is where you see an opportunity to get something that’s not yours to have. And that’s what makes the whole thing come to us. And that’s the first illustration here in the story. You’ll see there’s another thing that brings information as we go along.
[00:06:47] Well, lie with me she says. But verse eight. But he refused and said to his master’s wife, Behold, because of me my Master has no concern about anything in the house and he has put everything that he, into my charge. He’s not greater in this house than I am. In other words, he’s given Joseph a roll on the house as if he were the chief turkey. And this man graciously had, although he had a motive of being lazy I suppose, but he was leaving everything to Joseph and not worrying. “‘Nor has he kept back anything from me except you,’ he says to Potiphar’s wife,
[00:07:32] “‘because you are his wife. How, then, can I do this great wickedness?'” And so you see that there’s here another illustration of what was the temptation coming to Joseph, was to disregard in the human dimension of the setup something that didn’t take any care of or concern about or recognition of the feelings of other people. So on one hand, in the first thing we saw as an illustration, that it’s a great wickedness against God. And part of that wickedness probably is because Joseph would be going against the gracious position this family had given to him. Not so gracious by Potiphar’s wife. She must have been someone quite deliberate in their actions
[00:08:27] because it uses that phrase, She cast her eyes on him. And here you have the sense of sight and the sense of people looking where they shouldn’t look, or people having a purpose, and it’s the purpose in Potiphar’s wife that She is going to get him, and that’s what made her covetous of someone that she had no right to be wanting. Now if you take on board those descriptors of a scene of covetousness, its helpful because when we go
[00:09:02] to the New Testament we find Jesus talking about it he says it in a way that you can I think take it somewhat correctly or you can take it in a way that is I would say too strict in the sense that it’s missing the point what made it covetousness. Anyway, what happens eventually is she gets him in trouble because she tries to get him into action and he runs away leaving his cloak in her hands and then she uses as evidence that he had been trying something on and gets him in trouble which is what puts Joseph in jail.
[00:09:41] eventually God who was behind Joseph being there looks to it that everything is still being working through him and even the leader the jail recognizes God is with him in his thing and he ends up of being someone who was rescued by the Lord out of the jail but he, I think, qualified for God to continue to be with him because he saw this as something that was wrong
[00:10:09] Now had there been a different circumstance maybe it wouldn’t have been covetousness, just simply immorality but covetousness is something that is very bad in its own right. And you’ll find that the Apostle Paul in the New Testament speaks about this. So if we go to the Book of Colossians next, I’m getting the people down there behind the knobs a burden to find these places. But in the Book of Colossians in verses five to eleven, it puts covetousness in the context of the things that we are to not continue in because they’re a part of what comes from our human sinfulness and in the culture that we have, etc.
[00:10:55] So verse 5 says, ”But put to death therefore what is earthly…” Now you know just because something is ”earthly” simply as in down to Earth or just natural is not really what that’s talking about. It’s not talking about the very Humanity being represented. As much as it is the difference between Heaven and Earth. Things that are of the world similarly face a description to understand what type of meaning it is when the Bible says, For God so loved the world…
[00:11:29] He’s actually talking about the world of humanity, and even though they are sinners, God love the lot of us, for God so loved the world that he gave his only son that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life. But the word world is also used to talk about the globe. And you have to recognise that sometimes it just talks about the world meaning the thing in which we live. And there’s another use of the word world
[00:11:59] and it’s talking about the society of humanity that is fallen. And in a sense, that’s the same idea that’s mentioned here. It says, therefore, what is earthly, it’s talking about the human fallenness of our race. And it isn’t just because the cosmos has been affected, it has. There’s things that God’s intention that’s in our physical nature of the world is. And that too will be changed one day, I want to tell you. But when it says earthly, it’s talking about the society and how fallen nature expresses itself through that society
[00:12:39] as being different from what heaven would want. Heaven means God, and his desires, and the Kingdom of God. Which comes from the leadership of heaven on Earth. That was what the Messiah’s role was to be, to lead the Kingdom of God. but therefore what is earthly is representing that which you’ve got, I was going to say naturally, but it’s not natural in the sense that it’s okay, it’s actually the earthliness of our sinfulness that we have in common with the rest of the human beings.
[00:13:13] So put to death therefore what is earthly in you. Now there are a lot of things in our humanity which is just normal humanity that is not necessarily wrong. It’s not actually saying as some people think You are not to have any sexual desires. And some people when it comes to this matter of coverlessness and the things that Jesus said, make the mistake of trying to picture a Christian life where you just shut yourself off from something God has given and made good for the sake of humanity. He’s the one who instituted human sexuality at the beginning
[00:13:47] and he’s the one that blesses sexuality in marriage in the right context. But it is something to do of our sinfulness when we get it in the wrong context, and that is what is meant by this earthly that which is coming out about the fallen-ness of our human nature we have in common with everybody in the world. Sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness. And in this occasion there’s a little addition
[00:14:19] to a definition if you like, or a descriptor that helps us understand covetousness, which is idolatry. And by idolatry is when you lift something up to be worshipped as though it s wonderful. When the heart of idolatry is that it’s displacing god from the place of worship and first call as to how we should live. And covetousness introduced to a person’s life leads them to leave aside the laws of God and will lead you to do things contrary to what’s are the laws of God.
[00:15:00] Because you’ve no longer letting him be God and you’re letting whatever it is that you’re covenous of. Now that can be a range of things. It could be me seeing a red e-type going down the street and wanting to get one. I haven’t got the money I must tell you that that’s the sort of thing I could get very covetous and sometimes in the past where we’ve lived, there’s been some people with some very beautiful sports cars, and I have done everything to help them wash their cars
[00:15:29] just to get closer to the car. And I’ve been annoyed at this older man than me at the time living up the street who had a Maserati and they’re close to being a Ferrari, but not quite there. but the Maserati, he’d help me wash it. But what was also annoying, was that when he drove it around the street, he had to chug along with the high gear without ever using the gears properly. He didn’t know how to drive the thing,
[00:15:59] and I used to think if only I were allowed to be the driver. I’d rev it up to the proper rev spots to change, and we’d have a great time. And there’s nothing wrong with the admiration of nice cars But when I got angry at him because he had it, and not me, there was a degree of covetousness that I think was coming in and it is idolatry. And it’s one area of life I had to recognize that I think I had an idol. This is in my last years of school. I had a friend who was very rich, sent from overseas who bought a car he didn’t have a license but made me his driver,
[00:16:42] and he wanted me to race for him. And that was the part of where I took on board. Cars were very important and God had to do something to me to recognize that I think I had an idol. I never got to be a racing car driver or sports car driver. And that’s something God had to somehow, not spank me out of, but get me to move on form. And to recognize that often our coverlessness is actually because we’ve taken something is more important than it is and we’ve made achieving that something we so much want that we’ve displaced trusting God and his leadership in our lives.
[00:17:28] And you have to be cautious with those things that you really want, lest you make them your God. And this is what is being said. On account of these the wrath of God is coming so God is not so happy with us putting in his place. But now you must put them all away. And he includes in this then a list of things that come from the earthliness of our fallen human nature. Anger, wrath, malice, slander, obscene talk from your mouth. Do not lie to one another seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and put on the new self.
[00:18:11] Now that’s what happens when you become a Christian, that you’ve been made a part of Christ, you’ve been made in union with him. He gives his nature to you and you still have the remains of the old nature kicking up a fuss of not being in control anymore and there’s a bit of a struggle one way or the other. what early Christian growth experiences and we are to cooperate with that by putting off those things which come from the earthliness of our sinful humanness and where it includes cupheadlessness, the type of idolatry it says here then where to put that out of our lives. And in the case of the cars I used to get all these magazines I spent my spare money on. And my friend who had the car he bought for me to drive, he
[00:19:01] knew how much I loved cars. And there came a day when I said to the Lord I think there’s an idol in the cupboard. There were all my sports car worlds and other magazines built up and I burnt the lot. Do you know the funny thing, the same time as I burnt them, the very next day came subscriptions to motor magazines that my friend had put in my name. He didn’t know what I was struggling with for the idolatry part of it, but God gave it back to me. But somehow it wasn’t getting a grip any more. I didn’t have to want what wasn’t necessary not to be mine. And that covetousness got dealt with for which I praise the Lord. And so that’s something God can do in your Christian life as you grow. He’ll help you to put aside the things that you’ve used to displace him as God and it will allow you to grow spiritually. It’s quite
[00:19:59] a take-off point in your Christian growing. And it goes on to say, and then says put on the new self. It’s not that you make yourself better but is you are allowed to come out, what is the you in Christ. It is the new self. and whereas once you might have been a critical person, Jesus wants to make you someone who’s sweeter than that. And where once you might have been a lascivious person, Jesus wants you to be purer than that. And the renewed and the knowledge after the image of its Creator. And Jesus is the Creator
[00:20:39] and you’re made to be more like him. And in that circumstance in which all Christians become similar together, have a common being in Christ. Christ is all in all. Alright, so that’s the passage there from Colossians. And we’ve read through Genesis and we’ve gone to Colossians, I want now to go to Matthew please. So Matthew 5. Here we have the passage in which the morning services we’ve gone over because we went through the baby attitudes, and this is in the part where Jesus is applying it to Christian behavior. You have heard that it was said, You shall not commit adultery. But I say to you, that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with
[00:21:33] her at his heart. Now the idea there is that when someone looks with lustful intent, let Let me unwrap that a bit for you, because what the difference is between the doctor at the hospital, and there’s a very beautiful woman comes in and he has to see things he normally wouldn’t, and someone who is having that sense of being caught up in the desire is the order of things. When you’re the person that arranges to get in a position of seeing and that’s what makes you in a position where you see what you shouldn’t, that is a covetous thing to do. In the case of someone who might just happen to recognise another person of the opposite sex that they admire but they don’t go and do things to get to be in the position of
[00:22:35] or viewing them in a way that is wrongful. Then if they don’t do the wrongful intent and then put it into action. Now think about it. If you get involved with pornography, what is it that you did when you bought the magazine or whether you found the DVD that has the parts in it, and if you did that because you wanted to give Give your lustful part an opportunity to express itself. You are being covetous because your eyes were helping you want something that is not entitled
[00:23:13] to have. And with the lustful intent it changes just the fact that something was viewed into being covetousness and it is a very bad sin, according to the scriptures, when they list sins, it’s something that you’ve got to put off. Tear it out. Throw it away. Then Jesus has what’s a bit of an, I’ve always thought this is a bit of an exaggeration but He’s making a point. For it’s better that you lose one of your members like your eye that you pluck out. Then your whole body be thrown into Hell. So He is speaking the most exaggerated dramatic pictures for you to know you’ve got to do something about your covetousness. It’s better that you lose one of your members than your whole body be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away.” This is not that
[00:24:07] rather extreme illustration. Or it’s better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body goes into hell.’ And the picture of the judgment of God upon governessness where intent was involved to get you in a position to want something that you’re not entitled to have. That’s something that you want to do something about. As I was in my teenage years and I had some lessons taught by watching some of the students in dad’s college down in Adelaide this is. There’s one student who used to read the newspaper every morning but he came a time when he stopped doing that and I noticed. He told me that And he was having trouble with the advertisements for women’s clothing.
[00:24:54] While he couldn’t control his thoughts, he found himself going up to read the newspaper for the wrong motives. I found it rather funny, really, because I didn’t think those advertisements were terribly enticing, but he did. But he stopped reading the newspapers while he got in control of capitalistess… where it made him long for wasn’t his entitlement to have?
[00:25:21] You get the point? And Jesus makes it something drastic that you’ve got to do in order to live for him. And so, although we can demur, we can speak against the stiffness of such an ethic, it is indeed what Jesus taught. Now, you know that there are different styles of ethics that people propose and one type of ethics that people propose contrary to the normal biblical one is called situational ethics and situational ethics
[00:25:55] says that there’s not any actual rules that has to be followed but it rather is that in every situation you do what love requires. And I’ve heard of pastors who had in their congregation of women who were very sorrowful that they didn’t have a man, and the pastor that would service them sexually so that they were left without they were meant to, in his mind left to be blessed or from at least having someone to pay attention. And the fact of him doing that to these poor people
[00:26:35] meant that he said he was doing it out of love that he was kidding himself. That your whole body be thrown into hell Jesus doesn’t believe in situational ethics. is a half-truth in it. The truth that says to do what love would have you do is a good thing, but that doesn’t mean that you rub out the fact that there are some absolutes that the Bible says that we need to learn what they are. And it is also true that we have to learn sometimes that there’s definitions of what are the wrong things. And then World Wars I and II people who were Some of the conscientious objectors sometimes were that, precisely because they didn’t know the difference in definition
[00:27:19] between murder and killing. And the Bible says that it’s against the commandments not to kill. The illustrations of the Bible are that where there is a war and where there is something that someone is protecting another person, as in the authorities or whatever, I call a proper place where killing is right because it is not murder. And, as the last time I talked on this topic in our church, it was to point out the fact that our laws do have a recognition of there being different types of killings and that can become murder but sometimes it has a lesser name and there’s different degrees
[00:28:02] of first degree, secondary, third degree, man-slaughter, etc., Because it’s a recognition that does get supported by the Bible that murder is when the person’s life is taken and it’s not yours to take. But if there’s a person who’s a policeman who like, down in Sydney recently at Nivonde beach there was someone who had a mental problem going crazy and killing people. The young policewoman had to step forward and seek to try and stop him Sometimes when he wouldn’t look like he’s going to continue, she had to shoot him dead. For a thing, she would have a terrible time digesting what was being asked for her to do.
[00:28:48] But she did not murder, now that’s not situational ethics, it’s the fact that there’s a difference between killing and murder. But likewise there are other things that some people take… They take it too far in their definition by simply not knowing what the Bible really says. And when you look up the Old Testament words for what was allowed and not allowed, you get illustrations again that the idea of just taking the word murder to mean killing. The word killing, to mean murder, is a mistake, because of some of the
[00:29:28] exceptional clauses that are allowed in the Old Testament laws. I won’t go into the details of that. But I am trying to illustrate that what makes things wrong is often the context but that’s not getting into being a situational ethics person but someone who’s taking the way the Bible speaks seriously to go on study it down and find out what it exactly says. Well, we have had a sweep through some of the places old testament and new and if you were to look up the book of Romans you will discover there is a person who admits to having as his chief sin, being that capitalistness got him. And he admitted all the depth of misery of his sinner-hood and how he couldn’t deal with it and how he got on top of him.
[00:30:16] And it is the apostle Paul. And Romans 7, I’ll give you this to look at when you go home, Romans 7 is Paul talking about the fact that the sin that got him was, You shall not covet. And sin took opportunity, being in him, to make him do what he shouldn’t do. And so that’s a good passage to get. I post a Sunday evening place to read. Read Romans 7 verses 7 to 25. 25. Let me close in a moment of prayer. Heavenly Father, we thank you for the scriptures and how
[00:30:53] they speak to issues that really are live issues with us. And we pray for your help that we’ll be ones who do succeed in turning away from the Earthliness and not excusing ourselves because it’s what is done or because human nature is just like so. The Earthliness is because of the fallenness of humanity. And it’s not what you intend. And sanctification is meant to take us in a progress of leaving behind and help us to learn how to put aside the things that that are wrong on these lists that are there in Colossians, for example, and also in Romans and in other places. The book of Galatians is pretty good as well. We pray that you’ll help us to take on board that we are to take responsibility and not putting ourselves in a place where we then commit the things that are not what you want. We ask for your help in those in Jesus Name. Amen. Thank you.