THE TEN COMMANDMENTS (INTRODUCTION)
Exodus 20:1-17

Intro: Ill. Ted Turner has declared the Ten Commandments obsolete, "We’re living with outdated rules. The rules we’re living under are the Ten Commandments, and I bet nobody here even pays much attention to them because they’re too old. When Moses went up on the mountain, there were no nuclear weapons, there was no poverty. Today, the Ten Commandments wouldn’t go over. Nobody around likes to be commanded. Commandments are out!"
Turner is wrong when he declares that the Ten Commandments are outdated. As we will see in upcoming messages, they are as fresh as ever. He was right, however, when he says that nobody likes to be commanded. In fact, modern society mocks the truth and exalts the lie. We live in a time when right is classified as wrong and wrong as right. (Ill. Isa. 5:20)
Today, many believe that there are no "moral absolutes." Many hold to a philosophy of "moral relativism." How many times have we heard statements like these: "What’s right for you may not be right for me."; "If it feels good do it."; "Anything goes."; " Nothing is right or wrong, there are just different opinions?" All of this is the result of the feeling that there is no absolute truth. You are entitled to your truth and I am entitled to mine! A recent poll found that 67% of Americans do not believe in moral absolutes. Among "Baby Busters", those born between 1965 and 1983, the percentage was even higher at 78%. Even 62% of professing Christians said that there was no absolute standard of right and wrong. My, how America has fallen! This nation was founded on biblical principles of right and wrong. Today, that foundation is crumbling beneath our feet! James Madison, the 4th President of the United States said this, "We stake the future of this country on our ability to govern ourselves under the principles of the Ten Commandments."
Tonight, we begin a series of messages on the Ten Commandments, to show you their relevance for our day. I hope to lay a foundation for the future messages by telling you a little of the background of the Ten Commandments and why they were given. Let’s look into these ancient Laws and see that they are a practical standard for life for modern man.
I. THE REASONS FOR THE LAW
A. Why did God give the Law? To save sinners? No! Israel was already in a covenant relationship with God, Gen. 15. The Law cannot save – Gal. 3:11; Rom. 3:20.
The reasons why God gave Israel the Law are as follows:
1 To reveal His glory and Holiness – Deut. 5:22-28
2. To reveal man’s sinfulness – Rom. 7:7, 13; 1 Tim. 1:9; James 1:22-25.
3. To mark Israel as His chosen and to separate them from the heathen – Psa. 147:19-20; Eph. 2:11-17; Acts 15.
4. To give Israel a standard for godly living – Deut. 4:1ff; 5:29ff.
5. To prepare Israel for the coming of Christ – Gal. 5:24.
6. To illustrate in type and ceremony the Person and ministry of Christ – Heb. 10:1.
C. The Law is:
1. A Mirror – James 1:22-25 – It reveals man’s sins.
2. A Yoke – It brings bondage since the flesh finds it impossible to keep – Acts 15:10; Gal. 5:1; Rom. 8:3.
3. A Schoolmaster – Points men to Jesus – Gal. 3:23-4:7.
4. A Shadow – Contrasted with the reality and fulfillment found in Jesus – Heb. 10:1; Col. 2:14-17.
D. The Law was unable to accomplish certain things:
1. Make anyone perfect – Heb. 7:11-19; 10:1-2.
2. Justify from sin – Acts 13:38-39; Rom. 3:20-28.
3. Give righteousness – Gal. 2:21.
4. Give peace – Heb. 9:9.
5. Give life – Gal. 3:21.
E. The Law was merely a guideline for living that possessed no saving power. (Ill. Many in our day desire the bondage of the Law over the freedom found in Jesus.)
II. THE RANSOM FROM THE LAW
A. The Law condemned and offered no hope, Jesus came to fulfill the Law and set us free from its bondage.
B. In His life and death, Jesus did all that was necessary to set us free.
1. He fulfilled the Law – Ill. Gal. 4:4. Jesus perfectly kept the Law and fulfilled all the types of Leviticus and Numbers. He became our Passover Lamb and our Scapegoat, forever taking away the demands of the Law upon our lives. The Law was never given to make us righteous. It was given to show us that in ourselves and in our own works, we could never hope to keep the Law. The Law opens our eyes so that we will see our need for Jesus – Gal. 3:24.
2. Jesus met all the righteous requirements of the Law – Ill. Col. 2:13-14. Jesus’ death satisfied God’s requirements for sin and for obedience to the Law. When we are in Him, we are not forced to obey the Law, we are compelled to obey it out of love for Him and His great sacrifice for our sins. In Him, we move under grace, not the whip of the Law – Rom. 6:14-15; Gal. 5:18.
3. When we receive Christ as Savior, He writes the Law in our hearts – Jer. 31:33; Rom. 2:15
III. THE RELEVANCE OF THE LAW
A. With all this in mind, some Christians might be prone to think that the Law therefore has no impact on us today. That there is no reason for us to even think about the Law or the Ten Commandments. That is a false assumption! When we get to the place where we need no guidelines, then we have entered lawlessness and we are in trouble and in sin.
B. Ill. Matt. 5:17-18. Jesus did not come to abolish or to do away with the Law or Ten Commandments. He came to fulfill them. (Ill. Fulfill – "To carry out, to make full, to get to the heart of.") When we are in Christ, the Ten Commandments become more relevant than ever.
C. Ill. Matt. 22:35-40 – Jesus summed up all the Law of God into two commandments. If I love God as I should, I will always keep Commandments 1-4. If I love my neighbor as I should, I will always keep Commandments 5-10. Augustine put it this way, "Love God and do as you please." That works, because when you love God, you will always seek to do those things that please Him!
D. The Commandments do not stand as rungs on a ladder to climb for salvation. They stand as barriers erected by God to help us live lives that glorify His Name. They are relevant today! (Ill. Ted Koppel of Nightline said, "Our society finds truth too strong a medicine to digest undiluted. What Moses brought down from Mt. Sinai were not the "10 Suggestions." They are Commandments.. Are, not were! The sheer brilliance of the Ten Commandments is that the codify in a handful of words acceptable human behavior , not just for then and now, but for all time." I say, "Amen!"
Conc: Can we keep these rules for life? Not in ourselves, but it is possible in Jesus – Phil. 4:13. The Reason? We operate with a different motive and power as believers in Jesus. Far too many have tried to keep the 10 Commandments from the outside in. They have tried to do good to change their heart. As Christians, we come at the things from the opposite direction. Because our hearts have been changed, we are able to live the Ten Commandments from the inside out and it works just fine! Yes, they are relevant! And, we shall see that as this series unfolds.

#1
“WORSHIPPING WRONG GODS IN THE RIGHT WAY!”

TEXT: Ex. 20:1-2; I Kings. 11:1-8; Rom. 12:1-2

INTRO: The 10 commandments represent God’s design to make the human experience the best it can possibly be. Followed correctly, these commandments become the healthy foundation for a society or a soul.

The 10 commandments deal with the two important issues all humans must face, our relationship with God and our relationship with each other. They are written on two tablets of stone, but were meant for tablets of flesh. Tablet one probably contained the first four commandments dealing with our relationship to God and the second tablet probably contained the last six dealing with man’s relationship with man.

The first two are not the same, #1 deals with worshipping idols in the way they should have been worshipping God – making them a greater priority than anything else in life, and #2 deals with worshipping the right God in the wrong way by representing him by things less than He is.

Israel’s problems in their relationship with God were similar in scope to what they are today, God rarely had first place in their lives! This is the starting point however for a healthy relationship with God. Unfortunately today there is more religion than righteousness, God is not the first passion of people’s hearts.
Even in the Church the priority of God can be lost, Israel proved this many times, and the lives of too many Christians today demonstrate the same thing too!
PROP. SENT: The Bible teaches us that God must be first in our lives, that just “tagging” Him onto our lives will not make for an adequate experience with God. God will not accept any place less than first place!

I. GOD’S PRESENCE Ex. 20:1-2
A. Starting Point 20:1
1. The commandments are not from man, “and GOD spoke all these words.”
2. For us to be all that God designed us to be we must start with a relationship with Him.
a. This is a must since God created us for fellowship with Him.
b. If we don’t worship Him we will worship something!
3. The commandments begin with God’s presence and His speaking.
4. What got Israel and individuals always in trouble is when they followed something other than God.
a. So often they took their eyes off of God and put it on idols or man.
b. With their attention drawn elsewhere they missed God’s purposes for their lives.
c. Whenever we follow anything other than God our lives will end up going nowhere!
5. God’s jealousy isn’t selfish, it is to protect us from experiencing less than what He had planned for us.
a. This makes His jealousy very different from our concept of jealousy.
b. He is not protecting Himself in the commandments, He is protecting us.

B. Savior’s Power 20:2
1. Ancient contracts between kings and their subjects had 4 elements to them:
a. Identify the king
b. Identify what he has done for his subjects
c. Identify promises of protection and blessings to his subjects
d. Identify his demands for exclusive loyalty from subjects
2. The verse here contains the first two elements of these four items while verse three and what follows contain the last two.
3. God states that He is “the Lord your God” … He is no stranger or idol.
a. The relationship is personal and real.
b. This tells us God is a moral God, He is concerned about them individually and as a people.
c. While He speaks to them, idols do not!
4. He also states that He is the one who brought them up out of Egypt.
a. He is the deliverer.
b. He is not only the God of their present, but their past, and if He is first their future also!
5. Because He has saved them He has the right to tell them what is right, to protect them from harm … this sets the stage for the 10 commandments that will bring them life if they obey them. 6. God in granting them His protection continues to do so through these commandments.
a. God brought them out of slavery not to put them into bondage again, but to keep them free.
b. The 10 commandments which places God first is not about putting people or nations in bondage, it is all about freeing them to be what God designed us to be.
7. It is His saving power that free them from slavery, and this is still true when God is given first place in our lives, He still frees us from slavery, the slavery of sin and selfishness.

II. GOD’S PRIORITY 20:3; I Kings 11:1-8; Rom. 12:1-2

A. Spiritual Priority 20:3 I Kings 11:1-8
1. The first commandment stakes out a claim for God’s priority in our lives.
a. There is to be no other gods “before me” the Lord said.
b. The use of “before me” had the sense in Hebrew of a man taking a second wife while the first one was still alive and thus throwing it in her face that his love was no longer exclusive for her.
2. God would not allow for a diluted love toward Him, He who gives 100% will expect 100%.
3. Solomon who started off with God as his top priority however diluted his love toward the lord, or more accurately, redirected it away from the Lord.
a. As Solomon sought to manage his life and nation in his own strength and wisdom he found political solutions to insure prosperity and strength rather than spiritual ways of establishing Israel’s foothold in the world.
b. It is tragic to think that most of those who faltered in the Bible did so in the latter half of their lives, not the first half!
c. Solomon who only tolerated his foreign wife’s gods later is himself building altars to them and worshipping at them, his love for his wives gradually became greater than his love for God.
d. A similar process can be seen in our country, we started as a nation “unto God” but the Lord is hardly a national priority anymore, even among those who would identify themselves as Christians.
4. This first commandment if kept establishes the desire for all the other ones.
5. God did not wait for Israel to define Him before expecting their full commitment, He calls on them to be fully committed to the God HE IS, not the one they may want!
6. If they failed to give priority to God, they would certainly fail to give a commitment to His laws…hence why this one is first and foremost.

B. Secure Position Rom. 12:1-2
1. The only way to secure our heart is to secure our commitment to Christ.
a. Paul urged the early believers in view of God’s mercies to offer themselves as living sacrifices, to make the Lord #1 in their lives.
b. Paul says this is the only reasonable service … meaning the only right and sensible thing to do!
2. It should be inconceivable to not make God the greatest priority of our lives!
3. If we follow Paul’s advice there will be no problem making God the greatest love of our lives, and this in turn will so transform our minds and hearts that we will not be conformed any longer to this world, then we can test and approve what God’s good and perfect will is!
a. The problem with some Christians is that they are not placing God in the top position of their hearts and so their thinking is not transformed into godly thinking.
b. Where God is placed has a direct bearing on what our heart sees and our attitudes show.
4. Nothing in the other 9 commandments will command our attention if the very first and foundational commandment is not in place. We must make God the only God in our life, to offer up to Him the love and commitment we all too often show to the things of this world instead of Him.
a. God will not be second fiddle in our hearts and lives.
b. God will not accept anything less than top priority!
5. If you were to judge your actions, where do you think God is in your heart?
6. Would others look at our lives and accuse us of an absolute commitment to Christ or would they hardly even know that we are believers?
7. Our top priority can be determined by our top commitment! Where does God show up in your life?

CONCLUSION: All too often Israel worshipped the wrong gods in the way they should have worshipped God – with all their being! A healthy society and a healthy soul can only happen when God is the top priority. God does not settle for less than first place in our lives. Is He number one in your life?

#2
“WORSHIPPING THE RIGHT GOD IN THE WRONG WAY!”

TEXT: Ex. 20:4-6; 24-25; Num. 21:8-9; II Kings 18:3-5

INTRO: Strangely enough, the 2nd commandment is probably one of the most violated commandments today! That may seem strange since it is a prohibition against making idols, but there are many ways to “make an idol”.

The second commandment attempts to prevent us from making any kind of image of God, either out of wood or stone, or even out of our own ideas or concepts! It is a prohibition against trying to define God by any kind of image that would seek to restrict Him to that image or symbol and thus make Him less than He is.

While symbols or ideas can help us understand God, they must not become the actual image of God that we worship. Too often the concept of God gets lost in the image used to understand Him. Far too often God ends up looking more like us than like Himself!
Egypt had many symbols of God, and each one became its own god. Israel too learned about God through many different symbols, and like Egypt they often found themselves worshipping the image more than God Himself. If we are not careful we can begin to worship an image of God in our own mind that may be quite different from the real God of the Bible.

PROP. SENT: The Bible teaches us that any attempt at limiting God to an image of our own creation will only give us a small god, and when we have a small god we will have big problems. But if we worship the God of the Bible we will have a big God, and when we have a big God we have small problems!

I. SYMBOLS AS TOOLS Ex. 20:4-6; Num. 21:8-9

A. Defining Principles Num. 21:8-9
1. Many symbols have been used throughout Scripture to teach us about God’s character:
a. Ark of the Covenant with the lid as a mercy seat – taught God’s presence with His people and His willingness to forgive when sprinkled with blood.
b. Much of the tabernacle contained symbolic things that represented truths about God and His work of salvation.
(1. Altar of incense – prayers
(2. Table of show bread – His provisions
(3. Candlestick – His light in darkness
(4. The bronze basin – cleansing of the walk of the believer
(5. The bronze altar – place of sacrifice for sins
2. In the desert when Israel disobeyed God snakes were sent to punish them. God had Moses make a bronze serpent and lift it up so that all who looked upon it would be healed, an act of faith required by looking at it…
a. From this Israel learned that God was a healer.
b. From this Israel also learned that God was a God of judgment.
3. The problem begins when we confuse the images that help us understand God with God!
4. The image of God that many American Christians have too often resemble the materialistic health driven obsession we have as middle class Americans!
5. God however must always remain above our symbols or images.

B. Developing Perspectives Ex. 20:4-6
1. God revealed Himself to Israel through many images or symbols in the hopes that they might grasp certain perspectives about Him.
a. Manna revealed God as the sustaining bread, even Jesus used this image to give us a perspective on His provision for us.
b. God is referred to as “father” to give a perspective of His love and care for us like children, but He is more than a “father” also!
2. God’s names in the Old Testament were meant to reveal new perspectives on God, but not for each one to become a different idol to be worshipped.
a. Jehovah Rapha – God our healer, yet perfect health is not His only goal for our lives.
b. Jehovah Jireh – God is a provider, yet He does more than just this.
c. Jehovah Shalom – God is our peace, yet He is also a God of war!
d. Jehovah Tsidkenu – God our righteousness, yet He also is our judge!
3. We cannot use images or symbols to slant our view of God to a particular area while avoiding other areas of His character…
a. This is what many Americans do today, especially religious ones!
b. We have made God in our image more today than God has made us in His image! 4. When we have a desperate area of need we must be careful that God doesn’t only become the object of what our need is.
5. Understanding more about God is fine through images and symbols, it is however wrong when we define Him by those images and symbols.

II. SYMBOLS AS TRAPS II Kings 18:3-5; Ex. 20:24-25

A. Dependency Problem II Kings 18:3-5
1. The mistakes we can make when using images or symbols to help us understand God is that we can become dependent on that image and therefore end up worshipping it instead of the true God.
a. This has been the problem with human beings ever since we have attempted to get to know God.
b. All through the ages we as humans have mistaken God’s concern for certain things and worshipped what God is concerned about rather than worshipping God Himself! 2. Today many people are attracted to a god of love, but will reject the God of judgment on sins because it doesn’t fit their image of the kind of God they wish to serve.
3. Even God’s good qualities can distort our image of Him if they become the image of God we worship.
a. While the brass serpent became a symbol of God’s healing power it later became a cult god that they worshipped.
b. Hezekiah recognized that the symbol had replaced the true God so he had it destroyed! (see 2 Kings 18:4)
c. Israel had become too dependent on the symbol and instead of pointing to God it now pointed them away from God!
4. Because Israel had become too focused on symbols and images they rejected Jesus when He came because Jesus did not match their image of God or the Messiah they had in mind!
a. Their Messiah was defined by what they wanted the Messiah to be, not what the Bible said He would be.
b. There are many people today like this too with God, they don’t mind worshipping a God that allows them to live in sin or do as they please, but they don’t want to accept the God of the Bible that would confront them with their sin.
5. We as Christians can have an unhealthy view of God also, we can view God as the one who will prosper us, keep us healthy, etc; and while God is a healer, and the one who does prosper us we can turn God into an image of these desires and lose the full picture of God thus resulting in an unhealthy relationship with the Lord based on our definition of what we want God to be.

B. Destructive Pollution Ex. 20:24-25
1. In an interesting passage God forbids His people to build man made steps up to His altar when coming to worship Him.
a. Why?
b. Lest their nakedness be seen!
2. What does this mean in our terms? Any attempt to reach God by our own efforts will only reveal our nakedness and shame!
a. God’s altar was not to be shaped by man. (no tool used on the stones)
b. God’s approach was not to be dressed by man. (no dressed stones or steps up to the altar)
3. Man is too good at creating his own way of trying to save himself, and it always falls short.
a. Today there are people who will travel the world to touch a certain holy relic in the hopes of it giving them some kind of special touch by God.
b. We rely on things instead of on God.
c. All these relics are simply man’s creative dressed stones up to God! 4. It is strange that we will avoid the real God for tokens of Him!
5. Instead of trying to define God, we just need to find God! 6. Whenever Israel sinned, it always began with idols!
a. These false images and idols would lead their hearts away from the God of all creation and get their hearts on created things instead.
b. The result was always a weakened and perverted faith, and a weakened nation.
c. Mysticism replaced faith whenever they turned to their own images of God, something that still happens today.
7. What about us? Do you worship the God you want to worship or the God of the Bible?
a. How big is your God?
b. Are you stuck on a certain image of God?
c. Does your image of God look a lot like you want it to look versus the way God has presented Himself?
8. We will never know the God of power and might if we create Him in our image.

CONCLUSION: False idols are not only made of wood and stone, they can be formed in our minds too! Whenever God is worshipped as the image in our own minds we are guilty of breaking the 2nd commandment. Your God can be too small when you define Him. Symbols help us understand Him, but we must worship the God that He is and not the one we have made Him to be in our own minds. How big is your God?

#3
“WHAT’S IN A NAME?”

TEXT: Ex. 20:7 Eph. 1:1-14

INTRO: How important are names? What kind of images are created when we hear names like: Washington, Lincoln, Roosevelt, Kennedy, Benedict Arnold, Ted Bundy, or names like United States of America, Russia, Germany, Africa, etc.

Obviously there is great power in names, they reflect a myriad of images and ideas in our minds. They identify certain traits or characteristics when they are names of people groups or nations, they connect us to the past through our histories. We use names to connect ourselves with others.

In some cases we can bear a name and it gives us power, or we can bear a name and bring shame on that name. When the 3rd commandment says, “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God in vain…” it is NOT speaking about unbelievers who use God’s name in cursing, it is speaking about God’s people failing to represent His name correctly by their lifestyle!

PROP. SENT: The Bible teaches us that we reflect the name of God to this world like ambassadors, and that failure to represent Him faithfully in the way that we live or speak means misusing His name.

I. ACCEPTANCE Ex. 20:7

A. Responsibilities of His Name 20:7a
1. Israel had been asked to accept God’s name, they were to be “called by my name says the Lord”.
a. To “bear” His name was to also accept the responsibilities to represent His name to the world.
b. This is the point in this commandment, that they NOT misuse His name by misrepresenting it to others.
2. This is still true for those of use who today “bear” Christ’s name as “CHRISTIANS”. 3. When Israel accepted God’s covenant, they accepted the responsibility to correctly represent Him to the world.
a. They were not to be ashamed of His name.
b. They were not to malign it either.
c. They were to uphold His name, a people called by His name. B. Revering His Name 20:7b
1. God does hold us responsible for the use or misuse of His name.
2. God’s name can literally be rebuked or revered on the basis of our life and lifestyle, the witness of our life! 3. It is not as much the sinner that God takes to task for cursing His name as much as it is when His people called by His name misuse it, then we are the ones to use profanity, we profane his name when we don’t revere it through our lives.
4. Too often we have cringed at unbelievers who use God’s name as an expression of cursing, but how much more damaging is it when a believer maligns God’s name by his actions and attitudes!
a. Remember that these commandments were not given to unbelievers, they were given to God’s people.
b. If we get so offended by people using God’s name loosely in conversations, maybe we should become very upset when we see ourselves as Christians live or act in such a way as to bring reproach on the name of Christ!
5. A faithful believer can literally induce a sense of reverence for God’s name in unbelievers if their lives reflect this reverence in word and deed.
a. Most people won’t curse around a real Christian if they know them for the way they have revealed God in their lives.
b. If however we don’t accurately reflect God in our lives no amount of telling people not to curse with God’s name will stop them from doing so.

II. ADOPTION Eph. 1:1-14

A. Receiving His Name 1:1-5
1. Paul uses the concept of Roman adoption to express the importance of God’s people being called by His name when we get saved.
a. What happens when adoption takes place?
b. The child takes on the name of the parents who adopt him/her so that their standing in the world makes them as much a part of that name as any natural born child.
2. Amazingly, when we get saved we get God’s name!
a. Even though we may still be flawed people, we are now called by a new name in Christ!
b. Our new name is grander that our old life, in fact, sometimes it may seem that our new name doesn’t match our scarred life!
c. While our lives are scarred with sin, and experiences at times have left us broken, we are now in Christ called by His great name!
3. Just like a child that is adopted, it isn’t that we deserved it, but God so loved us that He called us unto Himself, and when we respond with faith to receive Him we also receive His name!

B. Representing His Name 1:6-11
1. Now that we bear His name, we must not “bear it in vain”!
a. To falsely represent His name is to break the 3rd commandment!
b. The way people will feel about God may largely come from the way we represent Him to the world! 2. Imagine what a tragedy to the name “LINCOLN” would have occurred if Todd Lincoln had grown up and become a slave owner and slave trader, or if George Washington’s son had become a commander in the British Army after growing up.
3. Do people identify us with God, has the blood of Christ changed our very nature so much that others clearly connect us with the God whose name we are suppose to bear?
4. If the blood of Christ has cleansed us from our sins those in this world should notice a real difference. a. Can we be identified by the blood we bear too?
b. Does the world clearly see God’s name stamped in our lives?
c. Paul says that we have redemption through His blood (1:7) and can therefore declare His grace and forgiveness even through the way we live.
5. Didn’t Jesus teach His disciples to pray this way: “Our Father, who is in heaven, HALLOWED (or Holy) is your NAME”
a. We must not only pray that His name is holy, we must practice it!
b. When we practice it we preach it and therefore properly represent God’s name to the world.

C. Results Of His Name 1:12-14
1. When we have received His name the result is that we receive a “down payment” or “engagement ring” pointing to even greater promises yet to come.
a. The meaning of the term, “deposit” (NIV) or “earnest” (KJV) represents the idea of a pledge, such as a pledge to be married. In fact the Greek word (arrhabon) translated here in modern Greek is the word for “engagement ring.”
b. The Holy Spirit’s presence in our life today is God’s pledge of even greater things to come since we now bear His name.
2. Now that we bear His name and have our “engagement ring” we can look forward to the ultimate reality of living with Him forever!
a. The result of bearing His name is our looking forward to the day when we are returned to our real home!
b. Since we no longer bear an earthly name but a heavenly one our residence will one day change also.
3. Have we been more concerned about how we have kept the 3rd commandment or more concerned about how an unbeliever may use God’s name in vain?
4. Do you see results of His name in your life, how about family, your neighbors and friends, even your enemies?

CONCLUSION: It is not the unbeliever that breaks the 3rd commandment “not to take the Lord’s name in vain” – it is Christians who fail to represent God’s name properly who then bear His name in vain! If we call ourselves “Christian” then our lifestyle must reflect God’s life correctly or we “bear it in vain”. Are you breaking the 3rd commandment?

#4
“THE REST OF THE WEEK!”

TEXTS: Exodus 20:8-11; Genesis 2:15; Nehemiah 13:15-22

INTRO: Of the 10 commandments this is the one taken most lightly by both Christians and non Christians. Against the other commandments like, “Thou shall not kill”, “Thou shall not steal”, and “Do not commit adultery” it seems rather mild and innocuous.

Nothing could be further from the truth however! As the final commandment on tablet #1 dealing with man’s relationship with God it concludes all that we need to know in order to have a full life. ALL the commandments are needed for full life as God intended. God’s rightful place and man’s rightful place cannot be understood in life without this commandment.
This commandment really has two parts to it:
(1. Keep the Sabbath day holy
(2. Six days shall you work.

We cannot find meaning in work without worship, and worship without work has no practical value! It is the combination of both worship and work that creates a full humanity and purpose to life, if our work is for ourselves it has no lasting sense of purpose. We cannot experience work as a joyous thing without realizing that our work is being done for something greater than ourselves, and worship without work gives no expression of God’s power in our lives to those of this world.

PROP. SENT: The Bible teaches us that to experience the fullness of our humanity we must both consistently worship God and work. Worship fits us to work. We must honor both parts of this commandment to know God’s best in life.

I. MAN – THE WORSHIPPER Ex. 20:8,10-11

A. Relationship 20:8
1. The first part of this commandment deals with worship before work.
a. The Sabbath was God’s final day of creation, but it was man’s first day of existence .. so man begins his journey with worship before work!
b. Worship makes a man fit to be a worker.
2. Without worship our work has no lasting value, it is only temporal.
a. Certainly nothing man can do as work has any eternal significance to it if it is not done out of a relationship with an eternal God.
3. Why is all this true?
a. Man is a spiritual being, and if what he does has not come from a spiritual perspective it has little value to it.
b. Worship frames everything in our lives by giving significance to everything beyond a materialistic framework.
4. God desired fellowship with Adam before sending Adam into the garden to work it.
We cannot experience work as a joyous thing without realizing that our work is being done for something greater than ourselves, and worship without work gives no expression of God’s power in our lives to those of this world.

PROP. SENT: The Bible teaches us that to experience the fullness of our humanity we must both consistently worship God and work. Worship fits us to work. We must honor both parts of this commandment to know God’s best in life.

I. MAN – THE WORSHIPPER Ex. 20:8,10-11

A. Relationship 20:8
1. The first part of this commandment deals with worship before work.
a. The Sabbath was God’s final day of creation, but it was man’s first day of existence .. so man begins his journey with worship before work!
b. Worship makes a man fit to be a worker.
2. Without worship our work has no lasting value, it is only temporal.
a. Certainly nothing man can do as work has any eternal significance to it if it is not done out of a relationship with an eternal God.
3. Why is all this true?
a. Man is a spiritual being, and if what he does has not come from a spiritual perspective it has little value to it.
b. Worship frames everything in our lives by giving significance to everything beyond a materialistic framework.
4. God desired fellowship with Adam before sending Adam into the garden to work it.
5. The purpose of this commandment was to prevent man who worked most of the week from losing the spiritual dynamic to his life and thus the purpose to his work and life.
a. Failure to worship will have an impact of the satisfaction of our work!
b. Worship renews our spirit which is what energizes our body!
B. Rest 20:10-11
1. Worship enables us to “rest” before God.
a. This isn’t primarily a physical rest as much as it is a spiritual rest!
(1. It is a resting from saving ourselves!
(2. It is resting in God’s love and cleansing power.
b. However, the spiritual rest can have profound impact on our physical being!
2. Too often we fail to understand the significance of worship, so many see it as unimportant since we do so many of the same things over and over in the same way when we worship.
a. We fail to understand however how important many of these “spiritual” dynamics are in the way they affect our lives.
b. To “remember” the Sabbath day and to keep it holy may mean repeating many of the same spiritual dynamics over and over in our lives, but these very exercises become the core strength that enables us to deal with a materialistic universe and the problems we face in the work place. 3. These are not empty rituals we go through when we sing hymns of worship and praise to God, nor is it just an “offering” of money that we collect, nor an exercise in patience to sit under a sermon – these acts of worship frame our lives and understanding of God and thus ourselves so that when we “work” in this world there is a whole different understanding of our role in life.
a. The Sabbath is thus a “rest” in God, a time for our soul to refresh itself as much as it is to prepare us for work in the world.
b. The man who fails to worship by honoring the Sabbath is a man that will not find satisfaction in life or work in the way God designed us to experience it.
4. In this sense the Sabbath was not made for God, it was made for man, a statement Jesus clearly says in Mark 2:27 “Then he said to them, ‘The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.’”

II. MAN – THE WORKER Ex. 20:9; Gen. 2:15; Neh. 13:15-22

A. Responsibilities 20:9; Gen. 2:15
1. While the first half of the 4th commandment is “Keep the Sabbath day..” the second part is “Six days shall a man work…”
a. The full value of being a human being as God intended cannot be experienced without both WORSHIP and WORK.
b. The 4th commandment requires both.
2. A society that fails to realize that their citizen’s sense of self respect comes only from a Worship ethic and a Work ethic will fail to develop a strong society.
a. A society that is devoid of spiritual foundations will lack a sense of true mission.
b. A society that makes welfare without work will strip it citizens of dignity and purpose.
c. The human spirit must have both worship and work to know their humanity as God intended it to be.
3. Work was a part of Adam’s humanity BEFORE he sinned! (See Gen. 2:15)
a. Adam was commanded to work the garden before he fell in sin.
b. Man was not created to JUST worship, but to worship and work!
c. It is for this reason that any system to help the poor that avoids both elements, a spiritual context and a creative one will leave those who receive help “dignity poor” and lacking true self esteem.
(1. The Old Testament welfare system is a good example here of both:
(a. The spiritual context said the poor were valuable and the rich had a responsibility to them by leaving the corners of their fields for the poor to glean.
(b. By leaving the corners of the field for the poor, the poor had to work to gather in what was provided so that work was a part of the process and thus preserving their own dignity and self respect.
(c. In this way there was responsibility and dignity for both the rich and the poor. Each had to DO something.
(2. The New Testament certainly had a similar emphasis based on the Apostle Paul’s words to the Church in Thessalonica, 2 Th 3:10-12 “For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: "If a man will not work, he shall not eat." We hear that some among you are idle. They are not busy; they are busybodies. Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the bread they eat.”
4. Failure of humans to worship also leaves them without true dignity and self respect, for there is no larger context to what they do than themselves!
a. Too many people assume that activity or work alone will fulfill them.
b. However, they soon discover that it is not activity that proves anything of value, only activity within a context of an eternal perspective that can add meaning.
B. Rewards Neh. 13:15-22
1. Nehemiah understood how easy it is breaking the 4th commandment, and also how quickly God’s blessings disappeared when Judah did break it, so he goes into action to restore the Sabbath in order to restore God’s blessings on them as a nation, a nation that was recovering from captivity.
a. While they may be free again, captivity can come in other ways, and their neglect of the Sabbath was setting the stage for a new kind of captivity.
b. Since Nehemiah knew that the biggest battle was going to be with the merchants and the buyers he starts with them.
c. He forbids the doors to town to be open on the Sabbath.
d. He won’t let the merchants even in, and by closing the doors the buyers couldn’t get to the goodies!
e. He finally tells them after a couple of attempts to get their wares in that if they persist he will “make some heads roll”!
2. Nehemiah understood that leadership was needed to restore the proper place of the Sabbath in the life of Judah.
a. Dads, are you taking leadership in your homes to restore the Sabbath principle for your wife and children?
b. Once Nehemiah demonstrated his own leadership in this, he called upon the Levites to “PURIFY THEMSELVES” and to enforce it. A call for others to join him in being an example.
c. Stay at home parents do not produce go to Church children!
3. While we emphasize to our children and society the importance of “Thou shall not kill, Thou shall not steal, Thou shall not commit adultery” I wonder if we do as much to say, “remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy”?
4. Nehemiah’s concerns were simple, their forefathers had neglected the Sabbath and God had therefore allowed calamity upon them as a nation, if they want God’s blessings and rewards they would have to emphasize as much the Sabbath as any of the other commandments.
a. Reward came with responsibility
b. Reward came with taking God at His word about the Sabbath.
5. God was trying to raise them up as a nation, the Sabbath was meant to strengthen them as a people.
a. The world may not understand the importance of the Sabbath, but we need to show that it is important.
b. The Sabbath would raise up a nation to be all that God would have them to be.
6. Just as skipping too much work has penalties, skipping the Sabbath has spiritual penalties also.
a. It is important to be faithful to worship.
b. It is important to be faithful to work.
7. How well do you keep the Sabbath?
a. Are you good at only “half” of this commandment, “6 days you will work…”?
b. Why settle for only half a blessing?
CONCLUSION: While the Sabbath was the last day of creation for God, it was man’s first day of existence with God. We begin our week with worship and then enter the week with work. God came first! The 4th commandment has 2 parts to it: (1. Worship – Sabbath, and (2. “6 days you will work” – creativity. Man is never fulfilled without both worship and work. A failure to honor both will result in loss. Do you remember the Sabbath to keep it holy?

#5
“HONORING & BEING HONORABLE!”

TEXT: Ex. 20:12; Luke 2:41-52; Eph. 6:1-4

INTRO: The 5th commandment started off the second stone tablet. The first tablet began with our relationship to our heavenly father, the second tablet begins with our relationship to our earthly father and mother.

Just as success with the first commandment was necessary for a healthy relationship with God, so is success with the fifth commandment necessary for a healthy relationship with others in society. Simply put, the way children relate to their parents will determine their success in how they relate to other human beings.
Not only will it affect the relationship we have with other human beings, but it has a dramatic impact on our relationship with our heavenly father as well.
There are two parts to this commandment
(1. it is about children honoring parents
(2. it is about parents being honorable!

PROP. SENT: The Bible teaches us that God has placed a high value on the institution of the home, and that much of what we become in life is influenced by the early years and how we respond to our parent’s authority. This commandment speaks to both children and parents and to society as a whole.

I. THE HONORING STAGE Ex. 20:12; Eph. 6:1-3; Lk. 2:41-52

A. Respecting Authority Ex. 20:12; Eph. 6:1-3
1. The first authority in life we encounter is our parents.
2. There are 3 stages in our life we must navigate successfully in order to become healthy adults:
a. Early Childhood stage: “enforced obedience”
(1. Enforced obedience with love and good balances will make the willful obedience stage later more acceptable.
(2. Enforced obedience with love produces respect so that willful obedience becomes a natural progression.
(3. The simple statement by Paul in Eph. 6:1 “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.” reflects this early stage, Paul does not elaborate on the philosophy of it, just the simple truth of it!
b. Youth stage: “willful obedience”
(1. Paul’s point in Eph. 6:2-3 about the 5th commandment and ‘honoring’ parents so that blessings may come may indicate this second phase.
(2. Willful obedience in youth helps produce a healthy adult who can exercise authority and mutually submit to other authority.
(3. Rebelliousness at this stage often makes for a rough transition later to adulthood and the dynamics of authority.
c. Adult stage: “mutual obedience”
(1. This stage is the result of successful navigation through the first two stages.
(2. Most adults that do well with authority have had good experiences with enforced obedience and willful obedience as they grow.
3. How well we do in each stage will dramatically determine how well we do in the next stage.
a. This is the point here about children “honoring father and mother”
b. To honor means to “RESPECT” their position and authority.
c. Much of the way children feel about God is modeled on how they feel about us as parents!
4. When children “respect” or “honor” their parents they learn to respect and honor God.
a. God is the ultimate authority figure.
b. As parents we represent an authority figure.
5. For these reasons it is important that we model God’s love and authority in the right way, this enables our children to honor God as they honor us.
a. How do our children view our obedience to God’s authority?
b. The way we honor our heavenly father may influence the way our children honor their earthly father and mother.

B. Responding to Authority Luke 2:41-52
1. This story on Jesus’ BAR MITZBAH – the act of being declared a ‘man’ in Jewish culture demonstrates the transition of authority in a healthy way.
a. Jesus had gone through the “enforced obedience” stage as a child like all children.
b. Now as a youth he transitioned from “enforced obedience” to his earthly parents to “willful obedience”.
(1. Luke 2:49 was not a response of disrespect, Jesus was expressing His surprise that his parents had been frustrated when they found Him where they had taught Him to be as an adult, in His Father’s house!
(2. Jesus was simply making reference to the lessons He had been taught by them as His parents … to make God the father a priority.
(3. Now as an “official man” in Judaism (he was now 12) he was doing what he had been taught, only now it was not “enforced” it was “willful” on His part.
2. Notice the obvious transition here from childhood’s “enforced obedience” to the “willful obedience” of youth in Luke 2:51 “Then He went down to Nazareth with them and WAS OBEDIENT to them…”
a. Following his BAR MITZBAH he willfully submits to their authority.
b. Jesus passed through the 3 stages of healthy authority as all humans must.
c. No doubt the transition was harder for Joseph and Mary than it was for Jesus … thus explaining their reactions here!
3. They failed to understand what Jesus was doing at first, how difficult it is as parents to move through the transitions and see what our children see sometimes!
4. We need to be sensitive to the stages our children are passing through so we deal appropriately with each one.

II. THE HONORABLE STAGE Eph. 6:4

A. Responsible Authority 6:4a
1. While Paul is quick to point out how important it is for children to obey their parents he is equally quick to point out how important it is for parents to be honorable in their dealings with their children!
a. Our use of authority as parents can have a dramatic impact on how our children navigate the stages of “enforced obedience” and “willful obedience”.
b. The 5th commandment speaks to both children and parents!
c. Paul asks fathers not to exasperate their children – to not be unreasonable with their children.
2. As godly parents we are to exercise authority in a responsible way, not an emotional way.
3. Our authority should be based on principles and not whims or personal desires, principles guided by God’s word.
4. Unreasonable demands in childhood usually mean rebelliosness in youth, and unreasonable demands in youth mean angry adults that do not respond to authority well.
5. God help us to be responsible in the use of authority and reflect God presence in our lives!

B. Reflecting Authority 6:4b
1. Paul seems to indicate here that if we bring up children in the training and instruction of the Lord we will not exasperate them.
a. God’s ways are good the Psalmist says.
b. We must not however only tell our kids to follow God’s ways, we must show them the way!
2. The way we reflect God’s authority in our lives can have a dramatic impact on whether our kids love the Lord themselves!
3. We must see in the 5th commandment not only the call for children to honor their father and mother, but the call for father and mother to be honorable!
4. While there can surely be exceptions to the rules, the fact is that most honorable parents will have children that grow up to honor them, and to even emulate them!
a. What we do as parents both by talking and by walking can have dramatic impact on our children’s lives.
b. We need to exercise godliness in our own lives to help insure it in our children’s lives.
5. The 5th commandment is the basis of all healthy human relationships, and all healthy societies will be based on it.
a. Don’t despair mom and dad if you are living honorably and your children are struggling through the stages of obedience, keep doing the right things!
b. The fruit of both honoring and being honorable shows up later in our children as adults, it will at least give them the right path to follow.

CONCLUSION: Just as the 1st commandment sets the stage for everything spiritually in our relationship to our heavenly father, this 1st commandment on the 2nd stone tablet sets the stage for every earthly relationship in our society. If we fail to honor authority in the position of earthly parents we will fail to be honorable as earthly parents! The commandment here promises long life to societies that both honor parents and that have honorable parents. Failure to submit to authority usually results in the inability to exercise it properly later.

#6
“THE LOVE OF LIFE”

TEXT: Ex. 20:13; Matt. 5:21-24,43-48; I Jn. 3:15

INTRO: Everyday we hear more and more about murder, killing! Our culture is full of killing; every year in this country we kill over 1,000,000 unborn babies mostly for the sake of convenience. We are moving to the day when our elderly will be encouraged to die when they become an inconvenience. Our movies glorify killing, video games also promote “shooting people”, we have more guns in our society than any other country on earth. The horrible events of the past few days are a testimony to the lack of respect for life that our secular society has encouraged.

Life is no longer a sacred thing, it is a dispensable thing. It is not surprising that the further our society moves away from God’s commandments the less sacred society considers those things God cherishes. The sixth commandment was given to Israel to teach them to love life, to consider it so valuable that the taking of life would result in the loss of your own life.

PROP. SENT: The Bible teaches us that life is a sacred gift from God, that any society or individual that despises the value of life will lose their way and become corrupt. We are to love life and seek to preserve and sanctify it.

I. THE ANATOMY OF MURDER Matt. 5:21-24 I John 3:15

A. Unchecked Wrath! 5:21-22 I Jn. 3:15
1. While the Old Testament commandment #6 simply said, “Do not murder,” Jesus elaborates on the dynamics that lead to murder.
a. In Christ we must not only deal with the outward act, we must also deal with the inside drives that move us toward action.
b. Christ makes it clear that murder begins in the heart long before it explodes on the scene in action.
2. What Jesus says here is that the process that leads to killing is progressive:
a. the first stage is the “RACCA” stage – This is an emotional anger in the moment than explodes by calling someone “You idiot” (the loose translation of the Aramaic word “Racca”).
b. This is the first stage of anger, it usually does not move toward a particular act, but is still serious enough that someone expressing this kind of anger is required to come before the Sanhedrin (5:22a).
c. The point of coming before spiritual leaders at this point is to make the person accountable and to deal with the anger at this stage before it progresses to the next more dangerous level.
3. Another reason why Jesus expresses the need for appearing before others when this moderate level of anger happens is to prevent the spread of anger.
a. The fact of the matter is that unresolved anger in our hearts can spread to others.
b. Like all emotions, when we feel them strongly, those who are our friends will be touched by them also.
4. Anger left unchecked at the “RACCA” stage will move onto the “YOU FOOL” stage, a much more serious level of anger!
a. This level has already passed the accountability stage to men, it has moved to being accountable to God directly!
b. Jesus says this level of anger will leave the individual ready for the dangers of “Hell fire”! (see also I Jn. 3:15)
c. This is the level of anger that is actually planning to hurt to someone else, it is anger looking for ways to hurt others either emotionally or physically or both.
5. Jesus clearly states that anger left unchecked to this level puts the angry person in a place that the fires of hell will itself be their reward. (see I Jn. 3:15)
a. This should indicate to us the seriousness of God’s love for life!
b. Satan is an angry being whose only desire is to harm and hurt, so when we allow anger to go unchecked we actually take on Satan’s characteristics, and thus put ourselves in line for the same punishment he is experiencing.
6. While the Pharisees and teachers of the law were only concerned with the overt act of murder, Jesus tries to get them to learn to deal with the progressing issues of the heart that lead to murder.
a. it is not enough to just throw people in jail for murder, we need to deal with the issues of anger in our society that push people down that road.
b. Obviously one of the most important ways we can do this is by showing our children how to deal with anger in their lives by how we ourselves deal with anger in our lives.
7. How do we deal with anger?
a. When you experience the “RACCA” stage, do you make yourself accountable to others for that anger, or do you simply ignore it?
(1. Accountability can mean counseling
(2. It can mean a friend that we can open up to.
(3. It must mean some way of having others help us deal with our anger in appropriate ways.
b. There is no excuse for the “YOU FOOL” stage of anger!
(1. This is anger already out of control.
(2. It is anger that already has in mind hurting others.

B. Unacceptable Worship 5:23-24
1. God’s love of life is so serious that even the more moderate levels of anger concern Him enough to refuse to accept our worship and our gifts if there is anger in any relationship with anyone else!
a. It is hardly conceivable that we could worship and celebrate God when we are not in a healthy relationship with someone else.
b. God says to “leave the gifts at the altar” – you can still bring them, but there must be a priority of healthy relationships with others, gifts to God cannot make up for this!
c. Please note that the gifts are left at the altar when you know SOMEONE else is angry with you, even if you are not angry … there must be an attempt to heal the relationship with others before we can come and enjoy the relationship with God.
2. The greatest freedom to worship God comes with the freedom of being at peace with others!
3. So serious is the effect of a broken relationship with others that God would rather have us heal that before coming and worshipping Him!
a. A relationship with God is much more satisfying when we also have healthy relationships with others.
b. Our own love for God cannot be pure when mixed with anger or hatred for others.

II. THE ABOLITION OF MURDER Matt. 5:43-48

A. Unrestricted Warmth 5:43-47
1. Jesus identifies how the Pharisees had changed the Old Testament law to suit their own behaviors – He states how the Pharisees had quoted the Law as saying, “Love your neighbor and hate your enemy”
a. Yet nowhere in the law was the last phrase “hate your enemy” found!
b. They had taken “neighbor” to mean only those who are like them, such as other Jews of the Pharisaical persuasion.
c. Therefore all others were NOT neighbors, and since the command was only to love “neighbors” they felt free to hate their enemies.
2. This legal loophole however defies the Old Testament law, for a neighbor was anyone who wasn’t of your own grouping!
3. Thus there were no enemies to hate!
4. Hate never accomplishes any good, it only injures, and not just others, but self also!
5. Rather than hate enemies, we are to love them and pray for them.
a. It is hard to hate those whom you pray for!
b. The Pharisees taught “HOW TO HATE” while Jesus taught “HOW TO LOVE”.
6. There is no strength that comes from loving those who love you, it is learning to love those who despise you that teach you the heart of God.
a. Anyone can love those who love them.
b. Even wicked people love other wicked people who love them!
7. Since God demonstrates His love toward saint and sinners alike equally, the rain and sunshine fall on both equally, should we not also learn to love equally well those who are Christians and those who are not?
a. No wonder Jesus said in Mat 5:20 “For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.”
b. There is no power to Christianity if our love does not exceed the world’s concept of love!
c. The fact that God loved us when we were His enemies is what ultimately transformed us from enemies of God to the friends of God we are in Christ!
8. Even if we don’t murder someone physically, unchecked anger can cause us to murder reputations, murder relationships, murder joy in our lives as well as in others, etc. Only an unrestricted love toward others can heal hearts and free us from the tyranny of hate and anger!

B. Unwavering Will 5:48
1. How much does God expect of us?
a. This says it all – to be “perfect like He is!!!!”
b. Obviously this doesn’t mean to be flawless, it means to be perfect in our love toward others, even our enemies, just like Christ loves them!
2. It means to find a way to destroy in our hearts the natural tendency to become angry with others and instead learn to value others and their life.
a. It means more than just being at peace with others, it means actually going out on a limb to love them!
b. It is not enough to just be peaceful with others, we must be loving!
3. The idea of being “perfect” means being “mature” – like God’s maturity.
a. This means not letting our emotions rule our behavior.
b. This means disciplining ourselves to do what is right and not just what we want to do.
c. it is the idea of being “other” focused instead of “self” directed.
4. God would not ask something of us that is not possible, so to ask us to be “perfect” like He is indicates that this is attainable in the sense of being mature in our love and containing our anger and hatred.
5. Is there anger in your life that needs attention? God offers a solution for it, will you turn your hate into love?

CONCLUSION: The seeds of murder are first planted in our hearts as hate and anger. If hate and anger is not confessed and dealt with it produces a wrath that grows stronger and stronger until it seeks to destroy. Since God is the author of life, He not only opposes the taking of life but also the process that leads to murder. He won’t accept worship from us if we are not right with others since it is contrary to the LOVE OF LIFE God has.

#7
“1 + 1 = 1”

TEXTS: Ex. 20:14; Gen. 2:18,22-24; 3:20; Matt. 5:27-30; I Cor. 7:3-5

INTRO: The culture we live in today scoffs at the concept of sexual fidelity in marriage, consider the following:

ILLUS: The conclusion made by a study of 104 leading television writers and executives conducted by the Center for Media and Public Affairs, the study found that Hollywood’s views run far from the mainstream of public opinion. Some examples: Though 85 percent of Americans believe adultery is wrong, only 49 percent of TV writers and executives do. Everyone else is less likely than Hollywood to say a woman has a right to an abortion (59 to 97 percent). While only 4 percent of Americans have no religious affiliation, 45 percent of the TV writers and executives have none. -- Reported in Newsweek, 7/20/92, "To Verify," Leadership.

It is no wonder that our society is inundated with messages about sex that is contrary to God’s 7th commandment “You shall not commit adultery.” Our divorce rate and the number of married couples in counseling over extra marital affairs has never been higher. It is time we stop listening to Hollywood and listen to God’s Holy Will!

PROP. SENT: The Bible teaches us that healthy marriages are built on sexual fidelity and that the healthiest sexuality comes in a committed relationship of one man and one woman in marriage for life.

I. PURPOSE IN MARRIAGE Gen. 2:18,22-24; 3:20

A. Partnership 2:18
1. To understand a healthy marriage it is necessary to understand the purpose of marriage, God has created marriage to have 3 elements to it and in a particular order, and the first of these elements is “partnership”.
a. Note that Adam was productive without Eve, he had already started “work” – but he was not complete without Eve!
b. Men need to understand this dynamic, while they may feel fulfilled in their work experience they may also feel empty emotionally and incomplete without a healthy relationship with a spouse.
c. God looked at Adam and said it was “not good for the man to be alone.”
2. When Eve is created there is nothing said at the beginning about her existence to make babies, she was made first and foremost to be Adam’s “suitable helper” (2:18) which in the Hebrew means “a counterpart” or “partner” of equal value!
a. God’s call for having dominion over all the Earth was given to them both, (1:28) not just Adam, they were equal partners.
b. Eve was different in function and roles, not less in value.
3. God’s purpose for marriage was clear from the beginning, one woman for one man for life, God made no other women for Adam nor any other men for Eve.
4. In a world that changes partners, or fails to cement a relationship as a marriage in favor of simply living together, the purpose of marriage as God intended cannot take place!
a. Every attempt by society to alter God’s intended purposes in marriage has proven to be a step backward and not one forward.
b. Though the voices in our culture are loud against a Biblical sexual ethic the evidence proves society wrong and the scriptures as true! to an article by Felicity Barringer of the New York Times, trial marriages do not increase the chance of a marriage lasting or being successful. In fact, those who live together before marriage, separate and divorce in significantly greater numbers than those who go directly to the altar. -- Robert C. Shannon, 1000 Windows, (Cincinnati, Ohio: Standard Publishing Company, 1997).

5. A good marriage is one built first on “partnership,” both with each other and with God!

B. Pleasure 2:22-24
1. The second purpose in marriage was pleasure, not producing children!
a. When God brings Eve to Adam to present her to him the first words out of his mouth were, “THIS IS bone of my bones, flesh of my flesh…” The first two words in English here are a translation of the demonstrative adverb in Hebrew which can also be loosely translated, “WOW, bone of my bone…” an expression of pleasure!
b. Marriage was to be enjoyed, a relationship of great pleasure, as was their relationship with God before sin entered the picture.
2. The mutual sharing and the bonds emotionally, physically, and socially all produced great pleasure.
3. This pleasure was not just some accidental product however, it was the product of great responsibilities and a commitment to one another exclusively.

ILLUS: In the "Peanuts" comic strip, drawn by Charles Schulz, Charlie Brown says to his friend, "My Granpa and Granma have been married for fifty years!" The friend replies, "They’re lucky, aren’t they?" Charlie Brown answers. "Granma says it isn’t luck--it’s skill!" -- Robert C. Shannon, 1000 Windows, (Cincinnati, Ohio: Standard Publishing Company, 1997).

4. Too many young people enter into marriage today expecting pleasure without the responsibilities that are required to find it.
a. Happy couples and well adjusted couples are those who live responsibly and a disciplined life.
b. Pleasure is a product of responsible behavior.

C. Procreation 3:20
1. Only after PARTNERSHIP and PLEASURE do we see the third purpose in marriage coming into existence, that of reproduction or bearing children.
a. Eve was valued as an equal person and not just as a baby factory.
b. The loss of this in the Old Testament created a horrible imbalance in marriage for generations. Women became valued only as far as they could produce children for their husbands, this was not God’s plan for marriage, it was a distortion of it.
2. In our modern society PLEASURE has been put in the #1 spot and so marriages are built solely on how we “feel” in marriage, and if it is no longer fun the relationship ends and we look for someone else to make us happy! This too is a distortion of God’s design for marriage.
3. Children should be the product of two people who are equal partners first, whose relationship is loving and joyous, the environment will then give the greatest atmosphere in which another generation will know the joy of God’s purposes in marriage.
a. Partners before Parents!
b. Too often today this is missing

II. PURITY IN MARRIAGE Matt. 5:27-30; I Cor. 7:3-5

A. Preserving Matt. 5:27-30
1. It is very difficult to preserve a marriage that has experienced sexual infidelity.
a. The pain of unfaithfulness sexually can be greater than the pain of death itself.
b. The broken vows and trust in the union is devastating.
2. For this reason Jesus expands on the simplicity of the 7th commandment to explain the process that yields to brokenness.
a. It begins in the heart long before it becomes an outward act of sin.
b. Jesus is attempting to help explain the carefulness of our thought life and how it can impact our actual life.
3. It is not the fleeting thought that Jesus is explaining here, it is the dwelling thought that is entertained.
a. To look on another woman and allow a process of fantasizing to develop with lust can be just as sinful as the act of adultery, because in fact it will often lead to it!
b. No one wakes up and decides they will commit adultery today, it is usually the result of dwelling on lustful thoughts that produce the fruit of sin later.
4. The battle is often won in our thought life, we must guard our HEARTS AND MINDS in order to live godly.

ILLUS: There is a story of two Buddhist monks walking in a drenching thunderstorm. They came to a stream, and it was swollen out of its banks. A beautiful young Japanese woman in a kimono stood there wanting to get to the other side but was afraid of the currents. In characteristic Buddhist compassion, one of the monks said, "Can I help you?" The woman said, "I need to cross this stream." The monk picked her up, put her on his shoulder, carried her through the water, and put her down on the other side. He and his companion went on to the monastery. That night his companion said to him, "I have a bone to pick with you. As Buddhist monks, we have taken vows not to look on a woman, much less touch her body. Back there by the river you did both." The first monk said, "My brother, I put that woman down on the other side of the river. You’re still carrying her in your mind." -- John Claypool, "The Future and Forgetting," Preaching Today, Tape No. 109.

5. This is precisely why pornography can be so devastating, especially for men who are more visually directed than women are.
a. The processes of lust once stimulated will cause one to seek opportunity to find expression for that lust.
b. It is also the reason the Bible talks about our dress and appearances as being “moderate” and not in such a way as to help create lust in someone else’s mind.
6. Jesus’ point here is to promote a healthy discipline with our minds and thought life – for ultimately it will impact our lives through actions.
a. No wonder Paul also encourages a proper thought life in Philip. 4:8-9
b. The root of sin begins in our thought life.
7. Jesus wants us to understand just how important it is to discipline our thought life to the extent that he uses two powerful metaphors about gouging out your eye if it tends to stray toward lust or cutting off your hand!
a. He is not encouraging actual self-mutilation, He is simply stating how critically important it is to do whatever is necessary to prevent the process of lust from developing.
b. It is a strong call to find ways to control our appetites, to discipline our lives, to act responsibly.
c. Like young Joseph when Potiphar’s wife tried to entice him into bed, HE JUST FLED – The Bible says, “Flee youthful lusts” (II Tim. 2:22) and he took it literally!

B. Practical I Cor. 7:3-5
1. Paul likewise takes a very practical view toward sexual relations in marriage.
a. Understanding that the Corinthians were going through some kind of crisis at the moment of his writing he actually had encouraged them to not get married in light of the present crisis (see I Cor. 7:26)
b. Paul did not mean that marriage is less preferred than being single, only under the present crisis.
2. However, if married, Paul also recognized the importance of a husband and wife staying sexually pure with one another.
a. He encourages them to continue a normal sexual life lest either one be given to lust elsewhere.
b. Notice how even-minded Paul is about the sexual needs of husband and wife – he is equal in his command here that they both give each other their due!
c. There was no subservient role of women sexually in a Christian home!
3. Paul reminds them of what the Bible teaches about marriage, that a husband and wife are ONE FLESH, not two! 1+1=1!
a. Again he is equal in both directions
b. Both partners are seen with equal need, equal responsibility.
4. Paul explains that the only reason to abstain from a normal sexual life in marriage is when BOTH parties agree for a specific purpose for a specific time period, and then they should come back together so as not to cause either one to be tempted sexually.
a. In our modern life where we are apart so often from one another there can be a strain on a relationship and create the dynamics for temptation to occur.
b. For this reason we should make sure each other’s needs are met in a relationship as much as possible.
5. Paul’s point is to act responsibly, sexual temptations can cause an otherwise disciplined person to go astray – and the price tag is always high for both partners!!!
6. It is indeed a foolish spouse, a foolish society, and a foolish world that thinks adultery is only a minor problem or something that everyone is going to do anyway so we need to quit being so uptight about it.
a. Adultery undermines the trust and bonding between two people.
b. It is not just a sexual act, it is also a spiritual act – hence why the damage is so powerful when one is unfaithful.
7. Think what marriage would be like with faithfulness in both partners; what types of diseases would disappear from the earth if everyone was faithful, the children who would know who their parents are, the homes that would experience a loving commitment of two people!
8. The 7th commandment was given to allow marriages to experience the deepest sharing, with the greatest joys, and children who would grow up in the most stable of environments.

CONCLUSION: While we live in a culture that encourages sexual diversity, the Bible teaches sexual discipline! Sex is not just a physical act, it also has spiritual dynamics to it, thus Jesus said that when a man joins himself with a prostitute they become ‘one’ – not just in flesh but in spirit also. It is for these reasons that so much spiritual damage is done when sex occurs outside marriage. In God’s economy 1+1=1, not 2! Sex can bring great joy when followed God’s way, or great pain when we ignore His command. Don’t commit adultery – find God’s plan for a joyful union!

#8
“CHEATING YOURSELF”

TEXT: Ex. 20:15; Eph. 4:28; Mal. 3:8-14

INTRO: When we think of “stealing” we usually picture a hardened criminal like a bank robber or the “cat burglar” or perhaps someone who is a kleptomaniac. Certainly this command speaks to those type of people, but there is another realm to stealing besides the hardened criminal, it is the many ways we find each day in our common lives to steal; such things as robbing someone of compassion, taking away someone’s good name with gossip, deciding those pencils the company bought belong at your house instead of the office, and even the failure to give to God His tithes and offerings!

So often people take what is not theirs because they can’t or won’t wait for it, or believe they shouldn’t have to wait for it. We all know that we can’t always have what we want when we want it.
Stealing destroys relationships that are built on trust, and it destroys self respect when one receives by theft that which does not belong to them. Stealing destroys character as it breeds corruption. Theft can compromise our relationship with one another and with God, in this way it hurts the soul and society.

PROP. SENT: The Bible teaches us that God condemns the taking of anything that does not rightfully belong to us, that taking from others or from Him that which is not rightfully ours destroys our soul and society.

I. STEALING FROM MAN Ex. 20:15; Eph. 4:28

A. Receiving Eph. 4:28
1. There are only 3 ways of getting anything in life:
a. By GIFT – an act of grace, the receiver may or may not deserve the gift.
(1. Salvation falls into this category
(2. We don’t deserve to be saved, but God offers us His salvation if we simply ask, there is nothing we can do to deserve it, we just simply cast ourselves at His feet and confess our sins and He graciously forgives and saves us.
(3. The act of getting a gift is an act of love on the givers part, the receiver is usually overwhelmed and grateful.
b. By WORK – a way of getting by earning.
(1. This way of getting things has a lot to do with us, we receive by deserving what we get, for services rendered.
(2. Since this kind of getting involves our efforts it usually produces a sense of self respect because what we receive is connected by sacrifice on our part through work.
(3. This is why God created work even before Adam’s fall into sin, God had Adam work the garden before he sinned, this way the fruit he enjoyed would bring self respect and satisfaction, this is an honorable way for people to get things.
(4. This way of receiving often motivates us to work even harder and more sacrificially since we are blessed by what we receive – thus it makes self and society productive.
c. By THEFT – this is the only other way to receive something, by simply stealing it or taking it!
(1. This does not create self respect, rather, it creates self hatred.
(2. This does not create productivity, it creates loss.
(3. This does not produce trust, it breeds suspicion.
(4. Because it both destroys the soul and society God has issued a command against it.
2. Tragically, there are too many people today that see stealing as the only way to get ahead in this world and too many that only view it as a nuisance rather than an issue of conscience and the soul.
3. Our society today has become one of taking whatever seems to be available whether it is ours or not.
4. No wonder we live in a society that has learned to put bars on the windows of their homes, or double locks on their doors, or to use video surveillance equipment in nearly every establishment.
a. We have become a society that doesn’t trust anyone anymore.
b. The prices we pay for things has factored into it a price to cover the large amount of theft that is practiced by common people every day.
5. No wonder we live in an affluent society today that nobody seems to enjoy, receiving without earning does not make someone happy, it diminishes their self respect!

B. Relationships
1. Since all relationships are built on trust, theft seriously destroys relationships.
2. We can steal someone’s good name, we can steal someone’s relationship with others – but with each type of theft we leave ourselves and others empty instead of full.
3. No thief ever feels satisfied, and they are left with less and not more even if they are successful in stealing!
4. We never really get ahead through theft, what we leave behind is our self respect and broken trust from others.
a. Judas is a good example, the Scriptures say that he regularly helped himself to the treasury of the disciples (John 12:6), not only did he lose his own self respect evidenced in taking his own life but he also lived a miserable life of guilt before this.
b. Thieves are never happy people!

C. Recklessness Ex. 20:15
1. When we even excuse the small ways we steal, whether taking answers from someone else’s test in school to taking home office supplies that your company paid for we not only hurt ourselves but all society.
2. Taking shortcuts (which is the essence of theft) may appear to bless us, but the results are never really satisfying!
II. STEALING FROM GOD Mal. 3:8-14

A. Responsibilities 3:8-10a
1. It is not only possible to steal from man, you can actually steal from God!
a. Usually those who have no problem taking from God will have less a problem taking from man also!
b. If we are willing to be irresponsible with our relationship with God there is a good possibility that we will be irresponsible with our relationship with others.
2. The same Israel that had kept back their tithes from God had also learned to take advantage of one another – and the whole nation was under a curse because of it.
3. Because Israel as a people had withheld or misused their tithes the temple of God was empty and could not meet anyone’s needs, so people resorted to stealing in order to meet their own needs.
a. Worship had no meaning because it had no sacrifice by the worshipper!
b. Without sacrifice there is no value!
4. A giving Church is a powerful Church – no matter the size of the gifts if it represents the tithe.
5. When we keep back from God, He is not able to bless us so that the less we give, the less we have as an individual and as a nation.
a. It has always been the nations who are most generous that are most blessed, a characteristic of our country in times past, and based on the Judeo/Christian ethic that our country was founded on.
b. As a nation moves away from God its blessings tend to decline – proof of the principle found here in Malachi.
6. We carry a responsibility before God to honor Him with what is His – even Jesus said to “give unto Caesar what is Caesar’s and unto God what is God’s” Matt. 22:21 clearly a reference to both taxes and tithes.
7. Rather than getting ahead, Israel actually became poorer when they failed to honor God with their tithes, the act of stealing had really robbed them of blessings.

B. Rewards 3:10b-12
1. God honors givers, for the ultimate giver is God Himself, when we give we are like Him!
a. This is what Israel failed to understand, that by keeping back their tithes they not only robbed God, but they ruined their own prosperity.
b. God cannot bless stealing, it is contrary to His commandments, whether it is stealing from man or from God.
2. Stealing from God does not just impact us in the material realm however, the greatest losses are spiritual.
a. Israel had become a “me first” nation, not unlike what we are seeing in our own country today as we move away from God.
b. The more the people kept from God the more God kept from them.
3. They were missing out on great rewards, and not just materially, their nation was missing out on a reputation of being called a “blessed nation” by all the other nations, they were missing out on becoming the shining lighthouse to the world.
a. In this way they were losing the opportunity to give witness to God’s reality.
b. God’s presence is seen in givers, for God Himself is the ultimate giver.
4. We cannot expect God’s richest blessings on us or our nation if we rob Him of our tithes and offerings.
5. On the other hand, when we honor God our hearts will be full, the rewards may be greater than just material in scope, they may create joy, trust, and even the witness of others who find Christ because of our examples of giving.
6. Those who give to God for all the rights reasons bring a joy to others as well as themselves.
7. Their return to proper giving would result in enough “food in God’s house” to supply any need that might arise, ultimately this meant their own needs being taken care of and the knowledge of God spreading to the other nations of the Earth.
8. God is opposed to stealing because it destroys self and society. Giving on the other hand elevates self and society – and lifts up the God who gave Himself for us!

CONCLUSION: Stealing damages relationships between man and man, and between man and God. There are only 3 ways to get things in life (1. By GIFT (2. By WORK and (3. By THEFT. The first two are blessed by God, the third brings a curse on the soul and society. In the end the one most hurt by stealing is yourself! “THOU SHALL NOT STEAL!”

#9
“CHEATING OTHERS”

TEXT: Ex. 20:16; Deut. 19:15-19; James 4:11-12; Matt. 18:15-17

INTRO: The 9th commandment affects the whole world whether they are Christians or not. In fact, that is the marvel of the 10 commandments, they stand alone as truth whether people believe in God or not. Since God is the author of all truth, it doesn’t matter what the world thinks about His Word, it is still truth!

The whole of humanity suffers when truth is sacrificed for lies. It has unfortunately become a way of life in our culture, too many today believe it is “normal” to tell lies:
It is tragic to realize just how easily we accept bending the truth. Since the adults of our society have modeled falsehoods so well it has even become the second language of our youth:
PROP. SENT: The Bible calls us to guard our hearts against the damage that comes to both us and others when we bear false witness or lie. No society will long endure, nor will any human relationship that is not founded on truth.

I. BEARING A FALSE TESTIMONY Ex. 20:16; Deut. 19:15-19; James 4:11-12

A. Types
1. The Obvious Lie – when truth is altered to say something that is simply not true.

ILLUS: Lincoln was trying to make a point. His hearer was unconvinced and stubborn. So Lincoln tried another tack. He said to the disputer, "Well, let’s see now. How many legs does a cow have?" The disgusted reply came back "Four, of course." Lincoln agreed, "That’s right. Now, suppose you call the cow’s tail a leg; how many legs would the cow have?" The opponent replied confidently, "Why, five, of course." Lincoln came back, "Now that’s where you’re wrong. Calling a cow’s tail a leg doesn’t make it a leg!"
a. No amount of telling the falsehood will change the truth, but it will change the relationship we have with the person we lied to or about.
b. When truth is not given, everyone loses.
2. Libel – this is using the truth in such a way as to hurt someone, sometimes
b. in a court of law it is called, “malicious intent.”
a. While this is not an actual lie, it is the use of truth to still bear a false witness in such a way as to do damage to someone.
b. Even the truth must be used in a righteous way!
c. 3. Slander – This is a lie intended to damage someone or protect self. It is a direct violation of the 9th commandment.
d. a. It was this particular type of lie that God’s Word warned against.
b. In fact, so serious was the danger of this type of lie that God’s Word declared that all such facts must be established by more than a single witness or the person should not be held for punishment.
c. The breach of relationships is a serious issue to God, and lying destroys all such relationships.
4. Exaggeration – this kind of stretching the truth can leave casualties also.
a. When truth gets stretched damage can occur to the relationships as well.
b. After a while it will be difficult for people to take at face value what is said, and it can create false impressions of others that can lead to bad relationships.
c. Unfortunately, exaggeration comes too easily for most people.
e. ILLUS: In Boston a minister noticed a group of boys standing around a small stray dog. "What are you doing, boys?" "Telling lies," said one of the boys. "The one who tells the biggest lie gets the dog." "Why, when I was your age," the shocked minister said, "I never ever thought of telling a lie." The boys looked at one another, a little crestfallen. Finally one of them shrugged and said, "I guess he wins the dog." --James S. Hewett, Illustrations Unlimited (Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc, 1988) p. 287.

5. Silence or Innuendo – We can even bear false witness by failing to speak the truth, sometimes by not saying something we can hurt others or allow a false witness to exist on someone, or we can create a false witness by holding back truth!
a. Such comments like, “If you only knew what I knew about so and so, but I promised not to say anything…”
b. The failure for many to speak up in World War II when Hitler did his atrocities was a way to allow them to continue…this failure to speak the truth can also be a form of bearing a false witness.

B. Tragedy! Deut. 19:15-19; James 4:11-12
1. It was so important to God that peoples’ lives be preserved
from false testimonies or witnesses that He required that there be at least 2 or 3 others to speak the same thing before something should be regarded as true.
a. This is a good idea for today also!
b. Too often things get passed around as “truth” on the sole testimony of one person.
c. We must remember that a single person can slant the truth in such a way as to be viewed from their own framework, but coming through several sources helps to mitigate that the truth will remain intact.
d. In the Old Testament law someone guilty of a false testimony would be punished with the same punishment that he intended for the person they bore false witness against.
2. People’s lives are too important to God to tolerate false testimonies.
a. As the Father of all truth, God is inherently against all lies!
b. Satan however is called the “father of all lies” – he is the “deceiver,” when we use lies we are aligning ourselves with Satan rather than our heavenly Father.
c. All lies yield more sin!

ILLUS: “Sin has many tools, but a lie is the handle that fits them all.” -- Oliver Wendell Holmes (1809-1894)
3. The tragedy of lies is that both the one who told them suffers, as does the person for whom they are about. Ultimately, the entire society suffers and our relationship with God is destroyed!

II. BEARERS OF FREEDOM & TRUTH Matt. 18:15-17

A. Truth Matt. 18:15a
1. Truth is designed to not only help us walk right in a crooked world, but to set free the broken person as well.
a. If there is something wrong in a relationship, the two parties involved are to sit down and work it out with truth prevailing, but truth that is designed to heal and not just hurt.
b. It is God’s truth about brokenness that will offer the greatest chance at healing.
2. This is so hard to do in a world that has become accustomed to lies as a way of life! 3. Such a world where little lies are so common can make us cynical to the truth.
a. Yet, our goal should be to live in such a way before men to enable us to trust one another, even with the process of healing our wounds with one another.
b. Matthew 18 prescribes a process for dealing with brokenness in an honest way that will bring glory to God and restoration to relationships.
4. We are not to ignore the issues of sin that destroy peoples lives.

B. Transformation Matt. 18:15b-17
1. Should we learn to deal honestly with one another we would see a transformation not only in the Church but in the society as well.
a. It would become a “shame” again to speak falsely of others.
b. We would find it less acceptable to permit lies to damage people lives.
2. To return our culture to an honest one we must begin with the individual.
3. Wholeness in relationships are a must for a culture to survive, and for a soul to develop into the character of God that we are suppose to maintain.
4. The 9th commandment calls us to honor God by honoring the truth in ways that build up and not tear down.
a. Even when such truth is required to deal with wrongdoing between people.
b. Certainly our lives would experience God’s fullness when we live the truth rather than the lies so pervasive in our society today.
5. God help us to speak the truth in love, to raise the banner of honesty to the level of “normal” again. Let it begin with us as God’s people!

CONCLUSION: The fabric of all healthy relationships is woven with truth. Lying tears this fabric apart and so destroys all trust and confidence in one another. Since “God is truth” we cannot violate truth and still enjoy a relationship with Him also. God help us to bear the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth – so help us God!

#10
“SATISFACTION GUARANTEED”

TEXT: Ex. 20:17; Rom. 7:7-8; I Kings 21:1-16; Philip. 4:4-19

INTRO: The last commandment is the lynch pin of the 10, the previous 9 commandments all have a strong overt element to them, they are actions observed, but, this final commandment strikes at the heart and mind!

In a sense this last commandment is the basis of all the other 9! Even if all your overt actions showed faithfulness to the commandments this last one would condemn you for it reaches down inside the person’s heart and desires and motives.

In fact, it was Paul in Romans 7:7-8 that stated that this was the one commandment of the 10 that made him realize his sinfulness and brought him to realize his need of Christ. (read passage: “What shall we say, then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! Indeed I would not have known what sin was except through the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, "Do not covet." But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of covetous desire. For apart from law, sin is dead. Once I was alive apart from law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died.”) Until he hit the 10th commandment he could judge himself “good” by overt actions, but with the 10th his mind and motives were revealed to him and it opened to him the understanding of how much he was a sinner!
PROP. SENT: The Bible teaches us that we are to live a life that is content and trusts God for all our needs, to covet what others have is the root of all sin and takes our trust away from God and puts us in charge of getting what we think we need.

I. THE COVETING HEART I Kings 21:1-16

A. Corrupt 21:1-14
1. The literal meaning of the word “coveting” is “to pant after” – like my dog used to do when I ate ice cream and potato chips or buttered popcorn!
a. It indicates an intense desire that will not leave.
b. Usually becomes consuming to the point that it will demand fulfillment.
2. Coveting is not just something that happens to the poor, coveting is a problem for all humans.
a. Take King Ahab for example, though much richer than his neighbor Naboth, he covets Naboth’s vineyard, he had to have it.
b. His coveting was so powerful that he couldn’t feel happy unless he got what he wanted, it didn’t matter that he already had enough or more than Naboth.
c. This is the nature of coveting, it is never satisfied … and it is the basis for breaking the other commandments – King Ahab’s wife proceeds to kill Naboth, steal his field, bear false witness against Naboth, dishonor God’s name, it become the foundation of breaking many of the other commandments.
3. The fuel of coveting is DISCONTENT.
a. When we allow discontent to enter our spirit it is only a short time before we find ourselves coveting what others have, and coveting leads to all kinds of sins and broken commandments.
b. In the end coveting not only destroys others, but it destroys our own happiness as well since we keep looking for happines to come by getting something we feel we should have but don’t.
4. Coveting ALWAYS corrupts the human soul, it never satisfies it!

B. Callous! 21:15-16
1. Coveter’s are by nature callous people, all they care about is getting what they want.
a. They can be quite indifferent to other people’s feelings or needs.
b. They are so focused on getting what they want that they can ignore normal moral imperatives.
2. Even though Ahab got what he wanted his life was still not happy or satisfied, people who covet never find an end to their desire.
3. If only we could see how blessed we already are and so not covet what we don’t have, coveters always fail to see how blessed they already are.
4. Naboth got the vineyard he wanted, but he did not get the satisfaction from it he had hoped.
a. God also told him that there would be consequences for his choice to feed his coveting, it would cost him his own life!
b. In the end Ahab will lose far more than he ever gained through coveting, this is always the case with coveting!
5. Ahab’s callousness is evident in that he not only takes Naboth’s vineyard once his wife Jezebel has Naboth killed, but has Naboth’s children killed (see II Kings 9:26) so there are no descendants left to claim the land at any point.
a. Note too that Ahab and Jezebel are later both killed, and all their descendants are also killed much like what Ahab does to Naboth’s family.
b. Coveters tend to get back the same pain they give others.
6. This is the tragic truth about coveting, it is the foundation for so many other sins as well. So how do we fight coveting from taking over our lives?

II. THE CONTROLLED HEART Philip. 4:4-19

A. Context 4:4-9
1. What is the best weapon spiritually against covetousness?
a. Rejoicing in what you already have.
b. Avoiding anxiety over what you don’t have.
c. Ask for things WITH thanksgiving to mitigate covetousness from developing in your heart over those things you do ask for.
2. Instead of seeing what is lacking, look at what is good and lovely, what things are of a good report and dwell on this, not your lack.
a. These are very practical guidelines that can stop a heart from developing a covetous attitude.
b. This is the context of a controlled heart.
3. In our culture we are inundated with messages that says we MUST have more, or newer, or something we don’t already have … and it is the foundation for the vast amount of dissatisfaction our people have though we live in a land of great plenty!
a. Americans, though rich, can be some of the most dissatisfied people on earth!
b. Our whole prosperity is built on encouraging greed and need – to get something we don’t have, and probably don’t need, but we must have.
c. Advertisers are always sending messages of “You won’t be happy until you get our product”, etc.
4. As Christians we really need to evaluate our sense of happiness, what it is based on.
5. Notice that Paul associates “PEACE” with those who have learned the proper context to life. (4:9)
a. Those who covet never find peace, for they are always longing for something they don’t have.
b. Those who are at peace focus more on what they do have so they can find peace in life.

B. Contentment 4:10-19
1. Paul describes his life and joy as being centered on what he has, not what he doesn’t have.
a. He has been content with little.
b. He has been content with much.
2. His strength and joy
comes in Christ, he says he “can do everything through Him who gives me strength” (4:13) since he already possesses the most important thing in life, Christ Himself.
a. If we possess Christ, there is nothing we really lack!
b. This should destroy in us a covetous attitude.
3. What are the signs of a coveter’s heart?
a. depression can be a sign – notice King Ahab’s depression when Naboth refused to sell him the vineyard.
b. withdrawal can be a sign – notice too that King Ahab threw himself upon his bed and refused to eat and go out.
c. pouting can be a sign – King Ahab acted like it was so unfair that he couldn’t have what he wanted, often those with coveting problems view others as being unfair to them, they walk around with a chip on their shoulder, they never get what others get in life.
d. pessimistic attitude is often a sign – those who covet tend to be negative about most things, for they are focused on what they don’t have rather than on what they do have. They see the glass as always half empty instead of half full. Though Ahab was far richer than Naboth, he was pessimistic about his lack of this vineyard as he whined that Naboth wouldn’t sell it to him and as a King he couldn’t make him give it to him because the law of the land prevented property from passing away from a family lineage even by sale … hence Jezebel’s plan to kill Naboth since there was no legal way to get it even as king.
e. fault finding can be a sign – the need to invent reasons for their lack and others gain in order to placate the emptiness of their own heart and life. Ahab often blamed the true prophets for his misery or others like Naboth because they wouldn’t give him what he wanted.
f. misery can be a sign – people who will tell you how miserable their lives are tend to be full of coveting, they always want what others seem to have, they look for happiness in procuring the “next” thing they think will finally satisfy them.
g. unthankfulness can be a sign – Even when they do get some things, it is never good enough or enough, there is a general unthankfulness about life and their status and possessions or even their friendships. King Ahab’s coveting didn’t stop with Naboth’s vineyard, once he had that he still wasn’t thankful, he had all of Naboth’s kids killed in order to keep others them taking it back. (II Kings 9:26)
4. Paul’s prescription given here to the Philippian Church would not only destroy coveting, it would also promote godliness and peace in the individual believer.
a. Paul’s promise to those who heed his advice in this passage, their “needs will all be met by Christ’s glorious riches.” (see 4:19)
b. Contentment kills coveting in the same way coveting kills contentment! – Dennis Marquardt
5. Coveting will always leave a bad taste in your mouth and in others too, and in the end you will actually have much less than before you coveted!
6. If you covet you can expect to break lots of God’s commandments – if you develop a contented heart however you can expect to experience “SATISFACTION GUARANTEED”!!

CONCLUSION: Discontented people by nature are covetous by the very fact of being dissatisfied. Coveters are always in need because they always desire something they don’t have but want. Ironically, it is the last commandment that is often at the heart of all the other 9! God calls us to be content so we are controlled and not coveting. Following God’s commands brings SATISFACTION GUARANTEED!