The Perfect 10, Part 6

This morning we're going to finish our study of the Ten Commandments in Exodus chapter 20 by looking at comm number 8, 9, and 10. Yes, we're going to cover Three commandments this morning. We're going to look at the fact that God says in verse number 15 of Exodus 20, You shall not steal.

That's a command that speaks specifically to our right to personal property as well as our recognition of our spiritual accountability. And then he says in verse number 16, you shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. That speaks ab remarks. With total integrity. And then he says in verse number 17, you shall not covet your neighbor's house. You shall not covet your neighbor's wife or his male servant or his female servant or his ox. Or his donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.

That speaks of the realization of life's ultimate priority. Those are our three points this morning. That's what we're going to cover. Now, most of us would not consider ourselves thieves or robbers. Those that are thugs that are located in some other part of town. In fact, there's only one person in the Bible that's called a thief. That's Judas. And we would never want to align ourselves with a guy like Judas. And we'd say, well, he was, of course, he's a robber. Of course, he's a thief. In fact, the Bible says in the book of John, the 12th chapter, these words, verse number 3.

Mary therefore took a pound of very costly perfume and pure nard and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. and the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples, who was intending to betray him, said, Why Was this perfume not sold for 300 denarii and given to poor people? Now, he said this not because he was concerned about the poor, but because he was a thief. And as he had the money box, he used to pilfer what was put into that box.

He was a robber. And while most of us don't look at ourselves as thieves, let me help you understand why someone would steal.

The Bible says you shouldn't steal. But we do. And by helping you understand some of the distinctive characteristics of a thief, I'm sure you will find yourself in the category of being, God forbid, a robber. Why does someone want to steal something? It's because, primarily, they lack contentment. They're not satisfied with what they have. And so they want more. They want to figure out how to obtain more. And they realize they can't get it in an honest way. And so what they will do is get it in a dishonest way.

Way. And the Bible says in 1 Timothy 6 that goddiness with contentment is great gain. And the Bible says.

In Philippians chapter 4, that the Apostle Paul had learned to be content in whatever state he was in. And yet it was that wise king, King Ag, in Proverbs chapter 30, who wrote these words. Give me neither poverty nor riches. Feed me with the food that is my portion, lest I be full and deny thee, and say, Who is the Lord? or lest I begin want. And steal and profane the name of my God. And yet, many times we find ourselves on the wrong end. Rob. Achin was a good example. Remember Achan way back in Joshua chapter 7?

Turn back with me there if you would, and I'll help you understand how this man became a thief. Remember Mark chapter 7 verses 20 and 21 that what comes out of a man is what defiles him, not what goes into the man. And so we understand this man Ach and realize he was a man who lacked contentment. And not only did he lack contentment, I'm going show you also where he lacked commitment. That 's point number two as to why a man would become a thief.

God said, Look, you got to go into Jericho and you got to destroy Jericho. And you know the story about how the walls came tumbling down. We've seen the story, and it's a great story about the mighty power of God and what he did to destroy the city of Jericho. But God did say these words in Joshua chapter 6, verse number 17. And the city shall be under the band, it and all that is in it belongs. To the Lord. And it says this: It and all that is in it belongs to the Lord. Only Rah the harlot and all who are with her in the house shall live, because she hid the messengers whom we sent.

But as for you, only keep yourselves from the things under the ban, lest you covet them, and take some of the things under the ban, so you would make the camp of Israel accursed. And bring trouble on it. And the Bible says in verse 11 of chapter 7: Israel has sinned, and they have also transgressed my covenant which I commanded them, and they have even taken some of the things.

Under the ban and have both stolen and deceived. There is a thief among you. And of course, you know the story. Ach is revealed, and the Bible says in verse number 19.

Then Joshua said to Achan and my son, I implore you, give glory to the Lord, the God of Israel, give praise to him, and tell me now what you have done. Do not hide it from me. So he could answer Joshua and said, Truly, I have sinned against the Lord, the God of Israel, and this is what I did when I saw among the spoil a beautiful mantle from Shin. and two hundred shekels of silver, and a bar of gold fifty shekels in weight. Then I coveted them and took them, and behold, they are concealed in the earth inside my tent, with the silver underneath it.

You know the story. They brought Aiken out, they brought his wife out, they brought his kids out, they stoned them, and they burned them. Now, why do they do that to the wife and to the children? because they helped in the concealment and they helped in the thievery, and therefore they were killed. They were killed because this whole nation had lost to a very small, little group of people after they had defeated Jericho. And the reason they weren't able to defeat AI was because of one man's sin. He rebelled against God.

He lacked contentment. He saw something, he felt he needed to have it, he coveted it, and so he went after it and he took it for himself because he wasn't content with the situation. And that lack of contentment led to a lack of commitment. He disobeyed the word of God. God said, don't take anything under the ban. And what did they do? God will never know. But God did know. God doesn't miss anything. God knows everything. You might be able to pull the wool over your wife's eye, but you can't pull it over the Lord's eyes.

You say, well, I would never do that. I don't do those kind of things. Let me tell you something. Whenever you withhold something from God, you steal. You're a robber. You're a th. Thief. You are God's by creation, and you are doubly God's by redemption. He created you. After he created you, he bought you back with a price. And the Bible says in 1 Corinthians 6, you are no longer your own, but you are God's.

Whenever I refuse to give myself wholly to God, I rob God. I steal from him. That's why the prophet Malachi said in Malachi chapter 3, verse number 8: Will a man rob God? And God says, You've robbed me.

And Israel said, Well, how have we robbed you? He says, You've robbed me in your worship. You've robbed me in your tithes and in your offerings. You've held back from me. You haven't given me your all. The Bible says that the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof.

Everything in this world. is God's. And our lives are to be wrapped up in who God is, not who we are. We need to understand that. That. A person who steals lacks character. And we've got to be careful about that. Why? Because the Bible says over in the book of Titus, the second chapter, verse number 9, urge bonds to be subject to their own masters and everything.

To be well-pleasing, not argumentative, not pilfering, that's what Judas did, he pilfered from the money box, but showing all good faith that they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in every respect. You know, we are to adorn the doctrine of God. The word or adorn is the word cosme. We get our English word cosmetics. We use cosmetics. To make ourselves attractive, we are to adorn the doctrine of God. We are to make the doctrine of God beautiful. Attractive to an unbelieving world. And if at any time we do something contrary to God's word, then we def that beautiful picture.

And we need to make sure that we don't lack the character. Become a thief. A thief also lacks compassion, does he not? Sure. He lacks compassion for those who have a need. For those who have a desperate need, where we can come along the side and take care of those. The Bible says in John 10:10 that a thief comes only to destroy and to kill and to steal.

Listen, we are to owe no man anything but love. And when we see a person in need, we are to meet that need. That's why the Bible says we're not to love.

Just in a word and in tongue, but in deed and in truth. And the Bible says in 1 John 3:18 that when you see your brother in need and you shut up your bowels of compassion, how dwelleth the love of God in you.

And we need to show compassion. Whenever you withhold from someone that which is their due, you rob them. Whenever you withhold devotion to your spouse, you rob your spouse of your total commitment to them. Whenever you rob someone of your love for them, then you rob them of something that God wants to show them. You see, we tend to think of thievery as something where a guy dresses up in black and has a gun and has a mask on and robs a bank. I mean, thievery goes way beyond that. To the very heart of an individual who keeps himself from God for his own purposes.

And we need to be willing to give ourselves to God, everything we have to God, because he is in complete control. Thou shalt not steal. Number nine, thou shalt not bear false witness against your neighbor. Or, in other words, you need to speak the truth. And not lie. These are our rem with total integrity. We need to speak the truth. Why? Because God is truth. The Spirit who indwells us is truth. We are governed by the Word of truth. Whenever you lie, you lie to God. Whenever you lie, you speak an untruth about our God.

You have misrepresented your God. You haven't spoken the truth about your God. And notice that it is the Holy Spirit who is God.

We need, as Paul said in Ephesians 4, to lay aside all lying. Now, I know some of you are sitting here today thinking, well, my lies aren't that bad. I'm not as bad as some people. Remember, the Bible says in 1 Corinthians that those who compare themselves among themselves are not wise.

Your neighbor is not your standard, God's your standard. He's the God of truth. But listen to what John says over in 1 John chapter 1, verse number 6. If we say that we have fellowship with him and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. If we say we have fellowship with God, that we are partnered with God, and yet walk in darkness, we, in effect, are liars. He goes on to say, 1 John 2, verse number 4, he who says, I know him and does not keep his commandments is a liar and the truth is not in him.

God calls people liars who say, I will follow the commands of God, and yet, with their life, disobey the commands of God. That causes us to examine ourselves, doesn't it? Is there a command of God I'm not obeying? Is there something God has told me to do that I refuse to do? That makes me a liar, right? And although no one else knows it, God knows it. Knows it. Commandment number 10: Thou shalt not covet. And this deals with the realization of life's ultimate priority. Covetousness is an inner sin.

They're all inner sins, but this one brings it all to light. This shows you that God was just not interested in outward acts. That you just not commit adultery, that you just don't go around stealing and going around lying, but that in the heart. Is the basis for all of your sins. That's why in Mark 7 it says that from the hearts proceed covetousness. August said this about covetousness. Covetousness comes when we take a perfectly natural desire or longing or ambition and try des To fill it without God.

That is covetousness. That's a great definition. The Bible says you're not to covet your neighbor's wife, your neighbor's male ser.

Your neighbor's female servant, your neighbor's oxen. In modern terms, you can't covet his house, you can't covet his car, you can't covet his wife. You can't covet her husband. You just can't desire to have things that are not yours because it's going to lead you to thievery, it's going to lead you to lying about it, it's going to lead you to deception. And if you're not careful, it will kill you. From the inside out. In fact, Ephesians 5 says that covetousness is idolatry. Why is that? Why is covetousness idolatry?

It's because in your heart you want something more than you want God. And you're going to try to fulfill that longing without God and thinking that some kind of earthly tangible thing is going to fill up your life and make you feel a lot better and be a lot better when in reality it's not because God needs to be. The priority of your life. And He wants to fill up every aspect of your life. And that's why the Bible says over in Hebrews chapter.

13, verse number 5, these words: Let your character be free from the love of money, being content with what you have, for he him has said, I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you. So that we confidently say, The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. What shall man do to me? Let your life be free from the love of money. Why? Because God has said, I'm all you need. I'm it. And the reason we love money, and the reason we love more of whatever it is we want to have, is because we don't love God nearly enough.

We don't see him as the sole security and sole satisfaction of our lives. Let me tell you something about covetousness.

Maybe you're here today, and there's something you so desperately want. You'll do anything to get it. And maybe you've already compromised your integrity by doing it. Maybe there's something that you have held on a pedestal higher than God. It will cripple our unity as a church. Even though no one else knows what you covet, it will cripple the unity of the body of Christ. Christ. How do we know that? 1 Corinthians chapter 5 says it this way. 1 Corinthians chapter 5. Verse 9. I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people.

I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this world or with the covetous. And swindlers, or with idolaters, for then you would have to go out of the world. Paul says, When I wrote you a letter, I didn't mean to keep you from. Being among those people in the world. You got to have some kind of influence with them. You got to be able to have a testimony before them. Verse 11. But actually, I wrote To you not to associate with any so-called brother if he should be an immoral person, or covetous, or an id, or a reviler, a drunkard, a swindler, not even to eat with such.

A one, for what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church? But those who are outside God judges, remove the wicked man from among your. Paul says, listen, when I wrote to you, I'm talking about people in the church who call themselves brothers. And live a lifestyle of idolatry by being the kind of covetous people that all they want is more and more and more. They never get enough. They want to live without God because that will cripple the unity of the body of Christ.

Why? Because when we gather together, we need to be people who have on our mind one thing and one thing only. That's God. And we want to honor Him with our whole lives. And that's why this is the realization of life's ultimate priority. It's got to be God and God alone. And when you begin to covet, not only does it cripple our unity, But it will confine your ministry. It will confine your ministry. It will wrap it up. It will keep you from being all that God wants you to be. Think about it. The Bible says in Matthew chapter 6, you know the verses, verse number 19: Do not lay up for yourselves treasures upon earth.

Where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal, for where your treasure is There will your heart be also. Verse 2. No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will hold to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon or money. And the Bible says in verse number 33 of the same chapter, But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness.

And all these other things, the necessities of life, will be added unto you. Listen. What confines our ministry as a church is a covetous heart. Let me give you an example.

People choose not to take a missions trip because They're going to spend money on something that they'd rather spend on something for their own pleasure. So they save the money and not go on a mission trip or take time away from work or they use the good excuse, you know what? I'm not sure I want to take time away from my family. It sounds good, right? But sometimes our motives are wrong, right? And we can't judge your motives. Only God knows what's in your heart. But because of a covetous heart, Of wanting something else, maybe, for my home.

Maybe I want to remodel my home. And so I put off going on mission trips and going to certain places and doing things for the Lord because I'm saving money to remodel my home. Now, folks, I'm all for remodeling your home. I'm not sure. That's not a wrong thing. I'm talking about your motive because only you know what's going on inside your heart along with the Lord, right? It stems from a covetous heart. A heart that wants only for itself and it begins to confine the ministry. That's why it cripples our unity, see?

It cripples our unity as a church because we become so introspective, so selfish in our nature. All we want is for me. I need more time. Or we don't go to church and serve in the church because we were up late the night before and we can't get out of bed to get there the next day. It just begins to run in a cycle over and over and over again. And that's why Paul said these words. And these should be the words that you use and I use all the time. He says, I do not consider my life of any account as dear to Myself, in order that I may finish my course and the ministry which I receive from the Lord Jesus to testify solemnly of the gospel of the grace of God.

Paul was warned: you go to Jerusalem, you'll be imprisoned. You go to Jerusalem, your ministry's over. It's done. And what did Paul say? My life means nothing to me. My life means nothing to me. I'm going to do what God's calling me to do no matter what, because that's what I've been called to do. Isn it not true that we mean more to us than any? Else. We love ourselves, don't we? That's sad. You say, well, we got love ourselves, or we can't love others. You got love yourself first.

And yet, we are so into ourselves, we can't even begin to serve. Our God. And that's why a covetous heart cripples the unity of the church and confines the ministry of the church. We ought to be saying, you know, my life's not important. You know, I'm one who thinks sleep is overrated. You know, I had trouble sleeping at night as it is. I don't sleep very much. I go to bed around 12,:, fall asleep around 2, 2:30, get up at 5, 5:3, and I realize I don't need that much sleep. Sleep's overrated, you know?

I mean, we just think that we need all these things for our own self. And we always focus on us. And yet, we can spend more time doing more things for God than you ever dreamed of. One man used to say it all the time, and he was right: there's always enough time to do the will of the Father. Isn't there? We try to fill the void of our lives. With something other than God Himself. And we should be the kind of people who say, God, you know what? You bought me with a price. I'm no longer my own. I am yours.

I don't want to rob from you, Lord, anymore. I don want to steal from you anymore. I want to be God what you want me to be. I don't want to live a life of a Of a liar, because I want to obey the commands of God. I want to serve my God with all of my heart, with all of my soul, with all my mind, with all my strength. And say, God, I want in the depth of my heart you to fulfill every single desire that I have. Remember what Jesus said? Man's life does not consist. in the abundance of things in which he possesses.

And he went on to give a parable in Luke chapter 12 about the guy who had to build more barns. You know, he just kept collecting things. So much, I'm going to tear down these barns, I going to build bigger barns. And then one day the Lord says, you fool, this day your soul shall be ref. Required of you. And he died. And the Lord says, You've got to be rich toward me. Are you rich in God? Are you rich toward the Lord God? Are you secure in that relationship? Are you satisfied in God, in God alone?

He wants us to be inwardly content. The antidote for covetousness is. Contentment and contentment is learning to trust in God and God alone for everything and believe in your heart that God actually is enough, He's all you need. Like A. W Toz said, Jesus is all you need, but Jesus is never all you need till Jesus is all you got. They used to say, the hindrance to us is that we got everything but Jesus. And that hinders us from being sold out to the Lord God. May we be the kind of people who live a life of honesty.

When people come to this church, they should know Christ Community Church, the people there, they speak the truth. They live the truth because they want to honor the God who is truth. And therefore, because they do, they're not going to rob or steal from God or rob or steal from anybody else. Because if someone needs something, they're going to meet that need. They're going to take care of that need. Because in the depths of their heart, they are satisfied with God and God alone. That's great.