Coveting vs. Contentment

Our Pastor's sermon today, on the tenth commandment (in a series he's titled "The Gospel According to Moses"), was especially good. Or maybe it was just pertinent to our situation and thus seemed especially good. He first pointed out that coveting is in some ways the sine qua non sin for the violation of all the commandments; it is coveting which takes place first before breaking any of the others.

What was most striking for us, however, was his emphasis upon coveting as the opposite of contentment. Coveting is the mindset that spurs us to seek other things--from other people--as the fulfillment of our needs and the condition for happiness. Usually implied by this mindset is idolatry of the heart; these others conditions or things have replaced God as our chief source of joy and fulfillment.

Pastor Um has often spoken of we as people--Christians no less--as being aspirational. We are always pursuing that next goal that we project will bring us an endless supply of popularity or wealth or status or influence; in short, fulfillment. Today's sermon on coveting hit both P. and I in the gut--but in a good way (not the kind of way that makes you want to vomit). It enabled both of us to realize that if pending opportunities don't pan out the way we want them, we can still be content, as God has already given us all sprititual blessings in Christ. In fact, if we continue to place all our hope for happiness in the granting of these opportunities, we have guaranteed ourselves that we will not be happy, as we have required something of these circumstances that only God can provide.