How Dumb We Can Be – The Tenth Commandment

How Dumb We Can Be

Exodus 20:17

“You shall not covet…”

Imagine someone saying, “Well, hey, I didn’t know it was wrong to covet. I thought everybody had these little secret longings and unspoken desires that they fantasize about and harbor in their hearts. What’s so wrong about that?”

Nothing. Well, other than that God says we shouldn’t do it, and it’s probably the case that God knows better than we do how we ought to live and what we ought to harbor in our hearts.

Even the Apostle Paul, brilliant theologian that he was, didn’t understand about coveting until he took the time to consider the meaning of the Law of God (Rom. 7:7-12). Imagine that! Well, if Paul was unclear about coveting, you and I may be in big trouble. ‘Cause I don’t know about you, but I’m a whole lot dumber than the Apostle Paul!

It stands to reason that we should give more time in prayer and reflection about this problem, before it bears fruit in unhappy and unpleasant ways.

Imagine yourself searching the harbor of your soul for any “unwelcome visitors.” How would you do that? What are some ways you might approach trying to discover what’s dropped anchor in your heart these days?

Daily meditation in the Law of God helps us along the path of holiness, righteousness, and goodness (Rom. 7:12). Order your copy of The Law of God, a compilation of the Mosaic Law for contemporary believers, by going to www.MyParuchia.com, point your browser to “Publications,” then click on the drop-down option, “Waxed Tablet Publications.”

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore.

T.M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.