Am I guilty of covetousness?

[oikonomia]

In Luke 12 Jesus says, "Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth".

I have always understood coveteous as wanting in a jealous way which results in negative or unloving feelings toward the other who'
has what you desire. I think the point is wanting what the other possesses in a way that leads to contempt and malice toward
the other party.

Because of this reference to "abundance of possessions" it's usually interpreted as wanting what you don't have or having a little too much more than you really should have.

But, compare this to what Jesus said about the sins of Sodom and the days of Noah, "Just as it was in the days of Noah and lot, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man. People were eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage, eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, and they were all destroyed."

Those are all ordinary, day-to-day activities. There's nothing inherently wrong with any of it. The lesson seems to be that it's not what the activities are, but rather that people become so caught up in caring about these normal things that they stop caring about what God wants.

The Lord's exhortations to watch and be ready involve people going about legitimate daily duties.

I tell you, In that night there will be two on one bed; the one will be taken and the other will be left.
There will be two women grinding together; the one will be taken but the other will be left.
Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other will be left. (Luke 17:34-36)

Notice that He didn't say two would be in a worship service or two would be in a Bible study.
The two in each case are going about quite legitimate daily responsibilities.

Yet one is consummed in his soul with this work and the other is secretly enjoying the inward presence of God.
All the exhortations to walk by the Spirit and set the mind on the spirit and set the mind on the things above are
relevant here. To watch and be ready is to watch in a kind of continuous breathing prayerful atmosphere that has
been built up as a habit. It becomes subconscious almost "I am with the Lord right now."

The activities done by both pairs are the typical legitimate home or employment responsilities or resting in sleep. The watching ones are in the world but not of the world. This way of living has developed over time as a habit.

 

[John Helpher]

This way of living has developed over time as a habit.

I think these habits are the problem Jesus was getting at.

 

[oikonomia]

I think these habits are the problem Jesus was getting at.

Could you clarify a little?
There seems to be a very misleading typo in what I wrote. Intended to write:

This way of living has to be developed over time as a habit.

I speak of the development of walking in the Spirit (Gal. 5:16),
setting the mind on the regenerated spirit (where the Spirit of Jesus is) (Rom. 8:6),
and setting the mind on the things which are above where Christ is (Col. 3:2).

 

[John Helpher]

Could you clarify a little?

Getting caught up in the cares of this world. Jesus wanted to make it clear that this could be true even for the normal, day-to-day stuff. It's a warning against complacency. This theme is repeated in the parable of the party where the host invites the guests, but one by one they all make some excuse for why they're too busy. Look at the excuses; all normal, ordinary activities.

In other words, covetousness can look quite ordinary. It's a bit like people talking about the love of money. No one ever really tries to quantify what that would look like in real life. How do you know if someone is loving money? How do you know if you are loving money? Those don't have to be just rhetorical questions.

Look at the example of thousands of new converts to the faith in Acts 2. The apostles preach to them and the next thing you know they're selling everything they have, sharing all things in common, according to each person's need. That's the way. Make resources available according to need. That's a pretty good starting point consistent with the teachings of Jesus. Not every circumstance will be the same, but in general, if you're moving in this direction, you're moving further away from covetousness. And, the opposite is true.

So, when Jesus makes a point of being wary of complacency,( i.e. "The sin of Noah and Lot's day was that htey were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, etc") I think it's worth taking it pretty seriously.

 

[Stephen3141]

I've been reading a number of Christian books and they've said "Covetousness is wanting what you don't have."

I'm in the final stages of buying a house; a house I did not have before. Did I covet that house?

Some years ago, I purchased a car, as I did not have a running vehicle. Does that count?

Or any of the musical instruments I bought?

I don't think so.
Wishing endlessly for things that are not necessary, is covetting.
Wishing for the necessities of life, is not covetting. We should pray daily,
that God would give us what is necessary for daily life.

 

[lanceleo]

I'm in the final stages of buying a house; a house I did not have before. Did I covet that house?

If it causes you to work longer and in the process neglects God then it is. Otherwise I think it's fine. The house can be a blessing to others when it's used for the causes of God.

 

[Tropical Wilds]

I've been reading a number of Christian books and they've said "Covetousness is wanting what you don't have."

I'm in the final stages of buying a house; a house I did not have before. Did I covet that house?

Some years ago, I purchased a car, as I did not have a running vehicle. Does that count?

Or any of the musical instruments I bought?

The problem here is that they poorly explained and defined what covetousness actually is. It’s not simply wanting what you don’t have. It’s fixating on gaining something, potentially from somebody else, to the detriment of one’s state of being. A lot of times it’s an impulse for an item that isn’t and can’t ever be yours.

If you found a house you wanted but it wasn’t on the market, but you wanted the house so bad that you couldn’t think of anything else, would have resorted to any tactic to get it, and leveraged yourself to the hilt because the idea of not having it would have left you bitter, broken, or angry… That’s not great. That’s coveting.

If you just identified you needed a house and went through the process to get it, hoping you’d get it but prepared to cut your losses if you didn’t, you are fine. You needed a house, you went to a pool of people offering their houses for sale, you picked a house. It’s not that deep.