As God got the people ready to settle in Canaan, he made provisions so that the land would remain in the hands of the allotted tribes. The coming Messiah, after all, was not only to come from the tribe of Judah (Genesis 49:10), but also from the town of Bethlehem (Micah 5:2). Bethlehem needed to remain in the possession of the tribe of Judah, and not deceitfully be partitioned off to another tribe or even another race.
As God forbids the sin of covetousness, he mentions two kinds. Coveting people will be dealt with in the Tenth, but the sin of coveting a specific possession—the land—is covered by this, the Ninth Commandment.
You shall not covet your neighbor’s house.
What does this mean?
We should fear and love God that we do not scheme to
get our neighbor’s inheritance or house, or obtain it by a
show of right, but do all We can to help him keep it.
The ninth commandment was given by God especially to protect the land he gave to the Israelites, so that Judah would be there for the Savior when he came. But it also tells us that when someone may become a beneficiary of a will, we should not begrudge them what they receive, or attempt to get it from them. Rather, we should help that person to manage what they have. And if the temptation is too great, then keeping our mouths shut and leaving that person alone will be help enough.
Have you been jealous of someone else’s good fortune? When someone you knew came into some money, was your first instinct to try to “relieve” that person of some of their new burden? If you find yourself struggling over this in the future, ask God for forgiveness, and also ask God to help. He won’t let you be tempted more than you can bear—but he may let you go right up to the limit of what you can stand. But trust God, and trust God’s promises. You will lack nothing you need, and God even blesses us beyond our needs.
It helps to see the different blessings of Christ by differentiating between his active obedience to God and his passive obedience.
The Active Obedience of Christ was everything he did in obedience to God. He kept the Ten Commandments. He honored the government. He honored marriage and other institutions. He treated his family, his friends and even his enemies with love and respect. He worshiped God in everything he did. The Passive Obedience of Christ was everything he allowed to happen to him for our benefit, especially regarding his suffering and death for our sins.
Without the active obedience of Christ, our failure to keep this commandment would be with us for eternity. Without the passive obedience of Christ, our sins committed against this commandment would still be on our heads. The active obedience of Jesus Christ was his active attention to this commandment; his submission to his Father’s will. At no time did Jesus ever fall into this sin, even though he was specifically tempted with this sin by the devil, who offered him “all the authority and splendor” over “all the kingdoms of the world” (Luke 4:6, 5, which of course was also a temptation against the First Commandment, against idolatry). In his passive obedience, Jesus also permitted himself to be crushed for the guilt of our sins; he was accused, he was abandoned, he was spit upon, he was whipped, he was mocked, he was crucified, and he died—all the while paying the price for our sins.
By keeping this commandment, Jesus also reminds us that he has an even greater kingdom, and when we are tempted by the devil to covet, we should remember that we have an even greater possession than any we might desire for a fleeting moment on earth: we possess eternal life through Christ.
But Jesus did not free us from the judgment of this Law so that we could feel free to sinfully crave the possessions of others within our minds as if our thoughts have no bearing on our salvation. Rather, Jesus’ forgiveness has atoned for our sins, and made it possible for us, with the help of the Holy Spirit, to obey this commandment and put our love into practice. We can, as Luther rightly says, do all we can to help our neighbor keep his property.
And as the Day marches down upon us, the devil will covet our souls more and more. When the time comes and the signs of Judgment Day surround us, Jesus warns us not to fret over any of our possessions at all: “Let no one on the roof of his house go down or enter the house to take anything out, Let no one in the field go back to get his cloak” (Mark 13:15-16). It will be a time to let go of all our possessions, houses and fields and clothes and money and all our treasures, and “be still, and know” that God is in control even of the end (Psalm 46:10), and that the terrors of that day will be “cut short” (Mark 13:20).
Help us, Lord God, to remember that all possessions are merely borrowed from you for a short lifetime. All things are yours; and our souls most of all. Let us serve you without covetousness, without greed, and without worry. Give us courage, Lord, to trust you; give us faith.
Turn my heart toward your statutes
and not toward selfish gain.
Turn my eyes away from worthless things;
preserve my life according to your word. (Psalm 119:36-37)
Pastor Smith serves St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in New Ulm, Minnesota. His wife, Kathryn, attended Chapel from 1987-1990 while studying Secondary Education (Theater and Math) at UW-Madison. Kathryn’s father, John Meyer, was also the first man to serve as a Vicar at Chapel.
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