The Tenth Word: Coveting What Belongs to Your Neighbor

Please turn with me in your Bibles to Exodus chapter 20.

Exodus 20 · chapter mention

I'll be preaching on the 10th commandment, verse 17.

I was supposed to preach on this two weeks ago,

but then I couldn't,

and so now we're gonna go backwards

in our series in the book of Exodus

and cover this again.

Let me pray for the reading and preaching of God's word.

Heavenly Father, you are the Father of lights.

In you there is no shadow to change.

And you are indeed the giver of every good gift.

And the most precious gift you have given us

is your Son, Jesus.

And we want to exalt his name this morning.

We want to relish his grace this morning.

We want to be captivated by Jesus

and satisfied by Jesus this morning.

So meet with us.

Speak to us.

In the precious name of Jesus we pray.

Amen.

Amen.

If you are able, please stand for the reading of God's word.

I am going to read the whole passage 1 to 17

since we're finishing off the 10 commandments today.

And God spoke all these words saying,

I am the Lord your God

who brought you out of the land of Egypt,

out of the house of slavery.

You shall have no other gods before me.

You shall not make for yourself a carved image

or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above

or that is in the earth beneath

or that is in the water under the earth.

You shall not bow down to them or serve them,

for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God,

visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children

to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me,

but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me

and keep my commandments.

You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain,

for the Lord will not hold him guiltless

who takes his name in vain.

Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy.

Six days you shall labor and do all your work,

but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God.

On it you shall not do any work,

you or your son or your daughter,

your male servant or your female servant,

or your livestock or the sojourner

who is within your gates.

For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth,

the sea and all that is in them,

and rested on the seventh day.

Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day

and made it holy.

Honor your father and your mother

that your days may be long in the land

that the Lord your God is giving you.

You shall not murder.

You shall not commit adultery.

You shall not steal.

You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

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 is your neighbor's.

This is God's holy and authoritative word.

Please be seated.

While preparing for this sermon,

I came across a funny comic strip.

It's a comic strip called

Tia Carmen's Old World Wisdom

in which Auntie Carmen says to her nephew

who is staring greedily at Car Magazine,

she says this,

to achieve happiness,

be content with what you have.

Which is a sensible advice.

But right after she says that to her nephew,

she says this,

just be sure you have everything you want.

So it's,

her logic is get everything you want,

then you can be content with what you have.

It's ironic and humorous

because her second advice

completely nullifies her first advice.

But it's also witty

because it highlights the absurd contradiction

in how many people actually think and behave.

As long as we're craving and coveting

something we don't have,

we're not going to be happy.

But we still go on coveting and craving,

deluding ourselves into thinking that,

hey, if I only get this one thing,

I will finally be happy.

But there will always be something else

that we want that we don't have.

It's a futile pursuit

because Proverbs 27, 20 says,

never satisfied are the eyes of men.

The cure for coveting

is not acquiring more stuff,

but being content in Christ.

And so my main point for this morning is this,

as those who have found contentment in Christ,

we should not covet what belongs to our neighbor.

We're going to first talk about

the scope of covetousness

and the heart of covetousness

and then the cure for covetousness.

Let's first look at what covetousness is,

the scope of covetousness.

The Hebrew word that is translated here as covet

is actually a generic word that just means desire.

And it's not that the desire in and of itself is wrong.

You know, I mean, some religions teach that.

For example, Buddhism teaches that,

you know, you should seek freedom for yourself

by emptying yourself,

getting rid of all desires

because it claims that desire is the root,

the source of all suffering.

If you don't want anything,

then you will never suffer its lack.

So that's what Buddhism teaches.

But scripture teaches

a different understanding of human nature.

The problem is not that we have desires

that is normal and human,

but the problem is that we have disordered desires

and inordinate desires.

For example, even Jesus got hungry.

That's a desire.

And he got thirsty.

He wanted a drink.

It is human to have desires.

God created us, created us that way.

But when the desire to eat or drink becomes inordinate,

then we become gluttons and drunkards.

When our desire is disordered

and we desire money more than we desire God,

it becomes idolatrous.

So desire in and of itself is not the problem.

In fact, that word desire sometimes is used

in a positive sense in scripture.

That's why we have to refer to the context of this passage

to figure out what it means here.

You shall not desire.

You shall not covet.

We know that it's referring to a bad desire

because it's forbidden, right?

You shall not covet.

And then secondly,

because of the repetition of the phrase,

your neighbor.

Look again with me at the commandment.

It says,

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 is your neighbor's.

This is a helpful clue for defining what covetousness is.

Coveting has a horizontal social dimension.

To covet is to crave what belongs to your neighbor.

To covet is to crave what belongs to your neighbor.

It's not merely noticing

that your neighbor's $3 million home,

which there's a whole bunch of them around here in this area,

that is spacious

and is elegantly decorated.

There's nothing wrong with noticing that,

but desiring it.

Wanting it for yourself.

It's covetousness.

It's not merely noticing

that your neighbor's wife is beautiful

and charming and industrious.

That's the problem.

Or that your neighbor's husband is handsome

and successful and caring.

That's the problem.

But desiring that she is your wife,

that she'd be your wife.

Desiring that he would be your husband,

that is covetous.

It's not merely noticing

that your friend has cute babies

or well-behaved kids,

talented kids,

but desiring such things for yourself.

Most likely,

none of your neighbors have

oxen

or donkeys,

it says here.

But maybe

they have a social media following

that you desire for yourself.

Maybe they have more friends than you do.

Maybe they are more published than you are.

Have a more influential ministry than you do.

Maybe they have a higher paying job than you do.

Or maybe they drive a brand new Mercedes-Benz,

Tesla,

BMW,

Porsche,

Lexus.

You pick your car.

While you drive your decade-old Hyundai or Toyota.

Like me.

And you envy them.

You desire those things for yourself.

Desiring for ourselves

what belongs to our neighbors

is sinful

because it is a failure

to love our neighbor.

Coveting prevents us from

rejoicing with those who rejoice

and weeping with those who weep,

as Romans 12, 15 commands us to do.

If we are covetous,

we begrudge

our neighbor's good fortune.

We're envious of it.

We gloat over their misfortune.

We weep when they rejoice

and we rejoice when they weep.

When we covet,

instead of humbly counting others

more significant than ourselves,

we are counting ourselves more important.

looking out to our interests

and not our neighbors.

Coveting is a bitter fruit

that brings forth many evil bitter fruits.

James 4, 1-2 says,

What causes quarrels

and what causes fights among you?

Is it not this,

that your passions are at war within you?

You desire and do not have,

so you murder.

You covet and cannot obtain,

so you fight and quarrel.

Coveting what belongs to another

leads to murder,

which is a violation of the sixth commandment.

Coveting what your neighbor's wife

leads to adultery,

which is a violation of the seventh commandment.

Coveting your neighbor's servant

or his ox or donkey

leads to stealing,

which is a violation of the eighth commandment.

Ahab's coveting of Naboth's vineyard

in 1 Kings 21

led to him setting up false witnesses,

which is a violation of the ninth commandment.

In this way,

coveting can lead to,

lead us to break

every single one of the commandments,

the latter half of the ten commandments

intended to help us love our neighbor.

Coveting is by very,

it's very nature,

antisocial.

In addition to this horizontal dimension

toward our neighbors,

coveting also has a vertical dimension toward God.

We can see this

in the very first sin

of humanity.

It says in Genesis 3, verse 6,

Genesis 3:6

when the woman saw that the tree

was good for food,

and that it was a delight to the eyes,

and that the tree was to be desired,

it's the same word,

to make one wise.

She took of its fruit and ate,

and she also gave some to her husband

who was with her,

and he ate.

They coveted the tree

to make themselves wise.

God had forbidden them

from eating from the tree

of knowledge of good and evil

because it would lead to their death,

but Satan tempted them

saying it would open your eyes,

make you like God,

knowing good and evil.

And so they coveted that knowledge,

God's knowledge.

They coveted God's wisdom.

They coveted the place of God.

And so they took it.

And so before Adam and Eve

ever bid into that fruit,

before they ever laid hands on that fruit,

they had already sinned,

coveting with their eyes.

In this instance,

Adam and Eve's neighbor was God.

They craved what belonged to him.

So the story of Achan is similar.

You guys might be familiar with this.

In Joshua 7,

Israel is defeated in battle

by the city of Ai,

which is a relatively small city,

so it's an embarrassing defeat.

And the reason is because

they have taken some of the spoils

of war from Jericho,

a city that they had destroyed previously.

And that city had been devoted to God

for destruction.

So the Israelites don't devote

every city for destruction.

It was only cities that they would inhabit

that was part of God's promised land

that he had promised to his people,

the Israelites.

Those were the only cities

that were devoted to destruction.

And when it was devoted to destruction,

the reason for this was that,

as Deuteronomy 20, 18 says,

that they may not teach you to do

according to all their abominable practices

that they have done for their gods,

and so you sin against the Lord your God.

So the concern was idolatry.

If you leave the remnants of the city,

they will lead you astray into idolatry.

So devoted to destruction.

All the treasures were supposed to be dedicated

to the treasury of the Lord,

and everything else was supposed to be destroyed.

But Achan took some of the spoils of war

and hid it,

leading to God's judgment

and the defeat of the entire nation of Israel

against Ai.

And in Joshua 7, 20 to 21,

Achan confesses his sin this way

after he is confronted.

Truly I have sinned against the Lord God of Israel.

And this is what I did.

When I saw among the spoil

a beautiful cloak from Shinar

and 200 shekels of silver

and a bar of gold weighing 50 shekels,

then I coveted them and took them.

So there's an echo here

of what Adam and Eve did in the garden.

Two exactly the same verbs

are used to describe Achan's sins.

Eve desired,

Eve coveted and took,

and here Achan coveted

and took the cloak from Shinar,

which was devoted to destruction

because it was beautiful.

Achan coveted and took the silver

and the bar of gold,

which was dedicated to the Lord

because he coveted it

because it was 250 shekels in weight.

That's six pounds of silver

and a pound and a half of gold,

which would have been the equivalent

of an average worker's

entire lifetime of wages.

You can imagine the temptation.

You could see the gold and silver

right in front of your face.

He coveted it, took it.

A couple weeks ago,

Ed shared with me,

I guess three weeks ago now,

or told me about a helpful article

written by Pastor Garrett Kell

of Delray Baptist Church

entitled,

Stop Photobombing Jesus.

I don't know if you guys have heard of this.

The premise of the article

is that even as we serve Jesus,

we covet his spotlight.

We keep photobombing him.

You guys know what that means?

I mean, of course you guys know what that means.

It's not your picture,

but you're kind of entering into the frame

of someone else's picture,

pushing ourselves in

so that we can be the object

of the flashing lights

and the stares of admirers.

Kell lists six confessions

that expose this covetousness.

Number one,

I want to glorify Jesus,

but I want glory too.

Number two,

because I want affirmation,

I hide my sins.

Number three,

I become bitter

when God uses others

instead of me.

Number four,

I become more concerned

about my public performance

than my private devotion.

Number five,

I fear moral failure

for the wrong reasons,

not because it offends God,

but because it would take away

my standing before men.

Number six,

my desire to be something

rivals my desire

for Jesus

to be everything.

Do you covet

the glory of God?

Do you covet

the center stage

that you belong

to God alone

in the church,

in your life,

in your marriage?

When we first began

this series

in the Decalogue,

the Ten Commandments,

I mentioned that

the Ten Commandments

have a symmetrical structure.

The first half

deal with loving God,

the second half

deal with loving our neighbors,

and the two halves

mirror each other.

So commands

four, five, six, seven, eight

in the middle,

they deal with actions,

what we do.

And then commands three

and commands nine

flanking that,

both deal with our speech,

what we say,

not taking name

of the Lord in vain

and not bearing false witness

against our neighbor.

And then at the beginning

and end of the Decalogue,

commands one, two,

and ten,

deal with the heart

and the mind.

So the last word

of the Decalogue

peels off the layers

of our actions

and our speech

and gets right underneath

to what is going on

in our hearts.

what do we worship?

What do we love?

What do we desire?

And it is for this reason

that when we get

to the bottom of it,

the heart of covetousness,

that's my second point,

is idolatry.

That's the heart

of covetousness.

Colossians 3, 5 says,

covetousness is idolatry.

Ephesians 5, 5 says,

a person who is covetous

is an idolater.

It is not an accident

that the Decalogue

begins with the command,

you shall have no other gods

before me,

and then ends

with the tenth word,

you shall not covet.

Because when we desire

what belongs to another,

when we desire

what is not ours,

what God has not given to us,

we're desiring it

more than we desire God.

God.

John Piper helpfully

defines covetousness

this way.

He says,

quote,

covetousness is desiring

something so much

that you lose

your contentment

in God.

Covetousness,

when you covet money,

if you love money,

Jesus says that

your money is your God.

If you covet earthly things

and you're preoccupied

with worldly pleasures,

Philippians 3.19 says

that your God

is your belly.

Coveting at its heart

is idolatrous.

When you desire

or are devoted

to someone

or something

more than God,

you're idolizing it.

And that's what makes

covetousness

such a grievous sin.

We're really worshiping

something other than God.

we're declaring

by our covetousness

that God

is not

enough.

That we need

something more.

But that's not true.

God is

enough.

He is all we need

and all we could ever want.

in Psalm 73,

Asaph writes

of how he was formerly

envious of the wicked,

envious of the arrogant

because he saw

that they prospered,

lived long lives.

And when he saw this,

he says he almost

lost his faith,

thinking to himself,

all in vain

have I kept my heart clean

and washed my hands

in innocence.

However,

when Asaph

goes into the sanctuary

to worship God,

as he's worshiping,

he remembers

that all who are wicked

eventually fall into ruin

due to God's judgment.

Whereas he will be received

into God's glory.

And then he concludes

the Psalm

with this wonderful,

beautiful confession

of his contentment

in God.

He says,

Whom have I

in heaven

but you?

And there is

nothing

on earth

that I desire

besides you.

My flesh

and my heart

may fail

but God

is the strength

of my heart

and my portion

forever.

That God

is my portion.

There is nothing

on earth

that I desire

besides you,

Lord.

Regardless of what

other people's portions

in life may be,

my portion

is better.

I have God

as my portion.

This is why

I despise

and I oppose

the prosperity gospel.

It says,

if you follow God

and you are faithful

to him,

God will make you

healthy and wealthy

and prosperous.

That is not

the gospel.

Because it does not

make Jesus

look precious.

It makes

money

and health

and success

look precious.

The world

looks at the

prosperity gospel

and then says,

well,

if I were healthy

and wealthy

and prosperous

and successful,

I'd be happy too.

Why do you need

God in the picture?

It makes Jesus

a means

to an end.

Second fiddle

to our other

more important

pursuits in life.

No,

that's not right.

It makes

Jesus look precious

when we say,

whatever my lot

in life,

wealth or poverty,

health or sickness,

a podium

or a prison,

fame or

forgottenness,

a long life

or a short life,

Jesus is

enough

for me.

That makes

Jesus look

precious.

And that

should be

the cry

of our hearts

because that's

how precious

Jesus is

and we want

everyone to know

it.

But instead,

when we covet

and we say,

well,

Jesus,

he's great,

but I also

need that man

or that woman

or that job

or that car

or those

sneakers

or that publishing

deal

or that look

or that body

or that shape

or that promotion

or that lavish

lifestyle

or that comfortable

lifestyle

or that popularity

or that many

followers on Twitter

or TikTok,

no.

You don't need

any of those things

because Jesus

is enough.

I'm not saying

that it is wrong

necessarily

for you to seek

a promotion

or a new job

or to save up

for a house,

but if in your pursuit

of that thing

you are discontented

in the Lord

and if you

didn't get that thing

you would be

devastated.

Then you do not

have a pure desire

but a covetous one.

That brings us

to the cure

for covetousness.

The cure for covetousness

is contentment.

Immediately

being content

with what we

already have

and ultimately

being content

in Christ.

So let's look at

those two things

in turn.

First,

being content

with what we have.

1 Timothy 5,

5-10.

Paul denounces

those who imagine

that godliness

is the means

of gain,

who use their

spiritual standing

in an influence

to enrich themselves

and that should not

be so.

Instead,

Paul continues,

godliness with contentment

is great gain

for we brought

nothing into the world

and we cannot

take anything

out of the world

but if we have

food and clothing

with these

we will be content.

But those who desire

to be rich

fall into temptation,

into a snare,

into many senseless

and harmful desires

that plunge people

into ruin and destruction

for the love of money

is a root

of all kinds of evils.

It is through this craving

that some have wandered

away from the faith

and pierced themselves

with many pangs.

If we have food

and clothing,

Paul says,

we should be content.

The bare necessities

are sufficient.

Why should we be content

with what we already have?

Because we brought

nothing into the world

and we cannot take

anything out of the world,

it says.

As the saying goes,

I don't know if you guys

have heard of this,

I found a pretty groovy

country song

that sings this

this week.

It says,

there is no trailer hitch

on a hearse.

Yeah.

The hearse

carrying your coffin

is not going to be

pulling a U-Haul

with all your stuff in it

because you can't

take any of it with you.

You can't take

your money with you,

you can't take

your fame with you,

so why ensnare yourself

with the desire

to be rich?

Paul says,

it is senseless

to do that.

Jesus says in Luke 12, 15,

take care

and be on your guard

against all covetousness

for one's life

does not consist

in the abundance

of his possessions.

Life is not about

the abundance

of your possessions.

That is not

the measure

of your worth.

People in the world,

some of them

will say that.

How much you have

but your net worth

is not your life's worth.

So why wear yourself

down in pursuit

of wealth?

Despite the Bible

is very, very clear

teaching on this,

to this day,

I regularly meet

Christians who say,

hey, I really want

to get rich.

Can you imagine

all the good things

I can do with my wealth?

I will do so many

good things

once I get rich.

But it says right here,

in God's infallible word,

those who desire

to be rich

fall into temptation,

into a snare,

into many senseless

and harmful desires

that plunge people

into ruin and destruction.

No one falls

into a snare

because they want to.

They fall into it

unawares.

Yes.

You might desire

to be rich

for what you think

might be noble reasons,

but it doesn't matter.

It can ensnare you.

Do you want to be ruined?

Do you want to be destroyed?

If not,

then don't desire

to be rich.

Jesus says that the cares

of the world

and the deceitfulness

of riches

and the desires

for other things

choke the word of God

so that it does not

bear fruit in our lives.

Do you want the word of God

to be choked

in your life

so it doesn't bear fruit?

Do you want to be

an unfruitful Christian?

If your answer

to that is no,

then don't desire

to be rich.

Don't give in

to covetousness.

If you work hard

and get rich

as a byproduct

without desiring

to be rich,

fine.

Then be generous

with your wealth,

but don't desire

to be rich.

Don't love money

even when you have it.

Be content

with what you have.

Hebrews 13, 5,

keep your life free

from love of money

and be content

with what you have

for he has said,

I will never leave you

nor forsake you.

Isn't that an amazing promise?

That's the reason.

Why should we live free

from the love of money

and be content

with what we have?

Because God assures us,

I will never leave you

nor forsake you.

We can be content

in whatever situation

because we always have

God with us

and he is enough.

And that brings us

to the ultimate contentment

we should have

as Christians,

contentment in Christ.

And this contentment

goes even beyond

being content

with the bare necessities.

It says in Philippians 4,

11 to 13,

Paul says that

he learned

in whatever situation

to be content

even when he faced

plenty and hunger,

abundance and need.

He says in 2 Corinthians 12, 10,

for the sake of Christ

that I am content

even with weakness,

insults,

hardships,

persecutions,

and calamities.

For when I am weak

then I am strong.

Even without bare necessities.

Paul says

you can be content

in Christ.

Some of us

in the future

might have

the hardship

but also the privilege

of being in a situation

where we need

to display

the preciousness

of Jesus

by finding contentment

even in the midst

of a desperate situation.

Maybe it's in the midst

of brokenness,

weakness,

hunger,

suffering,

war,

persecution.

But in order

to be content

in Christ

even in such situations

we need to grasp

the surpassing worth

of Jesus.

What did Paul say

in Philippians 3

and this is the key

to this contentment.

I count everything

as loss

because of the

surpassing worth

of knowing

Christ Jesus

my Lord.

For his sake

I have suffered

the loss

of all things

and count them

as rubbish

in order

that I may gain

Christ.

Rubbish.

Street refuse.

Garbage.

Jesus is the pearl

of great price

worth selling

everything

you have

for

in order to acquire.

Jesus is the Lord.

the great I am

who died

on the cursed cross

so that our

covetous

and idolatrous hearts

might be cleansed

and forgiven.

We might not have

the perfect portfolio

or the perfect career

or the perfect family

or the perfect house

or the perfect body

but we have

Jesus.

Isn't Jesus enough?

In the book

The Insanity of God

author Nick Ripken

recounts his travels

to various parts

of the world

where Christians

are persecuted

and shares his interviews

with the Christians

in the book

and in one chapter

he tells the story

of the man he calls

the quote

the toughest man

I ever met

and this man

was in such an

intensely persecuted

part of the world

that he agreed

to meet Ripken

quote

in a secure

non-public setting

where he would not

even be able

to see his face

or attempt

to learn his name.

The whole time

during the interview

this man spoke

to Ripken

from the shadow

in a corner

so that his face

could not be seen.

He told Ripken

his testimony

of how prior

to coming to Christ

he was a zealous Muslim

and he killed

infidels

for sport.

He stopped counting

how many people

he killed

after 100.

he would slit

their throats

and let the blood

wash over his hands

as an offering

to Allah.

But after some time

he began to have

a recurring dream

the same dream

over and over again

of the spots

of blood

on his hands

that grew larger

and larger

until eventually

the blood

was running down

and dripping off

his arms

and the man knew

instinctively

that the blood

on his hands

were the blood

of the people

that he had killed.

the recurring dream

was so incessant

that the man

began to wonder

if he was insane

and even started

to see blood

on his hands

during the day

during his waking hours.

He'd wash his hands

and scrub it

with sand

and pumice

which is a rough

textured volcanic rock

that people use

as an abrasive

for cleaning.

But no matter

how hard he scrubbed

he could not

get the blood off.

Eventually

however

the dream changed.

In that same dream

there appeared

a man

clothed in white

with a scarred head.

He also had

scarred hands

a scarred side

and scarred feet

and the scarred man

said to this

Muslim man

I am Jesus

the Messiah

and I can

get the blood off

if you will just

find me

and believe in me.

So the man

began searching.

It took him

over a year

to locate a copy

of the Bible

and eventually

it took him

even longer

to understand

what he was reading.

Occasionally

he would run

into someone

who could answer

some of his questions

and finally

this man found

Jesus

and the man said

that when he gave

his life over to Jesus

I got the blood off.

Jesus took that blood

onto himself

and his nightmares

stopped immediately.

And the man

started smuggling

Bibles

into his country

even Jesus films

he went over mountains

to another country

and to smuggle

these things in

he did these for years

and in doing so

he had been beaten

near to death

by Muslim soldiers

he used to lead

because they heard

that he was an apostate.

After listening

to the man's story

for over six hours

Nick Ripken

asked him a question.

You have told me

that you are married

that you have sons

and that you have

led your wife

and your children

to Christ

and that you have

even baptized them.

What I'm wondering

is this

where do they fit

into your ministry?

You haven't talked

about that.

How do they help you?

What is happening

with your family?

And Nick Ripken

recalls how he did not

expect what happened next.

He says

the man leapt out

of the darkness

and suddenly stood

face to face

with me.

He clamped

his scarred hands

down tight

on my shoulders

and his fierce

dark eyes

bored like lasers

into mine

and I instinctively

thought of my earlier

question about the number

of men he had killed.

For hours

I had listened

to his inspiring story

but now I was terrified

as he shook me

and demanded to know

how can God ask it?

Tell me

how can God ask it?

I have given him

everything.

My body has been broken.

I have been jailed.

I have been starved.

I have been beaten.

I have been left for dead.

I have even been willing

to die for Jesus.

But do you know

what I fear?

When I go to bed

at night

what keeps me awake

and what actually

terrifies me

is a thought

that God might ask

of my wife

and my children

what I have already

willingly given him.

how can he ask it?

Tell me

how could God ask this

of my wife

and children?

Scared half to death

Ripken

who had suffered

the loss

of his own son

in the mission field

felt prompted

by the Holy Spirit

to say this

in response

I personally

cannot answer

your question

but I would ask you

another question

that I have had

to ask myself

is Jesus

worth it?

Is he worth

your life?

Is he worth

the lives

of your wife

and your children?

And this toughest man

that he had ever met

began to sob

and then he wrapped

his arms around

Ripken

and buried his face

in his shoulders

and wept

and then when he

finally stopped

stepped back

and wiped away

his tears

and he looked

into his eyes again

and nodded

and declared

Jesus

is worth it

He is worth

my life

my wife's life

and he is worth

the lives

of my children

I have got

to get them involved

in what God

is doing with me

with that

he said goodbye

turned around

walked out

of the room

brothers and sisters

that's what

contentment

in Christ

looks like

Jesus

is

worth it

Jesus

is worth

losing

everything

over

and so

even when

we are weak

insulted

even when

we are suffering

even when

we are persecuted

let's declare

to the world

by our contentment

that Jesus

is enough

let's pray

Jesus

you gave your all

which is much

to us

how can we not

give our little

all to you

Jesus

you are worthy

you are

enough

help us

to live

in a manner

that shows

that reveals

your surpassing

worth

help us

to treasure

you more

than anything

and anyone

for your glory

in Jesus

name we pray

amen

well

yeah

you

you

you