![]() ![]() It just doesn't show up like many of the grosser, outward sins. A person can go along and be quite a respectable Christian as far as other people are concerned, and yet be guilty of coveting. You know, a lot of people think they are getting by with secret sins - things that are on the inside things that don't show up - like coveting, for example. You have the right to choose, but when the day of reckoning comes and your soul will be required of you, then whose will these things be?" If that's the way you want it, get anything you want. The Lord is just saying here, "You go ahead. Every single Christian should give it very earnest attention and heed its message. Tonight your soul will be required of you. Why? Well, because he was concerned only about himself - "I," "I," "I," - and he forgot all about the solemn fact that one of these days we all have to stand before the Lord in judgment. Now I may call a man a fool and be entirely mistaken, but when God calls a man a fool, he's a fool. But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God." And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. Let me read it to you, beginning with verse 16: "And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. After Jesus said "Take heed, and beware of covetousness," He told a story to illustrate the point a little bit further. But now let's go back to Luke 12 for a moment. It takes special power from heaven to overcome this sin. ![]() God Called a Man a "Fool" Now I may as well warn you ahead of time that there's no possible way of getting rid of coveting except through the Lord Jesus Christ - absolutely no way at all. It's the sin that comes before and leads to every other sin that you could possible commit. except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet." The point he was trying to get across was this: Every single sin has its roots in the sin of covetousness, and that's why God thought it was important enough to include in the Ten Commandments. Remember what the apostle Paul said in Romans 7:7. ![]() But there it is - it is a commandment of the Lord, and it is one that most people seem to overlook yet in God's sight it's one of the blackest of all sins because it's the root of every other sin. You break any of the other commandments and immediately you get into trouble, but coveting - well, nobody knows whether you're coveting or not. It is not even condemned very much by the church, it seems. Of course, it is a sin that's not condemned very much by our materialistic age, either. People don't mind at all admitting some of those grosser, blacker sins but when it comes right down to those refined sins like covetousness, I guess it is just too humiliating. I'm just a covetous person." It has always amazed me just a little bit. I want to reach out and grab and pull in everything I can get hold of." And people never come to you and say, "I want to admit something. People just simply don't say "Well, I'm a covetous person. The Lord Jesus Himself solemnly warned us of this sin in Luke 12:15: "And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a men's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth." You see, the sin that nobody admits is covetousness. And I suppose the reason for it is that it's the root sin the basic sin the very foundation sin. I can recall people who have admitted being drunkards, who confessed to stealing, breaking up another's home, murder, taking the Lord's name in vain, trifling on the marriage partner, Sabbath breaking - all the rest - but as far as I can remember in all my time in the ministry, nobody has ever admitted to me that he was guilty of the sin we're going to talk about now. ![]() Now people have confessed to me that they've committed some terrible, dark sins. We must be afraid to mention it, because nobody ever mentions it about himself, anyway. Introduction Do you know about the sin nobody admits? It's a sin we're afraid to mention. ![]()
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