There is a traditional listing referred to as "The Seven Deadly Sins", that is a checklist of traps that we can fall into to the detriment of our relationships to God and others. "Covetousness" actually relates to two similar issues; includes Envy, and might be called Greed with a twist. The key here is that the point is something that we want, which derives its poison from the fact that somebody else has it and we don't. If we do manage to acquire it, it keeps its value through the observation that other people also want it. It's the grass on the other side of the fence that gets its attraction from the existence of the fence and which side of it that we're on. It relates to Gluttony at the point when we want more than it good for us. In relationships, it gains spice from Lust, when the attraction is the fact that the target is in a relationship with someone else, and often loses the attraction when you actually pry them loose and then lose interest. Anger comes into the picture when whatever you covet isn't available because somebody else won't let you have it; and the main trap is Pride, which involves a feeling of entitlement that isn't based on anything earned.
The biggest rat in the trap is that all of these things are just that: things that have no value other than the worldly value we put on them. One of the classic definitions is that all these things interfere with recognition of the grace of God. They are all part of life on the level of the world, where we don't see anything beyond our own physical sight. It's interesting that the Commandments that we are studying were given to us, not something that came out of a human mind, and they go back thousands of years--and we can see their relevance today, and in every area of life and history. God, it appears, has a greater faith in what we can do with his help than we usually do. We often hear people excuse their bad behavior with something like "I'm only human", or "Boys will be boys", or "I'm sorry, but I couldn't help it." In a human sense, there are all true! But we are commanded by God to rise to a point that we can't reach on our own. Once we allow God to reach down to us, we find that we are closer to each other as well.
What God requires is easy to summarize but not possible for us on our own ability. "So now, O Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you? Only to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul,and to keep the commandments of the Lord your God and his decrees that I am commanding you today, for your own well-being." (Deuteronomy 10:12-13), and a thousand years later, Micah reminds us "He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?" (Micah 6:8) . Jesus tells us “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” (Matthew 22:37-40) We are being challenged in the next few weeks to look closely at the ancient law, that is still as true as ever.
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