What the Bible says about Setting Heart Upon
(From Forerunner Commentary)

Matthew 5:27-28 God's Word obviously shows that not every desire is wrong (Proverbs 4:5-9). It is no sin to desire knowledge, understanding, and wisdom. God's law is "more to be desired . . . than much fine gold" (Psalm 19:10). It is not wrong to desire a godly spouse. Learning is valuable, and desiring godly character is good. Others have good qualities that we might well desire for ourselves. The word translated "lust" in Matthew 5:28 means "to set one's heart upon." But when the object desired is legitimately beyond the reach of the admirer, when admiration becomes a desire to get, one breaks the commandment. Desire of and by itself is not wrong, but desiring what belongs to another to such a degree that it dominates our thinking and motivates us to take other unlawful actions to possess the object is sin. Such covetousness often suppresses the far more important things of God—and may even cause one to forget them altogether. When desire builds to the breaking point, people will lie, steal, commit adultery, dishonor parents, and even murder to have what they lust after. We might also break the Sabbath and destroy our witness for God by serving our desires. Truly, Paul was correct in Colossians 3:5: "Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry." Breaking the tenth commandment brings us full circle through the commandments and back to the first. There is nothing wrong, however, in merely wanting something. It is only wrong to want something so badly that we would break every law to get it, be sick with unhappiness without it, or so occupied with it that we push God out of our lives. To desire a better life does not break the command; to enter the race to keep up with the Joneses does. To want our children to have it better than we did is natural; it becomes evil only when its purpose distorts the child's values. To love pretty things is normal. God loves beauty and has created it. We can appreciate beautiful things, but to desire them to show them off and arouse envy in others is evil. It is not wrong to desire the needs of life and even its luxuries, but a feverish passion for more—and the action it incites—breaches God's law. John W. Ritenbaugh The Tenth Commandment (1998) Related Topics: Covetousness | Desire | Envy | Lust | Passion | Setting Heart Upon | The Tenth Commandment | Witness

Luke 12:22-23 The phrase "do not worry" suggests a greater-than-normal concern about managing what we possess. Jesus directs this admonishment toward everyone because, no matter how much we possess, the drive to get more remains, along with insecurity about losing what we already have. He is not saying we should be unconcerned about the quality of what we eat; His concern is that we worry too much about whether we will have anything to eat. Our focus, though, is on His statement that life is more than food and clothing. It indicates that stability and serenity of mind must come from within a person, not from outward, physical provisions. To set one's heart on material possessions or to worry about the lack of them is to live in perpetual insecurity. This approach to life is a sure-fire way to deprive ourselves of a major blessing of life God wants us to enjoy. His calling enables us to live an abundant life in peace and joy. In order to do this, we must be weaned away from our overwhelming dependence upon physical things. In other words, we will not find balanced emotional stability unless and until our minds are fed with a nutritious, spiritual diet. John W. Ritenbaugh Eating: How Good It Is! (Part Three) Related Topics: Abundant Life | Emotional Stability | Insecurity | Instability | Peace | Possessions | Setting Heart Upon | Setting Heart upon Material Possessions | Spiritual Stability | Stability | Take no Anxious Thoughts | Worry

Colossians 3:2 Paul is telling us where the focus of our attention needs to be. We can give our minds over to a lot of things, for instance, to our jobs - and there is a place for that. We can give our minds over to physical things - exercise, eating well, and so forth - and there is a place for these, too. Indeed, humans need to set their minds on many things, but they need to be prioritized correctly - put into the right niche and position. Then each of these things has to be seen in relation to the Kingdom of God. Our priorities must be set according to this standard - the overriding goal of our Christian lives. "Set your mind on things above" adjusts the focus of our attention so that we do not become distracted by things that are less important for any longer than needed, so that they occupy the right proportion and amount of time in our lives. John W. Ritenbaugh Titus 2:11-14 Related Topics: Focus, Spiritual | Kingdom of God | Kingdom of God, Seeking First | Priorities | Priorities, Spiritual | Prioritizing | Seeking First Kingdom of God | Seeking God First | Seeking God's Righteousness | Setting Heart Upon | Spiritual Focus | Spiritual Goals | Spiritual Priorities

 

		The Berean: Daily Verse and Comment Sign up for the Berean: Daily Verse and Comment, and have Biblical truth delivered to your inbox. This daily newsletter provides a starting point for personal study, and gives valuable insight into the verses that make up the Word of God. See what over 155,000 subscribers are already receiving each day. Email Address:     A Faithful VersionKing James VersionNew International VersionNew King James Version Leave this field empty
We respect your privacy. Your email address will not be sold, distributed, rented, or in any way given out to a third party. We have nothing to sell. You may easily unsubscribe at any time.