Who will not enter the Kingdom of God? A bible study on Covetousness

Hi friends! Before we begin, I wanted to let you know that I created a few free printables to go along with this study. (Scroll down for links) I made these specifically for this post, and they are connected to the scriptures and warnings we will be looking at together. I included a printable Bible study with questions and space to write your answers, along with a coloring page based on the same Scriptures. My hope is that these resources will help you slow down, meditate on God’s Word, and examine your heart before the Lord.

Covetousness may seem like a small, hidden sin, but the Bible treats it as something very serious.

It’s more than just wanting something. Covetousness begins in the heart; it’s where desire is conceived, when that desire is allowed to rule, it gives birth to sin, and sin, when full grown, gives birth to death. This is where desire overtakes and rules your heart, drowning out any thoughts of thankfulness, contentment, or obedience to God. Although it’s cleverly hidden in the heart, its fruit shows up as greed, jealousy, envy, anger, complaining, discontentment, a constant craving for more – and, namely, idolatry.

Scripture warns us not to be deceived. 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 Paul says that the unrighteous will not inherit the Kingdom of God. He lists several sins, including covetousness, and reminds believers,“ And such were some of you.” This gives us hope but also a warning. This should cause every believer to pause and examine his or her heart.

What does the Bible say about covetousness, and how can we guard ourselves from it?

The Bible tells us not to be deceived; adulterers, idolaters, sexual immorality, thieves, covetous, drunkards, revilers, or extortioners will not inherit the Kingdom of God

Scripture warns that those who practice covetousness and continue in it without repentance will not inherit the Kingdom of God. This is not a small warning; covetousness is not just a private desire; Paul calls it idolatry, but the same scripture that warns us also points us to repentance, cleansing, and the power of the Holy Spirit to walk in a new way.

 Is Covetousness a sin? Yes. The Bible clearly treats covetousness as a sin and even names it as idolatry. Colossians 3:5 and it’s one of the commands: You shalt not covet

You may ask, what are we to do? We are told we are to walk in the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. We are also to crucify our flesh with its passions and desires. We are to walk in love as Christ loved us. We were once in darkness, but now we are the light in the Lord, and that is how we are to walk. We are to walk as children of the light. For the Kingdom of God is righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit

What are we allowed to earnestly desire? We are told to earnestly desire the gifts of God and the spiritual gifts. 1 Corinthians 12: 31, 14: 39, 14 :1

The 10 commandments were given to the people of God. One of the commandments was not to covet; they were not to covet anything that belonged to their neighbor, including their neighbor’s wife, field, house, servants, animals, or anything else that belonged to their neighbor. Their discontentment and complaining angered the Lord.

What does it mean to covet? To covet it is to harbor within yourself an intense desire for something you do not have. It could be possessions or wealth. This harboring of covetousness is in the heart of your inner man; this is where it is born. It’s a form of greed that can cause others to stumble, and it could lead to your destruction. It’s also known to destroy families. However, the scripture is clear that we are to run from these desires; we are not to be taken over by them and taken in by the teachings of covetousness because they have no part in God’s Kingdom. I’m reminded of God’s words to Cain:, “Watch out and be careful, for sin is crouching at your door; it wants to control you, but you must control it.” And here we have this sin of covetousness crouching at our door. We must control that desire, and that desire must not control us.

We are called to walk the narrow path, examine our hearts, and follow the leading of the Holy Spirit.  We must know God’s Word and learn how to walk in His ways. Jeremiah 6:16 reminds us to ask for the old paths, where the good way is, and walk in it.

Proverbs 4:23 tells us to guard our hearts. It is the heart that houses wisdom, understanding, and discernment. We guard our hearts by being careful about what we see and hear, where we go, and what we say. What are you filling your heart with? All these things go in your heart and flow out into your life.

We are to

1. Guard our heart
2. Guard our thoughts Philippians 4: 4-8
3. Do not follow our own heart or imaginations because it is wicked and deceitful above all-who can know it? Jeremiah 17: 9

Comes from the heart: The sin of covetousness starts and comes out of the heart, Mark 7: 18-23, says that the things which proceed out of the heart defile a man.  For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adultery, fornications, thefts, false witness, and blasphemies. These are the things that defile a man.

Pray: David prayed, asking God to search his heart. It’s important that we, in our prayers, ask God to search our hearts and let us know if there are any sins in there that do not please him. Initially, that’s not a prayer anyone wants to pray, but God is so gentle, and the Holy Spirit is so loving, that he will show you any sins, and he will do so in such a gentle, loving way that you do not need to worry. When you ask this in prayer, stop to listen, and follow an obedience and thankfulness.

It’s a trap! It’s a snare: Be careful. Many have fallen into this temptation and snare in the foolish and harmful lust that drowns men in destruction and perdition. Covetousness is a trap, and if it’s a trap, there’s a trapper. And if there’s a trapper, he wants to destroy you. If you read the parable of the seeds, you’ll see a bit of this there as well. Now some who were once in the brotherhood of Christ have strayed from the faith, but they fell away because of their love of money. 1 Timothy 6: they had strayed from the faith in their greediness; they were drowning in destruction; they had fallen into temptation, a snare; they had pierced and tortured their own souls with many sorrows and consuming grief.

Covetousness is idolatry; you are to put it to death. Colossians 3:5

Greed destroys families:  He who is greedy for gain troubles his own house. Proverbs 15:27

Hating Covetousness is wisdom He who hates covetousness or unjust gain acquired by violence will prolong his days, Proverbs 28:16

Covetousness leads to backsliding; it separates us from God, Isaiah 57: 17

Those who covet will fall: Jeremiah 6: 13- 17. The people had given themselves over to covetousness, from the greatest to the least, from the prophet to the priest, they refused to go the right way

It’s hidden: In Ezekiel, the people pretended to listen and acted as if they were God’s people, but God saw what was in their hearts. Their hearts were full of covetousness, and what was hidden inside flowed out into their lives

Covetousness and a debased mind -In Romans 1, the people refused to acknowledge God, so God gave them over to a debased mind. Then he lists the sins that follow this debased mind: unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness, full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness…

When people refuse to honor God and are not thankful, their hearts and minds become darkened. One of the sins listed in that downward path is covetousness, or greed. So coveting is not just a small private desire, but it’s a part of the heart that has turned from God and needs to be corrected by him. “The people who neither glorified God nor were thankful, they became filled with covetousness and greed.” Romans 1:21, 29

Check yourself: In Hebrews 13:5, Paul instructs us to check ourselves and our conduct. Let our conversations be without covetousness and be content with such things as we have, because God has told us that he will never leave us nor will he forsake us. The word translated here for covetousness and greed is having or showing an extreme greed for wealth and material gain.

Complaining and Discontentment  The wilderness journey with Moses teaches us to be thankful for what God has given. Complaining and grumbling about what we do not have is dangerous and displeases the Lord.

Complaining leads to destruction, and isn’t that what coveting is? 1st Corinthians 10:10 warns us not to complain. Complaining and griping about what we do not have is dangerous and displeases the Lord. God has given us instructions and examples so that we do not fall away, are not destroyed, and enter his Kingdom. The sin of greed and covetousness might seem small to us because it’s everywhere.  Greed is a sin, period. Coveting is such a great sin that it could keep you from the Kingdom of God. It is a trap to destroy you. It causes people to fall away, it destroys families, and it causes us to be left out or rejected from the eternal Kingdom of God. Take heed lest we fall. Let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he falls.  

Our hope:  God knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations. 2 Peter 2 reminds us that the Lord knows how to deliver the godly, and our God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able. He will provide a way of escape so that you may be able to bear it.

Scripture often shows us that sins of the heart are more serious than we realize. Covetousness is compared to idolatry, which is why we must take it seriously.

What’s the lesson today? We are to walk with the Lord, we are to walk in step with the Holy Spirit, and we are to check ourselves daily and ask God to search our hearts. We are to guard our hearts, we are to guard our thoughts, and we are to make sure that we do not walk in our own ways, or our own imaginations, or follow our own hearts. Covetousness is a serious sin. It destroys, causes people to fall, it destroys families, it deceives people, and can be hidden in the heart. It can lead people away from the faith, cause backsliding, and ultimately keep people from entering the Kingdom of Christ and God.

We are to watch out for false leaders and teachers who have hidden covetousness in their hearts and wear a cloak of covetousness.  Covetousness starts in the heart; it’s also a result of having, or being given over by God, a debased mindset.

Ultimately, covetousness is dangerous because Scripture warns that those who practice it without repentance will not inherit the Kingdom of God. It is also a deadly trap and a snare that can cause people to fall away. Do not get caught up in the love of money, the love of wealth, and the love of this world. Take heed lest we fall, let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.

Never forget our hope is in Christ. He knows how to deliver us; he knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust for punishment, for our God is faithful and will not allow us to be tempted beyond what we are able. For the Lord God will provide a way of escape so that you may be able to bear it and teach/warn others.

Where does covetousness come from? Jesus said evil things come from within, from the heart. This is why we must guard our hearts.

How do we overcome? By walking in the Spirit, telling God what you need with a thankful heart, guarding our hearts, guarding our thoughts, watching our steps, and asking God to search our hearts.

Click below to download and print coloring page:

For a deeper dive into this subject, download the free printable bible study below. It includes Scripture readings, reflection questions, and a space to write your answers.

Download the free Covetousness Bible Study PDF

You can also watch the related video : https://www.youtube.com/embed/eVhWHHHOlYk

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May the Grace and Peace of our Lord and Savior be with you.