The Principality of Covetousness

The principality of covetousness is the third principality of Satan. The objective of this principality of Satan is to cause mankind to actively pursue inordinate desires for power, money, worldly possessions, and worldly success for the purpose of self-indulgence and/or self-fulfillment; and its attendant power is the spirit of covetousness. This prince has at his disposal one captain—lust—and all lower ranking principalities and powers like witchcraft, hypocrisy, rebellion, sedition, entrepreneurship, idolatry, tradition, lying, disobedience, sorcery, confusion, emulation, judgment, hate, bitterness, haughtiness, etc. to use to fulfill his mission. After being infatuated with the world's way of doing things (tradition through hypocrisy), and being connected to its power (witchcraft), we have given ourselves wholly over to the world. We cannot even recognize God any longer. All we want now is what we want because we love it. This leads to the spirit of covetousness. "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation" (Matthew 23:14).

Covetousness and Happiness?

A widely known preacher once explained to his congregation that the purpose and plan of God for our lives is that we would be happy. To some reading this, you would respond, "What's wrong with that?!" Well, there is a lot wrong! God did not save a single Christian, not one, so he or she would be happy. This kind of thinking comes from people convinced that salvation is for us to go to heaven one day (see "Rapture & Heaven"). God saves us so we can have our own personal paradise (see "Personal Savior")? No people of God! This is not so. The church believes this foolishness because of these principalities we have named: tradition gets us into the mindset that this world system is here to please us; we then make idols to worship it (idolatry); we then produce leaders who represent our worship (entrepreneurship); they lead us astray and give us the folly we have always wanted (Saul); the leaders then reinforce the things that started us on our journey, except they produce things that are worse by promoting a false image of ourselves (hypocrisy), which takes away our power requiring we substitute it with Satan's (witchcraft), driving us towards rebellion and complete rejection of all things of God (covetousness). "And they come unto thee as the people cometh, and they sit before thee as my people, and they hear thy words, but they will not do them: for with their mouth they shew much love, but their heart goeth after their covetousness" (Ezekiel 33:31). In this section we explain covetousness and its power operating in the body of Christ.

Covetousness is, very simply, a form of rebellion against God. It is the culmination of desires to take what others have because one believes that he or she does not have those things. Entrepreneurship functions within the leaders and covetousness functions within the people in a worse way because we believe that we have to get what we do not have in order to maintain a ridiculous image. Here is what the Bible says about covetousness:

Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. (Hebrews 13:5)

Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry: For which things' sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience: In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them. (Colossians 3:5-7)

Two points leap off the pages: covetousness is the result of discontentment and covetousness makes us function as citizens of the world system. These two points take us back to tradition and idolatry by setting us up in worldliness and then causing us to deify it. Our lack of contentment with the promises of God causes us to replace those promises with the things of this world in an effort to secure a position in that system. Discontentment states, "The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence." This is contrary, however, to the decrees that Christ made about discipleship, "whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple" (Luke 14:33). There has to be something very powerful about this devil for it to cause us to reject discipleship.

The Law and the Origin of Covetousness

We begin with the Law, which states: "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's" (Exodus 20:17). God gave this decree because he was setting a new order among the people of Israel. There was no blessing he would withhold from them in the covenant. This means that everyone would be able to partake, no one would be left out, and so there was no need to covet. God wanted the worship; he did not want them concerned about things. The Law, however, brings wrath. We cannot fully adhere to it as Paul said:

But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter. What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet. But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence. For without the law sin was dead. For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died. And the commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death. For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it slew me. Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good. Was then that which is good made death unto me? God forbid. But sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful. (Romans 7:6-13)

Sin is a deceiver that operates by the Law. The Law works towards death not because it is evil but because of the evil in us. Sin has to have something on which to deceive us, it takes the Law, it tells us we should not do it and we are left destroyed because the Law cannot be broken and not lead to death. The sin that is in us thrives on covetousness. This means that when we fall into covetousness we ultimately have to reject the beginning faith of our salvation, that we need God. If we do not believe we need God, how can we be saved? The answer is simple, we cannot!

Covetousness is the inordinate desire—avarice—for the material things of this world which are believed to bring a better life. A better life fulfills that which is popular—the image of success—and a better life promises power: the ability to control others and our environment. Throughout history popularity and power, or honor and riches, are inherent to kings of this world or to gods. Covetousness is the conglomeration of the sins of discontent, pride, lust, emulation, idolatry, adultery, and tradition. Discontent causes us to not be satisfied with where we are in the life of this world; pride causes us to seek to please ourselves; lust causes us to desire those things we have decided will please us; emulation causes us to compare our life with the life of the majority; idolatry pushes us to worship the image of the thing which we believe will fulfill us; adultery pushes us to love the world and the things that are in the world; and tradition pushes us to place the wisdom of man—traditions of man—above the wisdom of God. While covetousness is a form of idolatry, covetousness is worse than idolatry because covetousness pushes past mere worship to the diligent pursuit of those material things in the world which are believed to increase one's societal status and/or transfer power to the bearer: power which makes the bearer a god among other men. Covetousness, then, is the inordinate pursuit of the things of this world which are believed to bring popularity and power. Or more concisely, covetousness is the state of mind in which inordinate desires for power, money, worldly possessions, and worldly success are actively pursued for the purpose of self-indulgence and/or self-fulfillment.

Covetousness is the manifestation of all the things we desire contrary to the Law of God, and works in opposition to the Law of God leading us to a place where God is not, death. Yet, as bad as covetousness is, we still revel in it. It is still a huge part of our lives. We grew up on it. We were constantly taught through experience that we do not need God, we just need to be better at being ourselves. It is as the Bible said: it is something that we walk in while we are upon the earth. It is a means by which we attempt to attain access to the world system. Paul said he would not know lust without covetousness and James says this about lust: "when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death" (James 1:15). Covetousness leads us to be children of disobedience having "concupiscence" and "inordinate affections" because our minds have completely shifted from the Lord to being completely focused on the world. Ultimately, the things of God are of no concern to us. Our hearts become oblivious to his presence. This allows us to do many things like lead lives that are lascivious, listen to ministers who are homosexual, and believe things contrary to the will of God while still claiming to be Christian.

The Fruit of Covetousness

Have you ever wondered how it is that the church could claim to be the church and act like Satan? Why did the Crusades happen? Why were blacks enslaved? Why have so many people been killed in the name of God? We have an answer for you: "For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows" (1 Timothy 6:10).

Money is not a dollar, a rupee, a shilling, or a pound. Money is the currency of a system based on a lie: it is the currency for participation in Satan's realm. Satan lied to us from the beginning: we do not need God we can be a god. Money is the means by which power in Satan's realm can be attained. Money is the means by which a person can be worshipped: can become a god. The love of money is love for the power of a system that thrives against the Laws of God. The Laws of God bind us to him. Humanity's inability to obey God necessitated that we receive the work of Christ. Covetousness combats this work causing us to believe that we do not need him by making our desire for him numb. This is why Paul said it is the root of all evil—meaning that our desire to please God has eroded and we have focused our attention on pleasing ourselves. "Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another" (Galatians 5:26). Thus, in the garden of Eden, money was the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, and the love of money—the love of the currency for participation in Satan's realm—was the root of all the evil that has passed down to mankind from our first father and mother (Isaiah 43:27).

Notice, anyone who talks about the major atrocities in the world will say, "It's all about the money"; well it turns out to be true. Almost every major event that has ended in evil is because of the love of money. Some people think having money means being feared; others think money brings fame; others may think that money allows them to be remembered. The end result is the same; it is the currency for participation in Satan's realm, and he has many Christians in bondage by it. So the evil men have done over the centuries, which they could have only done while being numb to God, was because they wanted more currency: they loved money. We have a poignant example of this through Judas:

Then Jesus six days before the passover came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, which had been dead, whom he raised from the dead. There they made him a supper; and Martha served: but Lazarus was one of them that sat at the table with him. Then took Mary a pound of ointment of spikenard, very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair: and the house was filled with the odour of the ointment. Then saith one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, which should betray him, Why was not this ointment sold for three hundred pence, and given to the poor? This he said, not that he cared for the poor; but because he was a thief, and had the bag, and bare what was put therein. (John 12:1-6)

Judas, upon losing the potential for three hundred pence and recognizing that Jesus was not focused on giving him financial prosperity, sought after the chief priests to make a deal with them to betray Jesus to them. "Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests, And said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver. And from that time he sought opportunity to betray him" (Matthew 26:14-16). Even though Judas was chosen by Jesus as a disciple and Judas professed belief that Jesus was indeed "the Son of the living God," Judas' true god was money.

Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away? Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life. And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God. Jesus answered them, Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil? He spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon: for he it was that should betray him, being one of the twelve. (John 6:67-71)

And, because he loved money more than he loved the Lord, he "erred from the faith" and "pierced" himself with through with sorrow unto death. "The sorrow of the world worketh death" (2 Corinthians 7:10); therefore, Judas' sorrow caused him to commit suicide.

When the morning was come, all the chief priests and elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death: And when they had bound him, they led him away, and delivered him to Pontius Pilate the governor. Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, Saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood. And they said, What is that to us? see thou to that. And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself. (Matthew 27:1-5)

Judas, like Esau (Hebrews 12:16), sold his "birthright" to satisfy his lust. Many Christians, like Judas, have traded their "incorruptible, and undefiled" (1 Peter 1:4) inheritance, which is "reserved in heaven," for a more immediate, corruptible and defiled "reward" called financial prosperity (see "Prosperity"). "And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth" (Luke 12:15).

Covetousness: Divorce from God

One of the major causes of divorce is covetousness. In Exodus 20, the decree was made that one should not covet anything that a neighbor has. In coveting something else someone has, one desires to leave what they have presently to get what they believe they do not have. The same goes with God. When we are subject to covetousness, we will "look upon" another thing with lust with the mindset of leaving our current condition. As Christians, that means that we would be willing to leave our Savior in an effort to please ourselves. Covetousness, coupled with witchcraft and hypocrisy, is hidden. Hypocrisy provides the deceptive image making the believer look like he or she is in the will of God. Witchcraft, calling those things that are evil as though they are good, makes the believer think and act like they are in the will of God. While all of this is going on, the believer is nowhere near God. He is thereby attached to the world system, a thing that God disdains. Thus, divorce has already occurred even though the believer may not have even thought of it that way.

Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. (James 4:3-4)

To be full of covetousness is to require that we draw our lifeblood from the world system. Living in this world requires that we not mortify the members of the body as the Lord commands. Without mortifying them, we are living in them. If we live in them, we have not died with Christ. If we have not died with Christ, we cannot be raised with him. If we are not raised, we are not saved.

Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour. But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints; Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks. For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. Be not ye therefore partakers with them. (Ephesians 5:1-7)

The principality of covetousness entrenched as a strong hold works to cause the infected person to actively pursue inordinate desires for the purpose of self-indulgence and/or self-fulfillment. Covetousness also begets a strong hold for the spirit of lust by which the infected person learns to forego self-denial and self-restraint and cultivate desires for the things of the world like power, money, worldly possessions, and worldly success. Covetousness is the desire to not be risen with him; it is the desire to be risen in the world. It is to be divorced from God and focused on living better than others. "Woe to him that coveteth an evil covetousness to his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from the power of evil! Thou hast consulted shame to thy house by cutting off many people, and hast sinned against thy soul" (Habakkuk 2:9-10). It is a desire to be lifted up in the earth. It is the desire to be famous—to outshine others so that we may be noticed. Covetousness comes at the exclusion of others. It means that they cannot have something because we want it for ourselves. We must remember, that in order for us to be remembered we have to believe that we will be thought of more than someone else. This is not the way of God. His way allows for all to be equally thought of—no one is left out in the kingdom. As Christians, the more we engage the desire for the world system, the more sin we allow into ourselves, and the more we will leave God and not desire him anymore. In effect, it is impossible for us to desire him because we desire ourselves too much.

DRAFT V2010-06-28T4:47:26 PM