We note that Lord's Day 44 seems not to speak about covetousness very much before we come to the last question and answer and see that the law points us to our nature and our need both see our nature and our justification with our need for a sanctified and holy life. After working at the Law of God we "look in the rear view mirror" now!
It is true that the word covet is not found in this Lord's Day and know full well that what is not given to us ...we should not covet as God dispenses as HE sees fit. Biblically, we may covet the best gifts, the office...but here we are dealing with it negatively with the heart that yearns for something that our heart pines for that is not ours. Even the smallest inclination of the heart (as with the entire law) is brought to the fore here. 1. Negatively-we may not be inclined against the commandments in any sense of the word. It's from the heart and we may have no negative INCLINATIONS against the Law! (yes, even though it opposes the world's philosophy and the devil himself directly.) To think about or lust after is a direct violation! 2. Positively-The Law of God principally needs to be the desire of the heart in a sanctified and new and holy life!
Reality hits us. The mirror reflects who we really are. It asks us IF we can keep the Law (not do we but CAN we.) It focus' on who we are by nature....our struggle with the old man....pointing us to who we are and making us well aware of it! We have only a small and new beginning- a principal within us in our Lord Jesus Christ in the body of this flesh as it "wars with our members." (The new man begins so pure in principal.) We always have the struggle of the old man continually! We have only a small beginning of that new obedience! It is from a child of God that knows himself and yearns for the new man that asks himself or herself the question "why must we so strictly preach these things?"
Here is why: 1. That we may learn more and more our sinful nature and seek redemption in Christ. 2. That we may earnestly pray for the forgiveness of our sins and the grace of God and Holy Spirit and depend on the cross of God for ALL our forgiveness. 3. That we may be well aware that the prayer for forgiveness brings us to the cross giving us a taste of forgiveness, a taste which SPURS us on to a renewed way of life till we are in perfection!
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