Envy

Good Morning, 

Some sins are easy to cover and easy to categorize as “not so bad."

Envy and covetousness are easily hidden and frequently justified, but God says much about these sinful attitudes of the heart.  

Was it not a desire for that which God forbade that cursed the human race in the Garden of Eden?  Was it not covetousness that damned Achan and his family at Jericho? (Joshua 7)

Proverbs 14:30 “A sound heart is the life of the flesh: but envy the rottenness of the bones.” 

In the Ten Commandments, we read of covetousness:

Exodus 20:17 “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."

In Genesis 34, Shechem brought about the death of his entire city by desiring Dinah and convincing the men of his city that all the property of Jacob and his twelve sons would one day be theirs if they were to follow the instructions of  Simeon and Levi.  Covetousness or perhaps envy brought about their destruction and resulted in great wrong.

Romans 13:9 “For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.”

When we consider envy, we read of Joseph being sold by his envious brothers. The brothers wished for the favor he had with their father, or they desired the peace and courage Joseph had to stand for right; his brothers lived lives of compromise.  

Often, you will find someone looking at the blessings on another, whether their children, their marriage, or their spiritual stand, and the envy moves them to dislike the one who is blessed.  

Is it so difficult to rejoice in the blessing another receives?  Yet envy stirs many to bitterness.  

“And the patriarchs, moved with envy, sold Joseph into Egypt: but God was with him.”  (Acts 7:9) 

Of the many infections spread by social media, covetousness and envy are two of the most subtle and corrupt. Like the longing for fame or money that is spread by television and movies, social media often causes people to wish for that which belongs to another (or they look at their own life with discontentment rather than rest).  

Paul writes that we ought to kill the desire for that which is not our own, whether it be popularity or the happy home next door.  

Colossians 3:5 “Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry:”

Ephesians 5:3 “Let it not be once named among you…"

Idolatry....

Like Proverbs 2, “Seek her as silver…,” we seek things when we ought only to seek God.

We seek after fame or position when we ought to surrender to the Lord and His perfect plan. Sometimes we ask ourselves why we cannot have that job, sing that solo, or get that promotion at work.

These things belong to God, not to our personal whim - this is idolatry because we allow our desire for things or position to be paramount in our hearts rather than yielding our lives totally to His sovereign will.

Luke 3:14 says to be content with our wages.

1 Timothy 6:8 says we ought to be content with food and clothing. 

One last verse reminds us that we have the Lord Jesus Christ, and that His presence ought to be adequate to bring contentment - no matter our condition.  

Hebrews 13:5 “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.”

Contentment will come when we grasp the unfathomable wonder of Christ’s presence. Knowing Him will keep envy and covetousness in check.

Pastor