The Spiritual Rot of Envy and Jealousy – Our Cure

Envy and jealousy can enter the human heart when we feel unworthy, afraid or less clever than other people.

    

Believers may be the beloved children of GOD but we are also imperfect creatures who are vulnerable to such feelings.

However, the very fact of whose you are, makes it impossible for negative feelings of any kind to dominate your life.

GOD’s children have been given access to the cure for every spiritual disorder, envy and jealousy included.

The cure for our spiritual ailments is tied directly to our obedience to GOD’s WORD.

If you are sick and the doctor prescribes medicine, you know you have to take it to get well. You don’t lay it down somewhere in the house and hope that the fact that you have it will make your illness go away.

GOD gave you the remedy to cure sinful behavior. You have to act to bring about your healing just like you do when your body is ailing.

If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9

When you admit and confess your sin you receive GOD’s forgiveness. You accept and take His grace of healing and restoration through the blood of CHRIST and your spirit is healthy again.

Those who never admit to and confesses sinful behavior remain sin-sick.

More than that, Scripture says to ignore your Father’s cure of forgiveness and continue in behavior that offends Him is to call Him a liar.

You are denying the power of the blood of JESUS His SON to cleanse you from all unrighteousness and make you spiritually whole again.

One who continues to choose a sin-sick lifestyle must ask the question, Is GOD truly my Father and is JESUS LORD in my life? (1 John 1: 7-10)

A person who loves GOD desires to be in constant fellowship with Him.

When you live a sin-sick lifestyle, you lose the desire for fellowship with GOD and with the people of GOD.

The Father wants His children to be spiritually healthy at all times.

Why does GOD care about your spiritual health?

GOD cares because He loves you, plain and simple!

• He loved you before you were born. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” John 3:16
• He loved you before you accepted Him as Father and CHRIST JESUS as LORD and could claim the title, child of GOD. But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us. Romans 5:8
• And He will love you for all eternity, in CHRIST. “…. neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8: 38-39

GOD wants you to be spiritually whole and healthy because He loves you.

How exactly does GOD love you?

You are always going to be the object of your Father’s tender, perfect and ceaseless love. He assures you in His WORD just how He loves you:

• Relentlessly – GOD’s love is unceasing, not haphazard, fitful or occasional. He never lets up, slows down or changes His position. For I the Lord do not change; Malachi 3:6; The Lord is the everlasting God....He does not faint or grow weary... Isaiah 40:28
• Tenderly – GOD is your Father. Like any good parent He loves you and cares deeply about your welfare. He thinks good thoughts for and about you all the time. How precious are your thoughts about me, O God? They cannot be numbered! Psalm 139:17
• Eternally – GOD can never love you more or less than He does at present and in every phase of your life. In your youth or in your declining years, in sickness or in health, GOD’s love for you is constant. I will be your God throughout your lifetime--until your hair is white with age. I made you, and I will care for you. Isaiah 46:4
• Providentially – GOD’s love is equal to His goodness. Because GOD is the Sovereign ruler of the universe, His love holds with it every blessing and favor and protection from evil. For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, …Jeremiah 29:11
• Uniquely – GOD’s love for you is tailor-made just for you. He’s your Creator. He knows you as an individual, even the number of hairs on your head. His love for you is intimate. He understands exactly what you need and the precise degree of all your needs. …the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows. Matthew 10:30-31

 GOD’s love for you cannot be compared with any other and has no equal.

No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. John 15:13

Conclusion:

GOD’s will for His children here on earth is to live peaceful and abundant lives.

This is possible only when we choose His divine grace over fleshly, that negative and sinful feelings.

Envy and jealousy are not among the Father attributes so it can’t be the personality traits of His children.

Those who belong to GOD receive all the promises and benefits in His WORD, if we do what it says.  

We must remember whose we are, believe the Father and allow Him to fulfill His WORD in us.

Healing from physical ills are not promised to us but spiritual healing is.

GOD gave His SON to make this possible, every time.

And it’s impossible for GOD to lie.

He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross so that, free from sins, we might live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. 1 Peter 2:24

Prayer and Thanksgiving: Holy Father and our GOD, we thank YOU for reminding us that obedience to YOUR WORD is where our spiritual healing begins so we can enjoy fellowship with you and our brothers and sisters in CHRIST, and long life with joy added to it. We give YOU all the praise as we pray in Him who loves us and freed us from our sins by His blood, and made us to be a kingdom, priests serving His GOD and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. CHRIST JESUS our LORD! Amen.

Always by God’s Word and prayer,

Cecile

The Spiritual Rot of Envy and Jealousy – Our Disease

Human feelings are natural and real.

GOD gave us feelings to use positively in our own lives and in the lives of others.

Especially, GOD gave His children the fruit of the Spirit – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control –positive, healthy feelings that mirror the personalities of our Father and His Son. 

As sons and daughters of the Almighty, believers are expected to make a positive impact in the Kingdom of GOD by making these feelings come alive in our day to day activities.

But Scripture warns us repeatedly against acting out of some unhealthy feelings.

I choose two for this article that all human beings experience to some extent and at some time in life, as both victim and offender.

Let’s talk about envy and jealousy.

It is not unusual for individuals to use both of these terms to describe the same reaction. But envy and jealousy have different definitions.

Envy is a reaction to lacking something. A feeling of discontented or resentful longing aroused by someone else's possessions, qualities, or luck (Noun); desire to have a quality, possession, or other desirable attribute belonging to (someone else) (verb)

Jealousy as a reaction to the threat of losing something or someone. Feeling or showing envy of someone or their achievements and advantages; showing suspicion of someone's unfaithfulness in a relationship; fiercely protective or vigilant of one's rights or possessions. (adjective)

The main reason these two are often treated the same is that one is the cause of the other. Your envy of your co-worker’s abilities is linked to your jealousy of his/her promotion. 

The two go hand-in-hand.

When you are feeling envious you are also feeling jealous. 

Feelings of envy and jealousy can escalate and become destructive thoughts of actually doing physical harm. 

We have great examples of this in the Old Testament. 

The story of Joseph tells us that his brothers so envied him for being his father’s favorite that jealousy drove them to consider murdering their own brother. But when his (Joseph’s) brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peacefully to him. Genesis 37:4

Similarly, King Saul became crazed with envy of David whom GOD chose to succeed him as king.  Saul’s envy incited him to a jealous rage and attempts to murder his rival. “Let not the king sin against his servant David, because he has not sinned against you,…Why then will you sin against innocent blood by killing David without cause?” (1 Samuel 18,19)

As far back as Genesis 4, envy and jealousy are shown to be harmful emotions – it’s the reason Cain murdered his brother Abel.

GOD’s WORD has a lot to say against envy and jealousy.

• Now the works of the flesh are evident… jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy…Galatians 5:19
• Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another. Galatians 5:26
• A tranquil heart gives life to the flesh, but envy makes the bones rot. Proverbs 14:30
• For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. James 3:16
• Wrath is cruel, anger is overwhelming, but who can stand before jealousy? Proverbs 27:4
• For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way? 1 Corinthians 3:3
• Let us walk properly as in the daytime, …not in quarreling and jealousy. Romans 13:13
• Put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. 1 Peter 2:1
• “…out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness.” Mark 7:21-23
• You want something and do not have it; so you commit murder. And you covet something and cannot obtain it; so you engage in disputes and conflicts. James 4:2

You can see that these two emotions are not the will of the Father.

Envy and jealousy are often described, as “works of the flesh” and are in total opposition to the fruit of the Spirit, the greatest of which is love. And love does not envy 1 Corinthians 13.

It is impossible to love GOD, be led by the Spirit and at the same time continually choose the sin of envy over what is divine, the fruit of the Spirit.

The Bible warns that “those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Galatians 5. In other words, they are not of the family of GOD but enemies.

Do you know that it was envy that incited the Jews to betray CHRIST?

However, we are not perfect, so from time to time we too are going to be tempted by feelings of envy and jealousy.

But because we are the beloved children of GOD whose sins are atoned for by the Son, our loving Father will help us to find our way out of our negative emotions and back to a right relationship with Him (1 Corinthians 10:13.)

How does the Father do this?

To be continued….

Prayer and Thanksgiving: Our Father and our GOD, YOU are the source of all that is good and pure in our lives. Thank YOU for JESUS CHRIST who made it possible for us to have healthy feelings by the fruit of the Spirit. Thank YOU for giving us the tool to turn dry wastelands into refreshing waters of life. Thank YOU for your relentless pursuit of our hearts and minds. To YOU belong all honor, dominion, glory and power forever and ever.  We pray and ask all things in the matchless Name of your Son, JESUS CHRIST our LORD. Amen!

Always by God’s Word and prayer,

Cecile

True Happiness

We live in a materialistic society. Rich and poor alike constantly desire more, newer, better, and fancier stuff.

Why?

Because society tells us that those who own the most and the best material goods are the happy people.  This message dominates all forms of media you are exposed to. It’s impossible to escape. 

Add to that clever product marketing and peer-pressure and the trap is set for you to buy, buy, and keep on buying goods and services you don’t really need. 

The longing for eternal happiness is so inherent to human nature that you will keep doing what you're doing hoping to find fulfillment some day.

What the media isn’t big on sharing is that the pursuit of material goods is not the true path to a happy life. Instead you become more discontented since you are never satisfied with what you have, or where you are in life.

Believers, however have a different path to happiness. Unlike the world’s, our life journey never disappoints and leads us to a place of deep joy and abiding peace.

What then is the path of the believer?

The Apostle Paul tells us: I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. Philippians 4:12

Paul’s early life before he became a Christian was one of recognition, material wealth and comfort. After his encounter with CHRIST everything changed and Paul suffered hardships that most of us would never have to face in our lifetime. Yet Paul chose not to go back to his old life but to learn to be content in the new, despite his suffering.

Why did Paul choose to learn the secret of being content in any and every situation? Because Paul understood that a relationship with JESUS is the only path to true happiness, even in suffering.

Godly contentment is of far greater value than worldly riches.

How do you develop godly contentment?

Learning something new requires effort and diligence.

You learn godly contentment when you accept GOD’s promises and make the truth of them the primary focus of your daily life:

• Have a heart of gratitude and express it to the Father (Psalm 7:17; Psalm 107:1; 1 Thessalonians 5:18).
• Be satisfied with who you are and whose you are (Psalm 95:7; Psalm 100:3; Galatians 3:26).
• Accept that the GOD who created the entire universe thinks about you all the time and provides for you. (Psalm 139:16-17; Psalm 23; Jeremiah 29:11).
• Believe that GOD is sovereign in your life and that truth is of more value to you than worldly riches. (Psalm 119:72; Philippians 3:8; James 2:5). 

Christians who expect to have wealth and abundant material goods as a measure of GOD’s favor and and as a return for what they “do for GOD” are not being true to Scripture.

GOD’s WORD is clear that we are not living the truth when we imagine that being a believer is a means to material gain. The Apostle Paul speaks of this in 1 Timothy 6:6-10. We learn that we are most in GOD’s favor when we have “godliness combined with contentment.”

To know CHRIST as Savior and LORD is to lack nothing – CHRIST alone is enough!

“For we brought nothing into the world, so that we can take nothing out of it; but if we have food and clothing, we will be content with these.” 1 Timothy 6:7-8

Conclusion

JESUS Himself warns us to “Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.” Luke 12:14

Chasing after worldly riches is not the will of GOD for His children.

GOD promises to take care of us and to doubt Him is sin.

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” Hebrews 13:5

Child of GOD, whose message do you believe?

                                

Prayer and Thanksgiving: Holy Father, you are Jehovah-Jireh, the GOD who provides. Thank YOU for the peace and contentment that comes from belonging to the GOD who knows what we need before we ask. Thank YOU for being the Good Shepherd who cares for our souls. Teach us to trust YOU so we make our requests with thanksgiving and not just with selfish ambition and to be generous with what YOU provide for us. Forgive us for being self-absorbed and greedy and misusing your Word and Your Name for selfish gain. Thank you for being faithful and abounding in mercy. We love and honor YOU. To you, Father, be dominion and power for ever and ever. We pray and ask all in JESUS’ name. Amen.

Always by God’s Word and prayer,

Cecile

Graced to Give!

Today is exactly 83 days ‘til Christmas! What does this mean for you?

I imagine that you who are the highly organized type-A personality may be half-way through your Christmas gift shopping list about now, and right on budget.

The more relaxed of you may already have, or are working on, a list and budget but are content with waiting until the end of November for the Black Friday and cyber-Monday sales.

Then there are those of you whose reaction will be no more than a raised eye-brow or a shrug. You’ve always managed to get all your shopping done during Christmas week…and you like it that way.

Whatever your response may be, the fact is that Christmas has become “the season of giving.” That time of year to which individuals put a lot of time and effort into choosing and purchasing the right gifts for loved ones, friends and people they like.

To be honest, this is not something the “world” does, Christians too make Christmas as much, or more, about gift giving and receiving as about celebrating the true GIFT – JESUS CHRIST, GOD’s Son. While none of this makes us bad people in and of itself, we are called to a higher, divine level of gift giving.  

How does Christian giving differ from the world’s?

The Children of GOD are called to a lifestyle of giving and generosity, not just seasonal and special event gifting, and more than just products we buy.

GOD the Father has graced His children with specific gifts that we are called to share with His family and the world at large.

• We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith; ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness. Romans 12:6-8

Unlike seasonal gifting, these spiritual gifts are priceless.

We can never repay GOD’s GIFT of love that purchased our salvation (John 3:16-17) but we can follow the example of CHRIST’s obedience to the Father and use our spiritual gift-giving to make life-changing differences in people’s lives.

“We use whatever gift we have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of GOD’s grace.” (1 Peter 4:10-11)

.

How does Christian gifting make a difference?

When we gift GOD’s way, we do so:

• To anyone: “Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to do it.” (Proverbs 3:21.). We do not reserve our giving just for people we know and like, or question a person’s need.
• Freely: because we have received freely. For “What do you have that you did not receive? (1 Corinthians 4:7.) All that we have received and is able to share come from God who gives to us generously.
• Sacrificially/generously: even when we think we can’t make a difference. Give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to. Deuteronomy 15:10. Let GOD decide what you are able to do; trust Him with what is His.
• Humbly: and not out of selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility (because we) count others more significant than yourselves. (Philippians 2:3). Give and expect nothing in return.
• Quietly: Jesus warns that our giving should not be publicized for human praise but done so quietly that not “your left hand know what your right hand is doing.” Then our “Father, who sees what is done in secret…,” will reward us.
• For GOD’s glory: Not so that you would be praised for your work but GOD, ”… whoever serves must do so with the strength that God supplies, so that God may be glorified in all things…” 1 Peter 4:11. Be sure your motives are pure, “All a man’s ways seem right to him, but the LORD evaluates the motives.” Proverbs 16:2;
• Holding nothing back – 1 Peter 4:10 says “use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. Our talents and gifts are ours by God’s grace and are given to us for serving GOD’s people.  

Christian gifting is more than money – we gift ourselves, our talent and our time.

We visit the sick and comfort the bereaved and the downcast; we give time to prayer for the suffering; we provide relief to the poor; and offer hope to the oppressed.

We do all with patience, kindness and love, because we care about what our Father cares about – “…God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son.

”

We are our Father’s hands and feet to the world. When we bless others through our gifts we please the Father and our reward is great!

‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.”

Prayer and Thanksgiving: Holy Father and our GOD, all that is good and perfect come from YOU. We thank YOU for YOUR priceless gift of grace, mercy and loving kindness that keep us and show us how to give to others in return. Thank YOU for the gift of hands to do good work, feet to carry good news, and tongues to speak the gospel of comfort and hope. Thank YOU for the gift of your Son, your WORD that became flesh to live in us and through us and among us and shows us how to live for YOU. To YOU, Father, be dominion and power for ever and ever. We pray all in JESUS’ name. Amen!

Always by His Word and prayer,

Cecile