Disclaimer: Over the years I have been impacted by much reading and study. So there is probably nothing original expect thought and organization.
Envy: The Sin of the Heart
What happened here, what made Cain the first child born into the world kill his brother. Well let us look at it. Cain was born of Eve. Verse 1 says that whenever Cain was born she proclaimed,"I have gotten a man from the Lord." She was expecting Cain to be the serpent bruiser that God had promised early in chapter 3. She expected Cain to come in and deliver Adam and her of all their sins against God. They could finally get back to their relationship with God.
But as we know God was not talking about Cain when he said this but he was talking about Jesus. We also know that it wouldn't happen for another 6000 yrs. Eve figured this out and now Cain was in one sense a disappointment. He wasn't the great hero.
We also see that not to long after his birth there came along another child. The baby of the family. No longer was the attention given to him but now he had to share the attention with his brother Abel. He was no longer the center of attention but now he was second. Most of us had this experience especially if you have brothers or sisters.
So this was all brewing in the mind of Cain. Soon Adam shows his sons how to give a sacrifice unto God. Then it was time for Cain and Abel as grown men to start giving sacrifice. Cain probably worked hard to try to impress God with his sacrifice. He wanted to give God his best fruit of ground. Time came for the sacrifice and Cain brings his fruit and he notices Abel brings his flock. Cain probably looked at his fruit and said," God will surly be impressed with what I brought. Boy look at this, this is the best."
But what happens. God accepted the offering of Abel but not the offering of Cain. Not only did he not accept his offering but it says that he had no respect for it he would not accept it.
Cain worked hard for this sacrifice he did it by the sweat of his brow and what happens God rejects it and turns it away. So he got mad. It says,"And Cain was very wroth." He was furious. He was probably burning up with anger. In one way Cain probably said who does God think he is to not accept my sacrifice. Who does God think he is to say that he has sinned with his sacrifice? And who does Abel think he is to offer a better sacrifice. I believe that Cain was just full of jealously with his brother because of his sacrifice.
So then we see that Cain says," I will fix him, I will fix God and Abel." So he began to plan his revenge. Let see I will get Abel to come out to the field with me. He loves the field and the woods he won't mind. I will just tell him that I want to talk to him. And when I have him in the woods I will kill him. No one will know. I will just bury his body and tell everyone that I haven't seen him. I will fix them. I don't need God and his sacrifices anyway I will do it my way.
And so that is what happened. Cain kills his brother and offers God no explanation nor repentance. But what did it? What made the first child to be born into the world become the first murder of this world? I believe our answer is found in jealously. Jealously which led to envy which led to the death of Abel.
This is a very powerful sin in the lives of people. This is the reason we are told in the last of the ten commandments.
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.
So we must be careful in our lives about this sin. It affects every walk of life. And it is an easy sin to take up.
So let us tonight look at envy. I want us to look at it three ways. 1. Where does it begin 2. Some of the results of envy 3. What we can do about it.
I. When does it begin?
A. It begins with lust
Titus 3:3 For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient,
deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice
and envy, hateful, [and] hating one another.
Whenever a person lusts after another person or thing then the result is envy. Why? Because first it begins with lust. Just a small desire to have what another person has. It may be just money or clothes or cars anything. Next this leads to hatred of the person who has this. Then it leads to a deep desire to have this. All that is on the persons mind is to get this. They love to see others fall to. They don't want anyone to get ahead. This is the envy of position.
Did you know that you don't have to have a top on the basket with crabs in the basket. You don't have to worry about them getting out. Why? Because whenever one tries then the others pull him back down. This is what envy and jealously will do in a persons life.
B. It comes from unbelief
Acts 17:5 But the Jews which believed not, moved with envy, took unto them certain lewd fellows of the baser sort, and gathered a company, and set all the city on an uproar, and assaulted the house of Jason, and sought to bring them out to the people.
Because of the unbelief of the Jews here they began to envy because of the following of the crowd toward Jesus. They were jealous that attention was no longer on them but was now on the followers of The Way. So it caused envy which in turn resulted in them seeking out the believers and persecuting them.
Romans 1:28 And even as they did not like to retain God in [their] knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;
29 Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,
30 Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,
31 Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:
32 Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.
It also begins with unbelief in God. Whenever people don't believe in God then they don't believe in the justice of God which in turn tells them to look out for selves only. This is what happens when a society takes God out. Then there is no sense of belief and no reason to do what is right. No eternal judgment and no punishment. In turn man for himself. No God.
II. When this begin we see results.
A. We see death as we see in the story of Cain and Abel
B. We see hatred
Hatred of Joseph's brother toward him. Genesis 37
C. We see desire to murder
Saul's desire to kill David in I Samuel 18,19
D. We see unbelief
Jews would not believe Paul and spoke against him in Acts 13:45
The Answer
III. What can we do about it.
A. Through love
1 Corinthians 13:4. Charity suffereth long, [and] is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,
Love is the answer to all the sins against our brother. Love. Love wants others to succeed. Love wants others to have a lot. Love wants others to have the best. And in return love stops envy and jealously. Thank God that God himself showed us love that we may show it to others.
B. By putting on the Lord Jesus Christ.
Romans 13:13 Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying.
14 But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to [fulfil] the lusts [thereof].
If we put on the Lord Jesus then there will be no room for the flesh. If we put him in our hearts then there will be no room for envy. If we desire Christ then all our other desires will be taken away.
C. By living in the Spirit
Galatians 5:25* If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
26 Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.
If we live in the spirit then we will do the things of the spirit. We will not worry about others and their freedom but we will be focused on God and his kingdom. God wants all of us and he can't have it if we are focused on other things of this world.
Let us do our best not to carry envy and jealously in our hearts. It may never be known by another person but God knows. It may never hurt another person but it hurts your relationship with God. Let us not hold grudges, have meekness toward all and love each other and envy will not enter in.
As we pray tonight let us pray for one another that we will be what God wants us to be. People of love and kindness toward all.
