Deadly Sins and Transforming Virtues Series - 5
ENVY
One author writes of a friend who was happily married, had a good job and a respectable salary, and who lived in a nice home. His kids where doing well in great schools. He enjoyed the company of a circle of good friends.
Then . . . he went to his 20 year High School reunion and met up with old companions. As he listened to their stories about jobs which sounded a little more exciting, about incomes that were bigger than his, about trips to distant locations - as he looked at their spouses who appeared to be more educated and more beautiful than his; the world turned.
From that point, he felt inferior and dissatisfied with the life he once loved.
But ... absolutely nothing had changed in his life. What changed was how he thought about his life.
This is the disease of envy. It will skew our perspective on all of life and leave us miserable!
Envy - it’s the only of the vices that is never enjoyable! Lust, pride, sloth, and anger can offer, at least temporarily, some kind of pleasure. Envy never does. It is the secretive, mean, soul-destroying sin that nobody admits. We might confess anger, we may even acknowledge lust - but envy? “Not me, not ever,” we say.
But, we will all agree that everybody else is sometimes envious. We say that a person is “green with envy.” Why? Because, we know that envy makes us sick - first spiritually, often emotionally, and yes, even physically!
What wisdom do we find in the Bible about envy?
James, Jesus’ brother, who became the first pastor of the church in Jerusalem, had some difficult people in his congregation. In Acts we are told that the first church fight was over who was getting more help- the local widows versus the widows from out of town! Pastor James took it to prayer. He offers this inspired wisdom -
"Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice." (James 3:13-16, NIV)
Think about that. Envy is a root, not of anything good or desirable, but of ‘disorder and every evil practice.’ Envy messes us up so badly that we live in a state of confusion, unable to sort out reality. James is not the only one in the Bible to speak to this vice.
Solomon says,
· "A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones." (Proverbs 14:30, NIV)
· "Do not let your heart envy sinners, but always be zealous for the fear of the Lord." (Proverbs 23:17, NIV)
· "Do not envy wicked men, do not desire their company;" (Proverbs 24:1, NIV)
Paul teaches us that
· "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud." (1 Corinthians 13:4, NIV)
You see envy’s evil practices recounted throughout the ages in the Bible, from the opening words through the New Testament.
· Cain was envious of Abel because God liked Abel’s offering more than his. So he killed his brother, consumed by a murderous rage.
· Joseph’s brothers noted his special status, his spiritual sensitivity. Their hatred grew to such an extent they were willing to sell their brother into slavery, pretend he was dead, and break their old father’s heart.
· King Herod heard that a new king was born and out of envy kills all male children in Bethlehem who were under the age of 2 just to preserve his power.
We must not confuse coveting and envy. The last commandment tells us not to covet our neighbor’s possessions, a serious sin and a cousin to envy. Envy is about who we think we are more than about what we own. Envy looks at the person and wants to be who they are even more than to have what they have.
DeYoung illustrates it this way. “There is a difference between wanting a BMW to drive because we like cars and think it is a fine one and believing that driving a BMW will somehow make us superior to our neighbor who drives a Camry. ... Envy makes us believe that having a car like that makes us a person who can command respect, who is of more worth.” (Glittering Vices)
What a foolish game we get sucked into by envy. Yet, it is one so many of us play.
It’s called the Comparison Game. Nobody ever really wins it because somebody is always is more popular, has better skills, enjoys a more ‘perfect’ life, is brighter or more beautiful. Envy is really about a failure of love, a mis-placed way to define worth. It is the ultimate expression of inferiority!
Augustine lists the many ways that envy shows up in our lives -
Feeling offended by another’s talent,
Unwillingness to celebrate another’s success,
Selfish rivalries and competitiveness,
Taking pleasure from another’s difficulties,
Reading false motives into the actions of others,
Belittling others,
Making false accusations and slander,
Creating antagonism in groups,
Ridicule of other people, groups, or institutions that we consider inferior,
and
Living defensively, assuming all others are threats to our well-being!
That’s not a pretty list, is it?
Tragically, envy is not just personal. Wars get fought because of national envy that feeds a sense that the only remedy to the perceived injustice is to attack the other person. Why can’t we see that war almost always not only destroys the one we think is our enemy, but us as well?
Rebeccas DeYoung, whose book I am using as a resource for this series, refers to a movie I love - Chariots of Fire - to help us to understand the terrible toll of envy.
The move, made in 1981, tells the story of Eric Liddell, an English runner who is also a devout Christian. In the movie, Eric is confronted by another runner, Harold Abrams, who sees him as the ultimate rival. Liddell runs for the joy of running. His famous line is this - “When I run, I feel God’s pleasure.” His joy is not in winning but in running. Harold Abrams, by contrast, only runs to win, running being the way to make himself feel valuable. His statement was this - “If I can’t win, I won’t run.”
I quote - “Harold’s attitude is like that of all of those who envy - he is defensive, afraid of being shown as inferior, happy with himself only when he outranks all of his competition in excellence. His sense of identity and worth depend on being better,” on the win!
Liddell has no need to prove anything because regards himself as one who is owned by God. He values his competitors because they are partners in sharpening his skills, in helping him become more excellent. He does not turn them into rivals.
How do we defeat envy?
1. We take God at His Word about what makes us people of worth.
Listen to the amazing truth from Isaiah 43: 1-4.
" But now, this is what the Lord says— he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead. Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give men in exchange for you, and people in exchange for your life."
From my favorite book in the Bible, the words of Paul - that are so astonishingly beautiful they reduce me to tears- He prays that the Holy Spirit will open our eyes, revealing the truth
"so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." (Ephesians 3:17-19, NIV)
Love is a powerful healer of our broken souls. It is God’s motivation to offer to reconcile us to Himself.
"When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good.
But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation. For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son. So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God." (Romans 5:6-11, NLT)
2. Loved, we choose to keep digging those wells!
There’s a great story told in Genesis about Isaac, son of Abraham, in which he finds himself on the receiving end of envy too many times.
"When Isaac planted his crops that year, he harvested a hundred times more grain than he planted, for the Lord blessed him. He became a very rich man, and his wealth continued to grow. He acquired so many flocks of sheep and goats, herds of cattle, and servants that the Philistines became jealous of him. So the Philistines filled up all of Isaac’s wells with dirt. These were the wells that had been dug by the servants of his father, Abraham. Finally, Abimelech ordered Isaac to leave the country. “Go somewhere else,” he said, “for you have become too powerful for us.”
So Isaac moved away to the Gerar Valley, where he set up their tents and settled down. He reopened the wells his father had dug, which the Philistines had filled in after Abraham’s death. Isaac also restored the names Abraham had given them. Isaac’s servants also dug in the Gerar Valley and discovered a well of fresh water. But then the shepherds from Gerar came and claimed the spring. “This is our water,” they said, and they argued over it with Isaac’s herdsmen. So Isaac named the well Esek (which means “argument”). Isaac’s men then dug another well, but again there was a dispute over it. So Isaac named it Sitnah (which means “hostility”). Abandoning that one, Isaac moved on and dug another well.
This time there was no dispute over it, so Isaac named the place Rehoboth (which means “open space”), for he said, “At last the Lord has created enough space for us to prosper in this land.”
From there Isaac moved to Beersheba, where the Lord appeared to him on the night of his arrival. “I am the God of your father, Abraham,” he said. “Do not be afraid, for I am with you and will bless you. I will multiply your descendants, and they will become a great nation. I will do this because of my promise to Abraham, my servant.” Then Isaac built an altar there and worshiped the Lord.
He set up his camp at that place, and his servants dug another well. One day King Abimelech came from Gerar with his adviser, Ahuzzath, and also Phicol, his army commander. “Why have you come here?” Isaac asked. “You obviously hate me, since you kicked me off your land.” They replied, “We can plainly see that the Lord is with you. So we want to enter into a sworn treaty with you. Let’s make a covenant. Swear that you will not harm us, just as we have never troubled you. We have always treated you well, and we sent you away from us in peace. And now look how the Lord has blessed you!” So Isaac prepared a covenant feast to celebrate the treaty, and they ate and drank together." (Genesis 26:12-30, NLT)
Our’s is an era when the word “justice” is heard often. It is a concern to us and we should be advocates for justice, but there is a lesson in Isaac’s story – in the end sometimes it’s just better to move on and dig another well!
Jesus taught it another way, but the principle is the same -
“You have heard the law that says the punishment must match the injury: ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say, do not resist an evil person! If someone slaps you on the right cheek, offer the other cheek also. If you are sued in court and your shirt is taken from you, give your coat, too. If a soldier demands that you carry his gear for a mile, carry it two miles. Give to those who ask, and don’t turn away from those who want to borrow. “You have heard the law that says, ‘Love your neighbor’ and hate your enemy. But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven." (Matthew 5:38-45, NLT)
Envy - it hurts us, destroys us, ruins our grasp of reality.
We can defeat it, but only with a transformation of heart, acceptance of God’s amazing love, shown us in Christ Jesus. Do you know His love? Have you experienced His forgiveness?
And, we continue to defeat by just digging more wells, trusting justice is found in the work of the Lord Who sees it all, Who judges perfectly.
Amen.
