You Don't Look Good In Green! Series

OCD

Pt. 3 - You Don't Look Good In Green

I. Introduction

The sickness we have been examining called OCD - Obsessive Comparison Disorder is deadly. In fact, this morning I want to very quickly look at one the symptoms or fruit of OCD and there is no doubt it is terminal if not addressed. The wise man describes the end result of this symptom when he said this . . . jealousy is fierce as the grave or jealousy is as enduring as the grave.

When you are addressing OCD, you cannot ignore jealousy. It seems to be that it is one of the more prevalent and unresolved issues of OCD.

We like to act like followers of Christ don't suffer with this symptom. We try to cover it up. We see someone else blessed and favored and we fake smile, talk about how happy we are for their blessing and go home and sulk for three weeks wishing it had been us instead of them. We see someone who is more talented/gifted than us in a particular area and we clap and complement them in public and cry and curse them in private. But I want you to hear me today . . . You don't look good in green! Here is why . . .

Jealousy turns compassion into competition.

Jealousy causes us to see anyone below us as unworthy or unnecessary while those above us are not only the misplaced standard, but they also become the mistargeted enemy. I have to knock them off. I have to outdo them. I have to out get them. I have to unseat them.

There can be no compassion or empathy when you are full of jealousy. It is hard to love one another when we are jealous of one another!

Don't play like those near Jesus can’t be overcome by Jealousy! I remind you of the scene in Luke 22 where we see the holy, righteous, revered, anointed, favored apostles/disciples sitting together and this statement is made . . . "Now there was also a dispute among them, as to which of them should be considered the greatest." If that wasn't bad enough in Matthew 20, John and James' mom comes and bows down at Jesus' feet and begs that her sons be given the seats of favor when He becomes king. The other 10 disciples hear this request being made and get angry. These are the disciples mind you. They are with Jesus daily. They are with Jesus minute by minute and yet they are jockeying for position! They are so green with jealousy that 2 of them even get good ole mom to come fight for them. Jealousy seeps in and it is deadly. These guys are rubbing shoulders with Jesus daily and that reveals that Jealousy doesn't even have to make sense.

We are told in Scripture that God is a jealous God. His jealousy will consume you. He won't share us with anyone or anything else. If that is the case, then why don't we think jealousy from the enemy can also consume you? Please not that there is a difference in their jealousy and in the difference is also the reason jealousy is so deadly God's jealousy is healthy for us because His jealousy is protective. The jealousy of the enemy will destroy you because it is possessive. It controls us! Too many of us are being controlled by this symptom. Our attitude. Our outlook. Our words. Our heart is being controlled by jealousy. That is jealousy from the enemy.

Another deadly aspect of Jealousy is that jealousy is dream killer!

You can’t pursue your own dream if you are pursuing or jealous of someone else’s dream. ?If you are filled with jealousy, then you are going to have a difficult time loving the calling you have. You will spend all of your energy and time loving the calling you wished you had. If you are filled with jealousy, then you won't love the spouse, the kids, the job, the car, the house you have. Instead, all of your attention will be used up on the spouse, kids, job, car, house you wished you had! Some of you can't accomplish your own dreams simply because you are so jealous of someone else's dream.

We need to be reminded of just how nasty jealousy really is. We can't play like it is just a mild, manageable symptom of OCD that we can ignore or live with.

TEXT: James 3:16 (NASB)

“For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing.”

Think about that statement. This passage reveals just how ugly and dangerous jealousy really is. Every evil thing is the result of jealousy. Jealousy is literally an entry point for the enemy to access my life! Jealousy is the launching pad. The passage declares that it is a certainty. There is no maybe or perhaps. It simply assures us that if there is jealousy there will also be chaos and evil things going on in our life. I told you to manage your mirrors last week. Now I am telling you to manage your doors!