Slaying Dragons: Jealousy — Wednesday
James 3:16
For wherever there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and evil of every kind. (NLT)
As our verse today alludes, jealousy and selfish ambition go hand in hand. I don’t believe you can have jealousy without selfish ambition. The most jealous moments of my life were also the most selfish moments of my life. I could tell several stories, and they would all boil down to one simple thing: I didn’t have something that I wanted.
Yesterday, we spent time in Genesis looking at the story of Eve giving into temptation. Her jealousy led to the very first act of sin in the world. James put it simply when he said, “For wherever there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and evil of every kind.” Try as we might to ignore or deny it, there’s no escaping the fact that jealousy and selfish ambition always lead to sin. These emotions cause us to act out in evil ways that are only pleasing to Satan.
Jealousy is ugly, and when I catch myself being jealous, I tend to beat myself up because I really don’t want to live a jealous life. But still, there’s something within me that continually tells me I will never be happy until I have all the things I want in this world. The voice of Satan whispers to me things like, “If you had a husband and family, your problems would go away,” or “If you just lived in a different city, you’d truly find peace.” These lies are especially easy to believe when I get on the internet and see other people living my ‘dream life.’
Remember, we were fearfully and wonderfully made. Before the entrance of sin, we lived at peace with the Father. And because of Jesus, that peace is still accessible to us. Yes, we will be tempted and will fall into temptation, but the blood of Jesus has called us righteous and forgiven. We can live without disorder and evil ways, but only when we eradicate jealousy and selfish ambition from our daily lives.
Wednesday’s Reflection
Ask God for forgiveness for all the times your jealousy and selfishness have caused you to sin, and ask Him what it will take to rid these things from your life and live fully into your identity as His righteous and forgiven child.