𝘾𝙃𝙍𝙄𝙎𝙏'𝙎 𝙅𝙊𝙐𝙍𝙉𝘼𝙇 ━ 𝖈𝖍𝖗𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖎𝖆𝖓𝖎𝖙𝖞.

CHAPTER 4 - ENVY

Envy is defined by Merriam-Webster as the: "painful or resentful awareness of an advantage enjoyed by another joined with a desire to possess the same advantage."

Baker's Evangelical Dictionary gives a biblical definition of Envy as the following: Sin of jealousy over the blessings and achievements of others, especially the spiritual enjoyment and advance of the kingdom of Christ freely and graciously bestowed upon the people of God. Old Testament examples of the sin of jealousy include the rivalry of Joseph's brothers over the favor that Joseph received at the hand of God ( Gen 37:12-36 ; Acts 7:9 ), and Saul's animosity toward David for his physical and spiritual prowess ( 1 Sam 18 ). Envy inevitably leads to personal harm and debilitation, affecting one's physical, spiritual, and emotional well-being ( Job 5:2 ; Prov 14:30 ). Unchecked, it gradually leads to a destructive and remorseful way of life ( Prov 27:4 ), and ultimately, to estrangement from God ( Rom 1:28-32 ).

The sin of envy can be traced all the way back to one of the Ten Commandments. We are told "Thou shall not covet" in the divine laws given to Moses in the Old Testament. This commandment directly relates to the deadly sin of envy, as we are instructed to not desire the possessions or attributes of others.

Both in the Old and New Testament, there are mentions of envy and stories associated with it, often with a dramatic consequence. In the Book of Genesis envy is declared to be the motivation behind Cain murdering his brother, Abel, as Cain envied Abel because God favored Abel's sacrifice. In one of the very first stories of the Bible, we are informed of the destructive power and wickedness that envy can cause.

The Consequences of Envy

"A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones," Proverbs 14:30. Envy just steals and takes life. Whatever it may be today, I think we have something in our lives that we say, 'if I could just get a vacation,' 'if I could just find a partner,' 'if I could just have good scores like her/him.' All of us have this 'if only, then my life will be satisfied.' But the reality is, I think all of us has faced this. When we finally got the item, we found out we're still longing for something else.

So the reality is, envy is a sin problem in our hearts, not a circumstance that we're just facing, so if we don't stop that pattern of envy in our hearts. We're just going to move from envy today to something else tomorrow, and it's just going to rot away our joy. So no matter what stage of life we're in, we're going to be robbed of joy.

Some children and their moms were all in the park one day, and the kids were all gathered around and some of the older kids asked, 'can we play outside the fence?' and the mom goes, 'no, we can't do that today, we're going to stay in the fence because it's safer for the young kids.' Well, rather than enjoying the playground, these older children went over the fence and stared and looked at the open field that they weren't allowed to play in. So they missed the swingsets, the slides, the sandbox, they missed everything that had been designed for their amusement– because they were so busy staring at what they couldn't have.

We missed out on the life that was given to us, because we're so busy looking at the life we don't have.

List of how envy WILL damage your life:

1. Envy denies your uniqueness!

Psalm 139:13-16 says, "You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother's womb... Your workmanship is marvelous... You watched me as I was ... woven together in the dark of the womb. You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed" (NLT, second edition).

Envy blinds you to your own giftedness and uniqueness. But God didn't make you to be like somebody else. God made you to be you.

2. Envy divides your attention!

You cannot follow God's purpose and focus on other people at the same time. You get a divided allegiance, and then you don't get anything done in your life.

Jesus says in Matthew 6:24, "No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money."

3. Envy wastes your time and energy!

Ecclesiastes 4:4-8 says, "I have also learned why people work so hard to succeed: it is because they envy the things their neighbors have. But it is useless. It is like chasing the wind .... Here is someone who lives alone. He has no son, no brother, yet he is always working, never satisfied with the wealth he has. For whom is he working so hard? This is useless, too — and a miserable way to live"

4. Envy leads to every other sin.

Envy can destroy everything and everyone around you. The Bible says, "Where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder (unrest, rebellion) and every evil thing" (James 3:16).

At the heart of the problem is a problem of the heart. Envy is a heart problem.

Any time you envy you have gotten your worship misguided because envy is a form of worship. It says, "I desire that. I want that. I love that. I want to live for that." That's called worship. And any time that item is not God, it becomes an idol.

Sources noted from : ➥ https://www.christianity.com/wiki/sin/what-is-envy-the-definition-and-consequence-of-this-deadly-sin.html

➥ Bible Study Tools,