That Green-Eyed Monster Called Jealousy

How often do you feel that green-eyed monster of jealousy creeping into your day?  It’s so easy to get lost in thoughts that can make our jealousy dangerous.  So what does it mean to be jealous?  I went to the online dictionary* for the answer.

“Jealousy… denotes a feeling of resentment that another has gained something that one more rightfully deserves…. Jealousy also refers to anguish caused by fear of unfaithfulness.”

Let’s look at an example of jealousy in the Bible from 1 Samuel 18.  At this time, Saul is still king over Israel even though God has told him through Samuel that God had rejected him as king because Saul was disobedient to Him.  Now, it came about that young David killed the Philistine giant and was successful in the battles Saul sent him to.  After one particular battle, the women were singing joyfully while they met up with Saul.  They sang, “Saul has slayed his thousands, and David his tens of thousands.” (1 Sam 18:7b)  This made Saul very angry and it “galled” him.  “They have credited David with tens of thousands,” he thought, “but me with only thousands. What more can he get but the kingdom?” [9] And from that time on Saul kept a jealous eye on David.” 1
Sam 18:8b-9

Saul was jealous of David because he saw that the people favored David and he thought that David would take the kingdom from him.  The only thing is, the kingdom was no longer his because God had already taken it from him (1 Sam 15:23).  His jealousy started in his mind with a thought that eventually led him to fits of anger where he tried multiple times to kill David.  But David was anointed by God, and God wasn’t going to let His anointed be harmed.

So what do we learn from Saul’s jealousy?  He was trying to hold on to something that was no longer his.  Are you afraid that something or someone is
going to be taken from you?  Have you considered if it was really yours to begin with?  Everything we have is a gift from God.  If we understand that we are only stewards of what God has given to us, then we don’t have to be afraid that someone will take it away.  God won’t let anyone or anything be taken from us before it’s time.  Only God can take it away.  We need to be thankful for the things that God has given to us, but not hang on so tightly that we can’t let go when it’s God’s time to give it up.  It’s only when we let go of that person or that thing that’s not really ours anyway, that our hands are free to take hold of what God has been waiting to give us all along.

Now there’s another example of jealousy in the Bible that we can’t overlook, and that’s the jealousy of God.  Why would God be jealous?  Well, God’s jealousy is different than man’s jealousy.  God is not jealous of you or anyone else, He’s jealous for you.  You can see that from this verse in Exodus 34:14

“[14] Do not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.”

God is only jealous when we put other people or things ahead of Him.  He doesn’t want His people to bow down to false gods.  He is the only true God who is worthy of our worship.  Of course, God wants us to love others, but He deserves to be our first love.  Do you find that you love your spouse or your children more than you love God?  Then they are an idol, and God is jealous for you.  Turn your eyes to Jesus and focus on the one and only God that is worthy of your worship.  Have a godly jealousy for God and your time with Him, and you will find that green-eyed monster of man’s jealousy is no longer raising its ugly head. 

~Lisa

*http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/envy

All Scripture references are from the New International Version.

@Copyright 2011 LVC Ministries, Inc.