"As the war between the house of Saul and the house of David went on, Abner became a leader among those loyal to Saul." 2 Samuel 3:6
That green-eyed monster will get you every time and cause you to do things you would not ordinarily do. Jealously. It is a very successful weapon in the enemy's arsenal. Today we see Saul's son as green with jealousy over Abner as Saul was over David. We don't know if what Abner was accused of actually happened but the accusation burned him to the point of defecting Saul's army and joining David's.
What does jealousy mean? Ouch...you might not like this.
- resentment against a rival, a person enjoying success or advantage
- mental uneasiness from suspicion or fear of rivalry, unfaithfulness
- vigilance in maintaining or guarding something
Last year, I came face to face with this very issue and the Lord lead me to confess this sin of jealousy to the person with whom I was jealous of. I honestly did not even realize the grip it had on me but as I read these definitions, "resentment" and "mental uneasiness," I can see the depth of my sin.
Is jealousy a sin? I have to say yes. Any thoughts toward another person who is successful that you guard or maintain with vigilance takes energy, energy that should be directed toward the Lord, things of the Lord, and your relationship with Him. This guarding and maintaining becomes consuming. It can begin to torment you. Remember the tormenting spirit in Saul. Saul was so vigilant in maintaining and guarding his thoughts toward David he spent the later part of his life trying to kill David. Now, his son is suffering with the same disorder. It caused him to accuse a long-time loyal leader of his family of an unthinkable act.
What has jealousy caused you to do? Defect a relationship. Kill someone with words or disrespectful treatment. Make demeaning false accusations. I can tell you confession and repentance is the only way to slay this monster. Unfortunately this is a monster that does not die completely. He will reappear on occasion that is why it is necessary to keep the sword of the Spirit handy and ready to strike him again.
Is jealousy a sin? I have to say yes. Any thoughts toward another person who is successful that you guard or maintain with vigilance takes energy, energy that should be directed toward the Lord, things of the Lord, and your relationship with Him. This guarding and maintaining becomes consuming. It can begin to torment you. Remember the tormenting spirit in Saul. Saul was so vigilant in maintaining and guarding his thoughts toward David he spent the later part of his life trying to kill David. Now, his son is suffering with the same disorder. It caused him to accuse a long-time loyal leader of his family of an unthinkable act.
What has jealousy caused you to do? Defect a relationship. Kill someone with words or disrespectful treatment. Make demeaning false accusations. I can tell you confession and repentance is the only way to slay this monster. Unfortunately this is a monster that does not die completely. He will reappear on occasion that is why it is necessary to keep the sword of the Spirit handy and ready to strike him again.
9 Comments:
Oh, jealousy is a terrible monster. It IS one that needs to continually be slayed by the Sword of the Spirit.
Interesting that we read in Ex.20:5 that our God is a jealous God. Makes it sound like an admirable trait, and it is in this definition. We are to have no other gods before Him - imagine God desiring our love that much!
My thoughts today focused on Abner wanting to get on David's winning team.
I can remember as a child, standing on the playground, waiting to hear my name as baseball teams were being chosen. Praying I wouldn't be the last one to be chosen. Desiring my name called, not be default, but want. Oh, to be with the 'good guys'.
Beth Moore reminds us though, “God never comes to take sides. He comes to take over.” It’s not a hostile siege. It’s a holy surge.
“Take Over”
By Ruth Harms Calkin
At first, Lord, I ask You
To take sides with me.
With David the Psalmist
I circled and underlined;
“The Lord is for me…”
“Maintain my rights, O Lord…”
“Let me stand above my foes…”
But with all my pleading
I lay drenched in darkness
Until in utter confusion I cried,
“No, don’t take sides, Lord,
Just take over.”
And suddenly it was morning.
This surrendering is a daily, moment by moment releasing and resting in the One who can do more than we can ask or imagine.
Looking for my morning.
Blessings to you all today,
Joy
Hello,
Jealousy pulls our focus away from God the one who wants our
"thoughts captive on Him." Our thoughts can get so tormented and obsessed that they are far, far from where they should be! From the examples we've been reading about, it looks like Saul modeled this behavior and his son followed suit! It shows that it could possibly be a learned habit that we pick from watching those around us.
Sunday, we had the most amazing guest speaker at our church. His name was Tommy Politz, and he was from Texas. He gave his life testimony on forgiveness and he taught out of Matthew. The verses came alive to me like never before. Forgiveness is not a justice issue; it's a heart issue. Lives can end up with pain and destruction; a person can be paralyzed with tension, angry, holding grudges, bitter, resentful. Forgiving a person is a choice. If we experience just once in our lifetime what Christ taught on this subject , we could be freed beyond measure. Sometimes our sermons can be watched by video, if this particular one opens up I'll pass on the website. Many, many tears in the worship center that morning! Men, too!
Thank you Wendy!!!!! ~and dear sister's... for your comments. I'm enjoying our journey together so much!
Love & Blessings!
Lori - AZ
I've never really considered myself a jealous person; until I read Wendy's definition, and the words "mental uneasiness" jumped off the page....okay, I got some rethinking to do....
Joy I liked your comparison of God's perfect jealousy to our human jealousy. Doesn't it feel good to have God jealous for us?
I'm liking this reading lately. It flows and is interesting.
One more cool, windy day in MN, then near 80's HERE WE COME!
Morgen
Jealousy by the first two definitions is not according to God's will, but by the third definition it is; "vigilance in maintaining or guarding something".
I am jealous for my kids’ well being. I am jealous for my husband's health and sense of peace. God is jealous for our love and relationship with him.
My memory verse(s) this time on the LPM blog is Song of Songs 8:6-7;
“Place me like a seal over your heart, like a seal on your arm; for love is as strong as death, its jealousy as unyielding as the grave. It burns like a blazing fire, like a mighty flame.
Many waters cannot quench love; rivers cannot wash it away. If one were to give all the wealth of his house for love, it would be utterly scorned.”
I think if we turn our "ugly jealousy" which is really envy and covetousness, into jealousy base in love (vigilantly guarding our loved ones) we are fulfilling one of the great commandments, to love one another as God first loved us.
One other thing in the readings to day that pricked me, was how Holy God is and how unchanging. He did not allow His Ark to be transported on a cart or touched by human hands. As in our readings in Numbers, God jealously guarded his "Seat of the Presence" and struck Uzzah dead because he touched it with his hand.
Karen, CA
"The Lord, who saves me from all my enemies, is my witness. 4:9
The battle is not mine, it is the Lord's. Lord help us to turn the battle over to you and only act upon your request.
Let God arise and his enemies be scattered. Every enemy of God is an enemy of mine!
Blessings!
Debbie - North Carolina
Help!
I am reading the NIV version of the chronological bible. Usually you guys are about a day or two ahead of my book so I just read ahead. But I am now totally lost. I have read up to April 24 in my book and I am still in 1 Samuel. Where are you guys??
Thanks,
Jodie
Jodie,
The readings are posted here. You can either look them up in your Bible, or select the link for the day and it will bring you to Bible Gateway where the readings are pre-loaded.
I noticed that I skipped over a page and read the second half of tomorrows reading! Sorry about that, the Ark thing is tomorrow... :)
Have a good day!
karen
Forgot the link Jodie... Allergies are really bad in CA now and they have affected my brain!
http://www.oneyearbibleonline.com/oneyearweeklychrono.php?version=51&startmmdd=0101
Evening ladies,
Wendy, what great insight and ouch! I must admit I struggle with this one, especially in the area of my work life. After I was assaulted and then told I could no longer do my job, I found myself so jealous of anyone who had a career. It was eating me up; honestly until I read your post I thought I had dealt with it. But it resurfaces time and time again, like a monster with another head. God’s word is the only thing that strikes it down. Praying what He will have me do next is all I can do and claiming that all things work together for good. Thank you for the reminder today.
I wish growing didn’t have to hurt.
Blessings,
Diane
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