HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 188
page A186
Intimacy continued
happily with each other; (8) talking together about the Lord and spiritual things; (9) giving
thanks to the Lord together; (10) submitting to each other; (11) loving each other as passionately as Christ loved the church and died for it.
PROMISE FROM GOD
• 1 C H R O NI C L E S 2 8 :9 | “Learn to know the God of your ancestors intimately. . . . If you seek
him, you will find him.”
Jealousy See also Anger; Bitterness; Commitment; Desires
Jealousy is one of the most common emotions, but we often fail to see how it can
also be one of the most dangerous. We’re jealous of those who have better houses,
nicer cars, more vacation time, more attractive spouses, happier families, more talents.
Jealousy is an emotion of passion, and uncontrolled jealousy leads to passionate hate.
If allowed to go that far, it can drive an inflamed person to kill, as Cain killed Abel. Short
of that, families have been broken, businesses poisoned, and relationships destroyed
through jealousy. Learning to recognize and deal with feelings of jealousy before they
overwhelm us is essential.
Why is jealousy so dangerous?
I
• PR O V E R B S 1 4 :3 0 | A peaceful heart leads to a healthy body; jealousy is like cancer in
the bones.
HelpFinder
Jealousy is like a disease, eating away at our character and causing anger, bitterness, and
even hatred to consume us.
• PR O V E R B S 2 7 :4 | Anger is cruel . . . but jealousy is even more dangerous.
• G E NE S I S 1 3 :7 | So disputes broke out between the herdsmen of Abram and Lot.
Jealousy tears families and friends apart. Jealousy drove Lot’s herdsmen to fight with his
uncle Abram’s herdsmen.
How can jealousy affect my life? What can jealousy lead to?
• PR O V E R B S 1 2 :1 2 | Thieves are jealous of each other’s loot, but the godly are well rooted
and bear their own fruit.
When you are jealous over other people’s things, you begin to justify to yourself why you
can take them away. This is the opposite of generosity, where you love to give away what
you have.
• G E NE S I S 4 :4 -5 | The Lord accepted Abel and his gift, but he did not accept Cain and
his gift. This made Cain very angry.
• A C T S 1 7 :5 -6 | But some of the Jews were jealous, so they gathered some troublemakers
from the marketplace to form a mob. . . . They attacked the home of Jason, searching for
Paul and Silas. . . . Not finding them there, they dragged out Jason. (See note on page 999.)
Jealousy for attention or affection can drive a person to extreme action, even seeking to
harm or kill others.
• 1 S A MU E L 1 8 :7 -1 2 | This was their song: “Saul has killed his thousands, and David his
ten thousands!” This made Saul very angry. . . . So from that time on Saul kept a jealous
eye on David. . . . A tormenting spirit from God overwhelmed Saul. . . . But Saul had a spear
in his hand, and he suddenly hurled it at David. . . . Saul was then afraid of David. (See note
on page 262.)
Jealousy can make enemies of friends. Notice the progression of Saul’s jealousy. Saul first
became afraid David might replace him. Then he became tormented by a jealous spirit.
This led him to uncontrolled rage, causing him to try to harm David. The selfish pursuit of
harming David became Saul’s lifelong passion.
• G A L AT I A NS 5 :2 2 | But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives . . .