Portland, Oregon Church  -  Affiliated with the Intercontinental Church of God and the Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association

SUBJECT:  Envy

QUESTION:  How does one overcome envy?

ANSWER:

Envy           

The phrase “Green With Envy” is common and quite accurately describes the illness that is the 6^th Deadly Sin — Envy. The obsession creates a spiritual biliousness that blinds the sufferer to anything outside the subject or subjects of the Envy. Like any over indulgence it can also actually cause physical damage in the form of real bodily sickness.

Envy is especially harmful because all attention is placed outside of the person who envies. He or she lives vicariously in a false state that focuses not on what can be done to improve life and experience, but on what someone else is doing. It is a fantasy world of the worst kind because it has nothing whatsoever to do with the person who envies and carries no solution within it.

We have pointed out that the opposite of a Deadly Sin is the positive energy inherent in any potential — with Envy the opposite is Self Confidence. While an envious person may often try to play the part of a victim and blame the one(s) that is envied, the truth of it is that there is such a lack of self confidence that there is no attempt to make life better and the blame is the excuse for the lack.

Self Confidence is the ability to believe in oneself and the personal life experience. It is not the same as self esteem which may, or may not, be based in a real knowledge of ability and talent. It is quite possible to like oneself without having any clear awareness about how to handle the ups and downs of everyday life. Self Confidence is the inner knowing that no matter what the next day or week or year may bring, there are the tools, the strength and the determination to handle it for oneself.

It never occurs to the Self Confident soul to take stock of what other people are doing because the unfolding of life is both vital and interesting — no matter what is going on. In other words, there is no need to compare because the creativity of personal experience is more interesting and worth all the energy necessary to stay involved.

Someone really focused not only couldn't be bothered with wasting time and energy on Envy, but wouldn't be likely to even notice such a possibility. Why? Because their time and talent is used to figure out what they want to do and then go about finding ways to do it.  The poor souls caught in the sin of Envy rarely accomplish much, if anything, and live in a world of confusion and apprehension. All they pay attention to is what someone else is doing and it makes them ill.

One of the most insidious forms of Envy occurs is the sphere of romance. If your "loved one" has a wondering eye and you find yourself being envious of the "other" men or women that are getting attention, make sure you put your focus where it belongs — not on the outsiders but on your supposed special love. If the relationship is not compelling enough to keep that person's attention, there is something very wrong. Take steps and remember it's your life and you deserve to have the most compatible relationship possible. Look at the level of friendship rather than the romance. Friends don't do dirty to each other and friends always make the best lovers.

Whether it is in the workplace, the school, the church, the home or in simple social interaction, seeing a situation with Envy means the situation is being seen through a false lens. The deadly aspect of the sin of Envy is that it is a living death, since the personality of the person has abdicated real experience for the role of an unhappy spectator.  Little is learned and less in appreciated since life is seen from the outside.

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ENVY

What is envy? It is resenting God's goodness in other's lives. It is ignoring God's goodness in my own life.

The Bible says it is very destructive and it will cause you much pain in your life.

I. WHY SHOULD I AVOID ENVY?    Four reasons:

1. It distracts me from my life purpose.

When I get envious and start looking at other people, I loose my focus. I stop concentrating on what God

wants for my life and I start looking at what other people are doing. I say, "If I only had their spiritual gifts,

their heart, their personality, their experiences, their background, their money..." And I get my focus off

God's plan for me and it causes me to be distracted from my life purpose.

Luke 9:62

And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.

Remember the 84 Olympics and Mary Decker looked over her shoulder at Zola Budd and tripped.  Because she got distracted she lost the race and was disqualified. Everybody had expected her to win.

Would you agree today there are many things that can trip you up and cause you to be distracted from your life purpose? All you have to do is turn on the television.  Advertisements are designed to create envy.

2. It causes conflict.

James 4:1

From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?

 Don't they come from your desires that battle within you?" When I want what you have, that's called envy and that creates conflict. In envy I not only want my grass to be greener than yours, I want yours to turn brown!

Remember playing King of the Hill as a child? There's only room for one at the top.  Adults still play King of the Hill.  They just do it in more subtle ways. Like by the kind of car they drive.  Or the color of their credit card.  We play the game of one-up-man-ship.  That's envy and if you get caught in that rut you will miss God's purpose for your life, because you're focusing on the wrong things.

American culture is built on envy. We call it competition. In every area of society -- athletics, wealth, prestige, achievement -- we are taught from childhood to compare. So we compare grades, clothes, schools, wealth, parents...

Cartoon [two guys talking to each other]: Envy has given me a sense of purpose, a motive to compete and climb to the top. If I didn't have envy, I wouldn't have the power and I wouldn't be envied by everyone else whose sense of purpose motivates them to compete with me and climb to the top. Trust envy. It makes the system work.

That's more true than it is funny.  It does cause conflict in our lives.

Ecclesiastes 4:4

Again, I considered all travail, and every right work, that for this a man is envied of his neighbour. This is also vanity and vexation of spirit.

 I discovered why people work themselves to death more than they need to. It's because they envy the things other people have so they just keep overworking.

3. Envy leads to other sins.

James 3:16

For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.

Can envy cause a person to lie?  To gossip?  To murder? Envy causes all kinds of problems in people's lives.  When you're green with envy, you're ripe for trouble!

Do you know why Jesus was crucified?  Why the Pharisees crucified him?  The Bible tells us in Matthew the Pharisees crucified Jesus because of envy.  They were jealous.  He was more popular than they were.  All of a sudden all the people who had been following their religious rituals were following Him.  "It was for envy they sought to send Him to the stake."  It leads to all kinds of other sins.

4. It makes one miserable.

It destroys your happiness. It's self destructive. "A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones." It eats you up. Envy is worse than cancer. It will eat you alive if you don't watch out.

Did you see the movie Amadeus?  Remember Salari and the envy he had for Mozart?  He was so consumed with this passion and envy against Mozart and his ability that it drove him crazy.  It literally drove him crazy.

Envy can do that.  You can get so preoccupied with fanaticizing somebody else's failure that you're envious of, you become the loser in life.  Envy does not work.  It is simply self-destructive.  It also promotes all kinds of pity parties. " He gets all the breaks.  It's not fair.  He's the lucky one."

Story of priest whom the devil was trying to tempt and get him to sin.  The devil tried lust and that didn't work. He tried anger and that didn't work. Greed and that didn't work.  Finally he said to him  "Your brother has just been appointed bishop."  It's always when somebody else gets one up on us, particularly in our own profession. Doctors envy other doctors. Secretaries envy other secretaries.  Businessmen envy other businessmen.  Pastors envy other pastors.  We have siblings envying other siblings.  But it eats us up on the inside.

Luke 12:15

And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.

We need to treat envy as if it were a cancer. If you had a growth on your body, you'd get it cut out as quickly as possible.  Envy is a cancer that will prevent you from taking the next step in the process of building your life mission.  You have to just focus on what God wants for me, not what God wants to do in other people's lives.

II. HOW TO OVERCOME ENVY

So how do I cut envy out of my life?  How do I get rid of it?  Five steps.  The Bible is real clear about this.  It says there are five things you do to get rid of envy.

1. Resist.

Resist comparing myself to others.
 

2 Corinthians 10:12

For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise.

Circle the last two words "not wise".  God says it's dumb.  It's stupid to compare yourselves to other people.  Comparing is the root of envy.  As long as you compare you'll always find somebody who's doing a better job, and you get discouraged.  Or you find somebody you're doing a better job than and you get full of pride.  Either way you're dead in the water!  The Bible says don't compare.

One day after the resurrection Jesus was talking to Peter and John and tells Peter, "You're going to die a violent death in serving me." Peter: "Oh?" and looking toward John "What about John? How's he going to die?" Jesus says, in the original Greek, "It's none of your business!" He says, "What's it to you?  I have a plan for your life so what does it matter if John lives until I come back?  I have a plan that's unique to you.  Don't worry about what my plan is for somebody else."

Galatians 6:4

But let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another.

This is a very important verse to teach your children. Teach them to never measure themselves by others. They can have the personal satisfaction of work done well and don't need to compare themselves to others.  It really doesn't matter what their grade is if they've done their best.  It really doesn't matter if they get the award or the outstanding picture if they've done their best.  And in a society where we live by competition, parents need to provide an antidote to that so kids aren't overwhelmed by envy. Don't compare. Envy is a choice. You can choose to compare yourself and get envious or you can choose not to.

2. Recognize your uniqueness.

We spent all of the second series on that. Recognizing my uniqueness, you are uniquely shaped and

nobody will ever be just like you.

Psalm 139:13

For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother's womb.

The Bible says that God designed you, specifically designed you, in your mother's womb -- you have designer genes.

Envy is an expression of inferiority. And it is based on insecurity. Envy occurs when you don't realize how unique you are. There's nobody in the world like you.  When you try to be like somebody else that causes envy.  The antidote is to recognize your uniqueness.

Psalm 139:15

My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

God not only planned what you were going to be, but He's planned out your life. That is, He has a plan for it. He has a customized life plan.  When you understand that, do you see the stupidity of envy?  When God has a customized plan for you, you shouldn't say " I wish God had made me taller (or shorter, or darker, or lighter, or bigger, or smaller, or smarter, or dumber, in another country or whatever)."  He has a customized plan for your life.  My advice is focus on letting your life shine and forget trying to put everybody else's light out.

3. Rejoice in what I do have.

Ecclesiastes 6:9

Better is the sight of the eyes than the wandering of the desire: this is also vanity and vexation of spirit.

There's a myth that says, I must have more than you in order to be happy.  No, you don't. Another myth that says, I must be like you in order to be happy.  No, you don't. When you allow those things to happen, then the desire to acquire begins to consume your life. You begin to be possessed by your possessions. When you have something that if God has told you to give it away and you're not free to give it away, then you don't own it, it owns you. Jesus said that a man's life does not consist in the abundance of things he possesses. So rejoice in what I do have and don't be envious of what I don't have.

Philippians 4:11

Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.

God says, I want you to learn contentment. Don't try to be somebody you're not. Don't envy somebody. You're unique, you're different.  Rejoice in what you do have and don't worry about what you don't.  Some single people wish they were married, some married people wish they were single. Paul says "I've learned to be content." Circle "learned".  It is not a natural trait. Contentment is something you have to learn.  Many of you need to enroll in the school of contentment. The first lesson is -- I already have more than I deserve.

Contentment is understanding that God has provided all I need for me in my current happiness, not tomorrow, not yesterday, but for today.

4. Respond to others in love.

Why?

1 Corinthians 14:4

He that speaketh in an unknown tongue edifieth himself; but he that prophesieth edifieth the church.

Love your neighbor as yourself." Is that natural?  No.  Is that easy to do? No.  Is that what the world teaches? No.  Is that what the best selling books tell us to do?  No.  But it's the key to happiness.  Love your neighbor as yourself. Learn to love other people. How do you do that?

Romans 12:15

Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.

Envy naturally does the exact opposite of this.  Envy rejoices when they see somebody have a failure and weeps when somebody has a success.  But love rejoices with those who rejoice and weeps with those who weep.

When you are envious you miss out on so much happiness in life because envy keeps you from sharing in other people's happiness.  When they have a baby, if you're envious of it, you can't share in their joy.  When they get married, if you're envious of it, you can't share in their joy. When they get a promotion, if you're envious, you can't share in the joy.  If the only time you have joy is when things happen to you, you're going to miss out on an awfully lot of joy in life. On the other hand, if you learn not to be envious, and you learn to enjoy other people's positive experiences, you'll be happy most of your life. Because good things are happening to other people all the time. And when you can share in their joy then you get to share it. You get benefited even though it didn't happen to you.

5. Refocus on pleasing God.

Colossians 3:2

Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.

 Look at life from God's view point. Realize that material things are only temporary.  Focus on what's going to last forever.  Don't set your mind on things that are not going to last 10 years.  Focus your life on things that will last for eternity. When you do that, competition becomes irrelevant. When you do that, climbing the ladder of success becomes irrelevant.

---END---

*****

In fighting envy, remember that the best way to remove sinful thoughts from the mind is to REPLACE them with Spiritual thoughts.  Reread my article about overcoming sin which is located at:

http://www.intercontinentalcog.org/bibleclassspecificstudies7.shtml

Portland, Oregon Church  -  Affiliated with the Intercontinental Church of God and the Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association