Be Not Jealous

When I played basketball in high school, I struggled with mixed feelings. I wanted the coach to do whatever was best for the team, but being a bench warmer, I also wanted to play, so I struggled with some jealousy.

I saw some playing time every game, but it was never the amount I wanted. The only thing I could do was work as hard as possible and prove to the coach that it was worth it to play me. Eventually, I did seek out more playing time and was productive. But I had to overcome that touch of jealousy.

The Bible does not mess around with this topic. Being jealous of others is not how a follower of Christ should act. Jealousy is spoken against in both the Old and New Testaments. Paul addressed it in several of his epistles. The books of Matthew and Mark both say that the reason the Pharisees wanted Jesus gone was out of jealousy.

If you are an athlete, you have probably dealt with jealousy at some point. If you are human, you have probably dealt with it in your heart at some point. But how do we deal with it?

First, remember the Lord is the only One worthy of absolute honor, respect and praise, not us or anyone else. Second, remember that Jesus said we are to love God with all we are and love others as ourselves. That means we need to be happy for others when they succeed and not dislike them for it.

Is it hard? Yes, but we honor God when we “consider others more important than ourselves.” (Philippians 2:3)