Love Does Not Envy

Love Does Not Envy

Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, 1 Corinthians 13:4 (KJV)

The love (agaph agape) of God does not (ou ou), absolutely does not ever, envy ( zhlow zeloo). Envy is desire gone beyond its bounds. It covets earnestly and boils over with hatred and anger. Many times this envy leads to character assassination and, in its extreme, murder.

A perfect example of this kind of envy is found in Jezebel's husband, King Ahab. We can see the record of Ahab envying Naboth his neighbor and coveting his vineyard.

The first thing that envy did was cause the king to pout and have a pity party: "he laid him down upon his bed, and turned away his face, and would eat no bread" (1 Ki. 21:4). Then, he whined to his wife when she inquired about his obvious depression and told her, "Because I spoke to Naboth the Jezreelite and said to him, Give me your vineyard for money; or if you prefer, I will give you another vineyard for it. And he answered, I will not give you my vineyard" 1 Ki. 21:6).

He wasn't getting what he wanted, so he threw a fit like a spoiled child. Jezebel then devised a scheme to have Naboth and his heirs murdered so that her childish husband could have his selfish desire.

How many times have you witnessed someone or some ministry, devise harm to a brother or sister Christian or another minister or ministry, in order to position themselves in the place that the other possesses? This jockeying for position and place is far outside of the love of God.

Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be like minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Philippians 2:2-4 (KJV)