Spirits That Destroy-Envy

 

The word “spirit” passes over into a usage which is common in English, where it is the synonym for an attitude or an “evil spirit.” When we speak of a jealous spirit, or a “haughty spirit”, etc, we are speaking of an “evil spirit” which is of “Satanic” origin resulting in a person being influenced by this “evil spirit” to the extent that this spirit is able to do an “evil work” through the body or mind of this individual, causing great damage to be done to their spirituality or the kingdom of God itself. When an “evil spirit” enters into a person, this spirit influences the conduct and actions of that person. “Evil Spirits” are actual agents of Satan sent out to do harm to God's kingdom.

The conduct and actions of God's people are different than the conduct and actions of the children of Satan. In order to do harm to a child of God or to God's kingdom, an “evil spirit” must enter into a person so as to effect his/her conduct and actions. For a person's spirituality can only be effected by an inward condition. Thus the reason for entering into the body or mind of a person. Their goal is to gain possession! Thus you become controlled or possessed by Satan.

We are going to cover some of the spirits that can enter into a person's mind or body and destroy them spiritually, or do great harm to God's kingdom.                                                                                Envy...Romans 13:13-14, Galatians 5:19-21, James 3:14-16 and I Peter 2:1-2.

A. Envy: Word quana, qina, also Greek word phthonos meaning: Antagonistic toward another's good, that dis-contented and mortified feeling which arises in the selfish heart in view of the superiority of another, that maglinant passion which sees in another person qualities which it covets and they hate their possessor.

a. Envy is ill will, malice (evil desire to do harm to another), spite (hatred toward another, resentment, hostility & bitterness).

b. Envy is accompanied by (every evil work). It is devilish, bad and a work of the flesh and is a deadly sin.

c. Envy always desires and often strives (to try hard...to put forth great effort) to degrade others, so much because it aspires after elevation because it delights in obscuring those who are more deserving...i.e. To disguise the true quality of another, so as to render them less worthy, to dent or darken another's true character.

d. Envy is selfish and unfriendly grudging of what another enjoys...Envy is associated with bitterness, strife, murder and other deadly sins. It is one of the most offensive, disagreeable, hateful and detestable of vices.

e. Acts 7:9...The brethern of Joseph hearing the dream of his dream and understanding them to predict his future greatness, were filled with malice and sold Joseph, hoping to prevent the fulfillment of his dream, but God made the predictions and saw to it that the dream was fulfilled! “Moved by envy”...i.e. Because of envy, malice springs forth, because of malice an evil deed is committed.

f. Romans 1:29-32...Envy is placed in the same category as other deadly sins that lead to “Spiritual Apostasy” and the damnation of the soul.

g. Titus 3:3..Paul is descripting the ninefold descriptions of sinners.

h. I Corinthians 3:3...Paul tells us that envy leads to strife and evil speaking, and that leads to divisions in the body of Christ.

 

B. Why do we envy others?

 

a. Because in some area they possess greater eninence or excellence than we. Students have been known to react with sarcastic bitterness against fellow students who made the honor roll which they missed.

b. The Pharisees' love of prominence helped arouse jealousy when Jesus came on the scene...out teaching and out performing them. They wanted the honor he was receiving. We try to blow out the other fellow's light when it shines more brightly than our own. We want the attention or recognition!

c. All envy has not been confined to the first century---Reader's Digest, in the story “Good Neighbor,” told of the mother of four children talking about a neighbor who had eight children. “She's” amazing, her house is always neat as a pin, she's a wonderful cook and she does her own sewing. Her children are polite and well behaved. She is active in PTA, and is a den mother for the cub scouts, etc. She is pretty and has loads of personality. She makes me sick!

When someone can do something that we can't do or do something better than we can, we may envy them for their performance. I read a headline: Jealous Mother Executed in San Quentin Chamber, because her overwhelming motherly love could tolerate no sharing of her son's love and effection, she had hired two men to kill her son's wife.

d. Pride is basically competitive. Subjection to a secondary spot may cause hurt pride to lash out at the person at the peak. Expained by C.S. Lewis' observation: We dislike the big noise at the party because we want to be the big noise.

e. We covet things. We envy people. Covetousness usually preceeds envy. Covetousness longs for another's possessions, position, talents, etc, unless checked, this covetousness is envy stabbing out at the owner of the objects we covet. (like Ahab wanting Naboth's vineyard). If our feeling is aimed at the person who is possessing these coveted items, envy is the principal component. When the Pharisees delivered Jesus to Pilate, they coveted his power, popularity and accomplishments, but the dominate factor was envy striking out at His person. Genuine envy involves ill will.

f. Sympathy makes us “rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.” Romans 12:15, Envy reverses this practice, making us rejoice when others weep, and weep when others rejoice. Envy is: that nasty feeling of gratification when you learn that your fellow Christians' new car had it's fender dented, ot that their new appliance had some type of defect, or that he had lost his/her job or perhaps one of their brilliant children had failed a subject in school.

g. Often people consider sins of the flesh more heinous than sins of the spirit. In reality, sins of the spirit are more serious. No sin of the flesh put Christ on the cross, rather Pilate “knew that for envy they had delivered him,” Matthew 27:18. More than one New Testament passage ranks the envious person with the debauched and drunkard

Romans 13:13, Galatians 5:19.

 

(1) But because envy is not a gross fleshly sin, but rather a slinky and subtle one, envy can conceal itself under the guise of friendship. It can worm it's way into the Church with little trouble. One can envy and even your closest friend need not know it. The fellow who staggers into Church drunk advertises his sin, he's open about it. But someone could envy repeatedly during a Church service, and no other souls would ever know about it.

(2) Because envy is so subtle, it is often found right in the Church and in the Lord's work.

 

(3)Paul described the fallen man as “full of envy.” Romans 2:29.

(4)Charles Finney wrote: Look at the cases in which you were envious at those that you thought were above you. Have you not so envied some that you have been pained to hear them praised? It has been more agreeable to you to dwell upon their failure than upon their success. Be honost with yourself, and if you have harbored this Spirit of Hell, repent deeply before God.

 

C. Result of Envy

 

a. Job 5:2, envy will destroy the one who indulges in it. How does it destroy?

(1)Envy causes an inward fretfulness, an inward irratation, envy inflicts inward violence and a melancholy spirit...i.e. A gloomy state of mind -depression of spirits, dejected, down cast, sad, mournful attitude. Envy eats away your spiritual life. Those whom envy attacks are not destroyed, Joseph, David, Jesus, etc. It becomes a hardship trial for them, but God elevates them, blesses them, uses them, fulfills his purpose in them, it is the one who has the envy in his heart that will not be used of God, not blessed of God, but will be destroyed. Envy will lead one into deadly courses of action.

 

b. Proverbs 14:30, Envy is a levening agent that sours and corrupts, corruption destroys the spiritual bones.

c. Envy is an evil indignation with another because they happen to be better off than you are. Envy weareth away our peace. Look at Ahab envying the vineyard of Naboth.

 

d. Envy is the father of murder. It urged on Cain to put his brother to death. Hence it causes the slaying of those who give way to it.

 

D. The symptoms by which envy may be known.

 

a. When we find ourselves averse from doing a person good.

b. When we are pleased with the evil that befalls another.

c. When we manifest a censorious disposition, silencing the good actions of another and exposing the bad.

 

d. When you have a discontented, quarrelsome disposition.