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Week 5: Communication Error

 

A while back, a gentleman asked me an interesting question. Is jealousy a sin? Without thinking, I quickly answered yes. His response: Why, then does the Bible refer to God as "a consuming fire, a jealous God"? (Duet 4:24)

 

There I stood, humbled and stripped of any psuedo-theological pretense I was most likely exuding. I had been engaged in a battle of wits and found myself unarmed. I had simply never thought about it before. I decided I had better start thinking about it. Bear in mind, this encounter in no way made me question my salvation. Accepting that God came to earth as a man, lived a sinless life, died on a cross, and rose from the grave on the third day, all so we could have the assurance of eternal life has always and will always be a matter of faith. In that faith, I will never be shaken. However it did make me realize that I do need to question myself on why I believe what I do and if it matches up to the Word of God.

 

Galations 5:19-21 refers to jealousy as one of the acts of the sinful nature. Exodus 34:14 states "Do not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God." How can a Holy God be jealous if jealousy is a sin? To find the answer, you must look at how you define jealousy. A footnote for the word as it is used in Song of Songs 8:6 replaces it with the "ardor" which means passion. Webster’s dictionary defines jealousy as (1) Resentful or bitter in rivalry: envious, (2) Inclined to suspect rivalry, (3) Vigilant in guarding, (4)Arising from feelings of envy or bitterness, and (5) Intolerant of infidelity.

 

Words are powerful. Always make sure you understand their meaning and don’t take them out of context. A jealous God who is passionate, protective and doesn’t put up with being cheated on is quite different from a jealous man who is suspicious, envious, resentful and bitter. God created each of us with a brain and the ability to reason. There are many who do not understand why you believe what you do. Don’t you think at least you should?

 

Assignment:

Look up and read the following scripture verses this week... Monday: Psalm 34:8; Tuesday: Psalm 119:9-16; Wednesday: Psalm 119:33-40; Thursday: Exodus 34:10-17; Friday: 1 Peter 3:13-15.