Romans 13:13,14 Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying. But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.
Jesus said that a house divided against itself shall not stand. Know this, beloved, Satan is not stupid. Satan understands perfectly what Jesus said. Problem is, our fleshly nature would rather hold a grudge than forgive and move on. The church has done a fairly decent job of pointing out the ills of drunkenness and sexual immorality. But have we observed that God includes strife and envy in the same category of sins? Strife and envy are fleshly lusts that poison relationships and quench The Spirit of God. They build walls thicker than steel. They seek to find allies within the church to support their “reasons” for their attitudes and actions. They spread discord and dissension.
Fact is, beloved, all of us are incurably broken and fallen. Yes, we are gloriously redeemed by the blood of The Lamb, but we dwell in these mortal bodies with a wicked entity called the flesh. Thus, we are told to put on Christ and make no provision for the flesh to fulfill the lusts thereof. Does Jesus coddle us in our sin? Does He allow us to get drunk and live in sexual sin? Is He okay with that? Of course not! Then why do we allow resentment, bitterness, envy, and strife to “get a free pass”? You know when somebody is on your “bad list”. You know when somebody has what you want and you cannot deal with it. If we do not obey God and put on Christ, we will pull the trigger of strife and envy and it will spread through a family or a church as fast as a bolt of lightning.
Lord, help us to lay down our swords of envy and strife today for Your Namesake and glory.
