Then at last the jealousy between Israel and Judah will end. They will not be rivals anymore.
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
My mother-in-law dog sits for several families. She keeps their dogs for anywhere from one day to a few weeks, as needed. One couple has two little dogs… Breezy and Cookie. Breezy is an older dog… Cookie is fairly young and new… both are what I call “dust mops!” Cookie is all energetic and friendly… Breezy is old and tired. But Breezy was here first… and she is jealous of Cookie! So when Cookie runs past her and jumps into my mother-in-law’s lap, Breezy barks and growls. She knows that she cannot jump up that high… but she does not like it that Cookie can!
Of course, petty jealousy among animals is to be expected… and fairly uncontrollable. By nature, most animals are territorial. They do not like when another encroaches on their space. This can cause some pretty good ruckuses and commotions! And we are all jealous at one time or another. Even God is jealous… He does not like it when we give our attention and devotion to something or someone other than Him!
But a lot of our acts of envy, resentment, suspicion, distrust, and desire of another’s possessions or traits are unnecessary… and could be avoided. As a result, we could have a whole lot more peace in our daily living! The first step in achieving this can begin with Isaiah 11. Start at the beginning of this chapter. We are told of the coming of “a new Branch bearing fruit from the old root”. This “Branch” is Jesus Christ. Isaiah describes Him this way…
- The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him—the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
- He will delight in obeying the Lord.
- He will not judge by appearance nor make a decision based on hearsay.
- He will give justice to the poor and make fair decisions for the exploited.
- The earth will shake at the force of his word, and one breath from his mouth will destroy the wicked.
- He will wear righteousness like a belt and truth like an undergarment.
God’s jealousy over us is a protective one… a possessiveness of us borne out of our Father’s deep abiding love for His children. His is not necessarily envy as much as a desire to be first and foremost in our lives… to be the only focus of our worship and devotion. Human jealousy has an ugly side and features suspicion, distrust, covetousness, resentfulness, and selfish desires. Because of God’s jealousy, we find peace in belonging solely to Him. Because of our own human jealousy, we often experience anything but peace!
In Jesus, we find the perfect example of how to honor and obey the LORD… to discover complete peace in Him…and to bear “good fruit.” Unlike Cookie and Breezy and other canines, we humans DO have a choice. We can do our best to model the teachings of Jesus Christ. We can seek lives of peace and calm rather than discord and commotion.
We can “bear good fruit” that reflects our relationship to the “Branch”. We can call on God to end our internal rivalries and fill us with serenity and an inner stillness… and He will gladly do this. Aren’t you ready to experience this for yourself? Will this be the day your “rivalries” end?
©2013 Debbie Robus
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