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Apples of Gold
Radio Script for May 3, 2010
“Get Rid of All Invidia”
Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.
Envy rots the bones.
That’s what it says in Proverbs 14:30.
Envy is one of the so-called “seven deadly sins” and it will eat you alive from the inside out.
Envy is a little different than jealousy and covetousness. When I think of envy, I think of two things. You want what someone else has, and you don’t want them to have it.
If you’ve ever tasted envy, then you know it’s poisonous. You can easily understand why First Peter 2:1 says to get rid of all envy.
The Latin word for envy is “invidia,” which makes it sound kind of catchy. Get rid of all invidia.
So how can you get rid of all invidia, or envy?
I read an interesting phrase in a preacher’s biography last night. Here’s the phrase: “possessed by the Holy Spirit.”
He said we need to grow spiritually, to grow in our walk with the Lord, and that included becoming more and more possessed by the Holy Spirit.
The more we allow God’s Spirit to work inside of us, the more we yield to the Spirit’s qualities, the less envy we will experience.
Romans 8:5 says that those who live according to the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.
Back to First Peter 2. Verse 2 instructs us to crave pure spiritual milk. We are to crave the basic principles of God and His word, “that we may grow,” it says.
And envy is one of those things that we should grow out of. We should grow away from it. We should feel the bite and sting of envy less and less often as we mature spiritually.
So how do we get rid of all invidia? By growing spiritually. As we draw near to God and become more and more possessed of His Spirit, we should see the invidia falling away from us.
One reason is because the more we are controlled by the Spirit of God, the more love we will have for people. And the “love chapter,” First Corinthians 13, says that “love does not envy.”
So the more we love people, the less we will envy them. When you love people, you don’t want good things taken away from them – but that’s what envy wants. Envy means you want it, and you want it taken from them.
I love my oldest daughter and I’m glad she has a house. Of course I don’t want her to lose the house, because I love her. There is no room for envy in that situation because love drives out the envy.
And this goes back to us growing spiritually. As we grow spiritually, as we become more and more possessed by the Holy Spirit, we will naturally start loving people more, and we will naturally start envying them less.
So how to get rid of envy? Grow spiritually and love people.
Envy wants to pull people down, but First Corinthians 8:1 says that “love builds up.”
Now look at Romans 12:15. It says, “Rejoice with those who rejoice.”
When you truly rejoice with people, it’s hard to be envious of them.
When you truly love people, you will rejoice with them. When you are envious, you don’t really love them and you sure won’t feel like rejoicing with them.
So how to get rid of envy? Rejoice with those who rejoice! Celebrate with them.
That is a very mature thing to do, especially when they have something you want. But it won’t be hard to do as we mature spiritually.
Growing spiritually means we have a better handle on what is truly important. We realize that having something someone else has is not important at all, but loving them is important.
It’s about getting our priorities straight, and that will come as we grow spiritually. Envy will be crowded out as we become more and more possessed by the Holy Spirit.
So how to do it? Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Ask Him to fill you with His Spirit, and God will respond. You will experience His love working through you. You will grow in spiritual maturity and feel a true love for people around you.
And when they have something good, you will be free to rejoice with them!
It’s a process, yes it is, but it’s through this process that you will be able to get rid of all invidia.
Comments?
E-mail me: dougapple@wave94.com.
May God bless you today! With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.
© 2010 The Arrow’s Tip
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(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)
Why “The Arrow’s Tip”? Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold. Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.” I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.
Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL 32315
(850) 926-8000
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