Seven Deadly Sins: Envy

Teaching text

Exodus 20:17

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”

Sermon recap

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy Silk closed out our sermon series on the Seven Deadly Sins with a teaching on envy. A prohibition against coveting, or envy, is included in the Ten Commandments, because it is a slippery slope that begins in our thoughts and quickly leads to death. We learn about the dangers of envy from several stories in the Bible. Envy led Cain to kill his brother Abel (Genesis 4), led Joseph’s brothers to sell him into slavery (Genesis 37:18-36), and what ultimately led the Chief Priests to call for the death of Jesus (Matthew 27:20).

Envy often begins in small, seemingly harmless ways. Envy also often begins with grief, as seen with the story of Solomon and the two grieving mothers in 1 Kings 2:16-28. One woman, mourning the loss of her infant son, claims another woman’s baby as hers. So stricken by grief, she tells King Solomon, “Go ahead and cut him in half. Then neither of us will have a baby.” Envy works itself out in this way—enticing us to believe that if we cannot have something, then our neighbor should not have it either. Pastor Suzy pointed out that desires for children, a spouse, or property are not inherently wrong, but it is when we turn our desires towards what belongs to some else that we give in to envy.

Cain’s story illustrates three ways to combat envy. We must first combat envy by being self-aware. God invites us to identify our emotions, examine the reasons behind them, and bring them into conversation with Him. We also combat envy by recognizing when it is nearby. The sin of envy is close to us, and we must always be on guard against it. If we are not drawing close to God, we will inevitably draw close to envy, especially when vulnerable, alone, or grieving. Finally, we combat envy by doing what is right. Instead of just fighting envy off, we must live in the opposite spirit. This looks like exercising gratitude towards the Lord for what we already have and trusting in His timing, and from this posture, we are able to demonstrate kindness and love towards our neighbors.

Holy Week reminds us that Jesus Himself demonstrated costly trust and costly obedience in the Father’s plans for Him, and costly love towards even those who took part in His death. The blood of Jesus speaks a better word than the blood of Abel, because through His sacrifice, Jesus provides an eternal life and inheritance. We can choose to turn away from envy because we have the better thing—the presence of Jesus, now and forever.

Discussion questions

Connect

1. What is something bringing you delight recently?

Character

Ask someone to read 1 Kings 3:16-26 or Genesis 4:6-7 aloud. Then, ask the following questions:

1. What words, phrases, or images in this passage stood out to you?

2. In either of these stories, what do you learn about the heart of God?

Consider

1. What areas of your life do you tend to harbor bitterness? (Key markers of bitterness include disappointment, anger/frustration towards someone who has what you want, sadness when you see another person’s happiness, etc.)

2. In what practical ways does God engage with us in our anger or disappointment? How can we draw closer to Him when we feel envy rather than pulling away?

3. In the New Testament, we see that envy is a fruit of the flesh (Mark 7:20-23, Romans 1:29). Since we are called to live according to the Spirit rather than according to the flesh (Romans 8:3-4), how can we respond instead when we feel envy?

Cover

Allow the Holy Spirit to search your hearts and reveal areas of grief that have shifted into envy. Break into groups of two or three, confess, and pray together. Ask for the Lord to increase your awareness of the ways He has blessed you through Jesus.