Bitter Jealousy and Selfish Ambition

November 13

Ezekiel 32-33

Psalm 119:169-176

Proverbs 27:11-12

James 3:13-18

Bitter Jealousy And Selfish Ambition

“But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth.  This wisdom is not coming down from above, but is earthly, natural, demonic.  For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil practice.”  James 3:14-16 LSB

If you attend a typical business/leadership seminar or if you have a session with a “life coach,” you will probably be told that in order to be successful you should look around and decide what it is that you want in life, make a plan and go get it.  The idea is that if you don’t know what you want and you don’t have a plan and goals, you won’t succeed.  From a worldly perspective, this makes perfect sense.  I am a planner, I have a list every day, and I set goals.  That is the only way I can function and get anything done so I am not suggesting that we shouldn’t do that.  God is a God of order.  It is wise to plan ahead, but that isn’t really what is at the heart of the seminar advice.  I believe they are encouraging you to look at the people around you and see what they have that you don’t and decide what it is they have that you want.  This ultimately encourages discontentment and an attitude of jealousy which leads to selfish ambition that wants to get ahead at any cost.  James clearly says that this wisdom is not coming from above, but is earthly, natural and demonic.  Satan does not want us to be content with what we have, he wants us to be filled with envy. 

There is a fine line between selfish ambition and godly determination.  Prayerfully asking God to help us set goals to accomplish the plans He has for us and then working hard to reach them is very different from looking at what others have and coveting it.  Whether it is material possessions, power, career advancement, position, status, etc., it is easy to focus on what we don’t have and spend so much time trying to get it that we aren’t grateful for what God has blessed us with.  If we are always striving for the next thing, we can easily miss the blessings of what we have now.  If we aren’t careful, in the process of climbing the ladder of success, we can knock others down on our way up.  We can be so focused on our goals that we disregard the needs of those around us and when we get to the top, we realize we are all alone.  God’s plans for us never involve harming or marginalizing others for our advancement.  If you turn on the news you can find numerous examples of selfish ambition and jealousy that have led to disorder and evil practice.   It is evident in politics, corporate settings, personal relationships, and even in the church.  Unfortunately, we don’t have to look on the news to find examples.  They are all around us.  It is always a good idea to ask God periodically to reveal to us any motives or intentions that don’t please Him, and to help us get rid of any jealousy and selfish ambition that is in our hearts.