1 Corinthians 13:4 NKJV — Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up.
The Seven Deadly Sins
We often hear of seven deadly sins. They seem to have been enumerated as part of Roman Catholic theology. They are pride, envy, gluttony, greed, lust, sloth, and wrath. I am almost sure that I have them all under control except for one.
My Confession
Today I committed one of the deadly sins. I was envious. I was not envious because of the wicked, we all know where they end up. They may have a good run down here on earth, but eternity is going to be a real barn burner for them. I was envious of a successful Gospel preacher. He had seen visible fruit from some actual Gospel preaching during this pandemic. I was glad for him, but I could honestly say that I wished that had been me.
Some people want to build big church organizations, others want political clout, others want to run profitable non-profit ministries. Some want degrees and some want to know greek and latin and hebrew languages. Me… I just always dreamed of holding a series of Gospel meetings where the Lord saw fit to move and save a great number of people. I wanted to see them baptized. I wanted to meet them years later and have them tell me how glad they were that they had heard the Gospel and had “passed from death unto life” because of meetings that I had held. I wanted to look forward to seeing them in heaven. But it never happened and probably never will happen. I have seen the one’s and the two’s come to know the Lord, but I have never been involved in a landslide. Not even at children’s camps.
I have held meetings where no one has professed but where I found out a year later that someone had trusted the Lord, They just didn’t say anything at the time.
So maybe the pride thing is still a problem and the doctor seems to think that the gluttony thing is a problem, but I feel my real problem is envy. We won’t talk about laziness or wrath or lust.
Anyway
I have a number of people that I pray for often. Some of them may be saved but they don’t seem to show the fruits of salvation. Some of them are definitely not saved. But even though I may never see a landslide, seeing these folks clearly telling me that they now KNOW that they have eternal life would make my day. And if they get God’s salvation through the preaching or meetings of another, that will be alright as well. I will be disappointed that it wasn’t me, but at least they will be in heaven. So let us continue to herald the good news. Maybe today someone will listen and respond.
Maybe envy isn’t always all bad. I confess my sin and I trust the Lord will forgive me.
Meditation for the week of June 14, 2020
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