Jealous?

Day 15

“You shall not bow down yourself to them or serve them; for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate Me.”

– Exodus 20:5

Additional Reading: Deuteronomy 4:23-24John 4:24

I had someone ask me recently, “How can God possibly be jealous? Isn’t jealousy a negative emotion?” This is a very interesting question. When you read the Word, you will find that the Bible never once says that God is jealous of someone else’s possessions, wanting a particular ‘thing’ in the natural that He does not already have. He is God, the Creator of all things, and He lacks and wants for nothing! Then what can God be jealous of? God becomes jealous when He sees what rightfully belongs to Him; our affection, loving attention and worship, directed away from Him and instead toward other idols in our lives, whatever they may be.

When you read each scripture verse where it refers to God as being “a jealous God,” you will see that it always involves the direction of our worship. When you are married, you expect that your spouse’s affection and loving attention will be directed toward you above all others (except for God of course!), and rightfully so! If your spouse was aiming their affection and loving attention, that rightfully belongs to you, toward another person or interest, wouldn’t you be jealous?

God becomes jealous when He sees what rightfully belongs to Him; our affection, loving attention and worship, directed away from Him and instead toward other idols in our lives…

Ask yourself today and every day, “Where do I direct my affection and loving attention? What consumes my thoughts and my time? What or who is the focus of my daily worship?”

We were created for the sole purpose of having a relationship with our Heavenly Father, to be “…true (genuine) worshipers, worshiping the Father in spirit and in truth (reality)…” – John 4:24.

Fight the good fight of faith!

Jamie

Harvest Church