Devoted: Envy
God is the Giver of All Good Gifts
James 3:13-4:3, 7-8a
Rev. Tim Callow
Preached Sun. September 19, 2021
Jesus is on the run. The Pharisees are against him, and they have influence in the towns. The Herodians are against him and they have influence in the cities. He stays hidden, traveling in the wilderness as if he were an exile or refugee. If he is found he may be killed, and his time had not yet come. It’s in this context that Jesus teaches his disciples about his inevitable end. It isn’t surprising that an itinerant preacher with a rag tag group of disciples might anticipate his death. “The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him,” but what is surprising is he anticipates resurrection, “and three days after being killed, he will rise again.”
The disciples don’t understand this at all. And, like high schoolers trying to keep up appearances with their teacher, they are afraid to ask questions. Instead they ignore his teaching and start arguing with each other. When they get to a safe house in Capernaum Jesus asks them what they were arguing over. They remained silent, ashamed because they argued over which one of them is the greatest disciple.
Their self-delusion here is really astounding. Jesus is on the run. None of them carry a single weapon. He’s telling them how he must die. And they’re arguing over which one of them is the greatest. “No, I’m the best disciple, no I’m the best disciple.” They should be shivering in terror, but instead they’re boasting.
So Jesus continues his teaching, "Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.” And then he takes a child to his knee, "Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.” Discipleship is not about honor. It’s not about bragging rights. It’s not about wealth or power. It’s about service. Caring for others. Sharing in love. The disciples are busy boasting when Jesus would call them to loving service. Loving service that may lead to the cross, but ends in resurrection.
In our Psalm this morning the Psalmist outlines two ways. There’s the way of the righteous and the way of the wicked. The righteous is like a tree planted by streams of water. He is firm, well protected, well nourished. All he does shall prosper. But then the way of the wicked is doomed, it cannot stand. Jesus, though he faces the cross, walks in the way of the righteous. The disciples, in their boasting, are in danger of walking in the way of the wicked.
James, this morning, helps clarify further. The righteous among us, the wise, would show gentleness in their lives. Jesus shows us this shame gentleness in how he treats his disciples, wayward as they are. And how he treats us, in going to the cross for our sake. But the way of the wicked is a way of boasting, selfish ambition, falsity, and envy.
What is the root of the difference? But the way of the righteous is grounded in God, his good works, and his good gifts. The way of the wicked is characterized by envy. What is envy? Full blown envy is more than just wanting what someone else has, or coveting. It’s seeing that someone else has something that you want, something that’s really really good, something that you wish they didn’t have, and grieving over the fact they have it and you don’t. It’s when we get it in our heads that somehow our self-worth is diminished because someone else has something we feel we should have. That’s full blown envy, that’s when it gets deep seated. And when it gets that bad, and turns into a form of grief, it can lead to all sorts of strife. It can lead to quarrels and fights and cursing. It can even lead to murder because we are possessed by our grief, and act in strange ways. As James says, "You want something but you don’t get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight.”
The envious, in other words, think there is only so much to go around. Life is a zero sum game. And if someone else has something they feel they deserve, it grieves them. The disciples ask who is the greatest because someone has to be on top. There must be a greatest disciple. They can’t all be equally faithful, or equally loved by Jesus. They argue, and they boast, and they fight.
But how strange it is that we would envy anything. James tells us in the first chapter of his letter that, “every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” All good things are a gift from God, and God places them where he wills. So why, then, should we grow envious of anything anyone has? What we’re doing is questioning God’s judgment. Moreover, we are grieving over the very gifts of God, the very presence of God in this world when we grieve over the good things people have.
And this grief comes out of ignorance, ignorance of the good things God has given to us. We forget the blessings we have in our lives, and we forget that the greatest gift of all is not someone’s promotion or family life, but the greatest gift of all is Jesus Christ. The greatest thing we have received is our salvation that was purchased on the cross. When we are reminded of these great gifts, that all great gifts are from God, how can we remain in our envy?
This is why James tells us, “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you.” God does not flee from sin. Sin flees from God. Jesus Christ did not avoid the sinner, but made them clean. So too, Jesus Christ does not abandon us in our sins, but rather is the sole solution and antidote to our sins! The way past envy of all sorts, whether small or great, is Jesus Christ. He brings the healing, he points the way forward, he gives us all good gifts.