JEALOUS

Throughout the Old Testament whenever God’s people would wander from Him, whenever they would follow a false god or put anything or anyone at the center of the universe other than God, God called that adultery.

The original language describes God as a jealous lover. God, jealous? Makes Him sound kind of unhealthy and co-dependent, doesn't it?

Many years ago on her TV program, I remember hearing Oprah put down the concept of a jealous God, saying how absurd it was that He could ever have that element in Him - but she didn’t understand it. We tend to apply our characteristics to God, rather than the other way around.

The only person in the entire Bible the word "jealous" is ever used to describe is God. Sure, there are other people we know who were jealous in the Bible - Joseph’s brothers were jealous of him and threw him into a pit until they sold him into slavery ... King Saul was jealous of David and tried to kill him several times. But God is the only person in the Bible the actual word "jealous"is ever used to describe.

For instance: Zechariah 8:2 - 'The is what the Lord Almighty says: "I am very jealous for Israel; I am burning with jealousy for her."'

We see the attributes of God displayed all thru Scripture - He is loving, gracious, merciful, kind, just, joyful, creative, generous - even wrathful -- the list goes on. But in us, those attributes have all become corrupted. Even our joy and love, wonderful as they are, do not come close to mirroring God's joy and love. We exhibit Godly attributes imperfectly.

In us, jealousy is typically ugly and sinful because we seek to use it to control people or things to which we have no right. God, on the other hand, has every right to us. The idea that He could be jealous is just an indication of how crazy He is about you. He doesn’t have room for a third party in His life.

I love my wife; I’m crazy about her and I’m grateful for the day she took pity on me and married me. But if she started showing inappropriate affection to another man, do you think I’d be cool with that? I’d be jealous ... and angry ... not because of some unhealthy, co-dependent thing on my part, but because I’m crazy about her.

So we show up to life and we want God - we do - but we brought someone else along for the ride. "I want You to be there for me, God. I need You - but I’m going to hang on to these other parts of my life -- and every now and then -- I’ll be flirting with those other things a little bit, OK? But I need You, God. I do."

The book of James says, ‘You’re cheating.’ That's why he says in James 4:4: 'Don't you know that friendship with the world means you have become an enemy of God?' That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t have friends who are unbelievers. We know that because Jesus had friends who weren’t believers. So it must mean something other than what it seems to say -- so what does it mean?

It means, in this context, that God will not share the centerpiece of your life with anything or anyone ... because He is crazy about you.

And be blessed.