Let's Examine the Scriptures Every Day 2021
Tuesday, November 23, 2021
The heart is more treacherous than anything else (Jer. 17: 9).
Jacob loved all of his children, but he had a special affection for 17-year-old Joseph. How did the rest of your children react? They were envious of Joseph and as a consequence hated him. They sold him as a slave and told his father that a wild animal had killed his favorite son. Envy resulted in them breaking family peace and breaking their father's heart (Gen. 37: 3, 4, 27-34). Envy appears among the dangerous "works of the flesh" that can prevent a person from inheriting the Kingdom of God (Gal. 5: 19-21). As a rule, this damaging feeling is the root of feuds, fights, and outbursts of anger. The case of José's brothers shows the damage that envy causes in relationships and how it disrupts the peace of a family. Although we would never behave like Joseph's brothers, We must not forget that we all have an imperfect and treacherous heart. So no wonder we sometimes feel envy. w20.02 14 pars. 1-3
What can help us fight envy?
We can fight envy by being humble and satisfied with what we have. Thus we will not leave a place in the heart where it can grow. If we are humble, we will not have a very high opinion of ourselves and we will not think that we deserve more than others (Gal. 6: 3, 4). Whoever is satisfied with what he has is content and does not compare himself with others (1 Tim. 6: 7, 8). He who is humble and satisfied is happy for the person who receives something good.
According to Galatians 5:16 and Philippians 2: 3, 4, what will the holy spirit help us to do?
We need Jehovah's holy spirit to avoid developing this harmful feeling and instead to be humble and satisfied. --Read Galatians 5:16; Philippians 2: 3, 4. God's spirit helps us examine our innermost thoughts and motives. With divine help, we can substitute harmful thoughts and feelings for uplifting ones (Ps. 26: 2; 51:10). Let's look at the examples of Moses and Paul, who were able to overcome the inclination toward envy.
What situation put Moses to the test? (See the drawing on the cover).
Moses had a lot of authority over God's people, but he did not consider that he was the only one who should have that privilege. For example, on one occasion Jehovah took part of his spirit and gave it to a group of Israelite elders who were near the tent of meeting. Soon after, Moses learned that two elders who had not gone to the tent of meeting had also received the holy spirit and had begun to act as prophets. How did you react when Josué asked you to stop them? He was not envious that Jehovah had noticed these two men, but was glad that they had received the honor of prophesying. —Num. 11: 24-29. What do we learn from Moses?
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