#54: Jealousy And Joseph

This week we trace Joseph’s story in Genesis 37 to expose the hidden power of jealousy and show how God’s providence works through human evil. We offer gospel-shaped steps to fight envy and protect unity in the church and our friendships.

• God’s providence using human evil for good
• Joseph’s brothers’ jealousy as the root motive
• How envy grows from thoughts into actions
• Scripture on envy’s inner rot and disorder
• Gospel identity as the ground of contentment
• Praying specific blessings over those we envy
• Practicing gratitude in every circumstance
• Serving people we resent to reshape the heart
• Rejoicing with those who rejoice to kill envy

Transcript

SPEAKER_03 0:03

Welcome to Beyond the Pulpit. Exploring the life and ministry of Walnut Creek Church downtown. Walnut Creek Church exists to glorify God by making authentic disciples of Jesus Christ who love and worship him in all they do. Alright, welcome to Beyond the Pulpit. My name is Derek Wadley, and I'm joined by Lou Cookie. Hey everyone. Dan Roode is out sick this week. He has caught whatever everybody else has going around. Knocked out it. There's another pastor that let us know today that he's not going to be around because of the same thing. So I'm going to isolate after this. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 0:38

Dan texted me yesterday. He's like, um, he's like, I could probably gut it out today, but I just don't know if I want to be, you know, share what I have with any of you. I'm like, we all appreciate that.

SPEAKER_03 0:48

Sharing is often caring, but sometimes it's the opposite of caring.

SPEAKER_00 0:53

So sharing is like hatred.

Pivot To Joseph In Genesis 37

SPEAKER_03 0:55

That's right. Share your share your diseases. Keep your flu, man. The flu. It's it's going around, it's bad. Uh but this last week at church we uh pivoted uh in our story, uh, in the story of Genesis, uh, from Jacob and Esau, and we're gonna spend most of the rest of the book uh on one of his sons, Joseph. That's right. Uh and we dove into chapter 37, which really unpacks a lot of Joseph's uh life. And uh I gotta tell you, I don't envy having to prepare a message to cover the entire chapter uh in one message. And I think that we saw uh what happened this weekend is that there is just so much in there that you can't do all of it.

SPEAKER_00 1:41

Um yeah, you know, it's like this weekend I'm like studying this and my man, oh, what do you not say? Right. That's the question. What do you not say? Because there's so much, so much, and then you feel like you gotta get to, or at least I feel like you gotta get to like the reality that Joseph isn't just sold into slavery because of his brothers. This really is the plan of God. Yeah. Where God is using the evil that's uh happening to Joseph to uh get him to where he wants Joseph to be. But so it's like and you just see that throughout. I mean, that's like the the narrative that's like a theme of the Bible. Yes, that's right. That's right.

God’s Providence In Human Evil

SPEAKER_03 2:19

It's the God is taking the wickedness of man and working it for good. And we'll keep seeing that throughout Genesis. Until the Lord, and until the Lord returns. It's still playing out. And so, yeah, we kick off the the story of Joseph, and he he shares his dreams that he has with his brothers and and uh his dad, and they're not all that happy about it. Seem like it. And then his brothers go off to shepherd the flocks, and Joseph goes to get word uh on how they're doing for for his dad. And uh when he meets them, they jump him. They jump him, they attack him. Uh most of them want to kill him. Yep, one of them wants to save his life. Uh Ruben, because not because he wants to save Joseph, it seems. It seems that he's wanting to uh save his own skin because he's already in his dad's in the doghouse. He's yeah, he's not looking good with his dad for you know slaughtering an entire city. Um well and sleeping with his dad's concubine. And sleeping with his dad's concubine. There are a lot of things that um that happen. Uh but yeah, so then they jump and they end up ultimately selling him into slavery, and you just gotta like ask yourself, like, why what would drive brothers to do this to their own flesh and blood? Yep.

Brothers’ Plot And Motives

Jealousy Named As The Root

SPEAKER_00 3:39

That is a question that is a good question, and um, we answered that this week in Acts 7 verse 9. Uh Stephen here is uh preaching. He says, the patriarchs, referring to Joseph's brothers, became jealous of Joseph and sold him in sold him into Egypt. They became jealous of Joseph and sold him. And so jealousy was really the root um uh motivation, if you will, like sin for doing what they did to their brother Joseph. And it's pretty I mean, that's really wild to think about. Because I I think about um I said this in you know in the summer, I think oftentimes jealousy is kind of like a thing we don't really we know it's not good, we know it's like a sin, but we kind of just gloss over it a lot of times. And so a lot of times jealousy is just sitting there in our own heart, and uh and it it doesn't just stay there, like it actually works its way out in behaviors, you know. It's like you know, first we we we have these thoughts and desires to have what somebody else possesses, and eventually like that turns into a bitterness and a anger, a resentment, and that worked its way out in some form of behavior, and uh that may be simply just being mean to them, you know, like it says they couldn't speak peaceably to their brother, like there was no they had like nothing kind to say to him. They're like, uh, you suck, Joseph. We we hate your guts. That's right. And um and so it it it doesn't stay in, it comes out in our behavior, and I think if it's not dealt with, it just continues to grow. It's like a snowball that kind of just builds and builds and builds is rolling down the hill, more and more snow added to it, and the worse things can get. And you know, maybe we don't get to the I mean, many times people don't get to the extent of uh just beating the heck out of someone and and leaving them for dead or then selling them into slavery. Um but the relationship might totally dissolve. Right. Like I think about there's probably a lot of like family relationships or friendships that have ended in what's going on is because somebody's maybe this is not spoken or it's come out, but like someone's just jealous of somebody else. Yeah. And so jealousy really is a is a threat to our own uh soul, uh to our own uh life. And uh I was where's uh a couple verses like that just like draw that out when um look at my notes here in James, you know, James says, for where there is James 3.16, where there's envy and selfish ambition, there's disorder in every evil practice. Yeah, I mean it's pretty pretty pretty wild. Yeah. Uh or like a tranquil heart, Proverbs 14 30. A tranquil heart is life to the body, but jealousy is rottenness to the bones. It's like a cancer to us.

SPEAKER_03 6:41

It's it's so often just like a root cause issue. And like you said, like those friendships that dissolve, they might say, Oh, we stopped being friends because of some silly reason, but like really at the root was a jealousy. And I I appreciate what you're saying about like jealousy is just kind of like the sin that we gloss over. I mean, even in the language you we hear people use all the time, it's like, man, I'm so jealous of that. Yeah, it's like I don't it's like, is that a confession or are we joking? Like, like what you know, it's like yes, yes. And so uh, but it it really yeah, it stirs up all sorts of discontent now.

SPEAKER_00 7:20

And and you think like to your point, like uh people say that just use that in their language vernacular, yeah, I'm really jealous of that or envy envious of you or whatever. And and sometimes, yeah, there's like it's just kind of maybe it's joking, it's not that serious, but sometimes in you know, in the sarcasm, yes, there's always a hint of truth and reality, and you're like, Oh, I actually am. I'm just saying it out loud. Yes. Uh I'm actually revealing what is really going on in my soul. And uh and jealousy, like it doesn't target like uh it targets friends. So I think I said this Sundays that jealousy actually turns friends into enemies. And uh and you know, uh I think I mentioned, you know, you could name whoever, but like I'm not jealous of you know, X person that's way out there, Elon Musk, or he doesn't even be a famous person, just like somebody else.

SPEAKER_03 8:14

Right.

How Envy Grows And Ruins Ties

SPEAKER_00 8:14

I'm not even jealous of like my neighbor up the street, I don't know. Right. Really. Oftentimes where envy and jealousy comes out is in our friendships. That's right. It's in our family, it's with it's with people we're closer to. Um because they become like we see them more often, and we're naturally what's happening in jealousy is we're comparing ourselves. Yeah, looking at you and thinking, okay, what do you what oh, you have this and I don't have that. And so there's this comparison game going on.

SPEAKER_03 8:42

And then uh you said this earlier, but like uh um that person be that comparison game turns that person into a threat. And so then when you look at someone who you would say is a friend, and then they become a threat, right? Um, we don't treat threats kindly. No, we don't. We begin to try to combat the threats. And oftentimes we we miss that the threat is the jealousy in our own hearts, right, and we pretend it's the person that we're looking at, that they are the threat.

SPEAKER_00 9:14

So the question I think you know on Sunday I said, uh, how do we fight against jealousy? One of the applications was you know, combat against the jealousy in your own heart, how to fight against it. And how do you do that? And I said I had five tips and I gave one.

SPEAKER_03 9:28

And um that's why we're life of preaching. That's right. And that's why we have this podcast beyond the pulpit. That's right. That's all the things that can't get to.

SPEAKER_00 9:36

So there's a um we thought it'd be helpful just to go through some of these other tips. Um and I think starting though with what I said, I think the main thing is just rooting ourselves in the gospel. Yes. And the gospel is so essential to dealing with any sin, obviously, the sin of jealousy, because jealousy is usually it's tied to a sense of uh worth. So like we look at an object and I think I need that thing in order to feel of value and worth in my life.

SPEAKER_03 10:05

Yeah.

Scripture On Envy’s Inner Rot

SPEAKER_00 10:05

And the gospel reminds us that Jesus, uh, our worth, our identity is secure in Christ. Like I don't need more. Right. In fact, like like Paul talks about contentment in Philippians, and he's like, I know how to be content, whether I have a lot or I have a little. And he says, uh, how how do I become content? It's like, well, uh, it's through Christ. Right. Through Christ that He's He is working in me and through me. My strength is in Him, my contentment is in Him. In Jesus, you know, he describes Himself as the bread of life and the water of life. And our our souls are looking, they're thirsty for life. And uh what we can do is we can look to the world, to things to satisfy these longings of our soul and not look to Christ, realizing that the gospel not only saves us from eternal separation from God and hell for like I said, for eternity, all eternity, it actually um restores our relationship with God. Uh it secures our identity, it it draws us into, okay, I have value and worth. My value and worth is found in God Himself. That's right.

SPEAKER_03 11:17

Right. And then when we understand that, we begin to see that worth, value, and dignity in other people, in the people that that we're jealous of.

SPEAKER_00 11:25

So we really need to we really need to go to the gospel first and foremost and find our our our hope there in Christ. But there are some other practical things. Um one of those, I don't know, D, you got the second one.

SPEAKER_03 11:37

Yep, the second one that you were going to share uh was pray for those that you're jealous of. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 11:42

Yep, pray for people that we're jealous of. Yep. Um and I don't know about you, but like one thing I've specifically done is not just like pray generically, gotta I pray for so and so today. It's like, what are you praying for? No, no, pray that God would bless them. Yeah, pray for their good. Pray for their good.

SPEAKER_03 12:02

Like whatever that good thing is that you're jealous of, pray that God would continue to work it like to their good.

SPEAKER_00 12:08

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 12:08

Uh and that you would be happy for them.

SPEAKER_00 12:11

That you would, yeah. Because if you're if you're praying for somebody, it's really hard to be like praying for somebody's good and to be jealous of them simultaneously. That's right. Uh something's gonna win out. And the more you're praying for them, the more that jealousy begins to be pressed down, if you will, or pushed out of your life. Eradicated, eradicated from your life. Yeah.

Comparison Turns Friends Into Foes

SPEAKER_03 12:33

So yeah, we we gotta pray for the people that we're jealous of. Uh, I mean, it's especially in the body of Christ, uh, that is uh a place that we have to fight the hardest for unity. Amen. And so uh a lot of times uh I'm around a lot of people that are involved in ministry in a lot of different ways, and it's easy to see people get um worked up because uh they're seeing more what they deem as more or better fruit in someone else's ministry. They're seeing there. And so yeah, I've been there as well, and I imagine that I'll get there again. Uh it'll be a cycle to fight um for all of life, but we want to fight um to have a right view and a right love for our brothers and sisters.

SPEAKER_00 13:22

And and to your point, like I mean, when we think about jealousy turns friends into enemies, like that's what we should be thinking in the church. Right. Like who are friends? Well, I mean, they're probably the people we're primarily at church with. Right. And uh and the threat is to divide the church. And one way Satan wants to divide the church is by using uh the jealousy, creating jealousy in our own souls towards other people. And so um I I think that that is a real threat. And I've seen people where uh the relationships dissolve and break down, and sometimes it's again, it's because there's actually jealousy there that people aren't dealing with. That's right. So that's right. All right, number three. Yep. And third one is uh thanking God for what we have. Paul says, you know, there's a bunch of verses on gratitude and thanksgiving, but in Thessalonians, is it five, first Thessalonians five, like seventeen, I think it is that Paul says, uh, be thankful in all things, give thanks in all things. Yes, and um in all circumstances. And he's not saying necessarily be thankful for the circumstance you're in, right? That may be the case, but ultimately be thankful in those circumstances. And uh the reason we can be thankful in all circumstances, the good or the bad, is because ultimately what we have in Christ. And I think the idea of being of thanking God is we thank God uh for what we have already. And uh we have so many things to be grateful for. Yeah. I mean, it's like uh you just look at, you know, you know, we're we're sitting here in quote my office, which is bare walls, but uh but like there's so much we already have like available to us. And um and then the physical things, the clothing, the house, the vehicle like God has provided in so many ways, but then spiritually speaking, what we have in Christ. So much more. Yeah. And when you're thankful, like um it's it's hard to be like it's like you're you're you're shifting the focus off of what someone else has in like what you want, and back to like recognizing, oh, I have already what I need in Christ. That's right.

Fighting Envy: Gospel Identity

SPEAKER_03 15:30

Yeah, a proverb I think of in this area that helps me maintain some perspective is Proverbs 30, uh seven to nine. Says, Two things I ask of you, deny them not to me before I die. Remove far from me the falsehood and lying, give me neither poverty nor riches, feed me with the food that is needful for me, lest I be full and deny you and say, Who is the Lord? Or lest I be poor in steel and profane the name of my God. So it's like when we're thankful for what we've got, when we see that God has given us what is needful, um, and in his uh mercy and out of his great love for us isn't giving us everything that we want. Yeah. Um he's protecting us from our own ruin. Yeah, that's right. Um and the ruin of others because of our own out of control emotions and sinfulness and our jealousy.

SPEAKER_00 16:19

Well, and you know, uh Psalm 23, verse 1 the Lord is my shepherd, I have what I need. And I think when we're looking to God and we're thankful or uh have gratitude towards Him, it's like, oh, we recognize I have what I need, you know. That's right. I really have, and you're right, like God is protecting me. That's right.

SPEAKER_03 16:38

He's protecting me. Uh He's protecting He I think the thing that God protects us from the most is ourselves. Yeah, okay. Yeah. So number four. Number four, you said uh serve those we envy, serve those we're jealous of. Yep. Why should we do that?

SPEAKER_00 16:55

Yeah, I think um you know what happens when we're serving somebody, or Lord willing, as we do it, is over time is that can really uh transform our feelings towards another person. And uh um, you know, if we go in there with a bad attitude, that might we might we might need to do some praying, say God help me to do this with the right attitude, the right motive.

SPEAKER_03 17:14

But like don't have the be kind to your enemies and keep uh burning coals on their heads.

SPEAKER_02 17:20

Like that's not that's the wrong attitude uh in this particular situation.

Pray For Those You Envy

SPEAKER_00 17:24

So I'm like, you're like, I want to uh could God help me to genuinely serve them to meet needs in their life, um, to love them. And uh I think as we do that, it can really help uh transform our own heart. And uh and sometimes honestly, I didn't put this in here, but you need to be careful with this probably, but I think even just to confess your jealousy, uh, either towards like a trusted person, or maybe it could be helpful in certain certain circumstances to confess that to the person you're actually envious of. So that wasn't one of the five, but that's a freebie. That's a freebie. That's that's uh I can get that one for free. Yeah. But I think I think that that has been helpful. There's been times where I've done that, and um, it's been very helpful to killing jealousy. You know, James says confess your sins to one another. You might be healed, and and some of the healing is just like a sense of healing in the relationship. It's helped me get out. Okay, I have this and then you like oftentimes when you say it, you're like, that is so lame. Yeah. Like I'm yeah, I it's like it makes it so uh uh clear. I'm like, why am I jealous over this thing?

SPEAKER_03 18:35

Yeah, that's one of the great things about confession is that it does uh in some ways show how trivial some of our pettiness is. Now that's not to say that all sin is trivial, uh it separates you from God for eternity apart from the work of Christ, but like the pettiness of it is just revealed in the confession. Totally, totally.

Practice Gratitude In All Things

SPEAKER_00 18:54

All right, number number five or six, five or six, I guess. Yeah, that's right. Um, but it's rejoicing in others' success and blessing. You know, Romans 12, 15, rejoice with those who rejoice. That's right. And um weep with those who weep. And I think this is uh uh along with maybe confessing, it's one of the best ways to just hammer our jealousy to kill it, is to rejoice with people. Yes. So someone like they get into a they get engaged, you're not engaged, and you just you praise God for them. And you you you rejoice uh with them in their engagement or whatever the thing is, you know, there's a hundred and million examples. And um and so you you just say, God, oh like you you thank God in your own heart for them, but you also can like tell them I'm so happy for you. That's right. And I don't think you want to be fake about it, right? But I think you know, there's a reality where a lot of times we're trying to do the right thing and we don't always have the right motive, but doing the right thing can help with like having the right attitude. That's right. And so I think even saying, I'm so happy for you, and um, I'm glad that this is um God has blessed you with this or whatever it might be. And uh so rejoicing with those who rejoice is a great way to like is to really hammer uh hammer out the jealousy in our our own life.

SPEAKER_03 20:12

That's right. And all all five, six of these, they they work together. They do. Um it's it's good to really focus on on one of them, but you gotta you gotta take them all uh as a package deal because um yeah, they will build off of each other, they'll feed each other.

SPEAKER_00 20:29

And the gospel is really the fountainhead for all of it. That's right. You know, like why are we able to rejoice for those who rejoice? Because, like you said earlier, the gospel changes our outlook on how we even look at other people. That's right. And so we need to uh really go back to Christ and his work and what he's done for us, and all these other things flow out of that.

SPEAKER_03 20:46

That's right.