The Seven Deadly Sins - Part 4 - Envy

The Envy Trap 

1 Timothy 6:6-6:10

TEXT: I Timothy 6:3-10 TITLE: The Envy Trap

How many of you have heard of the tooth fairy? (The question met with a little laughter as everyone raised their hands). I read a story not so long ago about a woman whose 2nd grader had collected a fair amount of money from the "tooth fairy." Every time her daughter Rachel lost a tooth, they’d put it in a small envelope and put it under her daughter’s pillow, and behold, in the morning, the tooth was gone and its place was $2. That was just great. Two dollars is a lot of money for a 2nd grader. At least it was until, one day Rachel visited a friend of hers. Her friend was telling how she had put her tooth under her pillow and found $10 the next morning. Rachel then asked her friend’s mother, ‘Mrs. Kraft, would you mind doing me a big favor? Would you please call my mom and tell her which tooth fairy you use?’”

Paul writes that godliness with contentment is great gain.

But this little girl had lost her contentedness. Why? Because she had fallen prey to one of the most devious thieves known to man. A thief that robs more Christians of their joy and satisfaction in life than many things I know of. It’s one of the traps that Paul hints at when he says “People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap” (I Timothy 6:9)

I. What is this “trap” that can rob us of contentment? I call it the “envy” trap

Notice, that the little girl had gotten $2 a tooth. A 2nd grader with $2 in their pocket should be literally in heaven. That’s a lot of money for a child. But suddenly, that wasn’t enough… why?

Because her friend got $10 for her tooth. NOW $2 was no longer quite enough.

 I recently read about South West Airlines. After the tragedy of September 11th, South West has been THE only big carrier to still be making money (although they are still making about ½ what they had last year). All the other airlines are swimming in red ink and have either declared bankruptcy or are thinking about it – in order to try to avoid their creditors. So, in an atmosphere where most airlines are struggling to survive, SW’s employees have relative job security. And yet, some of the workers in one of its unions is threatening to strike for higher wages. Why? Because comparable employees in one of those other airlines (that’s failing) make more per hour than they do.

Does anybody besides me sense the insanity of that? These union workers were not content, because somebody else (in a failing and potentially bankrupt airline) was getting more than they did.

Solomon wrote: “And I saw that all labor and all achievement spring from man’s envy of his neighbor. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind” Ecclesiastes 4:4

Apparently, envy is a driving force in the lives of many people. It pushes them to be competitive, hard working and successful. So, you would expect that such a motivation would be a “good thing.” But it’s not…

Jesus said: “What comes out of a man is what makes him ‘unclean.’ For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man ‘unclean.’” (Mark 7:20-23)

James wrote: if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such "wisdom" does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. (James 3:14-17)

And Paul warned: The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:19-21)

In other words, envy can make us unclean, unspiritual & even rob us of our salvation. It is not a desirable trait to have in our lives.

II. What lies at the heart of envy?

The heart of envy is the belief that we deserve better than we’ve got.

Jesus told a parable that went like this:

Matthew 20:1-16 "For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire men to work in his vineyard.

He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard. "About the third hour he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ So they went. "He went out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour and did the same thing.

About the eleventh hour he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?’ "‘Because no one has hired us,’ they answered. "He said to them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard.’

"When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.’ "The workers who were hired about the eleventh hour came and each received a denarius.

So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner.

‘These men who were hired last worked only one hour,’ they said, ‘and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.’

"But he answered one of them, ‘Friend, I am not being unfair to you. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius?

Take your pay and go. I want to give the man who was hired last the same as I gave you. Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’ "So the last will be first, and the first will be last."

Did you catch what made the workers so mad? It wasn’t FAIR that people who worked less than they did got the same amount of money that they did.

It didn’t matter that they got what they had been promised.

It didn’t matter that the money was the landowner’s to spend however he pleased

Somehow, they DESERVED better, because the other workers had worked less than they had.

Now, my point is this: when we suffer from envy – we often don’t realize it. We THINK that we DESERVE, and therefore, whatever we have to do to get what we DESERVE is somehow justified - whether it is ends up destroying our friendships, our jobs, or our families. Because its only fair that we get our fair share.

Envy is one of those terrible sins that sneaks up on you and you sometimes don’t even know you’ve fallen prey to it.

III. So… how do you and I know if we’ve fallen INTO the “envy” trap?

Well, you’re in luck, because I’m going to let you in on THE way to determine if you have the potential of falling prey to this trap of envy. It may not be that you are completely controlled by an envious heart, but if the trait we discuss this morning is not in your life, you might easily become a victim of this sinful behavior.

Proverbs tells us: “A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones.” (Prov. 14:30)

In other words: if you’re NOT CONTENT – it’s a sign of envy. You might not be envious of what a neighbor or friend has. It may be something that’s on the store shelves. Or something you’ve seen on a TV advertisement or heard about on the radio. Advertisers are most successful if they can create within you a dissatisfaction with what you have or a great desire to have more than you have. They are most successful when they have convinced you that what you have is not enough.

But if you’re not satisfied with what you have, it is a strong mark of the dangers of envy. Remember, envy arises from comparing what we have with what others have. And the end result of that type of comparing is always going to be dissatisfaction.

According to US News and World Report (in 1999),

For Americans with household incomes under $25,000, it would take $54,000 a year to fulfill the American Dream.

Those who make $100,000+ crave an average of $192,000 to live as they want.

- In other words, the American Dream usually lies nearly twice the distance away.

So… if you compare your possessions and financial status with your neighbor – sooner or later, envy will rob you of happiness. You’ll ALWAYS WANT MORE than what you have. You will not be content.

So… how content are you? How thankful are you for what you have?

1. your job

2. your home

3. your family

4. ???

Now, if you say, “yes I’m thankful for my home…BUT…”

Or, I’m thankful for my husband/ wife… BUT

Or, I’m thankful for my children… BUT

That’s a mark of not being content with what God has given you. Until you get all of those "Buts" out of your thinking, you’ll always be a little dissatisfied with what you have. You’ll never be truly content.

Paul wrote in I Timothy 6:6-8: “Godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.”

What does Paul say we should be content with? (food & clothing). And we should be thankful we’ve got that. If that was all we’d have, that would be sufficient. But in America we’ve got WAY MORE than that.

 William Boice once wrote:

"-- Dear Lord, I have been re-reading the record of the rich young ruler and his obviously wrong choice. But it has set me thinking.

No matter how much wealth he had, he could not -

ride in a car,

have any surgery,

turn on a light,

buy penicillin,

hear a pipe organ,

watch TV,

wash dishes in running water,

type a letter,

mow a lawn,

fly in an airplane,

sleep on an innerspring mattress,

or talk on the phone.

if he was rich, then what am I?

The only type of comparison a Christian should do is comparing how our lives would be like if we didn’t have what we have what God had supplied to you NOW.

So, how content are you?

Dear Abby received this letter a few years back

Dear Abby, Happiness is knowing that your parents won’t almost kill you if you come home a little late. Happiness is having your own bedroom. Happiness is having parents that trust you. Happiness is getting the telephone call you’ve been praying for. Happiness is getting good grades and making your parents who don’t fight. Happiness is knowing that you’re well dressed as anybody. Happiness is something I don’t have. - 15 and Unhappy

A few days later the Dear Abby newspaper column carried this response to the above letter from a 13 year old girl:

Dear Abby, Happiness is being able to walk. Happiness is being able to talk. Happiness is being able to see. Happiness is being able to hear. Unhappiness is reading a letter from a 15 year old girl who can do all these things and still says she isn’t happy. I can talk, I can see, I can hear, but I can’t walk. - Thirteen and Happy.

Americans have one day a year that they dedicate to being thankful. But for Christians, every day should be a day of thanksgiving, if only because we have more to be thankful for than anyone else in the world. For God loved us so much that He sent His only Son to die for our sins.