There was a recent conflict where on the surface, one person seemed to be in the wrong, and the other person was upset. Upon getting some more facts, the truth was that there were hidden motives. The accuser made it seem like he was the victim and he fought viciously and relentlessly to point out the faults (in front of others) in the other person and took no ownership in the dispute.
The real problem is that the accuser was jealous. He didn’t get his way in a prior dispute, and ever since, things have spiraled out of control for him. He wanted what the other person had: Power, authority, success, and influence. As in most jealousy situations, the more the accuser became jealous, the more he lost. He began to lose all of the things he had so bitterly sought after. The thing is that he could have had all of those things if he’d only gone about it the honest and loving way, yielding to the decisions that had been made, and owning up to his own mistakes and insecurities.
It is easy to write this story about another person but if we’re honest, we’ve all been jealous and the hard part is that we usually don’t see it, we are in denial, or try to justify our feelings. We can be prone to jealousy when we are insecure, comparing ourselves to others, wanting more no matter how much we have, or when we fear some kind of loss.
In Mark 15, Jesus is delivered to Pilate and “accused of many things” (v. 3). Pilate knew Jesus was innocent and eventually asked the priests what evil Jesus had done (v. 15). Pilate also knew their motive: Jealousy.
For he perceived that it was out of envy that the chief priests had delivered him up. (Mark 15:10)
The priests “stirred up the crowd” (v. 11) in order to gain momentum for their selfish desires. They wanted Jesus brought down so they could gain power, yet through their sin, they lost, and it is the same for us as we choose our way over God’s way. In jealousy and other sins, what we think we’ll gain, we lose. Fortunately, through the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ, sin has lost its power. The enemy lost so that we will be victorious as we are forgiven through the grace and mercy of Jesus.
Pray today for God to reveal any jealousy in your heart. I was convicted this week while focusing on these scriptures and I think if we’re all honest, jealousy is at the root of much of our frustration or anger.
Fear not though friends. In this chapter of false accusations, torture, mocking, pain, and death we can look forward to the next chapter: Sunday is coming. The stone will be rolled away. There is life, hope, and victory over death.