Our God is an Awesome God. But our God is also a jealous God. He doesn’t like it when our attention is divided between Him and the world. However, His type of jealousy and the type of jealousy we think of are different.
The world’s type of jealousy is derived from our human pride. We react in fear and lash out in anger with words of accusation, often without a factual base. We often base our current situation how we reacted to past experiences. Jealousy can be a dangerous emotion, often the basis for ending many relationships.
But Godly jealousy is very different. It is a loving and protective emotion. Think of it this way. We don’t want to see our children hurt in any way. If they were to start to listen to bad advice or to follow the world, we would want to do all we could to help them. We would be jealous of their attention to the world.
God is the same way with us. He knows what happens when we follow our sinful nature. And it upsets Him. Just as bad behavior upsets a loving parent. Then bring on the jealous discipline. But as God called the Israelites in Moses’ days… a “stiff-necked people.” Not much has changed. They needed it, so do we today.
Best thing to do when we experience God’s jealous discipline is to accept it, learn from it, and allow it to change our life for the better.
“My child, don’t reject the Lord’s discipline, and don’t be upset when he corrects you. For the Lord corrects those he loves, just as a father corrects a child in whom he delights.” – Proverbs 3:11-12
Photo by Ayo Ogunseinde on Unsplash
Moments for the Heart 