'Aheart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones." (Proverbs 14: 30). Envy and jealousy are identical twins. They walk hand in hand through our lives.

Few of us escape its clutches. It creeps into our relationships and destroys our confidence in ourselves and in others. Some claim to be exempt from this third deadly sin. And we hear something like this: "I don't have a jealous bone in my body."

This is more often talk than reality. There are many examples of envy and jealousy in the Bible. King Saul was jealous of David's growing popularity (read 1 Samuel 18: 28-29). Joseph felt the jealousy of his brothers as Genesis 37 reminds us. Jesus also was a victim of jealousy: "Do you want me to release to you the king of the jews? Asked Pilate, knowing it was out of envy that the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him." (Mark 15: 9-10). Envy has no rewards; it grows out of fear. Mistrust and suspicion are the beginning of an evil attitude. Such fear invades marriage, family, school, professions and the church. And envy creates a grudging spirit. An employee may dislike another employee who gets a promotion. A church member may resent another Christian being selected for the office of deacon/elder. And in all these cases, not one person profits by letting such a bitter spirit enter his or her life. Another example is the ugly envy in the hearts of the Pharisees that led them to contrive false charges against Jesus and deliver him to Pilate. The Book of Esther tells the story of jealousy. It is the history of a man named Haman whose jealousy of the Jews centred on the Jewish leader Mordecai. Happiness and contentment are two qualities all of us seek in life. Yet our text tells us that the opposite of such peace is envy. We must constantly be on our guard against its destructive power. It often causes us to lose more than we gain.

This week's thought: The shoe that pinches one may fit another.