Sadly, another controversy has exploded in the Reformed Christian world.¹ Recently, the minister of a long-established church and leader of a well-known public-facing ministry was removed from his post. The ministry held regular conferences, with recent years welcoming ~8,000 to 9,000 people. What happened that brought about the removal of this man? While interacting with many well-known, godly, and gifted men and ministries (many of whom were considered his friends), he simultaneously was running anonymous social media accounts and slandering the very same men and ministries; to make matters worse, when he was confronted by the board of the ministry he led and the elders of the church he ministered in, he denied everything. Sadly, it was proved to be true, and eventually, he had to acknowledge what he had done.

The underlying truth of why he did this may not be known for many days. However, it is good for us to consider what might motivate someone to do this, so that, Lord willing, we too might take care lest we fall. What would motivate a man leading such an incredible ministry and well-established church to do such a thing? The only answer I have been able to come up with is envy. A while ago we considered the deadly nature of envy, one of the key aspects being that envy always gives birth to a desire to destroy those we are envious of. Could it be that sadly this man was envious of the gifts, success, and talents that those around him had, so that he sought to destroy them? Only God knows, but I think it’s highly probable.

This all raises a really important question for us. How do we deal with the giftedness of others without becoming envious? Imagine you are a goldsmith or jeweller in Israel at the time of the building of the tabernacle. You sit there as Moses declares to the people, “See, the LORD has called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah; and he has filled him with the Spirit of God, with skill, with intelligence, with knowledge, and with all craftsmanship, to devise artistic designs, to work in gold and silver and bronze, in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, for work in every skilled craft. And he has inspired him to teach, both him and Oholiab the son of Ahisamach of the tribe of Dan. He has filled them with skill to do every sort of work done by an engraver or by a designer or by an embroiderer in blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen, or by a weaver—by any sort of workman or skilled designer.”² You begin to watch Oholiab and Bezalel create some of the most intricate and beautiful pieces you have ever seen. Deep in your heart the temptation to envy begins to grow. What do you do?

First, acknowledge that every gift and success comes from the Lord. What did Bezalel and Oholiab have to boast about? If you asked them how they became so incredible, what would they say but, “God called me and equipped me”? The very men or women you are envious of are only what they are because God has made them that way. Therefore, when you are envious of another person, you are effectively blaming God as the one who made them that way!

Second, recognize and focus on using the gifts that God has given you. When we spend all our time looking at Bezalel and Oholiab, we begin to forsake using what God has actually given us to use. Bezalel was not the one who would be butchering the sacrifices, and Oholiab probably wasn’t the one making sure the next generation was not lost in the wilderness, and yet these aspects of life were just as essential as their work. When we shift our focus to using what God has given us for His Kingdom, we are set free from worrying and envying what God has given others.

Third, give thanks to God for the particular gifts that He has given you and others. God has established a well-equipped church.³ Every single brother and sister in the Kingdom of God has been given a gift to enable the Kingdom to flourish. This means you ought to celebrate those who have them and give thanks to God for them. The solution to envy is finding joy in the gift giver. When joy is established in our hearts for the God who has bestowed gifts upon us and them, we will begin to put envy to death.

Holding up the Mirror:

• What gifts has God given me that I can utilise for the kingdom?
• What types of people and gifts do I most often envy?
• In what way have I been neglecting the gifts God has given me?

1. I am not mentioning the names of the individual or groups, because I don’t want to attempt to benefit by attracting readers through click-bait means. However, I do want us to be able to learn lessons from the events that have transpired. ↩︎
2. Exodus 35:30–35 ↩︎
3. Romans 12 ↩︎