THE MORE EXCELLENT WAY Part 1

The wisdom of the fathers

THE MORE EXCELLENT WAY Part 1

"The thirteenth chapter of First Corinthians consists mostly of 'nots.'"

LOVE "envies not." Envy! That unpleasant something shut up in the heart like a secret fire that feels greatly grieved at the sight of its superior's happiness and prosperity! The peculiar thing about envy is that it is found in the heart of the unsanctified. It dwells on the faults and failures of others rather than their gifts and virtues. This kind of a spirit, like a burning acid, eats the very sweetness of the Christ-life out.

There is something that belongs to a sanctified life that is a thousand-fold beyond orthodox theology; a tenderness and a sweetness and holy fragrance like the breath of Heaven and the perfume of the Rose of Sharon. But the envious spirit strikes through this inward purity and Divine sweetness like the touch of gall, until all one has left is the hull of the outward form of a religious profession.

An envious preacher finds great pleasure in criticizing the successful preacher whom the Holy Ghost is using and Heaven is honoring. If he fails to find anything in his past life, then his pulpit manners and methods are criticized. Envy was at the root of some of the darkest crimes mentioned in the Bible. Joseph was envied by his brethren because of his spotless life, his loving disposition and winning ways.

Oh, this scorpion-headed, green-eyed monster; this ulcer of hell! If you find this in your heart, do not stop short of a complete cure. The baptism of the Holy Ghost and fire destroys carnality and gives us a love that "envies not." 

(from "Deeper Things" by J.M. Hames)