{"id":997,"date":"2020-10-25T13:59:32","date_gmt":"2020-10-25T18:59:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/biblicalpath.com\/?p=997"},"modified":"2020-10-25T13:59:32","modified_gmt":"2020-10-25T18:59:32","slug":"a-temptation-to-envy-the-prosperous-wicked","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/biblicalpath.com\/index.php\/2020\/10\/25\/a-temptation-to-envy-the-prosperous-wicked\/","title":{"rendered":"A Temptation to Envy the Prosperous Wicked"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"
\u201c6. But godliness with contentment is great gain.<\/strong>\u00a07. For we brought nothing into this<\/em> world, and it is<\/em> certain we can carry nothing out.\u201d<\/strong>
1 Timothy 6:6-7 <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSee what\nAsaph recognized: \u2018Truly God is<\/em> good to <\/strong>Israel<\/strong>,\neven<\/em> to such as are of a clean heart<\/strong>\u2019 (Psalm 73:1). He was\nacknowledging the goodness of God to whom God has given a clean heart (forgiven\nof sin). But in the very next breath, he admits something. \u20182. But as for\nme, my feet were almost gone; my steps had well nigh slipped. 3. For I was\nenvious at the foolish, when<\/em> I saw the prosperity of the wicked<\/strong>\u2019\n(Psalm 73:2\u20133). Think for a minute. Have you ever been jealous of someone\u2019s\n\u201cgood luck\u201d or the \u201ccool stuff\u201d they can afford to buy? Maybe someone else can\nafford to do something you have always wanted to do. That is exactly what Asaph\ncaught himself just about to do. He had been looking at the people who did not\nbelong to God, who had not given their hearts and lives to Him, realizing they\nwere busy pleasing themselves and becoming rich in this world. He was jealous.\nHe was about to \u201cbuy into\u201d the lie with which Satan tries to fool us. Do you\nremember what Jesus told us to do? \u201819. Lay not up for yourselves treasures\nupon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through\nand steal: 20. But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither\nmoth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:\n21. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also<\/strong>\u2019 (Matthew 6:19\u201321). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNotice that\nAsaph recognized God\u2019s goodness to those who were of a \u201cclean heart.\u201d Their\nhearts were with God, forgiven by God. That is where God wants our hearts and\neven our minds. Do you remember what happened to Achan when he disobeyed God\nand stole the garment, the wedge of gold, and the shekels of silver. Israel\nlost the next battle, and Achan and his family were stoned (Joshua 7:20\u201326). He chose \u201cthings\u201d (riches) over\nobedience to God and His Word.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAsaph saw the prosperity of this world\nand did not understand (Psalm 73:4\u201312). He began to think that he had missed. \u201813.\nVerily I have cleansed my heart in<\/em> vain, and washed my hands in\ninnocency. 14. For all the day long have I been plagued, and chastened every\nmorning<\/strong>\u2019 (Psalm 73:13\u201314). He was almost ready to give up his \u201creligion.\u201d\nHe didn\u2019t understand why it seemed he had so many problems and troubles when\nthe wicked didn\u2019t. Notice where it was that Asaph learned what he needed to\nknow about this situation. \u2018Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then<\/em>\nunderstood I their end<\/strong>\u2019 (Psalm 73:17). He found the answers to his\nquestions when he went to \u201cchurch\u201d, that place dedicated to the things of God.\nThen he understood \u201ctheir end.\u201d He recognized his ignorance (\u201cSo foolish was<\/em> I, and ignorant \u2026<\/strong>\u201d\nPsalm 73:22). He knew God would lead him and give him counsel (Psalm 73:24) and\nthen receive him into glory. It is here that he acknowledges \u2018there is<\/em>\nn<\/strong>one<\/strong> upon earth that<\/em> I\ndesire beside thee<\/strong>\u2019 (Psalm 73:25b). He had\nmade God his heart\u2019s desire.\u201d (An excerpt from The Biblical Path of Life<\/em><\/strong>,\nYear One Quarter Four, Lesson 4.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When you were born, you did not\nbring anything with you (see Ecclesiastes 5:15-16).\nJesus told us to lay not up for ourselves treasure here on earth, but in\nheaven. He also gave us a warning that where our treasure is, that is where our\nheart will be. We can also be reminded of this in 1 Timothy 6:6-7: \u201c6. But\ngodliness with contentment is great gain.<\/strong> 7. For we brought nothing into this<\/em> world, and it is<\/em>\ncertain we can carry nothing out.<\/strong>\u201d After remembering this, see what\nwe are to do: \u201cSet your affection\non things above, not on things on the earth<\/strong>\u201d (Colossians 3:2).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are you content with what you have? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Have you made God your heart\u2019s desire? <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cSee what Asaph recognized: \u2018Truly God is good to Israel, even to such as are of a clean heart\u2019 (Psalm 73:1). He was acknowledging the goodness of God to whom God has given a clean heart (forgiven of sin). But in the very next breath, he admits something. \u20182. But as for me, my feet […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[319,318,317],"tags":[530,532,230,529,186,528,125,533,407,527,531],"class_list":["post-997","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-excerpt-from-the-biblical-path-of-life","category-picture-with-verse-and-blog","category-year-one-quarter-four","tag-affection","tag-asaph","tag-church","tag-contentment","tag-god","tag-godliness","tag-heart","tag-jealous","tag-psalm","tag-sanctuary","tag-treasure"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/biblicalpath.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/997","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/biblicalpath.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/biblicalpath.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/biblicalpath.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/biblicalpath.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=997"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/biblicalpath.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/997\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":999,"href":"http:\/\/biblicalpath.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/997\/revisions\/999"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/biblicalpath.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=997"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/biblicalpath.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=997"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/biblicalpath.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=997"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}