He Is Jealous

Jealousy seems like a very ugly emotion. There are lots of sayings that belittle the person who is jealous. The ancient Greek philosopher, Heraclitus, once said, “Our envy always lasts longer than the happiness of those we envy.” George Eliot said, “One of the tortures of jealousy is, that it can never turn away its eyes from the thing that pains it.”

It seems that jealousy is a very bad trait to have. However, we are told in the Exodus 34:14 that our God is a “jealous God.” That doesn’t seem like a very good quality for God to have. In fact, TV personality Oprah once said that she turned away from Christianity because she read that God was “jealous.” So, why does He so boldly proclaim this?

Because We Are His Best

Jealousy is always presented in a negative way and, most often, when it applies to us, it is. So, maybe understanding it should begin with a definition. The dictionary tells us that jealous is to be “hostile toward a rival or one believed to enjoy an advantage. Intolerant of rivalry or unfaithfulness. Vigilant in guarding a possession.”

Using that definition, is our God jealous? You bet He is!

John 8:34 tells us that “everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin.” 2 Peter 2:19 adds that “they themselves are slaves of corruption. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved.”

There are many more verses that discuss this, but the fact is that we were slaves to our sin. That meant that our master was the devil. Our corrupt natures made it so that we followed evil, sinful ways, corrupted by Satan.

Imagine God’s feeling. We were perfectly designed and formed by Him but belonged to Satan. Satan is God’s enemy, His rival. Satan has an “advantage” in that we prefer to do evil, sinful things. Doesn’t God have a right to be jealous?

If you continue on with that definition, we see that to be jealous is to be intolerant of rivalry or unfaithfulness. God doesn’t want us following after the devil. He is calling us to Himself, but we are choosing our sinful nature over Him. Doesn’t it make sense that He would be upset at our unfaithfulness?

Here’s the best part about that definition. A jealous person is vigilant in guarding a possession. We belong to God. He made us in His image and declared after making us that what He made was “very good.” We are His most prized possessions. Of course He is protective of us.

Because He Loves Us

Why is God so jealous for us? That was a question that began our song for the week, “He Loves Us” by David Crowder. You can listen to and read the lyrics by clicking the link below:

This song boldly proclaims at the starting that “He is jealous for me.” God does not deny this at all. He wants us to know that He is extremely vigilant about guarding His possession. That He is hostile towards the devil because the devil has an advantage because of our sinful nature.

Crowder points out the very reason why God feels this way – because He loves us. We are so deeply loved and adored by God that everything that stands in the way of our relationship with Him He hates. He wants nothing but to have us all for Himself, and rightfully so. After all, each of us is His greatest creation.

Overcoming the Lies

We are so loved by God but struggle to see that as truth. This is the biggest lie that Satan has been able to convince us of, that God does not care about us at all. Satan shovels lies from the pits of hell, telling us that we don’t matter, we’re not good enough, we’re not forgiven, we’re bad, we’re useless. He uses others to convince us of this, maybe even those who are the most important to us.

This is what happened with Quinton Edwards. Satan used others to lie to our brother, to convince him that he has no value. The rival of God, Satan, has convinced our brother that he will never amount to anything.

We know better. We know that our amazing brother is perfectly designed by the Creator of all things and that our God is jealous for His most prized possession. Quinton, like every one of the other 15 men at Hope CDA, is loved with a love that goes beyond anything that we can possibly imagine.

You are loved by God. You are His prize. You are drawn to redemption, and His grace is an ocean, so vast that it has no limits.

Do we serve a jealous God? Absolutely! A God who loves us so much and wants us all to Himself that He gave up His life in the most brutal way imaginable to have us all to Himself. Why did He do this? Because He loves us! Remember that today and I pray that you sing this song because no truer words were ever said before.

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Hope Good News

Phillip Akers joined the Hope CDA program on Thursday. Philip is just 19 years old, choosing to make some dramatic changes in his life. We are excited about what God will be doing in his life… Jason Nichols reached nine months of sobriety, an amazing feat for our brother.

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It’s Spring…The Perfect Time to Make Your Car Divine

Ok, it is a couple of weeks until spring. However, the weather is getting warmer, making it the perfect time to have your car detailed. Divine Shine is offering a special: get a total detail for $150 or an exterior detail for $75. This is a great time to remove that winter salt and grime from both inside and outside your vehicle. If you are interested, call (319) 929-3084 to make an appointment. We are ready to get your car looking divine!

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Volunteer Opportunities

We are looking for volunteers who would like to help our men on their employment and vocational journey. Mike Carson and Duane Toenges have volunteered to join our group in assisting our men, but we need others to help with job searches, resume building, job interviewing, and vocational planning. If you are interested, please contact our Volunteer Coordinator, Tahsha Jones (Tahsha.Jones@HopeCDAcr.org).

We are also looking for four people who are interested in helping teach classes on Friday mornings about nutrition and health. These classes are taught every other Friday, and we are looking for some who have ideas on how they can help our men to be healthier. Please reach out to Tahsha for more information.

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Prayers for the Week

We ask you to join in prayer for these things:

1. We pray for Philip as he begins his journey in the Life Transformation Program. We pray that Philip will find the life transformation that will keep them free from drugs and alcohol for the rest of his life.
2. A spirit of division was invited into Hope CDA over the last two months. We pray that spirit will be crushed at the feet of Jesus and that complete unity in the body of believers will be restored.
3. We pray for Doug, the son of James, who was given a terminal diagnosis last week. May God comfort his family as they deal with this traumatic experience.
4. We continue to pray for Lavonne Johnson. May God relieve the pain she is suffering and bring her and her husband comfort.

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Tuesday Night of Encouragement

Steve Jenkins was supposed to provide his performance this Tuesday night but is unable to be there. Instead, Dr. Robert Pannier will provide a message. Please join us at 5:30 p.m. for dinner and at 6:00 p.m. for Dr. Pannier’s message.

On Tuesday, March 24, Jason Grimm and his wife will be the featured speakers. They have an amazing message of overcoming addiction and grace that will surely be something you will not want to miss.

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