Do you struggle with envy? Nobody wants to admit this--especially Christians. And yet if you are anything like me, you know what it is like to see another person and covet his looks, his salary, his friends (real, not Facebook), or his talents. Paul may have been speaking of material possessions when he instructed Timothy, "godliness with contentment is great gain," but the application is much more broad. If we are not content with the gifts God has given us then we are, fundamentally, not content with the God who gave us those gifts.

The psalmist's honesty in Psalm 73 is overwhelming. He admits his struggle with envy: "For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked" (v. 3).

Picture a guy walking down the hallway at his office. Let's call him Sam. Sam has been working at his company for four years, working hard in fact. Every day he come in at 9am. Sam is a Christian. He is careful not to gossip, and he always tries to treat people kindly. Sam has a good reputation with his coworkers and his employer. As Sam is walking down the hallway he runs into Steve. Steve's been at the company for two years and has proven to be quite an asset. His sales are through the roof--and it is easy to see why. Steve has a way with people. He makes them feel at ease. Words flow smoothly from his lips. Whether he's talking about the latest product or his latest romance, Steve exudes confidence.

Today, Steve looks particularly happy. "Hi Steve," says Sam. "What's going on?"

"I just got promoted to sales manager. It's going to be hard, but I'm very excited."

"That's excellent, Steve. Congratulations! I'm not surprised, you are great with people, and I'm sure you will do well."

Sam said all the right things. He was friendly and encouraging. But Sam really struggled. He knows Steve is qualified, that's not the point. Sam is longing for recognition, encouragement, and affirmation. Seeing Steve become the shooting star in the office is like have salt rubbed into a scrape. It hurts.

So how did the psalmist deal with his envy? He fed himself lies. The first lie he believed was that his life was worthless. He told himself that his life was a waste: "Surely in vain have I kept my heart pure; in vain have I washed my hands in innocence" (v. 13). In other words, the psalmist wondered why he even bothered to be holy if the ungodly were going to prosper. The second lie he believed was that his life was pitiful: "All day long I have been plagued; I have been punished every morning." The psalmist could only see the pain and misery in his life. Which only made things worse. 

So how did the psalmist finally break out? He meditated upon the character of God. When the psalmist took his eyes off of himself and upon the God who made him, his sin was revealed: "When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny" (vv. 16-17). In the sanctuary of God the psalmist remembered that God is pure and holy. This holy God is unimpressed with worldly achievements. Wealth and attention will not last. And the final destiny for those who trust such things is not good: "Surely you place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin" (v. 18).

But I said the sin of the psalmist was revealed--and it was. For you see it was not just the wicked man who was lusting after prosperity, the psalmist was, too. The only difference is the psalmist didn't have it! Wealth had a grip on both of them. It was obvious that the arrogant man lived for wealth, it was his self-proclaimed goal. Wealth controlled him. But wealth controlled the psalmist too.

Both men lusted after wealth, until the psalmist came into the presence of God. There he came to see that nothing compares to the LORD: "My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever" (v. 26). 

Back to Sam. If Sam is like the psalmist, he will come to realize that he's loving the wrong things. The hands of his heart are clinging to status and recognition instead of the mercy and grace which are only found in Christ and which are sufficient to produce joy in every true believer. 

In my experience, this truth is fundamental and must be fought for on a daily basis. As one prayer-warrior put it: "Hatred, malice, ill-will, vain-glory that hungers for and hunts after man's approval and applause, all are crucified, forgiven, but they rise again in my sinful heart." Envy rises again wherever it can, only to push the true believer deeper into the soil beneath the cross of Christ.