The Cure for Jealousy

I Samuel 17 records the monumental story of when David killed Goliath. Afterward, King Saul talked to David. After that the Bible tells us “that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul” (I Sam. 18:1). Jonathan was the king’s son, heir to the throne. But when David, a godly young man, accomplished a great spiritual feat, Jonathan loved him and honored him.

Jonathan himself was a godly man, a man of faith, a man valiant in spirit. He recognized and valued the same traits he saw in David, who had become the divinely-anointed heir to the throne. Jonathan saw the spiritual victory that David wrought, but Jonathan was not threatened or jealous over it. You see, to Jonathan, the kingdom was not about himself, but about God. He did not seek glory for himself, but for God. Therefore, he could give honor to whom it is due.

If you ever find yourself threatened over another person’s accomplishment or envious over another person’s honor, you have taken your eyes off of Christ and have set them upon yourself. Humility seeks the esteem for others, and faithfulness desires the glory for Christ.