Today’s Reading: Galatians 5:19-26
Envy or greed is the desire to possess what belongs to someone else. Of course, God does not like envy or greed. In one of the Ten Commandments, greed is prohibited.

Envy made Cain murdered Abel, his younger brother. The envy of Joseph’s brothers made them sell him as a slave to the Egyptians. The envy of the Jewish priests led them to deliver Jesus to Pilate to unfairly be crucified.

Envy is not just a desire for new clothes, a luxury car or new toys; it is the uncontrolled and selfish desire to own something that belongs to our neighbor.

The immense desire to possess something reveals our inner dissatisfaction and leads to anger, hatred and even murder. That’s why the Bible condemns envy and addresses this issue very seriously.

The sooner we despise this kind of sin in our hearts, the better will it be for us and for our relations with others and with God.

If the Spirit of Christ takes hold of our lives, we will have the strength to conquer envy. There will be no room for envy in a happy and loving heart.

Ildefonso Torres