“… for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me…” (Exodus 20:5)
Jealousy is an integral part of the human experience. You see it everywhere. Someone has the latest, and others want it too—but even bigger and better. God is different. He wants the best for us, and that is why He created the world. That is why Jesus Christ came to earth to save us.
God does not desire that we share the honour due only to Him with anything or anyone. He is the only true God, and desires to be recognized and honoured as such— by the Israelites, and by us. He wants us to love and obey Him in an exclusive relationship—not sharing Him with idols in whatever form they take.
This aspect of faith is like that of a marriage, a relationship in which you are exclusively devoted to one another, and you don’t put up with disloyalty.
God’s position must not be seen as intolerance, but as protection—a unique, precious relationship He desires to have with us. In truth there is no competition for God, but we tend to forget this. God has the rights to our hearts and our entire lives.
Israël had to serve the Lord faithfully, and it failed. Ultimately, one person perfected Israel’s task: Jesus Christ. He was loyal to the Lord God in a perfect way. Build your life exclusively on Jesus! Let Him free you from jealousy.