“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” Matthew 5:8.
"True faith purifies the heart from all envy. Christ gave Himself for us to redeem us from all iniquity and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” [Matthew 5:8.] No one can have a clear view of God and a convincing knowledge of His character and yet be full of envy, pettishness, jealousy and evil surmisings. Jesus Christ was a perfect Pattern of moral excellency. He is our Example in all things. Earthly wisdom may exclude from the eye the wisdom of God. It is given unto the chosen and faithful to know the glory of the mystery of Christ formed within, the hope of glory." {Ms76-1893.37}
Psalms 133:1 "Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! 2 It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments; 3 As the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion: for there the Lord commanded the blessing, even life for evermore."
"Christians should regard it as a religious duty to repress a spirit of envy or emulation. They should rejoice in the superior reputation or prosperity of their brethren, even when their own character or achievements seem to be cast in the shade. It was the pride and ambition cherished in the heart of Satan that banished him from Heaven. These evils are deeply rooted in our fallen nature, and if not removed they will overshadow every good and noble quality, and bring forth envy and strife as their baleful fruits. {ST January 25, 1883, par. 1} We should seek for true goodness, rather than greatness. Those who possess the mind of Christ will have humble views of themselves. They will labor for the purity and prosperity of the church, and be ready to sacrifice their own interests and desires rather than to cause dissension among their brethren." {ST January 25, 1883, par. 2}
James 3:14 "But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth. 15 This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. 16 For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work."
“It is not the opposition of the world that most endangers the church of Christ. It is the evils cherished in the hearts of believers that works their most grievous disaster and most surely retards the progress of God’s cause. There is no surer way of weakening spirituality than by cherishing envy, suspicion, faultfinding, and evil surmising. On the other hand, the strongest witness that God has sent His Son into the world is the existence of harmony and union among men of varied dispositions.”
"Matthew 25:40 "And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."
"Never let your tongue and voice be employed in discovering and dilating upon the defects of your brethren, for the record of heaven identifies Christ's interests with those He has purchased with His own blood. "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren," He says, "ye have done it unto me" (Matthew 25:40). We are to learn to be loyal to one another, to be true as steel in the defense of our brethren. Look to your own defects. You had better discover one of your own faults than ten of your brother's. Remember that Christ has prayed for these, His brethren, that they all might be one as He is one with the Father. Seek to the uttermost of your capabilities to be in harmony with your brethren to the extent of Christ's measurement, as He is one with the Father. . . . {HP 178.4} "Love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous" (1 Peter 3:8). True moral worth does not seek to have a place for itself by evil thinking and evil speaking, by demeriting others. All envy, all jealousy, all evil speaking, with all unbelief, must be put away from God's children." {HP 178.5}
James 3:14 "But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth."
"A spirit of criticism and bitterness has come into the church, and the spiritual discernment of many has been dimmed. The Spirit can never be poured out while variance and bitterness toward one another are cherished by the members of the church. Envy, jealousy, evil surmising and evil speaking are of Satan, and they effectually bar the way against the Holy Spirit's working. Nothing so offends God as an act that injures the influence of those who are doing His service. He will call to account all who aid Satan in his work of criticising and discouraging." {IR, May 22, 1907 par. 2}
Philippians 2:2 "Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. 3 Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves."
"God may choose instrumentalities that we do not accept, because they do not exactly meet our ideas. They do not work in the very line marked out as perfect, and in place of leaving them with God, for His Spirit to work with them, many begin to present difficulties, barricade the way, and cherish a grieved feeling because they see that they are doing a work that has not been done. Then begins the dissecting of character and the gathering up of tidbits of complaints, and fault-finding and slander, and magnifying of little occurrences and events into grave sins. This has been done in the church until we are weak, and we will always be weak unless this narrow order of things is changed. May the Lord show you all what to do that you may be filled with thanksgiving, gratitude and praise to God for the precious gift of the Son of God, and put away envyings, jealousies and rivalries, that true love and unity may exist." {1888 1091.2}
Proverbs 14:30 "A sound heart is the life of the flesh:
but envy the rottenness of the bones."
"All faultfinding, all criticizing, all envy, jealousy, and evil-surmising, must be put away with all evil-speaking. You are to prepare the highways of the Lord. You are to strive to be one with Christ in God. Then there will be given to the world an evidence of the great goodness of God in sending His Son to die for men. True, genuine love will be expressed, for Christ is abiding in the heart. Then your prayers will be offered in the spirit and power of God, and God will be revealed. Where you are now standing, in disunion, the atmosphere about your souls is of Satan’s creating. It is his own breath. Obey the Word, and love as brethren, and God will bind you together with the great love wherewith He loved His Son. This is the love you each are to express to the world."—Letter 40, 1899. {21MR 49.3}
Unless otherwise indicated, all quotations come from the writings of Ellen G. White