I don't see selfish motives being a bad thing. How are you going to love others if you can't love yourself? And if you dont take care of yourself, how are you going to care for someone else.
I think also jealousy is different than envy. With jealousy comes deserved belonging; what truly belongs to you you will be jealous over. Envy is the evil thing where someone wants what ain't there's to begin with, or they wish they were somebody else, or someone else's life.
Now the bible declares that all humans are undeserving and sinful. And all must repent. Sin is evil from what I understand. Like going down the road toward Hell. I don't know if there are different degrees of sin or it's all to the same degree.
This doesn't seem like a healthy view of the world. It ignores the power of heart choice to choose good that people have.
While it's true that many people gravitate toward evil desires, is that really true of all humanity?
In reality we all must have defenses for this reason. Evil leads toward destruction, and goodness leads to life civilization. America has qualities of goodness in it still after all these years. Why? Because we don't believe in unrestrained power and might, and we have a wise foundation of law. Everyone is subject to the law, and our freedoms ensure that nothing is immune to judgment and criticism, and scrutiny. And where does the love of mercy fit into this? In reality wrongdoers can repent and some do.
I guess we all need to assess the value of our souls, or lives in terms of justice and
The nature of intention. I ask myself this very thing, do I have good intentions that promote peace and freedom? And I ask it about others as well.
So I think it's a fact that freedom and civilization itself is built on love, mercy, wisdom, and the power of those three things. I realize some people are beyond mercy. But clear lines of justice and compassion must be defended. After all what do we all want for ourselves? We want safety, and peace, love and to contribute, or perhaps many just want power, control, and pleasure, and renowned reputations. I think the moral push and pull will always be there. And the fight for right and what's good is always more than worth it.