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LOVE NOT THE WORLD

Christian Life, ,

LOVE NOT THE WORLD

“Do not love the world or anything in the world.  If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him…. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever. “ 1 John 2:15, 17

Satan attacks us on two fronts. He comes at us directly from the outside through people and circumstances, illness, conflict, persecution, treachery, injustice, financial constraints etc. W know where these things come from but, if we keep our eyes on Jesus, we can use these trials to grow our trust in God and to build character – perseverance and hope, as James encourages us to do. We may not always understand what is happening, but we can be sure that God will give us grace to help us overcome the tests and not become angry or bitter.

We don’t always recognise the more subtle approach of the devil, to entice us to satisfy our natural human appetites and desires. We are physical beings who experience the world through our senses. We get pleasure through what we see, hear, taste, smell, and touch. In this way we connect with the world around us. God made us to enjoy the pleasures of our senses but…

Satan wants to trick us into spending so much time enjoying the pleasures of our world that these things eat away at our desire for the presence of God and the lasting pleasures of His kingdom. The difference between the pleasures that the world offers and the pleasures of fellowship with God is that worldly pleasures require more to satisfy us, while the pleasure of walking with Jesus is lasting.

Another problem is that, because worldly pleasures demand more to get satisfaction that does not last, we soon become addicted to things which master us, destroy us and then we land up on the garbage dump and Satan laughs because he has got his way. We only wake up when we are hooked.

The Bible has a lot to say about the shortness of life. We are like a vapour that is here for a moment and then gone; like flowers that bloom today and are thrown away tomorrow; like a blip on the radar screen of time. We only have that tiny moment in which to plot our course for eternity. Seventy or eighty years, or even a hundred and twenty, pass by like a flash of lightning and then we are gone, but our choice is made, and our course set forever. 

Our appetites develop according to what we eat. Give a child only junk food and he will refuse vegetables. The key is to eat the right food until we develop an appetite for it. If we choose to “feed” on Jesus long enough by eating His word and spending time with Him, our appetite for Him will grow. The more we look at the beauty of Jesus through His word, the more we are attracted to Him and lose our appetite for the world.

DO NOT LOVE THE WORLD

Christian life, ,

DO NOT LOVE THE WORLD

“Do not love the world, nor anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in Him…The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God, lives forever.” (1 John 2:15, 17, NIV).

What is this “world” of which John speaks? It can surely not be the natural world since, at the time of creation, God declared it “good”.

There is a “world” within the world that represents an alien and unseen domain that is superimposed on the good earth God created. The Apostle Paul called it “the dominion of darkness” (Colossians 1:13) over which the devil, “the god of this age,” (2 Corinthians 4:4), presides, and blinds the minds of those who do not believe..

Why should believers not love the world?

Firstly, the values of the world are opposed to God’s values. The world espouses, applauds and panders to the cravings of sinful man. Those who live comfortably in the present world system are nurtured in self-centredness, self-will and self-gratification. 

We live in a world that is drunk on entertainment, promoting values that titillate the senses; its value system is based on situation ethics – it is right as long as it feels right regardless of who gets hurt in the process. There are no absolute standards of right and wrong in the world because God has been written out of the text.

Secondly, selfish desire is the engine that drives the machine. Media advertising, entertainment, provocative fashion, music, literature, all fire the basest desires of fallen human nature and then go in for the kill. 

Thirdly, greed and ambition are the prime motivators in this system. The whole world worships at the shrine of “mammon”, professions that were once the expression of compassion; nursing, medicine, law, education, are now classified as “business”. Relationships flounder on the rocks of greed, mercy bows to the mighty dollar and people unashamedly climb on the heads of others to get to the top.

There is a frenzied purpose behind this “dominion of darkness” – to kill, steal and destroy because the devil knows his time is short.

John’s sober counsel is, “Do not love the world”, and there is a very good reason for this.

These values belong to a dominion that is doomed to destruction. The writer to the Hebrews warns that everything that can be shaken, will be shaken, and only that which is eternal will remain. There is a kingdom whose values express the eternal nature of God, love, goodness, and truth, which will remain when the dominion of darkness passes away. Since these are two opposing kingdoms, to love the world is to repudiate all connection with the Father.

“Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably, with reverence and awe, for our “God is a consuming fire”.” Hebrews 12:28, NIV).

Those who are glued to this world system will be part of the trash that will be disposed of in the lake of fire. So, do not love the world, if you do, you will go down with it.