Love for the World

November 30

Hosea 8-9

Psalm 135:1-7

Proverbs 28:18-19

I John 2

Love for the World

“Do not love the world or anything in the world.  If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them.  For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world.  The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.”  I John 2:15-17 NIV

Do not love the world or anything in the world.  Peter is not saying that we cannot have any pleasure in this life or that we cannot enjoy anything that is not spiritual or religious.  He is not saying that physical possessions and wealth are bad.  The world is filled with beautiful things that God created and beautiful things that He gave man the ability to create.  Those things are not bad.  The problem is that we tend to get our priorities mixed up.   Our passions and desires overtake us, and we begin to focus our attention on pursuing those things instead of keeping our eyes focused on Jesus. 

The lust of the flesh is our basic physical desires.  This can include sexual gratification but is not limited to that.  Physical pleasure can come from food, drink, drugs, exercise, athletic competition, etc.  These things meet basic needs that are good when handled appropriately, but when they become our focus, they can become a lust of the flesh.   The lust of the eye is the desire to acquire anything and everything our eye sees. The latest fashion styles, jewels, a bigger house in the right neighborhood, a better car, or a vacation that is better than the one my friend on Facebook took all appeal to our greed and jealousy and a desire for more of the things this world has to offer.  These things are not necessarily bad things, but when they become the object of our desire, there is a problem.  The pride of life is the ambition and desire to achieve great things so that people will think highly of us.  The desire to be respected and thought well of is admirable, but the lust for power and position leads to pride and arrogance.  These are the three things that Satan offered Jesus in the wilderness.  He offered Him food to satisfy His physical cravings.  He offered Him all that His eye could see, and He offered Him power and status.  Jesus knew that anything this world has to offer is temporary and will pass away.  Physical pleasure lasts for a little while, but ultimately just leaves you craving for more.  Earthly possessions rust and lose their value.  The more we get, the more we want.  And power and prestige can be taken away in an instant.  Nothing Satan offers has any lasting value.   When we keep our eyes focused on Jesus, we can enjoy the things this life has to offer without becoming consumed with them.  Balance and self-control are the keys to avoiding a love for the world that leads to destruction.