Do Not Love the Things of the World

1 John 2:15-17 

There are things that you cannot love and be a child of God.

Do Not Love the World

“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him” (1 John 2:15). 

People believe in dark, Machiavellian conspiracies here and there, but there is a bigger conspiracy than people dare dream. Satan is the mastermind. “We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one” (1 John 5:19). This world is wise, but it is wise to do evil. (See 1 Corinthians 3:19.) The world has a calculated plan: to draw you away from God.

Have you ever wondered why the world hates Jesus? Not because He healed the sick or fed multitudes—not even because He died on the cross. “It hates Me because I testify of it that its works are evil” (John 7:7b).

The Holy Spirit dwells in you, representing Jesus. When you were saved, you came out of the world. You were born again among people who are not born again, so you find yourself swimming against the tide all the way. (See John 15:18.) 

The Things of the World

“For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world” (1 John 2:16).

Lust of the Flesh

“The flesh” means your old Adamic nature. Your new, born-again nature wants to serve God, and the old nature doesn’t want to be dead. (See Galatians 5:17.) The desires of the flesh are primarily material: gluttony, laziness, drunkenness, immorality, perversion. Satan wants to take normal, God-given cravings and pervert them.

Lust of the Eyes

To desire the sophisticated, intellectual, and beautiful is legitimate—but to want more than we need and to be dissatisfied leads to these lustful desires of the eyes. (See 1 Timothy 6:10.) Is the first goal in your life to be a godly person? Or are you trying to be a successful person?

The Pride of Life

This world says, “Be somebody!” You think you have to be noticed. That is why people dress outlandishly, or buy a car when they don’t need it. Or they gossip—they think that if they pull others down they somehow elevate themselves.

Love of the Father vs. Love of the World

Your Future in Christ

Do you want something to do? Serve God.

Do you want something to have? Give your heart to Jesus Christ. “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:5).

Do you want to be somebody? You will be a child of the King, living in the Father’s love, next of kin to the Holy Trinity. Jesus is “not ashamed to call them brethren.” (See Hebrews 2:11.) Those who live for Jesus know what life is all about.

The Future of This World

 
“The world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever” (1 John 2:17).

Jesus said, “The ruler of this world is judged” (John 16:11b). If you live for this world, you are painting the decks of a sinking ship.

“If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him” (1 John 2:15b). He loves the world because the love of God is not in him. He has nothing else to love. This world will never satisfy your heart, because you were made to serve God.