Do Not Love the World (1 John 2:15-17)

“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. 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. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.” (1 John 2:15-17 NKJV)

Why must we not love the world or the things in the world? Here the world does not mean the beauty of nature. What God has made is good, says the Scripture. When John says that we do not love the world, it means the way of the world in which man is highly esteemed at all. The standard way of the world is like man can solve the man’s problem. That kind of thoughts and judgments is from the earth below, the flesh.

If anyone loves the world, the way of the world, the love of the Father, the way of God, is not in him. The Lord Jesus Christ says that we cannot serve both God and money. We must choose to love one and hate the other.

““No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” (Matthew 6:24 NKJV)

John says, “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.” The lust of the flesh always stirs the people to get whatever you want now, to get it first, and to blame everything on others. It could be not only sexual immorality, fornication, pornography, but anything the flesh desires physically.

The lust of the eyes drives the people to pursuit only whatever attractive and desirable emotionally, intellectually, and reasonably. It could be all kinds of achievements in arts and science, humanity and philosophy, expedition and technology, politics, or even religion. The pride of life is that man sits on the throne of glory and honor, being deluded and deceived by the thought that he is the caption of fate and so he can run his life. That is the lie of the devil.

The fleshy thoughts and beliefs convincingly and powerfully appeal to many a people who are gullible and ignorant. Is it not exactly what the serpent in the Garden seduced the woman? “Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” (Genesis 3:4-5 NKJV)

But they are not from the Father but from the dark world where the devil reigns. The desire of the flesh is diabolically opposing against God. “For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.” (Galatians 5:17 NKJV) We humans cannot run our lives, not even a bit. We cannot breathe a moment without God who made everything.

The world is passing away and so does the lust of it. But he who does the will of God abides forever. The Scripture says that all men are like grass and all their glory is like the flowers of the field, the grass withers and the flowers fall (1 Peter 1:24). All the glittering and glowing things which are so attractive and desirable to possess are quickly disappearing and passing away, says the Lord of life.

Therefore, what we are supposed to pursuit and search is the Spirit who reveals all truths and realities in life. “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” (Galatians 5:16 NKJV) The Spirit of God who is indwelling within heals and cures all the uncertainties and confusions on our lives and leads to the truth.

The Holy Spirit teaches us kindly and gently what the will of God is. It is a process, quite a long one, maybe lifelong. But that is the way it is. Life never means a picnic in summertime. It is an intensive and demanding reality which has been given once to everyone, so that we may learn the secret of life, how it functions really.

“And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.” (Romans 13:11-14 NKJV)