1 John 2:12-17: Do not love the World
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Good Morning and welcome to Confessors of Christ Church.
My name is Tony Alonso and I’m one of the teaching elder’s here at C3 and we our journeying through the letter of John.
I put forth the schedule of verses we would go through each week at the start of our series and today, I feel like I made a mistake.
There is so much in this section that I probably should have broken it up into two weeks.
Normally I would just do that, but we have our Advent series about to start and it would mess up the rest of the calendar,
So, we press on and warn you that there is a lot to take in today.
However, I think you are getting used to leaving here going, well, that’s a lot to process: And that’s a good thing.
Today we will deal with an often misused and also abused text of Scripture.
In some ways this text has been misused by those who are genuinely trying to be what God is calling them to be.
In some ways this text has been abused as a way to control or manipulate a people for their own agenda, desires, and platforms.
However, today’s text is meant to be helpful, encouraging, and beneficial.
The purpose behind this famous line we will read is to keep us focused on the greatness of God, the wonders of eternity, and the purpose of our life.
The text I am speaking of?
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.
This text can certainly be shocking and scary.
If we love the world or the things in the world, then God’s love is not in us.
John is wanting us to test ourselves and we certainly see a test before us.
But, are we left without clarity to what it means to love the world, if we look at the verse by itself.
Is there any understanding to what is being referenced to as the “things” in the world, if we look at the verse by itself?
Do we come up with what we think this means and insert our opinions into the text to determine the meaning?
Or has John defined for himself, what he means, when he says the world and the things of the world?
This is just half of the content we will seek to explore.
The other half begins now.
Open your Bibles or turn them on if that is your preference to 1 John Chapter 2 beginning in verses 12-14.
We will then check out verses 15-17 once we have a grasp on these lead up verses.
These are the true and infallible words of God.
I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for his name’s sake. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I write to you, children, because you know the Father. I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.
This here is an incredible and beautiful section of Scripture.
This here should encourage you, sustain you, and challenge you.
This here should be embraced and held to in the highs of highs and the lows of lows.
Let’s unpack these verses as a whole and then we will look at each group more closely.
First, we see three groups before us. Children, young men, fathers.
Second, we see these groups being spoken of twice, first in the phrase I am writing to you and then I write to you.
Thirdly, we see different points being made except with one group, the father’s, what does this mean?
One thing that we can be sure of just with a flyover of the text is that it is mean to encourage and strengthen.
This is being written to the church and the people in the church.
It was being written to the people of John’s day, and through the preservation power of the Spirit being spoken to us today.
So, I want us to not just understand what John is saying, I want us to see ourselves in this text and what we are take take from it.
When John is speaking of little children, young men, and fathers, he is not speaking of roles.
John is not speaking of physical age.
John is speaking of Spiritual discovery and growth.
As John speaks of little children he is speaking in a loving and endearing way towards those who are new and young in the faith.
If you are a new believer or if you are in the early stages of your discovery of who God is and what God is doing, then this is for you.
Next John speaks of the young men.
These are the battle ready believers who have grown in strength and determination in the faith.
They have grasped the truth of God and have been enlisted in the mission and purposes of the Kingdom.
They are ready to defend the faith, promote the faith, and actively standing strong in the faith.
Lastly, we have the Fathers.
These are believers who are grounded and rooted in the faith and teaching others, caring for others, raising others.
We will get to what John says about them in a moment, but it is truly beautiful.
Now, let’s take each of these groups in order based on their Spiritual maturity, beginning with the children.
I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for his name’s sake.
1 John 2:13 (ESV)
I write to you, children, because you know the Father.
First, Children, those who are young in the faith, or new in the faith, have discovered one of the most mind blowing realities possible.
Their sins are forgiven.
Do you remember the first time that God opened your eyes to the reality of your sin?
That you have rebelled, disobeyed, and mocked the God you now love?
Can you recall a time when you were gripped with guilt, not because you were caught, but because you saw your life in light of God?
That you recognized God is Light, the holiness and righteousness of God.
That you discovered His standard and see how woefully short you fell short?
Is there a time that you can recall the wickedness in your thought and actions....
Then realized that when you stand before God, it will not go well with you because you have not just missed the mark, but have aimed your life in the wrong direction?
Then is there a time that you can remember when you discovered the crushing weight of this reality
That you had to immediately seek out what could save you from certain destruction and damnation?
Do you remember the time that Jesus was first offered to you.
That Jesus was first displayed for you to take hold of?
That Jesus would do and would accomplish and would succeed at the very thing you failed to achieve?
Do you remember the bewilderment when you found that this great need was also completely free?
That it was a gift?
That grace was extended to you and faith was given in full measure?
Can you recall the first time you repented and put your faith and trust in Jesus and Jesus alone for your Salvation?
Can you still recall the feeling and emotion of realizing your sins where completely and fully forgiven because of Jesus?
That Jesus’s death was a substitute for your death?
That Jesus’s righteousness was given to you in exchange for your sins?
That your sins where then paid for, atoned for, and crushed with Christ?
John is reminding those who are children in the faith, that their sins are forgiven.
What an incredible, life alliterating, actuality.
Why are they forgiven? Why would God do such a thing?
For His, God’s, name’s sake.
It is for God’s glory.
God is glorified we when recognize that our sins are forgiven through the propitiation of Jesus.
The result of our sins being forgiven is that we now know the Father.
What once separated us the Father, our sin.
Is now forgiven by the blood of Jesus.
Thus now uniting us with the Father!
We can now know Father, speak to the Father, and have fellowship with the Father, because of Jesus!
This is what every believer must recognize and come to know, trust, and understand.
This is where we start as newborns in the faith.
This is our first cry, our first words, our first steps.
I love that John used this type of illustration to help us understand as thinking of ourselves as little children is so beautiful.
Think of the joy a child has when discovering something amazing or incredible.
Think of the joy a child has when finding their Dad or Mom after losing sight of them?
Now, think of the joy we had when we first truly understood our sins were forgiven and we are in fellowship with God.
This is a joy, a celebration, an excitement, that we must never forget and never lose sight of.
John is telling those who are new in the faith to remember what brought you to the faith in the first place.
John is telling us of the Gospel.
The greatness of God, the sinfulness of man, the separation from God that this causes, and the solution that is found in Jesus alone.
How many of us need that reminder this morning, that our sins are forgiven?
How many need to remember that we know the Father and are with the Father?
How many remember that child-like faith and how wonderful it is?
John wants those who are new in the faith to recognize this, to rest in this.
But, now John wants to turn his attention to a new set of believers, those that have taken the next step in their faith.
He is turning to what he now calls young men.
1 John 2:13 (ESV)
I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one.
1 John 2:14 (ESV)
I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.
We now move to, not a physical age, but a spiritual maturity that resembles young men.
This applies to both men and women.
Young Men is used to signify strength as young men are in their prime and the strongest they will be.
Physically speaking, I no longer qualify to this category, and maybe you are thinking the same.
But, we do have some young men here who are physically strong and I’d like to invite you to join our setup and tear down team each week. Ok Ok, I digress.
This applies to those who are strong in the faith.
First John tells them that they have overcome the evil one.
How do we overcome the evil one, you might ask?
I believe John was referring us back to Psalm 119 verse 9
How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word.
Those who are strong in the faith are strong by guarding their heart, mind, and actions according to the Word of God.
Does this apply to you?
Have you moved beyond the simple and beautiful Gospel and the rescue from your Sins?
Are you now making, not just your forgiveness known but your actions and walk pure and holy?
Are you taking every thought captive as Paul tells us in his Second letter to the Corinthians?
We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,
Those who are strong in the faith, please listen:
It is not just knowledge that we must seek but action. To overcome the evil one means putting our knowledge into action.
I love this verse here in 2 Corinthians because it is apologetics in action.
Destroying arguments, dismantling opinions.
But, there is a great concern and great danger in this.
The great concern in building up knowledge and seeking to know God is that we become arrogant and prideful because of our knowledge.
Knowledge is not meant to puff you up but move you out.
Knowledge is meant to equip you to go and do. Not sit and veg out.
What makes children into young men is this:
There is a desire to hit the ground running, to jump full in,
To not be satisfied with just knowing our sins are forgiven but now actively participating in the mission in which your sins kept you from.
The reason we are saved from our sins is so that we can have fellowship with the Father, absolutely.
We are also saved from our sins so that we can be given a new life, new mission, new direction, new purpose, new hope, new destination.
Embracing the call to action is the next step in our Christian walk.
So, we become strong because we have overcome the Evil One.
We have done so by being rooted in the Word, knowing the Word, applying the Word, and bringing forth action because of the Word.
Verse 14 told us that the young men are strong, but let’s make sure we are certain the reason why.
1 John 2:14 (ESV)
I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.
The word of God abides in you and therefore you have overcome the evil one.
If you are a child in the faith, this is beautiful and wonderful and amazing.
But children do grow up and each of us are called to grow in the faith and begin to mature.
Some of you may be children and have been children for a long time.
Parents do not want a 30 year old child staying in the basement playing video games all day.
Neither does the Father want us to be life long children in the faith.
We are to become like young men, who are strong, and why are they strong?
Because the Word of God abides in them.
For the Word of God to abide in you, you must be in your Bible, you must read it, study it, meditate on it.
Be willing to be discipled and grow in your faith and knowledge.
But, do not grow for the sake of growth, grow for the sake of action and participation.
I want to be careful not to run out of time, but I do not want to cut this section short.
These are believers that are so important to the body of Christ.
These are believers that toe the line in the sand and stand ready to defend the Gospel and the Bride of Christ.
These are believers that lock arm and arm with each to charge enemy lines if needed and protect the flock when needed.
These are believers that are actively a part of Spiritual Warfare.
They are praying for the elders of the church
Praying for the leadership team.
Praying for the mission field and the lost souls beyond these doors.
Praying for the opportunities to share the Gospel and taking steps towards serving the community.
This is what God calls every child to become.
We can never have too many young men in this church.
But we do not just need young men, and welcoming new children to the congregation.
We also need Spiritual Fathers, and it is to them we turn to next.
1 John 2:13 (ESV)
I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning.
1 John 2:14 (ESV)
I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning.
Did you catch what was said here both times?
It was the exact same thing in each verse.
The Fathers are the Spiritual Mature in the group.
These are the ones who Shepherd the flock, who care for the sheep.
They have been through the discoveries of the Gospel.
They have been on the front lines and fought the good fight.
Now they take on the role as a Spiritual Father to the children and the Young Men.
What is John’s advice and wisdom he would like the share to the Spiritual Father’s?
That they know God, who is from the beginning.
This means before Creation.
That we know Him who is unchangeable and everlasting to everlasting.
Our time should be spent knowing God deeper, fuller, and more robust for the purpose of Fathering the children and young men.
A healthy local body of believers is one that has all three groups represented.
The new in the faith and the newborns coming to Christ.
The young men that have taken the next step to walk out their faith and live on mission against the evil one.
Then Father’s who continue to deepen their understanding of God to impart the wisdom upon the children and young men for their Spiritual growth.
I praise God that in His kindness and gracious love towards this congregation He has given us these groups already in our midst.
I pray that He will continue to grow us and encourage us as we mature in the faith.
Now, that we have discovered the context and meaning of these first 3 verses let’s look at our final 3 verses.
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 desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.
These 3 verses come into better clarity when we take them with the previous 3 verses along with the previous verses in the letter.
We know that John’s point is to give us tests to help us see that we are in the faith.
John wants to give us assurance in the faith.
So, right after John spent the last 3 verses encouraging us he is back to using these next 3 verses to test us.
Not to harm us, or confuse us, or make us uncertain.
Precisely the opposite, John wants to give us clarity and certainty.
He starts by giving us the verse I shared at the start, the verse that is often misused or abused.
The verse that says if we do not get this right, we do not have the Love of the Father in us.
Eternity is at stake, so we must get this right.
Let us look closely now to this very important verse.
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.
John gives us this call in the negative.
Specifically we are not to love the world and the things in the world.
The result of doing this is the knowledge and reality that God’s love does not reside in the person.
Thus we better understand what John means by World.
And here is where the interpretation issues begin to soar.
What comes to your mind when you think of the world?
What objects come to your mind when you think of the things in the world?
Are we not to love the earth? Didn’t God create it?
Are we not to love the people? Aren’t they image bearers of God?
Are we not to love the culture? What about the aspects that are good and God honoring?
What are the list of things that are good and bad? Should all things be bad?
These and endless other questions arise when we try to make our own thoughts and opinions the standard.
If we approach this verse as John asking for our opinion and for our examples, then we will have vastly different interpretations.
Depending on who you ask, the Christian could name a wide variety of objects, ideas, and events that they would condemn.
Let me give an example that just recently passed. Halloween.
Some Christians insert Halloween into this verse.
They would claim that Halloween is a pagan holiday, to celebrate it would be worldly, to participate is to accept the things of the world.
The result is that you cannot be a Christian and be a part of anything that has to do with October 31st.
Everything from demonic occult worshiping all the way down to dressing up as a cowboy and a princess and asking for candy is now damnable.
Halloween is just one example, but there are hundreds and possibly millions of interpretations that can be inserted if left to the imagination.
But, is that what John is wanting us to do?
Is John wanting us to determine what is right and wrong? What it means to love the world and the things in the world?
Or is John going to tell us what He means so that we no longer have to guess or fight over the meaning?
Thankfully John did not leave this verse open to our suggestions and our standards.
John is going to tell us exactly what he means in the very next verse.
Let’s look at it together.
For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world.
And here it is, here is John’s definition of the verse, and it looks like little boys and girls dressed up as cowboys and princesses is not what John had in mind.
John is speaking of the world and things in the world as these three things.
Desires of the Flesh
Desires of the Eyes
and Pride of Life.
These are the things that if we display, then the love of the Father is not in us.
These are the specifics that John means when He speaks of the World and the things in the World.
Theologian John Stott gives us a helpful breakdown of these three points.
First is the cravings of sinful man.
Second, the lust of his eyes.
Third, the boasting of what he has and does.
Let’s start with the Cravings of sinful man, the desires & Lust of the flesh - What is the flesh?
The flesh is often referred to in Scripture as our fallen and sinful nature.
This desire or craving as John Stott puts it, is the results of those seeking out and living out their ungodly thoughts and actions.
God is not in the picture, God is not consulted, God is not in view.
This is selfish pursuit to satisfy a sinful longing with no guilt and repentance associated with it.
One who lives like this, acts like this, thinks like this is not a believer, not a Christian, and the love of the Father is not within Him.
This is considered of the world because the devil rules this world and the person is acting like their Father the devil, and not like their heavenly Father.
If we stick with our Halloween illustration as just one of hundreds of possible insertions, it would be like this.
If you desire to dress in a way that brings for lustful attractions to those you come in contact with.
If you desire to practice in the occult and partake in witchcraft to satisfy a curiosity and entertainment.
Then you should probably sit this day out and do some repenting, that is if you are truly in Christ.
Let’s look at the next one.
Desire or Lust of the eyes.
This is not about what we desire inside to express outwardly, but what we seek outwardly to satisfy an inward desire.
These are temptations that are sought out.
Charles Dodd, another respected theologian tells us “The tendency to be captivated by the outward show of things, without enquiring into their real value.
This, I believe gets to the heart of the matter.
We want to be captivated by something, but we are not mindful of what it does to us on the inside.
We do not care what issues or problems it causes, as long as we satisfy our lusts.
Pornography is one major culprit that comes to mind.
Now, I’m not saying that if you watch Pornography you automatically going to hell and Christ is not in you.
Remember John already told us that while we are not to sin, if we do sin, there is an advocate in Christ.
The unbeliever, which is what John is speaking of, sees no problem in partaking in pornography.
Has no guilt or regret in the matter. The only issue would be if they get caught, and that is their concern, not with the action.
This is the mindset of an unbeliever.
A true believer on the other hand detests their sin, is disgusted by their sin, and actively repenting and fighting their sin.
Resting in and trusting in their advocate for forgiveness and victory over their sin as they go to battle.
I must go back to John Stott here because he gives forth great biblical clarity with events from other parts of Scripture.
In reference to the Desire of Lust of the Eyes, John says:
The Letters of John: An Introduction and Commentary (d. A Digression about the World (2:15–17))
Eve’s view of the forbidden fruit as ‘pleasing to the eye’, Achan’s covetous sight among the spoil of a ‘beautiful robe from Babylonia’, and David’s lustful looking after Bathsheba as she bathed, are obvious examples. It will include ‘the love of beauty divorced from the love of goodness’ (Law)
All three did eventually acknowledge their sin and repented, though Achan was immediately stoned to death for His sin.
While these are examples, the point is that this is also coming from an unrepentant heart.
One that sees not issue with this does not have the love of the Father in them.
Lastly, the Pride of Life or Pride in Possessions.
What is in mind here is that you seek your value, worth, and joy in the possessions that you accumulate or the status that you hold.
The idea is that you want everyone to know how important you are, how rich you are, how successful you are, how valuable you are.
The one who has the Pride of Life is boastful and arrogant about what he has and what he does.
You want to outdo everyone and flaunt your success.
John Stott brings us full circle when he gives us this perfectly concise definition of verse 16.
This verse is summed up in the unholy desire for things one has not, and unholy pride in the things one has.
If we go back to this verse and we understand it correctly...
We are not at liberty to put our own definition and ignore John’s clarification in the very next verse.
We are not at liberty to demand others to follow guidelines and personal convictions that we have come up with ourselves.
We do not require other believers to follow our standards.
Now, if you have a personal conviction that you want to abstain from something, then by all means, you should follow that conviction.
But, if it is not a sin, and not something that universally applies to all believers, we are not to put our convictions upon others.
And we are especially not to take Scripture and abuse it by inserting our convictions into a text and telling others that is what it means.
We must understand the text as the author intended it, not as what we desire it.
It is the Author’s interpretation of what He said through the power of the Holy Spirit that is infallible. Our opinions are very fallible.
This is why it is so important to have teachers that do not give you their opinion but give you Scripture.
Not just give you Scripture, but rightly interpret the Scripture.
I’m not trying to belittle myself when I say this, I don’t have much worthwhile to tell you unless it is telling you God’s Word.
My goal is not to down my thoughts but elevate God’s Word.
As long as I’m feeding you Scripture, I am giving you the spiritual nourishment that you need for life in this world.
Let’s look at our last verse.
And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.
Take heart because our time on this earth is temporary.
The temptations we fight will not last.
The fight we wage will end.
As long as we are found faithfully pursuing Christ, repenting of our sin, and participating in bringing forth the Kingdom...
We will have the Love of God with us and we will abide forever.
Remember, John is still in the process of testing our faith to give us assurance of our faith.
If the love of the Father is in you, it will lead you to doing the will of God.
The sign of God in us is based on our behavior and mindset.
Now, we do not do good works to earn salvation, we do good works in response to God saving us.
We can say we are in God but if we don’t act in it, we are lost.
This is why Repentance, Confession, and Striving for that of God and away from the world, is our goal and direction.
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God’s Word is so good.
My prayer is that you never get tired of opening your Bible each week as we discover the beauties and wonders within.
My prayer is that you never grow weary of participating in the kingdom work that is set before us.
We were rescued, redeemed, ransomed, and restored to new life for a new purpose and a new reason.
My prayer is that we would be a church that continues to be filled with little children, young men, and Father’s in the faith.
And that together, we would bring forth God’s glory and make much of His great name. Amen?
Let’s pray.