Passions and Lusts

Prove It! • Sermon • Submitted 6 years ago

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There is a battle raging for our love and worship. On one hand you have the Lord that has shone his love through the sacrifice of his Son Jesus Christ. On the other hand you have the world promoting self love and fulfillment. Does your love for God drive you not to fall the the temptations of the world. This is the choice that every Christian faces. This is the challenge John lays out before us in the book of first John.

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Passions and Desires

Introduction:

(ESV)

This morning we are going to continue our study through the book of 1 John in a series we have entitled Prove It!

We have been answering the question of how we would prove out our salvation and relationship with God to those that would question it.

We talked about the joy of the Lord is our strength.

We talked extensively about abiding in Christ. The word abide is mentioned 8 times in Chapter 2.

And today we are going to talk about the war that is raging all around us.

There is a war going on in the world of good and evil, and we can feel it. We are a part of it. Like it or not we choose sides in it.

1 John 2:15–17 ESV

15 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. 16 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. 17 And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.

Do Not Love the World

This might sound easy. “I will just choose the good.” “I will walk in the light.” But if you have been at this very long at all you know that the choice is not so cut and dry.

This war is not only on the outside and around us. There is a war going on inside of every Christian of light and darkness, spirit and flesh, and we can feel it. Many Christians have had their lives destroyed due to falling to the whiles of the devil and the ways of this world.

Everyday we must choose to walk in the light or walk in the darkness; walk in the Spirit or walk in the flesh.

Jesus stated the greatest commandment as this,

Luke 10:27 ESV

27 And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.”

And although it is easy to agree that this is the greatest commandment, living it out is not so easy. We all seem to struggle with the love of the world taking the place of our love for God.

I believe that this is the single greatest obstacle we have of really effecting our world with the gospel. It’s not that you need more memory verses or a better plan of salvation to share. You need to fall in deep love with Jesus. You must love God. If not you are a sin waiting to happen.

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” And although it is easy to agree that this is the greatest commandment, living it out is not so easy. We all seem to struggle with the love of the world taking the place of our love for God.

I think there are some thoughts that have creeped into Christianity that would say, “If I love and serve God then I must give up my happiness and fulfilment in this life.” I can either be happy in this life or choose a life of unfulfilment as I serve the Lord.

I don’t believe that to be true and that has not been the case at all in my life.

The greatest happiness and fulfilment of your life will come as you love God with all your heart and trust God with all your life.

1 John 2:15–17 ESV

So what’s the secret to a happy and fulfilling life of loving and serving God?

It’s all about the resolution of your heart.

My brother Keith calling me and asking me how I made it through high school not falling to the peer-preasure.

Daniel resolved in his heart that he would not be defiled by the kings meat.

So the question becomes are you resolved enough in your heart to love God and not love the world. Does your love for God drive you choose God not to fall the the temptations of the world. This is the choice that every Christian faces. This is the challenge John lays out before us in the book of first John.

Let me read our text for this morning. It’s just 3 verses long.

1 John 2:15–17 ESV

Jesus stated the greatest commandment as this, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” And although it is easy to agree that this is the greatest commandment, living it out is not so easy. We all seem to struggle with the love of the world taking the place of our love for God.

What a profound statement not to love the world. The very world that God has created for his honor and glory we are to turn our backs on. Why?

When God created the world it was good. But now all that is in the world: The desires fo the flesh, The desires of the eyes, and the pride of life has destroyed what God intended it to be.

To understand how this could happen we must go back to the first days after creation when God placed Man and his wife in the Garden of Eden and gave them dominion over all his creation.

But they were not alone.

Genesis 3:1 ESV

1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?”

From the end of the story we know who this serpent is.

Revelation 20:2 ESV

2 And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years,

Rev 20:

Satan was at one time the anointed cherub that covered the throne of God but became prideful and was cast out of heaven.

All Satan did was pose a question about God protection.

“You are missing out. You deserve to be happy.”

We fall to the same lie that Satan told Eve instead of trusting the one who loves us. Satan doesn’t love you. The world doesn’t love you.

Why would be give our love to something or someone that only wants to destroy us. We are like the battered wife keeps going back hoping it will be different this time.

After beguiling Adam and Eve in the garden he took control of the world system and has led sinful man in his sinful ways.

Ephesians 2:1–3 ESV

1 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.

The world system is defined in 3 way.

The desires of the flesh

The desires of the eyes

The pride of life

All of which were introduced at that first encounter with the serpent in the garden.

Genesis 3:5 ESV

5 For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

Genesis 3:4–5 ESV

4 But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5 For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

Genesis 3:6 ESV

6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.

Gen 3:

The desire of the flesh is self-gratification met through physical lusts.

“The tree was good for food.”

Physical lust or sins of the physical body

Galatians 5:19–21 ESV

19 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, 21 envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

Gal 5:19

The desire of the eyes is covetousness toward people or things.

“A delight to the eyes.”

It is the sin of covetousness or wanting what someone else has.

From the list we just read: Idolatry, Jealousy, envy.

The love of money and stuff.

Comparing your self-worth by the standards of others.

If I can get what they have I will be as good as they are.

If I can live as they live I will be more happy and fulfilled in my life.

The pride of life is ambition for self-promotion and glory.

“A tree to be desired to make one wise.”

Desiring selfish ambition or glory for yourself instead of glory to God.

From the list it would be: strife, dissensions, divisions, and also murder.

Well guess what, God was true and Satan is a lier because Adam and Eve were now dead, separated from God, in their trespasses and sins.

Romans 5:12 ESV

12 Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned—

Romans 5:8 ESV

8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Ephesians 2:1–3 ESV

Ephesians 2:1 ESV

1 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins

Eph 2:1

The desires of this world can be hidden in plain sight,

like the the blue-collar worker wanting vacation time with his family,

the business man that desires power and prestige,

the soccer mom that desires a better social status for her kids,

the preacher that desires adoration from his flock, the the prestige of a big church.

the single mom that desires a good dad for her kids,

or the divorcee that just wants to feel love again.

Yet in all these situations, if we are not careful, we will compromise our love for God to obtain the love of the world. This comes from the indoctrination of the world on the definition of happiness and fulfillment.

Worldly thought: “Happiness and success is my ability to fulfill all my passions and desires.” So we strive to fulfil the desires of this world even if we have to justify and compromise our relationship with God to do it.

But what if we were to begin to think differently and set God as the affection of our heart.

What if we were to resolve in our heart as Daniel, not to defile ourselves with the desires of this world and our flesh.

What if we could set aside our pride and seek God’s glory only.

Godly thought: “I find everlasting joy through my love relationship with God as we fulfill his passions and desires for my life.”

The greatest happiness and fulfilment of your life will come as you love God with all your heart and trust God with all your life.

So, How can we counteract our own nature and not love the world.

The first step is always to receive the spirit of God that was lost in the garden so that He can guide you from the inside out.

Countering the desires of the flesh

Yield control of your members to be used only by the Spirit.

Walk in the accountability of believers that God has placed around you.

When you receive Christ not only are you a child of God but also a brother in Christ.

Countering the desires of the eyes

Covent after God and love him with every part of your being.

Become vulnerable to him by humbling yourself before him.

Love is the byproduct of open and honest relationship.

Focus on storing up treasure in heaven instead of here on Earth.

1 John 2:17 ESV

17 And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.

Countering the pride of life

Let your passions and desires come from the Lord for your life.

Let all that you do bring honor and glory to God and God alone.

“The greatest happiness and fulfilment of your life will come as you love God with all your heart and trust God with all your life.”

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