Love God, Not the World

Introduction

We have had an exciting week at camp, and now, today, we are celebrating our country’s 245th birthday!

There are so many ways I could have gone today. I could have given you some of the things that were spoken at camp, or I could have had an America sermon.

This morning we are continuing our study in the book of 1 John, and the message actually hits both targets! So, if you have your Bibles, I want to encourage you to turn with me to 1 John chapter 2, and we will begin reading with verse 15.

1 John 2:15 NIV84

Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

Do NOT Love the World

This verse begins by saying, “Do not love the world or anything in the world.” John begins this section by telling us—his readers—that we are not to adopt the philosophical stances of the culture around us.

In his book, “Divide Nation” Ken Ham says that there are only two religions in the world. There is Man’s religion, and there is God’s religion. To put this another way: We can either listen to man’s voice that comes from and is powered by Satan; or we can listen to God’s voice that comes from and is powered by God, through Jesus Christ the “the Word of life” (1 John 1:1). Those are our only two choices. John, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit tells us that we are not to love the philosophies of the cultures of people.

That means that the popular cultures of today are NOT from God!

John then drives his point home in the second part of verse 15.

“If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.”

Question: Do you love God more than you love the approval of the culture around you?

It is time today to take our stand. We need to decide to whom will we listen, with whom will we side? God, or the Culture?

It is so important that we take this stand before we our convictions are challenged. Either we stand 100% on God’s Word, or we chase after the gods of the culture—the gods of this world!

1 John 2:16 NIV84

For everything in the world—the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does—comes not from the Father but from the world.

The Word’s Way Verses God’s Way

Everything in the Culture is Against God!

Notice that verse 16 says everything in the world. Let me ask you a question. What does everything mean?

If you answered with words like all, the whole, total, every kind of, or entire then you have the idea in this verse. Everything, means EVERYTHING! There is nothing that our culture or “world” has to offer that does not stand in direct opposition to God and His Word! Nothing! Not one little thing! Now John is going to help us understand some of the things he includes in everything.

The cravings of sinful Man

I like the NLT’s translation of this verse.

1 John 2:16 NLT

For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world.

It says that the only thing the world has to offer is a craving for physical pleasure.

Question: Do you crave physical pleasure?

You see, if I am craving physical pleasure I will do anything and everything to satisfy that craving!

The Lust of the Eyes

The next thing that verse 16 says is the lust of the eyes. Again, I like the NLT’s translations: a craving for everything we see. The same Greek word is used. In the first part of verse 16, the NIV translates it cravings, the second time it translates it lusts. The fact is it is the same Greek word.

Now craving or lusting after everything you see addresses our desire to conquer! But it is not a righteous conquering! It is our desire to conquer for our own personal pleasure and sanctification!

How many times do we see something and want it so badly that we will do almost anything to get it—we want to conquer so we can have.

How many people in this world see someone and want to conquer them. This may be done sexually. It may be done by overpowering them. It may be done by ruling over them—but we desire to conquer.

John has already told us that the appropriate way to conquer is through unconditional, agape love! If yo were with us last week, you may remember 1 John 2:10.

1 John 2:10 NIV84

Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble.

Desiring to overpower people to get what we want is not love!

Boasting

The third thing the world wants us to chase after is anything we can boast in. John gives us two examples, although I doubt this is an exhaustive list of things to boast about.

What a person has

People love to tell you how great they are by pointing to all of the things that they own. Many wear their positions like badges of accomplishments that make them significant. John tells us that the world encourages people to boast about all that they own!

What a person does

I’ll tell you right now, most people love to tell us of their accomplishments! They love to boast! They love to point to all that they do, how accomplished they are.

When I work with people—especially men, I find that most often people get their identity, or their source of purpose from three things:

From what they do—when I ask someone to tell me about themselves, most often the person begins by telling me all about what they do, and making sure I understand about all of their accomplishments.

If I’m not impressed by what they do, they often move on to telling me all about what they own. How many cars they have, how big their house is, all about their motorhome, boat, or other great possession. I hear about all the stuff they have accumulated through the years!

If I’m still not impressed, then I begin to hear about all the people they know. Name-dropping becomes the order of the day.

John tells us that boasting is what the world uses to gain significance and therefore boasting should have no part in us. In fact, in the last part of verse 16 we are told that these things: the cravings of sinful man, the cravings of the eyes, and the boasting of what we have, and do, “comes not from the Father but from the world.”

As you have been listening, you might be asking, “So What?” What’s so wrong with wanting the things this world, our culture has to offer? Well, I’m glad you asked, because in verse 17, John is going to tell us the problem.

1 John 2:17 NIV84

The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.

It’s passing away!

John tells us that the world, and all of the world’s desires—all of the culture’s desires all of that is passing away. John wants us to know that everything the world has to offer is only temporary! It does not last, it is not permanent—it is passing away!

The will of God Lives Forever

John contrasts the temporary, fleeting joys the world has to offer with the joyous life that God offers.

Notice the little phrase lives forever in verse 17. That’s the Greek word memo that John loves to use. It has the idea of the abundant life!