Love not this world...

Chapter Fifty-four:
There is a presence behind the evil in this world and unless we live with this in mind it becomes very easy to become complacent. We are subtly drawn into the ways of this world and before we know it, we are adopting the world's values, their beliefs and eventually we become more like them and less like a child of God. We often fail to remember the day Adam opened the door for evil to enter this world, which was originally created by God for us. Since then the world has been hostile towards anything having to do with God.

Even though we know this world is not our home, many believers are happy to dwell in it and enjoy all it has to offer as long as they feel they have not crossed some line they have set for themselves. We tend to send up this boundary so that we can enjoy the world without feeling guilty.  We seem to forget that the things of this world are corrupt and worthless in the eyes of God.

Many believers have become lukewarm and no longer stand up for the truth. James 4:4 says, "You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity (hostility, resentment, antagonism),  against God?   Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God."  We have  become so like the world in order to fill up our buildings that we promote a watered down version of God that makes us indistinguishable from the world.  God's heart must be so grieved when He sees how far we, as a Body, as His bride, have slid from what He considers holy, pure and sanctified living.

Have you ever felt the influence of the world as much as today? Have you ever seen a time when so many believers are becoming apathetic or just plain lazy in their walk with God? The world is no longer at the door of the Church...it is now part of the Church!   First John 2:15 warns us, "Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them." So we need to ask ourselves, in what ways are we allowing the world to affect our relationship with the Father?

Many a believer is just as guilty as his non-religious friend in being caught up in materialism. While things are in and of themselves neither good nor bad, it is the attitude we have towards them that shows where we stand. While we do need "things" to live in this world, the wisest choice is for us to use them and hold them as though they belonged to God (which they do); that is to say, we must be willing to keep them or part with them at His pleasure. Only then will we be able to have a healthy attitude towards  things we own.  That is one of the ways we are to live detached and separated from the world, and set aside for God's use.

Materialism is not the only way we can be worldly.  First John 2:16 warns us there are other things that can drastically affect us..."For everything in the world--the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life--comes not from the Father but from the world." The lust of the flesh can be for any pleasure, not just sexual.  Our pleasure-seeking culture would have us believe it is the way to find satisfaction, but what you do not realize is that we can easily become hedonistic, and we focus on serving self and lose all interest in obtaining our satisfaction from serving and following God.  Galatians 5:19-21 says, "The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery;  idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions  and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God."

The lust of the eyes is where we want to possess what we see or what we find visually attractive. Our homes become filled with stuff.  We covet what others have and wish we had it.  We have even coined a phrase for it: "keeping up with the Jones'".  We have an insatiable desire to accumulate more. When we operate in this mode, we hate to be outdone by another and not get what we want, and we certainly do not go to God to see if He approves of us having it.  Exodus 20:17 addresses this issue of coveting people, possessions or even status when it says, "You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.” Satan uses the lust of the eyes as a way to tempt us and make us dissatisfied with what we have and what God has provided for us.  

The pride of life are the attitudes of pridefulness, arrogance, being wise in our own eyes,  boastful, or having the attitude that we are better than others.  We look down on others in contempt. It is the complete opposite of humility. It's end result is that we exalt ourselves above God and is in direct opposition to Jesus' telling us that whoever would follow Him must have an attitude of servanthood, submission and surrender. First Corinthians 3:19 tells us "For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight."

We have got to watch our selves closely to make sure we are not getting into any of these areas.  Our flesh, our carnal nature, enjoys this world and all it has to offer.  Our flesh, in its natural state, is enmity against God and if we do not keep our spirit man strong, our flesh will steer our lives and the course it takes is ultimately in favor of the things of this world that go against God.   Remember, what we feed is what grows. If we feed our carnal nature and its appetites, that will become the strongest aspect of our life. However, if we feed our spirit, then our appetite for the things of God will grow.  

For a believer, it is no longer a question of heaven or hell, but it is one of do we live in this world regrettably or do we enjoy being here? We are to live as a people set apart from this world. Do you have a desire for the eternal things of God? Or do you want to continue to live as the world does? Proverbs 21:2 warns us, "Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs (judges) the heart."

When God called you out and delivered you, He delivered you from this world's system. The life you received as God's gift was citizenship in Heaven and we are no longer citizens of this world. Though we must live here, we are never to feel settled here or at home here. While we are here we have a part to play, and we can only do that if we are not lovers of this world. We are to be lights to the world, calling our fellow man to leave behind this world and come into the family of God.

 It is because we possess the spirit of God within us, as a result of accepting our new life from God, that the world will hate us.  The world's hostility is instantly aroused when it senses the divine nature that is within us. The world is antagonistic to the life of Christ in us. So asking yourself how well you are getting along with the world can be a good gauge as to just how much you are still a part of this world.

The prayer of Jesus to His Father in John 17: 14,15 was, "I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one."  Every true believer will be a source of irritation to the enemy and one of conviction to the world.  If you are not, then you need to earnestly ask the Lord to show you where you have gone astray and how to get back on solid ground.  There is no standing still when one is a believer...you are either growing forward or are sliding backward.

Are you burdened by the evil that is in the world? First John 5:19 tells us that, "We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one."  We cannot escape the snares of this world by hiding away or ignoring them. We can do our best to forsake all sorts of worldly pleasures in the hope of being kept safe. You can become a hermit in a cave, but the world will follow you even there. 

Matthew 5:14 -16 tells us, "You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven."  Jesus plainly says we are the world's light and it is up to us as to whether we will shine it brightly or hide it.  For us to separate ourselves from the world and deprive it of its only light does not glorify God and negates our usefulness for His Kingdom. 

God can set our feet upon a rock and keep us from slipping.  He can help us keep our focus on the right things. The Bible says we live in a “crooked and perverse” world and that as believers we are to “shine as lights in the world” (Philippians 2:15). The closer we move toward the “end of the age” (Matthew 24), the darker and more perverse the world becomes.  When we are faced with alternatives and a choice of ways confronts us, the ultimate question we must ask ourselves is are we helping God's Kingdom or the world. We are being called upon to choose whom we will serve...God and His Holy Word or this world.