1 John Chapter 2

The older I grow, the more enticing the world appears to be. There seems to be more to buy, more to want, more to do, more to worry about, more to enjoy… The list goes on. 

To all of us whose hearts hunger for a larger slice of this world, Elder John’s words might be a bitter pill to swallow.

“Do not love the world or the things in it. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” (1 Jn 2:15)

The love of the Father is not in him. We understand this a little deeper through the Chinese translation, 爱父的心不在他里面了. Which means someone who loves the world does not have a heart that loves God. 

Surely Elder John doesn’t really mean it, we say. I keep the Sabbath, serve the Lord in [fill in the blank] and [blank], and I read the Bible and pray daily! (Or almost daily!) 

But God means every word that is written in His Bible, and this verse emphasises the very reason why Jesus came down to earth for us: Jesus came to redeem us, to set us apart from the rest of the world. Jesus knows the world is under the sway of the evil one, and that many of the desires and actions in the world only brings us away from God (1 Jn 5:19; Jas 4:4).

Loving God is not a feeling. It is a lifestyle (1 Jn 2:3, 5-6).

Jesus too was tempted to love the world.

“Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to Him, “All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.” (Mt 4:8)

The devil showed Jesus a spiritual vision of the all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. Then Satan offered Him an deal: Receiving all of this glory is simple. Just give up Your faith. 

This vision, or might we say, illusion, resembles fantasies we may have of success, status, fame and wealth. Maybe we imagine the applause (or likes) we will receive, the sense of achievement, or even the better life our family will have.

But the next question is whether our pursuit of these have taken God’s rightful place as number one in our hearts. Have we fallen down to worship these fantasies? Is our mind filled with thoughts of how to make more money, rather than with God’s word? Do we leave our hearts in our workplace or shopping apps when we listen to sermons?

Like Jesus, let us say, “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.” (Mt 4:10)

We know to serve God. But serving only Him? This command is difficult to keep when we live in cultures powered by insatiable materialism, where the desire for more becomes god. 

But in His final prayer before He was arrested for our sakes, Jesus affirmed this: like our Christ, we are in the world, but not of the world (Jn 17:16). Let’s hold on to this.

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