Don’t Love the World

We live in a world that relentlessly promotes an egocentric lifestyle with a desire for pleasures and a worldly life. All of this distracts us from seeing the reason why we are here in the first place:  to bring honor and glory to God. The Creator of the Universe wants to have a relationship with us through His Son Jesus Christ. Yet, we struggle to see past our own life and the current world we live in. A recurrent theme in our challenge is found in 1 John.

Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

Even with this mandate, many of us continue trying to live a life for the Lord while still “loving” the world.  We compare ourselves to the standard of the world often failing to see the only standard we should live by: God’s Word.

To live a life completely devoted to the Lord requires faith, complete submission, and discipline.  It is a daily war to live an uncompromised life, especially in such a carnal world.  We have to commit our life to the Lord and make Him the sole purpose of our life above everything else because He is only reason we are here in the first place.

Matthew 6:24 tells us  “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” When applying this principle to the love for the world in general, we have a choice we need to make: whom will we serve from here on out?

Let’s take this a step further.  How do we live a life devoted to the Lord? Are going to church and praying sufficient? If we look at the life of Jesus and other servants of the Lord, we quickly see that it takes complete submission and devotion toward living a life imitating Jesus and those heroes of the faith. They faced the same struggles we face.  They were tempted just as we are, but they did not compromise. Rather they gave everything to serve the Lord. 1 John 2:6 clearly states that He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.  Looking at the life of Jesus Christ, it becomes evident that we have to make a commitment to walk as Jesus walked and live a life completely devoted to God. Looking back at 1 John 2:17, we are reminded us of the eternal blessing we receive if we persevere: And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

Today’s Challenge: Pray that God will reveal any areas in your life that mirror the world and make a commitment to live a life completely devoted to God, eliminating any worldly distractions in your life. Pray that the noise and sins of this world will no longer distract you from having a closer relationship with the Lord.