Love

Love not the world neither the things that are in the world.  If any man loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  What does this mean to you?  You may think this is only external behavior like the people we associate with or the places we go.  But loving the things of this world is also internal which would consist of the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life.

We are all tempted in all these areas just like when Jesus was being tempted, or tested in the wilderness.  What were the three things that the devil tried to tempt Him with, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life.  This is what it says in the footnotes of the Bible that I am using about these things: Lust of the flesh (preoccupation with gratifying physical desires, materialism), Lust of the eyes (craving and accumulating things), Pride of life (obsession with one’s status or importance).

When the serpent tempted Eve in the beginning she was also tempted in these areas.  These may be the three main things we have a problem with and in our country you won’t have to look far to see people that have yielded to these temptations.  Just look in your houses, in your closets, in your garages or your basements and even your attics and see all the things you have that you will never wear or use.  Honestly how many of us could say we would be happy and content being second, third or fourth fiddle or so on, so to speak?  Most of us want to be number one so bad that many might even sell their soul for the opportunity, just like Esau sold his birth-right to Jacob, could that be you?

What about gratifying the physical desires, such as indulging in too much food or far too many sweets or just things in general that we know are not good for us?  Where is the moderation?  Jesus didn’t eat for forty days and forty nights, He could have turned the stones into bread, but He didn’t choose to.  He could have shown the devil how great He really was, but He didn’t choose to.  He knew who He was and He didn’t have to prove it to anyone, not even the devil himself.  

The devil went away humiliated and I believe the same thing happened with Job.  Job would not curse God, no matter what the devil brought on him; he had to be humiliated that day also.  Think of it this way, maybe every time we are tempted by the evil one and we resist he flees from us humiliated.  God’s Word says if we resist the devil he will flee from us just like when Jesus resisted him he left and the angels came and ministered to Him.

So there is more than one way that we can love the world and the things that are of the world.  I don’t think it is wrong to have things but when the things have us, that’s when we get into trouble.  Also when we hoard all of our things we have and are not willing to share with others, then we become stingy and the things we have can become idols.  We need to learn to do all things in moderation and we need to have a healthy balance in our lives.

Something to think about!  May you have a super day and may the good Lord bless you and yours with His perfect peace, love and joy!!  PS don’t forget to thank and praise the Lord for He is worthy!!