Tuesday, 5/27/14
Here is one Bible verse that years ago used to intrigue me: Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father (God) is not in him. (1 John 2:15) To many, the verse may be difficult to understand because God loved the world so much that He gave His Son as a ransom for it. This verse, however, tells us not to love the world. Why? As is the case with many others, this bible verse can be contradictory if it is taken out of it’s context. Reading beyond the verse, we can clearly see that it does not refer to the people in the world but to the natural cravings in this life, namely lusting after what we see with our eyes and the boasting about the things we have and do. Think about it: What images do we mostly see on Facebook, a picture of a great looking plate of food someone is craving or is about to eat, pictures of someone’s possessions, like cars, homes, furnishings, pets, etc., or places where they are or have visited? Settle down; I’m not suggesting people who do these things are lost heathens. I would be a hypocrite if I pretended that I hated eating out, having things, or going places. I’m just saying that we can fall in love and get so involved with these things, that we can neglect or push aside the things that truly are important and necessary. Jesus also said that life is more than just food and clothes, (Mt. 6:25) and that a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions. (Luke 12:15) Unfortunately, to many people, these worldly things have already become “their life.”
To me, one of the saddest verses in the Bible is 2 Timothy 4:10, where the Apostle Paul wrote: For Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica. Sadly, the chapter in the life of this particular servant of God, is repeated over and over in the life of many church members today. At one time they were faithfully and wholeheartedly serving in a certain church capacity, and if they have not left it now altogether for “better and more fun things” outside the church, their heart is no longer in it.
Examine yourself. Has eating or going out, or the movies, or hitting the social scene, become the major part of your life? How much time are you leaving for God, and is there any room left for prayer, bible reading, church involvement and attendance, and spending time with your family, just to name a few? It is these things that, in the end, you will be happy that you did not neglect.
Memory Verse for the week: (1 Peter 5:7) Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.
