Young People's Group

LOVE NOT THE WORLD

by Pastor Mitch
January 14, 2007

The Temptation Of Gaining The Whole World

The Lord’s kingdom is not of this world. If it was, the Lord Jesus, when He was on this earth, would have fought for it and established it. But He did not. A classic example of how the Lord did not seek after the things of this world was when He was tempted by Satan in the wilderness.

“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.'”
Matthew 4:8-9

The devil showed to Jesus all the kingdoms of the world with their glory. Can you imagine the kind of glory one would receive if he were to own all the kingdoms of the world? The only catch was that Jesus must acknowledge Satan as His lord. He was to worship him. Satan was hoping that the Lord would be tempted, but He was not at all.

The Lord’s Strong Defence Against The Lure Of The World

“Then Jesus said to him, ‘Away with you, Satan! For it is written, “You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.”‘”
Matthew 4:10

The Lord Jesus gave a strong rebuke to Satan. His heart, mind and spirit were not tempted by the prospect of obtaining the glory of the world. They were instead circumscribed by the Scriptures. The Lord Jesus used God’s word as His powerful defence against Satan’s temptations. He quoted from the text ofDeuteronomy 6:13. He was determined to fear and worship the Lord God and only Him would He worship. He was not tempted by the thought that He would gain much glory. We too must seek to fear the Lord above all rather than be tempted by the glories of this world.

The Challenge Not To Love The World

“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world – the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life – is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.”
1 John 2:15-17

The apostle John gave a command to all Christians not to love the world. The word “love” means to love deeply and dearly. When we love the world, our love for God will grow cold. The things of the world with all its glories are at best transient. On the other hand, the person who does the will of God will stand and abide in the light of the Lord. Young people, let us not be tempted by the things of the world. Let’s love God and His word far more than anything in this world. Let’s learn not to love the world.

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