What are the things of the world? (based on 1 John 2:15-16)

The Bible instructs us to, "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." (1 John 2:15). What are THE THINGS IN THE WORLD?? Is it cars, bars, television, the newest fashion, Internet games, golf, or music?  Truly, the world in which we live is full of material things. They are so many that one cannot make a complete list of them all. And quite a lot of things cannot be done away with for they are useful for communication, transportation, our comfort, and our very survival. However, we Christians have been warned by the Holy Scriptures against loving the world and loving the things in the world. The clue to finding what the Bible refers to as ‘the things that are in the world’ is in the next verse, verse 16..."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."  Therefore to love the things that are in the world is to give yourself over to ‘the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.

Now, look at what Jesus in these verses:

Revelation 3:21 "To him that OVERCOMES will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I ALSO OVERCAME, and am set down with my Father in his throne."

Revelation 3:5:6 He that OVERCOMES, the same shall be clothed in white raiment, and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

John 16:33 "I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have OVERCOME THE WORLD."

Jesus overcame the things of the world! Specifically: the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes. and the pride of life. Thus we can see that love for the things in the world is the stimulus behind most of the heinous crimes and offenses committed or perpetrated by people. The world is plagued with immorality, crime, wickedness, etc. just because the human inhabitants of the world are continually practicing bad deeds to satisfy their lust or desire for sex, drugs, alcohol, power, fame, glory, and also to take what other people possess.

Let's break down all three.

1. What is the lust of the flesh? 

The lust of the flesh speaks of any wicked desires stirred by our physical or emotional needs, particularly the desire for pleasures driven by the desire for worldly, selfish pleasures, which draw our hearts away from God and ultimately lead to death. The only way to OVERCOME it is by abiding in God’s Word and allowing the Holy Spirit to take control of our lives.

 Lust is an intense desire for an object or circumstance (sexuality, money, or power) to indulge or content oneself, often at the expense of others. At the heart of it, lust desires to take – in contrast to love, which desires to give.  According to Paul, we were all by nature children of wrath, who once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind (Ephesians 2:3). Our sinful nature is evidenced by our inclination toward seeking our own interests, to disobey and rebel against God, the Law Giver. The lust of the flesh refers to the impure desires of our sinful human nature. You satisfy these impure desires of your human nature when you partake in bad practices that make you feel satisfied in one way or the other such as vengeance, drug abuse, alcoholism, adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, mockery, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, reveling, etc. (Galatians 5:19-21).

**** Jesus' words to us? "To him that OVERCOMES will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I ALSO OVERCAME, and am set down with my Father in his throne."

2. What is the lust of the eyes?  Simply put, the lust of the eyes is the sinful desire to possess /covet what we see or to have those things which have visual appeal. This coveting of money, possessions, or other physical things is not from God, but from the world around us. John emphasizes that these physical things do not last; they will pass away. In contrast, the child of God is guaranteed eternity. The lust of the eyes is the desire to have what you see. Any time you see something belonging to someone and you have a strong desire to have it – it is covetousness and it is the lust of the eyes. When you see someone’s wife and you feel a strong desire to have her, it is the lust of the eyes. It was the lust of the eyes that made King David commit adultery with Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah (2 Samuel 11:1-5). The lust of the eyes leads to the sin of covetousness, and extravagance, and it also makes men stare lustfully at women.  The lust of the eyes and similarly covetousness are responsible for dozens of crimes committed.  Robbery and theft are sins that are influenced by the lust of the eyes.  Part of the reason Eve listened to the serpent in the Garden was that she looked at the forbidden fruit and SAW that it was “pleasing to the eye” (Genesis 3:6). Satan used a visual image to help entrap her. Satan tried a similar tactic on Jesus. One of His temptations in the wilderness was an attempt to make Jesus covet earthly power. Satan used a visual, "he showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor” (Matthew 4:8). He then promised to give them to Jesus—for a price. Of course, Jesus did not succumb to the lust of the eyes, and Satan was defeated.

**** Jesus' words to us? "To him that OVERCOMES will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I ALSO OVERCAME, and am set down with my Father in His throne."

3.  What is the pride of life?

The “pride of life” is the boasting about what one does for a living (livelihood) and the abundance of the things one has because of it. The pride of life is the sin of being arrogant or boastful about what one has achieved. It is also the sin of seeing others as inferior on account of your achievements, personality, or status. Examples are self-righteousness or feeling more righteous than others; feeling more important than others on account of your beauty, fame, etc. It is lording yourself over others because of your position, achievement, and riches which in turn gives birth to arrogance and pride. According to biblical records, Nebuchadnezzar II is one of those found guilty of the pride of life. One day he was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, and when he saw the magnificence of the city of Babylon, he was moved, out of pride and arrogance, Nebuchadnezzar said, “Is not this great Babylon, which I have built by my mighty power as a royal residence and for the glory of my majesty?" (Daniel 4:30 ESV). God dealt with Nebuchadnezzar for his pride – his pride of life – by turning him into a beast to humble him.

**** Jesus' words to us? "To him that OVERCOMES will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I ALSO OVERCAME, and am set down with my Father in His throne."

In conclusion: "For whatsoever is born of God overcomes the world: and this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith."  (1 John 5:4) The one factor that gives us the power to overcome the world is our relationship with Christ, which enables us to do all things. As we walk with God, we need to exercise living faith, one that requires good works. The indwelling of God's Spirit enables us to be faithful, having a kind of second-sight into the spiritual world, making faith possible even without physical evidence.

Until He Comes,

-Pat-