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1 John 2:15-17, Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.

John continues his letter in this chapter, focusing on what it means for believers to walk closely with God.  In our focus verses for today, we find John telling the readers not to love the world or anything in the world AND if they do love the world, it’s an indication that God is not in them.  Those seem like some harsh words.  Let’s unpack this a bit.

What does John mean by the world?  Surely, he is not referring to the world as a whole, after all, there are many wonderful things in the world that God created.  Rather, John is using the term to refer to describe desires of the flesh (which are exactly what you are thinking), desires of the eyes (anything one sees and wants/covets), and things that activate our pride.  These three elements are all self-focused rather than God-focused.  They are all activities that lead us away from God rather than toward God.  In addition, these all lead to words and behaviors that provide a terrible witness for the faith. 

John closes these focus verses by stating that worldliness will pass away but God is eternal.  This world, certainly our lives, are all temporal.  But God is eternal.  Thus, we must prioritize accordingly.

Let’s pray…Lord, we get our priorities all our of whack.  Forgive us. We focus too much on the stuff of the world, the things we want and desire, the things that build up our ego.  Forgive us. God, help us focus on you.  Help us focus on you, Jesus.  Amen.