Let’s turn in our Bibles to 1 John 2:12-17. Last week we talked about the love God loves. Today, we are looking at “The Love God Hates.” And what is the love that God hates? It is love for the world. But there’s a good love for the world and a bad love for the world. And we need to differentiate those two as we approach this topic. We’ll get into that.   

One of the things that I’ve learned in studying 1 John over the years is the role of “tests” in this letter. John is very conscientious in his letter about giving us tests. And these tests are used to determine the authenticity of a believer’s faith. These are tests to determine whether or not a person who espouses Christian faith is the genuine article or a counterfeit. 

And these tests aren’t the SAT or the ACT. You don’t take these tests with a #2 pencil and a scantron. Thank goodness for that! Instead, John mentions the kinds of tests or self-examinations where we discern the genuineness of our salvation. Are we really saved? Do we really belong to God? And beyond self-examination these tests are also used to discern false converts. And that was a big problem in John’s day—people pretending to be Christians. 

Now the tests that John references are two so far. I’ll call these 1) The Moral Test and 2) The Love Test. The “Love Test” is pretty simple. Do you love the church? Do you love your brothers in Christ? This is the love that God loves, and someone who says they love God but fails to love their Christian brothers and sisters is lying, because it’s not possible to love God and hate your brother. 

There’s also the Moral Test. Do you walk in the light as he is in the light? Do you follow Jesus’s commandments—not perfectly but increasingly? Are you increasingly distancing yourself from the darkness? 

John has dealt with all these concepts already, and now he’s going to circle back with another restatement of the “Moral Test.” And the test basically comes down to this… “Do you love the World?” Or let me frame it a little more precisely, “Are you infatuated with worldliness?” Because if you are, John says, “The Love of the Father is not in you.” Let me put it this way, Love for the World is oil and Love for God is water, and those two cannot be mixed. They are like two positively charged ions. 

So the question that I’m asking today, and the test that John is administering in this passage is this simple test: “Do you love God, or do you love the world?” Let me ask it this way: “Are you increasing in love, adoration, and affection for God, or are you increasing in love, adoration, and affection for this world?” You can’t do both. 

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That’s why John says in verse 15:

15 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. 

So with that verse as the central theme for this passage, I want to structure our outline around this question: Why does God hate love for the world? 

I’ll give you three answers to that question. The first of those is this:

1) Love for the world is inconsistent with Christian maturity (2:12-14)

Now this is important. It’s imperative that we understand exactly what John is saying in verses 12-14 and who exactly he is talking to. It might have struck you as odd when this passage was just read, how John addresses little children, and then young men, and then fathers in the passage. Who is John talking to and what is he telling them?

Well many scholars believe that this is actually the greeting for this book… the greeting that was missing in Chapter 1. If you remember in Chapter 1, John doesn’t say, “Hey how’s it going? I’m writing this to you, my friends, etc., etc.” Instead he just jumps right into his message, “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life” (1 John 1:1). Now after an extensive section of writing, John finally takes a breather, and greets his audience. And he gives them a reason for his writing.

Look at verse 12.

12 I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for his name’s sake. 

13 I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. 

I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. 

And in this statement, John divides the church body up into three basic groups: the little children, the fathers, and the young men. And most churches are made up of those three groups namely, 1) New believers, 2) Young believers, and 3) Not-young believers. You got 1) New saints, 2) Young saints, and 3) Seasoned saints. You can go ahead and write those down in your notes as the three stages of Christian maturity:

First stage of Christian maturity – New Saints

Second stage of Christian maturity – Young Saints

Third stage of Christian maturity – Seasoned Saints

And this is not really about age, although age is a factor. It’s about the number of years a person has been following Christ. You’ve got 1) New followers, 2) Recent followers, and 3) Old followers (and that’s not derogatory in any way… that’s an affirmation of many years of following Christ). Every person in the church can be subdivided into one of these categories. And John has specific things that he wants to say to you.

First to the babes in Christ he says this, 

12 I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for his name’s sake. 

Now obviously this statement is true for all of us. Seasoned saints need this reminder just as much as the new saints. But I think particularly the new believer needs this reminder. The new believers who are still struggling through battles with sin need to be reminded, “your sins are forgiven.” … “your sins are forgiven.” … “your sins are forgiven.” Not because of what you have done, but because of “his name!” 

Who’s the “his” in verse 12? It’s Jesus. Your sins are forgiven on the basis of what Jesus has done for you. And for his name’s sake— in other words for his glory—your sins are forgiven and will stay forgiven! So none of us go around saying, “I am so awesome. I am so smart. I praise my name for being clever enough to turn to Jesus to be forgiven.” No. We praise him. All glory goes to him. 

For those of you at church who are new believers in Jesus Christ… those of you who, let’s just say, came to Christ in the last 3-5 years, let me reiterate what John is saying here. Your sins are forgiven by the blood of Jesus. You are a child of God. “Your sins are forgiven.” … “your sins are forgiven.” … “your sins are forgiven” as a result of Christ’s blood. Don’t ever forget that, or let Satan confuse that reality in your mind. 

I think that’s one of the reasons Jesus wanted us to take communion regularly in the church (Mark 14:22-25; Luke 22:18-20; 1 Cor 11:23-25). Not in order to be saved or stay saved, that is a perversion of the gospel. But instead to remind us how we are saved! It’s by the blood of Jesus that we are saved, not by our own works, lest any man should boast. 

Next John turns to the “fathers,” and this is a little out of sequence. He goes from the “little children” to the “fathers” and then lastly to the “young men.” I don’t know why he does it that way. 

And the term “fathers” is being used to refer to all the men and women who have been following Jesus for an extended period of time. The Greek words for “brothers” and “fathers” and “men” could often be used this way. They’re not always used that way, but they often are. So when John says “fathers” here, he’s talking about “fathers” and “mothers” who have been serving Christ for a long time. 

And John says to the senior saints in verse 13.

13 I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. 

John says, “You know Christ! You know him who is from the beginning. You know John 1:1 and 1 John 1:1, that the Word, that is Jesus Christ, is not just the incarnate Son of God, but he is also the one who in eternity past created the world.” He is from the beginning. He is fully God and fully man. In other words, you have a mature and robust theology, and you have held steadfast to that truth throughout your youth on into spiritual adulthood. And for that reason you are to be commended. Remember now, this is like fifty years after Jesus’s death and resurrection. So there are some folks in the church that have been following Jesus for some time… maybe even decades!

And this is applicable for those of you who have been walking with the Lord for… I don’t know, 30, 40, or 50 years. Those of you who know Jesus Christ, the one who is from the beginning… be encouraged right now to keep on keeping on all the way to the end. Christ is not only the beginning; he’s also the end. He’s the alpha and omega, and, trust me, you want to be with him in the end. 

By the way, John could have used the term “elders” here instead of “fathers.” He could have used a lot of different words to describe the identity of these seasoned saints in the church, but I think it’s significant that he used the term “fathers.” Because there is a fatherly/motherly role that seasoned saints play in the lives of younger believers as they age in Christ. As someone who has been walking with Christ for a while, you are an example to new believers and young believers. And if the shoe fits, Christian, you wear it. You embrace that. 

I’ve noticed that transition in my life. I’ve been walking with the Lord for almost 40 years now. And I still feel young. I feel like I’m somewhere in between a young believer and a seasoned saint. But I know that I’m closer now to seasoned saint than young believer because that father-figure persona has started to play out. And I feel the tension of knowing that not only am I responsible as a father to my son but as a spiritual father to younger believers in our church—men and women both. And God forbid that I would mislead them or misguide them or misappropriate my fatherly responsibility. 

And those of you who have been walking with Christ for a while now and have built up credibility throughout the years, you should feel that pressure too. You need to know that other, younger believers are watching you. And you have a fatherly/motherly responsibility to the spiritual children in the church. 

Then John addresses a final category of believers, the young men in the congregation.

13b I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. 

Who’s the evil one, church? Satan. And I know what Satan would have young people believe in this day. He would have them believe that he’s won. He’s conquered the world. He’s conquered our country. The world is out of control. The world hates Christians. The world today is Satan’s dream-come-true. So Satan has overcome, right? 

O no he hasn’t! Satan’s time is short, and he knows that his rule and reign are limited. And besides that the power that God has deposited in us is infinitely more powerful than Satan. And even though the evil one will occasionally win the battles, he’s already lost the war. And young people need to know that. Young Christians need to be reminded of that. 

So for those of you who have been walking with the Lord for 5, 10, 15, 20 years … Let me remind you… Christ has won! Amen? “So lift up your eyes and lift up your head, because the power of our sin is dead.” 

Here’s the point. A person in this world who doesn’t know Christ can’t say that. They can’t celebrate victory over the evil one. They can’t say, “We have won.” Because they are lost. Because they are dark. Because they are stuck in sin. Because they are not children of God but they are children of the devil. 

But John says, “I am writing to you young men and women of the church, because you have overcome the evil one.” So in essence John is saying, “You have overcome Satan and this world, therefore act like it!” “Act like you have overcome the evil one, and don’t act like you are overcome by the evil one.” And as part of that, as John says later and climactically, “Do not love the world that is the abode of the evil one.” More on that later!

Now before John transitions to “Do not love the world,” he readdresses all three of these categories. And I’m not sure why he does this. Maybe for dramatic effect. Maybe for poetic reasons. Maybe for emphasis. But he circles back with all three of those categories: New saints, Young saints, and Seasoned Saints. 

Look at the end of verse 13:

13c I write to you, children, because you know the Father. 

You are a child of God, Christian. Did you know that? How awesome is that? Regardless of whether you’ve had a good, bad, or indifferent father on earth, your Father in heaven is infinitely more perfect and wonderful. And how do you know the Father? Well, you know him through Christ Jesus. Your faith in Christ allows you to be adopted by the Father, and now you can cry out “Abba, Father.” That’s a precious thing to be able to do!  

Look at verse 14:

14 I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning.

This is the same exact thing, with the same exact wording, that John said in verse 13. I don’t know why he reiterated that here. Maybe he thought seasoned saints needed this reminder twice. Whenever you want to emphasize something, you repeat it. So maybe this is just an instance of emphasis through repetition. 

And similarly John repeats his statement to young men, but he puts a little more mustard on it this time. Look at the middle of verse 14:

14b I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one. 

John says again, “You have overcome the evil one.” But he adds the statement, “Because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you.” John wants to be crystal clear here with these young believers that they haven’t overcome the evil one by the power of the human spirit. Neither have they overcome the evil one with their can-do attitude and with the power of positive thinking. No! He says, “You are strong, and you are an overcomer, because the word of God abides in you.” What is the “word of God” in this context? Well it’s the gospel. It’s the truth that Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins. And, as part of that equation, he has sealed us with his Holy Spirit. And greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world (1 John 4:4)!  

So let me summarize here. Wherever you are in your level of Christian maturity… whatever you struggle with particularly or need reminded about—and I think there’s some wisdom here in how John emphasizes specific things for specific levels of Christian maturity—John wants to encourage you. And all of these statements boil down to this: If you belong to Jesus, everything’s going to be okay. If you belong to Jesus, you don’t have to fear. You’re a child of God. You have overcome the evil one. You know him who is from the beginning. Everything is copacetic. God’s got everything under control. God’s got you in the palm of his hand. And God is going to work it all out in the end. 

Alright? Does everyone feel encouraged?  

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And you might say, “Alright well what do I do in the meantime, Pastor Tony? I need more than encouragement, I need instruction. I need my marching orders.” “What do I need to do?” 

Well I think that’s a good question to ask, and honestly I think that’s what John is driving towards in verse 15. Because here’s what he says, “No matter what level of maturity you are at, no matter if you are a new saint, a young saint, or a seasoned saint… wherever you are in your walk for Christ, here’s my instruction for you…” 

Everyone ready? Look at verse 15.

15 Do not love the world 

Everybody got it? There are your marching orders. You might say that’s a little jarring after the encouragement of verses 12-14! It’s meant to be jarring. John offers a few words of encouragement before he throws down the gauntlet. 

In fact, it’s more jarring than you know. Because this is the first Greek imperative in the whole book. Which is fascinating to me, because 1 John is a preachy little book. John likes to give orders. But his first, formal order in this book is this one. And it’s a negative imperative. 

15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. 

“Why? Why not? I kind of like the world, John.”

If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  

Write this down as #2 in your notes:

2) Love for the world is incompatible with loving God (2:15-16)

James 4:4 says it this way, “Friendship with the world is [enmity with] God.” If the love of the Father is in you, you will not love the world. The logic of this is pretty clear. 

Now I want to clarify here – because this is important – John is using “world” here in a particular way. And the Bible uses the word “world” or κόσμος in Greek in different ways throughout the Bible. For instance John 3:16 tells us God so loved the world (κόσμος), that he gave his one and only Son. Everyone knows that verse. But the κόσμος of John 3:16 is not the same as the κόσμος of 1 John 2:15. They represent different realities that John is describing. In John 3:16, the world represents the people of the world, which obviously God loves and we are called to love. 

So the word κόσμος can be used to describe the people of the world. It can also be used to describe the actual physical world or the physical κόσμος. For instance Paul wrote, “For [God’s] invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world [κόσμος], in the things that have been made” (Rom 1:20). This is clearly a reference to the planet and the animals and all the stars, etc. These God made in six days, and he created and ordered the universe. Actually the Greek word κόσμος, has the idea of order and is differentiated in Greek thought from “chaos.” There’s chaos and there’s cosmos. God’s world, the cosmos, was created with order. 

But in 1 John 2:15, John is not referring to κόσμος as people. He’s not saying, “Do not love people.” Neither is he using κόσμος to describe the ordered universe. He’s not saying, “Do not love the ordered universe!” He’s referring to κόσμος as the fallen worldly system that is under the authority of Satan and is blatantly opposed to God and to godly behavior. Actually the word “worldliness” in English best captures the sense of what John is stating in verse 15. This is not a division between God and the world he created. This is a division between godliness and worldliness. You can’t be godly and worldly at the same time, because “Love for the world is incompatible with loving God.” 

Consider a person who is about to get married. And this fiancé says to his/her future spouse, “I love you, but I love someone else too. And you’re just going to have to share me with that person.” That’s ridiculous. Nobody would get married under those circumstances. Similarly John says you can’t love God and the world. Something’s got to give. You can’t have godliness and worldliness. 

You might say, “Alright, Pastor Tony. So what does worldliness look like? How do I know whether I love the world or not? Because I love Peach Cobbler… is that worldly? I love woodworking… is that worldly? I love my wife. I love my dog. I love my job. I love to read. I love to travel. I love to eat good food. Does that make me worldly?” No. Not necessary.

You might say, “Pastor Tony, I love the Dallas Cowboys. Does that make me worldly?” No. It might make you a masochist! But it doesn’t necessarily make you worldly. 

No, those loves in and of themselves are not evidence of worldliness. Thankfully John actually gives us specific examples of worldliness that can help us. And the reason I’m so thankful for this is because without verse 16, we might get way off track in trying to determine what worldliness looks like. And usually when Christians get off track with this they start coming up with all kinds of rules and legalisms to limit “worldliness.” 

“Pastor Tony, I don’t drink, smoke, or chew or run with those who do!” Well that’s just great! I’m glad that Jesus died on the cross for your sins, so that you could be prideful about that. But that is not exactly godliness or the rejection of worldliness. So what is worldliness? And what is “love for the world?”

Well John gives you three examples of this in verse 16.  

16 For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. 

John writes, “Do not love the world,” and then mercifully he tells you what he means by his reference to the world, namely 1) the desires of the flesh, 2) the desires of the eyes, and 3) pride of life. Now I don’t think that all sin can be categorized by those three things. In other words this is not an exhaustive list of the categories of sin. But if you hate these things, and if you attack these three areas of your life and gain victory, you’re well on your way to being less worldly and more godly in your Christian life. 

Let’s tackle these one by one. First of all… I’m going to go King James on you here… First of all there is the “Lust of the Flesh.” 

Love for the world # 1 – Lust of the Flesh

Now your flesh is that part of you that is corrupted by sin. Your flesh is that part of you that desires something other than God and something other than what God would have for you. The lust of the flesh includes immorality, idolatry, sensuality, enmity, etc. Paul gives us an extensive list of the flesh in Galatians 5, when he writes, “Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God” (5:19-21). These of course are the things that are contrasted with the Fruit of the Spirit: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Gal 5:22-23). And Paul’s warning to those who live by the flesh is essentially the same as John’s, namely If you do such things you will not inherit the kingdom of God. 

John says it this way, “If you love these things, the love of the Father is not in you.” Let me put it this way, a life that is characterized by this kind of sinfulness, darkness, and worldliness is not consistent with the indwelling Holy Spirit and a person who has been born-again through faith in Christ. 

Church, here’s the point! Your love for God will forcibly diminish the flesh in your life! Your love for God will decrease your susceptibility to immorality, idolatry, enmity, strife, etc. If it doesn’t…if that’s not happening on some measurable level in your life… then you need to ask the question – Do I belong to God? Do I really love God? This is the test that John is talking about. This is the self-examination that all of us need to administer on ourselves. Paul says in 2 Corinthians 13:5, “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?”

Now we’re going to struggle with our flesh. Don’t misunderstand me. But we’re going to struggle forwards not backwards. We’re going to progress in sanctification. And sometimes it might feel like 2 steps backwards and 3 steps forwards. But nevertheless there should be discernible progress in the life of a Christian. More of God; less of me. More of his spirit; less of my flesh. More love for God; less love for the world. That’s the way it should be. 

According to John, here’s another way that Love for the World manifests itself, Write this down as Love for the world #2.

Love for the world #2 – Lust of the Eyes

What’s the difference between the “Lust of the Flesh” and the “Lust of the Eyes?” Well here’s how one commentator differentiates these two. He calls the lust of the flesh, illicit physical desires, and lust of the eyes, illicit mental desires. I personally find that distinction helpful. 

Others might differentiate it this way – Lust of the flesh is improper sinful actions whereas lust of the eyes is improper sinful thoughts. These are heart issues, even if they aren’t actually acted out. Jesus was clear about this. Jesus said, “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire” (Matt 5:21-22). Similarly Jesus said, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matt 5:27-28). In other words, sin has to be dealt with not only in the realm of actions, but also in the realm of intention. Not just lust of the flesh, but lust of the eyes. 

And a genuine Christian is going to increasingly experience God’s victory in both of those arenas. And you’re not going to love your sin! No Christian is going to love the lust of his flesh or the lust of his eyes. In fact a growing Christian is going to hate those things inside himself. He’s going to hate the “impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these” inside his own heart. You’re going to increasingly hate the things that God hates, and you’re going to increasingly love the things that God loves. That’s evidence of Christian faith inside your soul.

And also John mentions a third way that love for the world is manifested.

Love for the world #3 – Pride of Life

Now what is the “Pride of life?” I think the best definition comes from Daniel Akin. He calls the pride of life, “the pride that results from giving false value to the things of the world. This pride that results from worldly possession is an affront to God, for it leads to a glorification of the self and a failure to realize the dependence of humanity upon God, the Creator, for existence. In this area of temptation, individuals make idols of their livelihood, social standing, and any other status symbol that the world determines is important but that matters little to God. Pride, prestige, power, and position count for nothing in the kingdom of God.” David Allen calls this, “the arrogant spirit of self-sufficiency.” 

Another NT commentator breaks down these three categories of sin this way. He calls the lust of the flesh “illicit physical desires,” the lust of the eyes “illicit mental desires,” and the pride of life “illicit social-status desires.” 

So let me ask you, church. How are ya’ll doing with these things? How are you doing with pride, envy, enmity, drunkenness, fits of anger, sensuality, impurity, etc.? Both in your actions and also in your mind? How are you doing with this stuff, church? Lust of the eyes, lust of the flesh, and pride of life? A Christian who has been bought by the blood of Jesus should have a decreasing appetite for this stuff. You should hate this stuff. And you should be distancing yourself from it. Because Love for the world is incompatible with loving God (2:15-16). And you should have an increasing appetite for the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faith, self-control. 

And there’s another side to this too. Someone asked D.L. Moody once, “Now that I am converted do I have to give up the world?” Moody responded, “No, sir, you don’t have to give up the world. If you give a good ringing testimony for the Son of God, the world will give you up pretty quick. They won’t want you.” What did he mean by that? Well if you love God, the world is going to give you up pretty quick. They won’t tolerate your undivided devotion to the Lord.

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Write this down under #3:

3) Love for the world is incongruent with God’s will and eternal life (2:17)

John writes in verse 17.

17 And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.

In other words, the Buddhists and the Hindus are wrong. The world doesn’t just cycle on and on for eternity. No, this world will come to an end. Jesus is coming back. Not only is this world passing away, but God will create a new world and a new heaven and earth and a new Jerusalem for us to live forever. And those who do the will of God (i.e. put their faith in Jesus Christ and live their lives in obedience to Christ) will abide forever with him. “Martin Luther says a Christian lives ‘sub specie eternity,’ which means from the perspective of eternity.”

Jesus said practically, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matt 6:19-21). I’ll tell you, church, those words are so stinking practical. This is not Jesus waxing poetic and espousing spiritual mysteries. No. It’s practical. Why would you spend yourself storing up treasures that will be wasted? It’s foolish. It’s nonsensical. Instead focus your energies on the things that last forever. 

John says it stronger here, he says that doing the will of God as opposed to serving the world is characteristic of a Christian. Those who are destined to live forever naturally desire to obey God and forsake the world. That’s what we do, church. Warren Wiersbe said once, “Anything in a Christian’s life that causes him to lose his enjoyment of the Father’s love or his desire to do the Father’s will is worldly and must be avoided.” 

“But Pastor Tony, there’s so much good stuff in this world. There’s so much fun stuff in this world.” Yeah, there is. There is both sinful and non-sinful stuff in this world. And it’s all passing away. All of it is passing away with its desires. But whoever does the will of God abides forever. Love for the world is incongruent with God’s will and eternal life.  

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I’ll close with this. The story is told about a man, a very rich man, who came to a famous religious teacher, a Rabbi, in the first century. And this rich man was troubled in soul. And he asked the Rabbi a very pointed question, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 

The Rabbi was known to respond to questions by asking questions back, and so he said back to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.”

And then he said this, “You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery, Do not murder, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother.’” 

And the rich man said in response, “All these I have kept from my youth.” 

And when the Rabbi heard this, he diagnosed the real condition of this rich man’s heart in a way that none of us could do, because, you see, this Rabbi was much more than a Rabbi. And he said to him, “One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” 

But when the rich man heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely rich. And Rabbi Jesus seeing that he had become sad, said, “How difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” 

Those who heard Jesus say this were perplexed and responded, “Then who can be saved?” And so Jesus responded, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.”

People have been puzzled by Jesus’ actions here for centuries, and many have pondered the implications of what Jesus said to the rich man. But I believe the essence of that story is this. The rich man loved the world more than he loved God. The rich man loved his riches. The rich man loved his wealth. The rich man had lust of the eyes, lust of the flesh, and pride of life. The rich man was inundated by the sin of avarice and greed. And Jesus says very clearly, “You can’t serve God and money.” Or to put it in John’s language, “If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him” (1 John 2:16). 

So, church. Here’s the point of all this. Don’t love the World!