October 20, 2026 | Be Connected
Do Not Love the World
Scripture: 1 John 2:15-17(NIV)
15 Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. 16 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. 17 The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.
Devotional
The Bible often draws a sharp contrast between loving God and loving the world. They are mutually exclusive options. While we are called to love the world with Godly compassion, we are warned about loving it with worldly desire. John offers three ways to think about this worldliness.
The lust of the flesh, or satisfying every physical desire, is one such tripwire. I grew up in the 60s and 70s, the ultimate “if it feels good, do it” age. But that mentality didn’t die when the calendar flipped to a new decade or even a new millennium.
The lust of the eyes seems to be about caving to the cravings of greed, covetousness, and well… lust. Some would say, “We only see what we want to see.” Ultimately, we have no control over much of what passes in front of our eyes. But we do have a choice about whether to turn the glimpse into a gaze. Car companies are masters of ads that tell us how we will look when we drive what they are selling.
The pride of life is the third warning put forth by the Apostle John. He never imagined we would live in a world where we measure ourselves by how many likes, hearts, friends, and followers we accumulate. A CBS News poll found that 86% of young Americans are willing to try to become an influencer on social media platforms.
The good news is that Jesus understands. He was tempted in every way, just like we are. In fact, 1 Corinthians 10:13 says, “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”
