Do You Love the World?

Love not the world, neither the things that in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 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 of the world  (1 John  2:15-16). 

Many people love the things of the world too much. Too many gauge success by worldly standards: education, careers, money, status, looks, etc. All of these stem from the sin of pride. Other sins can sprout from it, things like greed, stepping on others to get ahead, cheating, lying, stealing, vicious gossip, and a host of others. 

The wise realize that nothing is as important as our heavenly Father and faith. It is the only thing that will matter in the end. Only what we've done with Jesus and our relationship with Him will matter then. This determines where we'll spend eternity, and eternity matters so much more than this fleeting, temporary existence.

So, I ask. Do you love the world too much? Do you cling to it more tenaciously than you cling to God? Does the very thought of dying send you sinking in a sea of dread and depression? Do you want to get ahead in life more than you study God's Word, pray, and seek to bring others to Him? Remember, God always gives us another chance to make better choices and get things right.

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