GOD'S STANDARD OF LOVE (5 OF 14)
by Jim Perdue
Scripture: 1 John 2:15-17
This content is part of a series.
God's Standard of Love (5 of 14)
Series: Authentic Christianity
Jim Perdue
1 John 2:15-17
Intro/Attention
As we journey through 1 John together we've discovered that the major purpose of this book is to identify and replicate Authentic Christianity. John stands up to those who are false teachers, who would lead the church astray. And he encourages those who are true believers, who have genuine questions about their faith.
Simply put, John is concerned about knowing and living right. And here in these three verses, he shows us God's standard of love. John shows us in one simple phrase at the beginning of this passage God's standard of love: ''do not love the world...'' This entire passage hinges upon that one phrase or concept.
Now, what does John mean when he says, ''do not love the world...''? Does he mean that we shouldn't love the people in the world? NO! That doesn't make sense. The Bible tells us in John 3:16 that ''God so love the world...'' Does it mean that we should not love this physical world, the earth, the stars, flowers, trees? So, John is battling the environmentalists here and saying that we shouldn't be tree huggers? NO! In Genesis we learn that God created the world and required that mankind be good stewards of that creation. What John means when he writes this phrase is this: do not love the world's system of beliefs, ethics or way of life. This is the ''world's system'' as described by many. It involves the worlds' values, pleasures, pastimes and aspirations. John says that the world lies in the grip of the evil one (1 John 5:19), it rejected Jesus when he came (John 1:10), it does not know Him (1 John 3:1) and it hates His followers (John 17:14).
This is the meaning then, that we are not to love world and its way of life. Why? Well, here in 1 John 2:15-17, John gives us several reasons why we shouldn't love the world's system. Because...
The love of the world contradicts the love of God: 15
Explanation
John begi ...
Series: Authentic Christianity
Jim Perdue
1 John 2:15-17
Intro/Attention
As we journey through 1 John together we've discovered that the major purpose of this book is to identify and replicate Authentic Christianity. John stands up to those who are false teachers, who would lead the church astray. And he encourages those who are true believers, who have genuine questions about their faith.
Simply put, John is concerned about knowing and living right. And here in these three verses, he shows us God's standard of love. John shows us in one simple phrase at the beginning of this passage God's standard of love: ''do not love the world...'' This entire passage hinges upon that one phrase or concept.
Now, what does John mean when he says, ''do not love the world...''? Does he mean that we shouldn't love the people in the world? NO! That doesn't make sense. The Bible tells us in John 3:16 that ''God so love the world...'' Does it mean that we should not love this physical world, the earth, the stars, flowers, trees? So, John is battling the environmentalists here and saying that we shouldn't be tree huggers? NO! In Genesis we learn that God created the world and required that mankind be good stewards of that creation. What John means when he writes this phrase is this: do not love the world's system of beliefs, ethics or way of life. This is the ''world's system'' as described by many. It involves the worlds' values, pleasures, pastimes and aspirations. John says that the world lies in the grip of the evil one (1 John 5:19), it rejected Jesus when he came (John 1:10), it does not know Him (1 John 3:1) and it hates His followers (John 17:14).
This is the meaning then, that we are not to love world and its way of life. Why? Well, here in 1 John 2:15-17, John gives us several reasons why we shouldn't love the world's system. Because...
The love of the world contradicts the love of God: 15
Explanation
John begi ...
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