It may be interesting to you that there are three worlds mentioned in the Bible. John speaks of all three, beginning with the physical world we live in and on (Jn 1.10). Jesus teaches that God loved the world so much that He gave His only Son so that all may be saved (Jn 3.16). The world here represents people as a whole. Finally, John contrasts two worlds (I Jn 5.19) by comparing the people of God on one hand and those of the world who belong to the ‘wicked one’, or Satan, on the other. It is the vast difference between these two worlds that should deeply concern us as Christians.

Satan uses the love of the physical world to draw people away from God (I Jn 2.15-16). They are aptly called ‘worldly people’ and are driven by lusts of the body, lusts of sight, and lusts of earthly rewards such as the praise of men (Gen 3, Mat 4). Scripture tells of some who loved the world more than God: The rich, young ruler (Mt 19.16-22), Judas (Jn 12.1-6, Mk 14.10-11), and Demas (2 Tim 4.9-10) are but a few. The truth is that the world, its lusts and those who follow after them will not last. In the end, they will be destroyed (I Jn 2.17)

The love that the Father has for us however, is a different matter altogether. The only effective antidote to the poison of the world is to fill the heart with love of the Father (I Jn 2.15, Mt 6.24, 12.30) just as He loves us. Those who do the will of God will not be destroyed, rather they will live forever (I Jn 2.17). Abraham loved God and obeyed (Heb 11.10), so did Moses (Heb 11.26). Who could ever doubt that the apostle Paul loved God to the very core of his being and showed it through the life that he lived (2 Tim 4.6-8)?

What about us? Do we love the Father enough that we can say no to the world and its evil? Do we actively seek to keep the poison out, and let God’s love in? One antidote to the world is to let the word of Christ dwell in you richly (Col 3.16a). When our hearts are filled to the brim with love and obedience to God, then there is no room left for the evils of the world. Fill your heart today and every day with His righteousness!

~Paul Nygard

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