Things and Thoughts

Don’t love this evil world or the things in it. If you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. This is all there is in the world: wanting to please our sinful selves, wanting the sinful things we see, and being too proud of what we have. But none of these comes from the Father. They come from the world. The world is passing away, and all the things that people want in the world are passing away. But whoever does what God wants will live forever. (I John 2:15-17)

Where are our affections placed? Whatever we focus on the most likely has more than our attention - it may also have our affection! Three very clear indicators our life may need a bit of adjustment are laid out in our passage today. There is a tremendous desire to please one's own self in this world today - go after what YOU want and don't be concerned about what it may do to others. The thought of pleasing oneself can take over the thoughts and heart of an individual, making everything they do very self-focused. The sinful things we see might just fuel a deeper 'lust' that lies deep within us - the desire for more, the craving for what we don't have, and the urge to 'get' in order to feel 'fulfilled' all give us more than one headache, don't they? If that weren't enough, we find ourselves caught up in comparing what we 'have' with what others 'don't have'. You've heard the saying that a man's head can get too big for him to pass through the door - pride swells within, driving us to do and say things we frequent regret later. All three of these 'patterns of behavior' are fueled when our focus is not rightly placed. Perhaps this is why we are warned that none of these behaviors exhibit the behavior God wants to see in the lives of his children.

All the things we want 'in this world' will one day pass away - they are fleeting. Even the 'accomplishments' of our incessant 'doing' will one day pass away. We might have a tombstone that suggests we 'did something' worthwhile, but if we lived with our focus on what we thought others would see as 'worthwhile', we likely missed what God actually sees as worthy of our affection and attention. The world has a very different view of what is 'important' and what we should 'run after', doesn't it? The message of the world's philosophy is 'put your needs first'. The message of God's Word is put others first. The world's philosophy says our accomplishments will matter, while God's message is that what his Son accomplished on the cross is all that matters! We may not see much harm in seeking after things, a better position in life, or even having a bit of 'pride' when we finally achieve whatever it is we are seeking to accomplish, but if all our 'striving' has taken our focus off of Jesus, we have accomplished very little in the end. The world's 'stuff' and 'positions' all pass away in the end. What remains is the relationship we developed with Jesus along the way. If things or thoughts get in the way of that, perhaps they aren't what should have our affection in the first place. Just sayin!