"I Want" Means "I Want Now!"
Opening Prayer
Heavenly Father, I know how very much You love me. I want to love You so deeply, also.
Read 1 John 2:15-17
[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. Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. All rights reserved throughout the world. Used by permission of International Bible Society.
Reflect
What is the problem with "loving the world"?John is not telling us we must cut ourselves off from everything that we enjoy. Having fun, shopping, looking nice, playing a sport, reading novels are not banned! But these things must not be the “be all and end all” of our lives (15b). What we do must be above reproach. Our desires, whether for clothes, money, super-fitness or status, can become our god. We can lust after the latest model of whatever we want, just as we can lust after members of the opposite sex (16). Having what we want, we can flaunt it, thinking this will boost our position in life. The world John speaks of is a world where the desires for the latest thing, to be someone important, or to be a celebrity, are normal and expected ways of living. They are what we aim for. We devour magazines about current celebrities. And we try to emulate them. John makes clear that this is quite inappropriate. We must not inhabit that world of greed, casual sex and selfishness. That world will pass away. Those who live doing the will of God will live forever (17).
Apply
Pray and ask God to show you where in your life you might be making your “wants” too important.
Closing prayer
Lord God, help me to keep the “things” in my life in proper perspective so that You are always first.
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