In a simple reading through of the book of First John, you
can't help but notice the obvious theme of the book. Various forms of the word
"Love" are used all throughout the book in all sorts of contexts. In
this little book we read about Gods love for us, we read about what true love
for God looks like, the contrast between love and hatred, love for one another,
things that we should and should not love, the connection between love and
obedience, and on and on the list goes. So an obvious theme in this book would
be love. That being the case, we might expect the book to end with some grand
exhortation about love, and yet, the Holy Spirit inspired the apostle John to
end the book in 1 John 5:21 with the words - "Little children, guard
yourselves from idols." It seems out of place, almost like a P.S. on the
end of the letter, "Oh yeah, and guard yourselves from idols." Now,
like I said, the Holy Spirit inspired John to end the book in this way. This is
the perfect ending to this book, but why? Why would a warning against idols be
the perfect ending to a book about love?
Simply stated, an idol is
anything that draws our love and affection, as well as our time, energy and
resources, away from God. So in this book about loving God we are given this
very real warning that there are things in our lives that are going to want to
draw us away from God, and we need to be on guard against these things.
"Guard yourselves from idols." When we think of idolatry we tend to
think of small household statues that people bow down to every day, and while
that's definitely one type of idolatry, that's not the extent of it. We all
have relationships, possessions, value systems, and other such things that, if
we're not careful, can become idols in our lives.
The only time that the word "idol" is used in First John is in that last verse that we've been considering. However, idolatry is eluded to throughout the book. Whenever we're told in the Bible not to love something, we need to be careful about the thing that is mentioned because we would probably tend to love it if not given the warning. Right now I just want to focus on one idol, and it is mentioned in 1 John 2:15 which says - "Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him." So according to this verse, if you love the world you are not loving God. And if you are loving God you are not loving the world. It's one or the other, you can't do both. Now, when it says "do not love the world" it's talking about the world system, worldly values, the worlds way of thinking, that's what it means when he says "do not love the world." Then he says "or the things in the world." Speaking of course of material possessions, money and so on. In John chapter 17 the Lord Jesus is praying to His Father and He says in verses 14-18 - "I have given them Thy word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I do not ask Thee to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; Thy word is truth. As Thou didst send Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world." In this passage the Lord Jesus is praying to the Father about His disciples, both those who were following Him then and those of us who are following Him now, and He is essentially asking the Father to keep us from being influenced by the world as we live in the world. We are here for a reason. If the extent of Christianity was heaven then the Lord would've taken us the moment He saved us, but the fact that we are still here shows that He has a reason for us being here. He has a work for us to do. And so, as we live in the world, the Lord Jesus prays that we would not adopt their values, beliefs and desires, because we are not of this world. Though we are in the world we are not of the world. H.A. Ironside was writing on this topic, referring to it as "other-worldliness," and he said "I have purposely written, "other-worldliness." Mere unworldliness is not enough. To walk apart from this world might make a nun or a monk. To walk in the power of another world will make a true ambassador for Christ." It's very easy to start looking like the lost world around us. With many in the professing church today it's hard to tell any difference at all between them and the world around them because they are living their lives with the exact same pursuits and desires, and you would never guess that they are heading for another world because they're so caught up in living for this world. And the Lord Jesus wants us to be on guard against this. You're gonna start looking like whoever you are listening to. If you are listening to the Lord through His Holy Word you are going to be constantly changing to be more and more like the Lord Jesus Christ. On the other hand, if you are listening to the world you're going to start to look like the world. What they value, what they consider cool, what their desires and pursuits are, if you're listening to the world, if the world has become an idol in your life then you are going to start to see the world when you look in the mirror. The Word of God declares in Romans 12:2 - "Do not be conformed to this world." Literally, don't let this world squeeze you into it's mold. We are citizens of heaven, and that should be obvious to all around us. The problem with the church at Laodicea in Revelation chapter 3 is that they were lukewarm. They were trying to mix Christianity and worldliness. They wanted to have just enough religion to get them by, but not too much because they didn't want to be uncomfortable, and the Lord declares to this church that they make Him sick. A loving relationship with the Lord and worldliness do not mix. It's one or the other, you can't have both. You cannot be a spiritual person and cool according to this worlds standards at the same time. And if you think you can then you're just deceiving yourself. "Do not love the world."
The only time that the word "idol" is used in First John is in that last verse that we've been considering. However, idolatry is eluded to throughout the book. Whenever we're told in the Bible not to love something, we need to be careful about the thing that is mentioned because we would probably tend to love it if not given the warning. Right now I just want to focus on one idol, and it is mentioned in 1 John 2:15 which says - "Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him." So according to this verse, if you love the world you are not loving God. And if you are loving God you are not loving the world. It's one or the other, you can't do both. Now, when it says "do not love the world" it's talking about the world system, worldly values, the worlds way of thinking, that's what it means when he says "do not love the world." Then he says "or the things in the world." Speaking of course of material possessions, money and so on. In John chapter 17 the Lord Jesus is praying to His Father and He says in verses 14-18 - "I have given them Thy word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I do not ask Thee to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; Thy word is truth. As Thou didst send Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world." In this passage the Lord Jesus is praying to the Father about His disciples, both those who were following Him then and those of us who are following Him now, and He is essentially asking the Father to keep us from being influenced by the world as we live in the world. We are here for a reason. If the extent of Christianity was heaven then the Lord would've taken us the moment He saved us, but the fact that we are still here shows that He has a reason for us being here. He has a work for us to do. And so, as we live in the world, the Lord Jesus prays that we would not adopt their values, beliefs and desires, because we are not of this world. Though we are in the world we are not of the world. H.A. Ironside was writing on this topic, referring to it as "other-worldliness," and he said "I have purposely written, "other-worldliness." Mere unworldliness is not enough. To walk apart from this world might make a nun or a monk. To walk in the power of another world will make a true ambassador for Christ." It's very easy to start looking like the lost world around us. With many in the professing church today it's hard to tell any difference at all between them and the world around them because they are living their lives with the exact same pursuits and desires, and you would never guess that they are heading for another world because they're so caught up in living for this world. And the Lord Jesus wants us to be on guard against this. You're gonna start looking like whoever you are listening to. If you are listening to the Lord through His Holy Word you are going to be constantly changing to be more and more like the Lord Jesus Christ. On the other hand, if you are listening to the world you're going to start to look like the world. What they value, what they consider cool, what their desires and pursuits are, if you're listening to the world, if the world has become an idol in your life then you are going to start to see the world when you look in the mirror. The Word of God declares in Romans 12:2 - "Do not be conformed to this world." Literally, don't let this world squeeze you into it's mold. We are citizens of heaven, and that should be obvious to all around us. The problem with the church at Laodicea in Revelation chapter 3 is that they were lukewarm. They were trying to mix Christianity and worldliness. They wanted to have just enough religion to get them by, but not too much because they didn't want to be uncomfortable, and the Lord declares to this church that they make Him sick. A loving relationship with the Lord and worldliness do not mix. It's one or the other, you can't have both. You cannot be a spiritual person and cool according to this worlds standards at the same time. And if you think you can then you're just deceiving yourself. "Do not love the world."
There is an example in the Old Testament of a man who loved
the world. Back in the book of Genesis we read of a man by the name of Lot. Lot
was the nephew of Abraham, and back in Genesis 13 there was a quarrel between the
herdsmen of Abraham and the herdsmen of Lot and the two decided to part ways.
Abraham told Lot to chose which way to go and Abraham would go the opposite
way. We read in verses 10-12 - "Lot lifted up his eyes and saw all the
valley of the Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere—this was
before the Lord destroyed Sodom
and Gomorrah—like the garden of the Lord,
like the land of Egypt as you go to Zoar. So Lot chose for himself all the
valley of the Jordan, and Lot journeyed eastward. Thus they separated from each
other. Abram settled in the land of Canaan, while Lot settled in the cities of
the valley, and moved his tents as far as Sodom." When Lot looked up he
saw the well watered plains of Sodom, he saw the prosperity of that city, and
even though it was a wicked city which would eventually be destroyed, Lot moved
his tents as far as Sodom because he was a worldly man with worldly values. By
the time we come to chapter 19 the Lord tells Abram that He is about to destroy
the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, and two angels are sent to Sodom in order to
warn Lot. In Verse 1 we read - "Now the two angels came to Sodom in the
evening as Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom." The gate of the city in
that day was the place where the elders and judges of the city would sit. So
when it says that Lot was sitting there we get the idea that he had already
advanced pretty far in their society, probably due to his wealth. he had become
comfortable among the people of that wicked city. We continue reading in verse
2 - "And he said, "Now behold, my lords, please turn aside into your servant’s
house."" Back in chapter 13 we read that he had "pitched his
tents as far as Sodom." Here we read that he had a house in the city. He
moved right into the city and made himself at home among the people who were
committing great evil against the Lord. In verse 15 we read - "When
morning dawned, the angels urged Lot, saying, “Up, take your wife and your two
daughters who are here, or you will be swept away in the punishment of the
city.” But he hesitated." Lot hesitated to leave this wicked city which
was about to be destroyed. He hesitated to obey the word of the Lord. He
hesitated to leave the world system in which he was living. But in Gods great
compassion, we read - "So the men seized his hand and the hand of his wife
and the hands of his two daughters, for the compassion of the Lord was upon him; and they brought him
out, and put him outside the city." Lot was living for the world, he loved
the world, and everything that he had been living for was destroyed in an
instant. If all that we knew about Lot was recorded here in the book of Genesis
we would probably conclude that Lot was wicked. He certainly lived a worldly
life. But when we come to Second Peter chapter 2 Lot is referred to as
"Righteous Lot." Lot was saved. He was righteous in Gods sight,
forgiven of his sins, what we might call a "Christian," but Lot loved
the world. This is a powerful example and we would do well to learn from Lots
failure. We can live lives of friendship with the world and still go to heaven,
but if that's your choice, know that you will suffer great loss. Lots life was
tested by fire and the whole thing, everything he had worked for and sought
after was destroyed. In 1 Corinthians chapter 3 we're told that in a coming day
our lives are going to be tested by fire. As we stand before the judgment seat
of Christ our lives will pass through Gods consuming fire, and we read in
verses 13-15 - "Each man’s work will become evident; for the day will show
it because it is revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality
of each man’s work. If any man’s work which he has built on it remains, he will
receive a reward. If any man’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he
himself will be saved, yet so as through fire."
James 4:4 says - "You
adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility
toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself
an enemy of God." This is strong language. God refers to those who are
friends with that world as "adulteresses." That's how serious this
issue is. Friendship with and love for the world is adultery. God is a jealous
God. He is not going to share our love with anyone or anything else. He demands
our love exclusively. Throughout the history of the nation of Israel we see the
Gods chosen people turning to idolatry, and several times in the Old Testament
God does what He is doing here in James. He equates idolatry with adultery.
There is perhaps no better known instances of this than in the book of Hosea.
The Lord God declared that Israel was His wife and when she turned to idols He
declared that she was committing adultery against Him. And Gods faithful love
for a faithless people is pictured beautifully in this book through the life of
the prophet.
These are serious matters. We
need to careful consider before the Lord what place the world has in our hearts
and ask the Lord to help us say goodbye to the world. "Do not love the
world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the
Father is not in him."
"Goodbye to the world,
Goodbye to the sin I used to call pleasure.
Goodbye to the world,
Goodbye to the trinkets I used to call treasure.
Since I found the Lord,
I use a different standard to measure.
I joyfully say, 'good riddance' today,
Goodbye to the world."
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