Monday, November 11, 2024

PT-4 "Because of What the World Does" (1 John 2:16)

 

EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 11/11/2024 9:42 PM

 

My Worship Time                                              Focus:  PT-4 “Because of What the World Does”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                         Reference:  1 John 2:16

 

            Message of the verse:  For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.”

 

            Perhaps because we are in a world where sin prevails that we as believers have a difficult time at times to understand the serious danger sin poses, so the apostle John summarized the avenues the world uses to incite sin as he writes the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life.  Though he briefly stated this those three designations are of profound importance.

 

            MacArthur explains “The lust of the flesh refers to the debased, ignoble cravings of evil hearts.  The flesh denotes humanness and its sinful essence.  The word translated lust (epithumia) is a common New Testament term denoting both positive and negative desires (Luke 22:15; Rom. 1:24; Phil. 1:23; Col. 3:5; 1 Thess. 2:17; 2 Tim. 2:22; Titus 3:3; James 1:14-15; 2 Peter 1:4; cf. Matt. 5:28; Gal. 5:17; Heb. 6:11; James 4:2).  Here it refers negatively to the sensual impulses from the world that draw people toward transgressions, but, while they are included in its definition, the phrase is certainly not limited to that meaning.”

 

            Now let us talk about the base desire of the human heart as it perverts and distorts all normal desires as seen in the following verse:  “The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it?”  Picking up from the last sentence that “distorts all normal desires” sending them into relentless, slavish pursuit of evil that exceeds the proper limits of what is good, reasonable, and righteous—any attitude, speech, or action that will oppose God’s law, “For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were aroused by the Law, were at work in the members of our body to bear fruit for death” (Rom. 7:5 and 8:7 “because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so.”  MacArthur adds “those lusts include all the immoral excesses about which Paul warned the Galatians:

 

19 Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, 21 envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God (Gal. 5:19-21).

 

“Those sinful attitudes and actions are primary characteristics of the world system and are irresistibly appealing to the corruption of the unconverted soul.”

 

Lord willing I will continue to look at this passage in my next SD.

 

11/11/2024 10:04 PM

 

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