Worldliness

Worldliness

Have you ever been in a building when a fire alarm went off, and nobody seemed to be concerned? The alarm is blaring, and lights are flashing, and everyone is acting as if they are having a stroll in a sunny park. In those moments, you assume everyone must know something you do not know, and it appears there is no visible fire or smell of smoke, so you carry on by yourself.

The Bible is full of verses that serve as vital warning signs to help us safely navigate the course of our lives. Many that should cause us to stop and consider the nature of their warnings. However, it is easy to grow too accustomed to seeing them and then dismiss them as no longer relevant to us and our time. We ignore them and keep walking.  

Few verses in the Bible seem more out of step with our lives than 1 John 2:15, “Do not love the world or the things of the world." Why would God place us in this world and then ask us not to love it? It seems like a parent giving their child a giant bowl of ice cream and saying Do not enjoy it!

Discerning and wise followers of Jesus must learn to recognize the subtle seduction of the world. Worldliness is an alluring Sirene’s song that can draw in the seemingly strongest among us, only to wreck our lives like ships on a shallow reef. We would be foolish to travel these waters without looking to the map of God's word to chart us safely through the dangers.