1 John 2:15 KJV
[15] Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
The word used for “world” is kosmos. This word has a considerable amount of meaning. It can be used to represent creation, humanity and a system. For example, when the Bible speaks of the Lord making this world, it is speaking about its creation. When it tells us that God loves the world, it is speaking of the world’s humanity. When the Bible commands us not to love the world, it is speaking of its system. It is teaching us to avoid worldly passions.
One reason to avoid worldly passions is because one worldly passion leads to another. Our verse says, “Love not the world, NEITHER the THINGS in the world”. Did you notice how just loving the world system can lead to loving the world’s content? Worldly passions will always grow beyond our expectations, pulling us further in every day. We have all said, “I’m just going to do this one thing”, or “I’m not going to go as far as they did with it”. We are so foolish to think we can handle the world’s system and its substance.
Another reason to avoid worldly passions is because it robs us of our relationship with our father. Just like an unfaithful husband who loses his love and appreciation for his wife, a believer who is in a relationship with the world will lose his love for his father. The prodigal in Luke 15 lost his love for his father when he got his eyes on worldly goods and pleasures. It was not until he lost everything that he came home broken and humiliated. At that moment, he found true love in the father’s arms. When he had nothing to show for his foolish choices, the father loved him. Friend, the world does not love you, and the world will not profit you. Do not be fooled by worldly passions. Love not the world!