Jesus, thank you for John and for the challenges to walk in truth offered in his epistles. Open my mind and heart to receive and apply what you inspired him to write; give me discernment to live a life consistent with your Word.
Read 1 JOHN 2:12–17
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
Reasons for Writing
12 I am writing to you, dear children,
because your sins have been forgiven on account of his name.
13 I am writing to you, fathers,
because you know him who is from the beginning.
I am writing to you, young men,
because you have overcome the evil one.
14 I write to you, dear children,
because you know the Father.
I write to you, fathers,
because you know him who is from the beginning.
I write to you, young men,
because you are strong,
and the word of God lives in you,
and you have overcome the evil one.
On Not Loving the World
15 Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father[a] 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.
Footnotes
- 1 John 2:15 Or world, the Father’s love
New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Meditate
Thank the Lord, that his love for us is powerful and everlasting. May we grow in the knowledge and experience of that love today.
Think Further
The church is a community of all ages. This diversity is her strength, but also a challenge. In some parts of the world, respect for the elderly is declining and in others young people and children are treated as unimportant. John has a vision of church that embraces all age groups and levels of maturity – and so should we. His use of the term ‘children’ (v. 12) is how he addressed all the believers, confirming our relationship with the Father. He wants us to know that God has lavished his love on us and called us his children.1 It is because of this special relationship that we can address God as our ‘Abba, Father,’2 a privilege shared by no one else.
Children of God need to make a choice, however. Either we love the Father, or we love the ‘world’ (v. 15). In using this word, John is not referring to the physical cosmos, which God has made, but rather the world of sin that stands in opposition to God. His three characteristics of this realm of sin describe similarities to the temptations of the first humans in the Garden of Eden. The original temptation was of something that ‘was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom.’3 This sounds very like the cravings we all feel at times and have to resist. John’s point is that all these worldly things are temporary. Whoever does God’s will, first and foremost, will live forever.
Love is still the key to overcoming the world, around us and within. The love of the Father relates not just to us loving him, but to his love for us. Living in this love, and daily choosing to grow in it, is the best defense against the desires of the flesh.
Apply
Think about how God’s amazing love has been expressed to you through the changing periods of your life and give thanks for it today.
Closing prayer
Lord God, thank you for your faithful love for me; reveal to me any part of my life that reflects a love for the world in place of you.
Last Updated on December 12, 2024 by kingstar
