love for the world

Loving the world

We are told in the Bible not to love the world, to live in the world and not be a part of it.

Living that out can be quite difficult because there are some ways you cannot avoid interracting with the world and its system, such as: work or business life; shopping (even if “only for essentials”); education; health care and so on.

There is also stuff which is not bad, but might not really be necessary and could be a distraction: newspapers and books; sports and entertainments; music and the radio.

Then there is stuff that is perfectly innocent, but might just show up where your own heart is at: food and nutrition; clothes and fashion; use of leisure; body care and cosmetics.

Some of the things that tempt me include: Body Shop toiletries, Thorntons chocolate, Hagen Das icecream... You get what I mean? The things are not a problem, but the brands speak of “quality” and “luxury” and you find yourself longing after what the world esteems (or what the advertisers promote) rather than being content.

The society we live in has the motto “please yourself, you deserve it” and huge sums of money are spent on luxuries which are obscene. I can't say that by living simply I can sort out the UK homeless problem or Third World debt, but it is important to stand against the greed and selfishness which feeds these problems. People say “there will never be equality in the world, it is against human nature” and we can say “Yes there can be, we are living in community and simplicity and proving it can be done”.

Another reason for not conforming to the standards of the world around us is that there are people who cannot afford to “keep up” and they feel excluded 'cos they don't have the latest fashions or technology. It is good to be able to show by the way we live that these external things are not important to us and to be able to accept people for who they are. If we do not project an image or hide behind things then people can feel free to be themselves too.

Jesus spoke about not worrying about wealth and possessions and did not even have a home to call his own. He was the most approachable, available and accepting person ever. Just maybe being free from the cares of the world and the love of the world was part of made Him that way???