Examine Your Life

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.

1 John 2:15–17 ESV

What is the spiritual state of your life?

If you desire the things of the world, here are three things you’ll find dominating your heart:

1. Desires of the flesh: sinful cravings characterized by lust.
2. Desires of the eyes: sinful cravings characterized by greed, envy, and coveting.
3. The pride of life: sinful cravings for the approval of man, fame above all else, and one’s own glory.

First, before you feel condemned—these things exist in my heart. But right now, you and I both have the chance to examine our lives for them.

We can ask the Holy Spirit to scour them out. To banish and starve them. To do this, we learn that he doesn’t simply remove things like this… He progressively replaces them with the “love of the Father.”

God doesn’t leave a void in our hearts—he fills them with himself!

God is eternal, the things of this world are “passing away.”

Love what is eternal above everything else; and that is God himself.

Ask the Holy Spirit to examine your heart today and show you places you have fallen in love with world. Specifically, where are the desires of the flesh, of the eyes, and the pride of life living within you?

Now, let those areas be exchanged for the love of the Father.