B.) After tour nurse - asked if any questions? Little guy Marky asked - why is everyone who works here always washing their hands? (everyone laughed)

C.) Two reasons - 1st, they love health; 2nd - they hate germs!

A.) You guys love your wives - are going to exercise a hatred for what might harm her!

B.)Hate things that hurt kids - (my mom - bullies - she let them have it ) so proud

C.) Psalmist declared in Ps. 97:10 - Those who love the Lord hate evil

D.)In Johns epistle He has been talking about how our lives are to be marked by love

E.) But now in next section - he tells us not to love the world - people of love - but - not in love w/ this world!

1.) Gives us 4 reasons why Christians should not love the world

A.)Little children in v.12 - refers to all believers in general/ literally born ones!

Who’s sins have been forgiven for His namesake/ Forgiven ones

B.) Our sin kept us out of the family of God but through faith in Christ we have been born into the God’s family / You are a child of God !

3. What does it mean to be a child of God ? What is a Christian ?

Is a Christian someone who pays formal respect to God in public worship ?

1) Is it just someone who is mechanically attached to a program

following principles / goes to church

D) Is a Christian someone who just tries to live a good life / be a little

bit better than everyone else?

E) Being a Christian is so much more than that / born of God / Divine Nature / Christ in your heart

1) Relationship w/ God / not just following principles - but

living in fellowship w/ the Lord ! It's life ! Lifestyle

F) Not something you do it is something you are ! You are God's child - proud Father! He loves you

G) Because we are His children there is a place where we belong and

this world is not it / not our home

Aa) Word Known in the grk is the verb form of the word Gnosko which means to know by experience / know intimately / deeply / relationship

2. 2^nd Is the Young men : The "young men" are not as mature as the fathers, they haven't had the experience the fathers have had,

1. but they have learned the secret of overcoming the enemy & They have learned how to live for God.

3. V.14 Gives us the reason for their victory over the enemy / as well as the reason for their strength when John says the word of God abides in you,

1. Psa 119:9 How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word.

And V.11 Your word I have hidden in my heart, That I might not sin against You!

4. Been rightfully said that this book will keep you from sin & sin will keep you from this book !

1. These young men have discovered that the key to standing strong in the battle & having their armor on is letting the Word of Christ dwell richly

1. V. 12 general = all born ones /but This speaks specifically of those who are babes in Christ / new believers / those young in the Lord ! / Known the father

2. So John covers the whole spectrum of Christianity in these 3 titles & also gives us a sense of progression in our growth in the Lord !

1. start off as born ones / born into the family of God / experienced forgiveness of sins when we trusted Christ finished work !

3. We become little Children / those who are getting to know God as our Father / learning w/ each step to trust Him / walk w/ Him !

1. Grow into young men & women / battling & heading towards deeper maturity as we get into the word & apply it/ Heb. 5:14 Reason of use

A.) When he says do not love the world he isn't talking about physical world - earth lovers! (not worshipers)

B) As Christians we are free to experience & Appreciate & enjoy nature but we need to keep this appreciation in its proper perspective

C) We are called to be stewards but when that call to stewardship gets transferred to be the main focus we've lost perspective

A) When you turn of the TV and the announcer says - "And now here's some news from the world of sports"

1.) Talking about an organized system; a world w/ an agenda - activities; purposes -

B) Invisible system that keeps it going! Power & forces behind scenes controlling - financing- scheduling,

A) A system that is hostile to God ? Why is this system so hostile to

God ? Because of who is controlling it!

B) Bible declares - Satan is the god of this world - he has a system, a plan and an agenda - opposition to God

C) Why is Satan so against Christ ? This is something we really need

to catch / Satan kicked out of heaven trying overthrow God

D) He knows he is doomed / his hatred of God is so great ! He wants to take as many w/ Him as possible !

A)It is moving on a course to destruction / a system that has been set up to appeal to mans original nature / suck us into its system

B) Romans 12:2 - Be not conformed to this world! - Lit. - don't let this world squeeze you into it's mold!

James 4:4 Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.

In V.16 John point out how Satan partners w/ the world in using 3 devices to try and trap us!

A.) Lust of flesh; lust of eyes and the pride of life! v.16

1.) same devices he used to tempt Eve in garden / Doubt God

B.) Satan's ultimate plan centered around getting Eve to question God's love and provision/ make her feel like God was holding something back from her

C.) But he appealed to her senses - lust of flesh. "Look at that food!" Great piece of fruit ? Woman saw it was desirable for food!

1.) Lust of eyes -Best fruit ever seen "It was pleasant to the eyes"

Pride of life - desirable "It would make her wise"/ Like God !

A.) Lust of the flesh includes everything that appeals to our fallen nature/ speaks of the gratification of our natural desires

B.) Flesh doesn't mean - the physical body alone but anything that appeals to our natural man / our sin nature- born w/ who's chief desire is to please self!

C.) God has given man certain desires - these desires are good. Hunger, thirst, Sleep sex / those things are not evil in and of themselves

D.) But when our flesh controls them they can become sinful/ example hunger isn't evil - normal function / necessary signal / but gluttony is a sin!

1.) Thirst isn't evil but drunkenness is a sin / Sleep is a gift from God - but laziness is shameful

E.) Sex is wonderful - but practiced outside of marriage it becomes immorality very damaging & destructive

A.) We are bombarded everyday w/ temptations to satisfy that sinful nature -

B.) But we have been given a new nature in Christ - spirit of God in us

3. Gal 5 - Paul said the flesh and spirit war w/ one another! War w/in . Two dogs - who wins one feed the most

4. Feed the Spirit & the flesh is weakened / vice versa

A.)Involves what we take in w/ our mind! As well as what we see w/ our eyes!

TV. Mags / Internet / conversations

1)World comes & says Look at that look what missing - look what he has /

3. Illustrate how this works / a while back Denise made a tray of brownies / I came home 1^st place I go is kitchen / saw this tray of brownies ate one /

1. She comes in & says don’t eat any more of those they are not for us they were some function

D) But every time I walked through the kitchen calling out my name Rob / so I took another & another / moving around on tray / out of control

Dd)Now Eating brownies is not wrong but it illustrates how lust of eyes works pulls you in calls out your name / need get out of sight /

5. Fine once Denise left ! 2Tim. 2:22 Flee youthful lust How ? By pursuing righteousness faith love peace w/ those who call on the Lord pure heart

1. How do we gain victory over the lust of the eyes / by placing our eyes on that which is righteous lovely

Phil. 4:8 8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy; meditate on these things.

A.) Thinking that tempts us to want to be somebody/ promotes ourselves

2. Tempts us to portray a certain image - success/ tempts to buy things - project an image to impress others

1. People have always tried to outdo others in their spending and getting

3. Why is it that so many folks buy houses, cars, appliances, or wardrobes that they really cannot afford?

1. Why do they succumb to the "travel now, pay later" advertising and get themselves into hopeless debt taking vacations far beyond their means?

4. Often it is because they want to impress other people—because of their "pride of life/ they want people think doing better than really are !
5. Someone once said - "Many people purchase things they can't afford to create an image that impresses people they don't even like"

1. Most of us do not go that far, but it is amazing what stupid things people do just to make an impression.

A) Note: No Christian becomes worldly all of a sudden. Worldliness creeps up on a believer/ - gradual process!

B)This gradual downward process is illustrated very clearly in the life of Lot

Separated Abraham - "Looked on plains of Sodom - good for raising cattle"

Bb)So he Pitched his tent there / next - living in city / place of position and prominence/ perhaps he thought he could be a good influence

1. But Sodom was a wicked city Good place for raising cattle but not kids - Lot lost most of his family!

C) Don’t love the world because of what it is ! System against God !

survived 400yrs in one of Americas natural forest

B) Survived 14 different strikes of lightning / countless earthquakes

floods , storms & other natural disasters

1) Yet one day w/out warning it came crashing down Why?

C) Over zealous Lumberjack ? No tiny beetles had found their way

inside the trunk & began to eat away the life fibers weakening

1) the mighty tree from the inside out

D) Think about that what lightning bolts horrible storms / earthquakes couldn't do was easily accomplished by a handful of insect

A) The life gets sucked right out of us / from the inside out John put it this way here "If any man loves the world the love of the Father is not in him

A.a)Jesus put it this way -you cannot serve two masters/ hate one & love the other

B)Exactly what happens when our hearts start to get sucked into system of world

1.) our love for the Lord & things of the Lord begin to diminish

Being in the Word Burden / not a blessing

2) Church & Serving become have tos instead of want tos

C.) Seen guys get sucked into trap of pursuing toys start working more

1.) stop getting into Word - stop seeing them at church

D.)The things of the kingdom are no longer their passion - focus is on other things/ They get distracted/ very subtle & very gradual

A.) Jesus wants our treasure to be Him! Knowing Him serving Him growing in Him

B.) Satan wants our treasure to be anything but that - his #1 goal is to get people to pursue anything but growing is Jesus knowing Jesus and serving Jesus!

3. So he seeks to bombard our way of thinking - distract us into pursuing anything else but the Lord & Like the tree we are weakened & pulled down

1) So 3rdly don’t love the World because of what it will do to you !

B) Moses saw the big picture this world is passing away / burn w/ a fervent heat

Egypt & all its riches will be gone but the kingdom of God last forever

1) Moses was living for Heaven / Man living for His eternal reward !

3. Reminded of this fact not too long ago when we were living in Oregon / Massive storm / worst flooding in 32 yrs

1) we were one of the 16,000 Keizer Res. who had to evacuate our homes

D) Your concerned what do what try to save / no flood Insurance that was thrusday 10am / 2hrs out

D) That night call from good friend in the fellowship who needed me

to come out & pray minister his bro. / dying of Aids

1) Reminded about eternity / heaven as he died that night !

E) Friday night dear man in the church calls me come out & pray for

his wife / just found out cancer ( life long companion )

1) really puts things in perspective / what is important / not

6. Not this place but eternity ! Oh how we need to be storing up treasure in heaven / your car will be left behind but what about your kids !

1. Your house is going to burn w/ a fervent heat / but what about your neighbor down the street who doesn’t know Jesus !

G) Jim Elliot missionary martyr to the Auca Indians - " He is no fool