Love God or Love the World

As Christians we all know we are supposed to love God. We know we are supposed to love our neighbor as ourselves. We all know through experience that loving someone is always easier said than done. Love is not easy, but it is a necessary part of life. Who we love makes the difference between a good life and a hard life.

Brethren, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment which you had from the beginning; the old commandment is the word which you have heard.  Yet I am writing you a new commandment, which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining.  He who says he is in the light and hates his brother is in the darkness still.  He who loves his brother abides in the light, and in it there is no cause for stumbling.  But he who hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.  I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for his sake.  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.  I write to you, 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 abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.  Do not love the world or the things in the world.  If any one loves the world, love for the Father is not in him.  For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life, is not of the Father but is of the world.  And the world passes away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides for ever.

1^st John 2:7-17

Whom we love determines who we will die for. Who we love determines for whom we will fight and to whom we are loyal. Whom we love establishes our priorities. Love draws us together in intimacy. Love also sets up conflicts between those whom we love and those whom we do not.

Saint John makes this clear in today’s reading. If we hate our brother, we do no love God. We have known God since the beginning, even while we were still in our mother’s womb. God created us and ignited His light in our heart.

When we love God, that light shines. When we love the world, the light goes dark. To be clear, the world is darkness. God is the Light. If we are surrounded by darkness in our life, then we must ask ourselves, whom do we love?

If we love God, the light shines and leads us out of darkness. If we love the world, the darkness ‘sucks us in’ like the gravitational pull of a black hole. Light cannot escape the pull of a black hole. Only God’s Light is strong enough to escape the darkness.

We must choose, and we must choose today. Tomorrow might be too late. Yesterday is past. Our choice is today. Do we love God, or do we love the world? Do we desire to remain in darkness, or do we desire Light?

That is where love comes in. We desire whom we love. Allow yourself to love God and follow His Light out of darkness. It isn’t easy to escape a black hole. It is possible, but only if you love Light. Remember His words, “I am the Light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness.” (John 8.12) Loving God is the only way out.