If You Were of the World

“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours. But all these things they will do to you on account of my name, because they do not know him who sent me.” (John 15:18-21 ESV)

Now I want to take a few minutes here to define what is meant by “the world.” Obviously it means the people of the world. And the word “hate” means to detest, denounce, renounce, or love less than, and only humans are capable of such hate. But in a sense, the world itself, by the values and thinking and culture that it has, is opposed to God/Christ and to his righteousness and holiness and moral purity and uprightness. But these values are put in place by human beings, not by nature itself.

But then when you think about who Jesus’ enemies were, who opposed him and fought against him, and who falsely accused him of wrongdoing, and who plotted his death, these were people of his own race, some from his own family, and they were the religious rulers in the temple of God. So they were those who professed faith in the one true God, and that they were worshipers of God, but while they denied the only begotten Son of God as their Lord and Messiah who had come to save them from their sins.

So, what is my point here? It is that “the world” is not just those who make no profession of faith in Jesus Christ, which is faith in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jabob. But they are all who are opposed to the Jesus of the Scriptures and to the gospel of salvation that he taught, and to the surrender of their lives to him, and to holy living, and to the forsaking of their sins, and to walks of obedience to the Lord and to his commands. For they oppose him by the choices they make in order to live for self and not for God.

So, “the world” includes all who reject genuine faith in Jesus Christ which results in us dying with Christ to sin and living to him and to his righteousness. So they can be professing Christians. And they can be pastors of “church” congregations. For they are all who oppose the gospel message that Jesus taught in favor of a more “friendly” gospel of the flesh of man which does not require that we die to sin daily and that we walk in obedience to our Lord for salvation from sin and eternal life with God.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; John 1:12-13; John 6:44; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Peter 1:15; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

And so they will hate us and oppose us and ignore us and mock us and reject us because they hate, oppose, mock, ignore, and reject the truth of the gospel of our salvation and the idea that they must leave their lives of sin behind them and that they must follow Jesus in surrender to his will and in walks of obedience to his commands in order to have salvation from sin and eternal life with God. For they prefer either to not believe in Jesus at all or to believe in a diluted gospel which makes no demands of them.

Now when it says here that if we were of the world that the world would love us as its own, but Jesus chose us out of the world, this is speaking to those and about those who are his true disciples, who have come out of the world and who are no longer conformed to the ways of this sinful world. So if we are not hated and persecuted and opposed for our faith in the Lord Jesus, and for our testimonies for him, then something is wrong. It could be that we really haven’t come out of the world and so the world does accept us.

[Matt 5:10-12; Matt 10:16-25; Matt 24:9-14; Luke 6:22-23; Luke 12:49-53; Luke 21:12-19; John 15:1-21; John 16:33; John 17:14; Acts 14:22; Rom 5:3-5; Eph 6:10-20; Phil 3:7-11; 1 Pet 1:6-7; 1 Pet 4:12-17; 2 Tim 3:12; 1 Thess 3:1-5; Jas 1:2-4; 2 Co 1:3-11; Heb 12:3-12; 1 Jn 3:13; Rev 6:9-11; Rev 7:9-17; Rev 11:1-3; Rev 12:17; Rev 13:1-18; Rev 14:1-13]

To Be Like Him  

An Original Work / March 16, 2014  

Based off Scripture

Crucified you are with Jesus.

To be like Him, oh, you’ll be,

Because He died at Calv’ry,

So from sin you’d be free.

Oh, what joy He brings into your life,

Giving life with Him endlessly. 

Oh, what plans He has for your life.

Share the gospel faithfully.

Show the people He loves them.

Now His witness you’ll be.

Tell the world of sin about Jesus,

How He died for them on a tree.

Purifying hearts, He saves them,

Who believe on Christ, God’s Son.

Turning now from their idols,

New lives they have begun.

Jesus saves from sin; we’re forgiven.

Over sin, the vict’ry He won!

When He comes again to take us

To be with Him evermore,

There will be no more crying.

Gladness will be in store.

Heavens joys will now overtake us:

We’ll be with our Lord evermore.

https://vimeo.com/89237609