We do not belong to this World!

Last night in our High School youth I taught on how the world we live in strives to draw us away from God. In our life we need to realize that we no longer belong to this World. John 15:19 says, "If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you." We realize that by having faith in Jesus we no longer belong to the world. We are still in the world physically but spiritually we have been taken out, waiting for the inheritance that God gives us with faith in Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 1:17 says, "Since you call on a Father who judges each man's work impartially, live your lives as strangers her in reverent fear." To be a stranger is having the mindset that you don't quite "fit in" or "belong." As we live our life we "do not conform ourselves to the evil desires" (1 Peter 1:14) we had before. The sin of this World offers us things contrary to what God desires in our life. It is vital for us as Christians to recognize what the world is offering so that when we are tempted we can respond in boldness, truth and obedience.

What I really wanted to get across to the students is that even though we are strangers in this world we still have a mission to accomplish. This mission is to rescue all those around who do not realize their need for Jesus. We rescue them by loving people, caring for the hurting, & sharing the truth of Jesus Christ. People will only come to Jesus if they recognize they have a need for Him. When it comes to following the pattern of the world we should be as strangers and not jump right into a life that lives contrary to the Word of God.

What are the temptations of the world? I think for people they are generally comprised of 4 main groups: 1) the desire to be accepted, by a group of people or a particular person; 2) the desire for success; 3) the desire for power; and 4) the desire to be noticed or known. The world offers us these in pretty little packages that we think will meet these desires. We fail to realize that these pretty packages actually are designed not so that we will be satisfied but instead that we will desire even more. The truth is that God offers us all 4 of these in Him. He offers us unconditional acceptance based upon our faith in what Jesus has done, not how good we are. He offers us success in "with God all things are possible." Our success is based upon eternal things rather than the temporary success the world offers. God offers us power that is found in the Holy Spirit and when used according to His will is the greatest power we will ever experience. He offers us the desire to be noticed and known, not with Man's glory in mind but instead known by our Creator and the author of our universe. WOW! Why would I worry about being noticed by man, when I can be known and noticed by God!! He is the Creator; He is the one who spoke this world into existence.

This whole understanding is foundational for us as youth pastors to teach our students. We need to enable our students to understand the truth that God fulfills our desires completely in His perfect way rather than the world offering us satisfaction that can never be fully met.

How does this truth change the way we act? How does this truth change the way we look at our friends, our parents, our choices? Knowing that our purpose on earth is to know our God, make Him known, and bring Him glory in all we do there is a certain satisfaction that can only be met through Him.

Kevin