We are in great danger of being seduced by the world. When I say “the world,” I don’t mean planet earth. I’m using “world” in the biblical sense of everything that draws our attention away from God. It can be evil things like drink, drugs, gambling, stealing, etc. But it can also be good things like work, relationships, sport, politics, hobbies, etc. If these things are devoid of God or distract from God, they are “the world.
“The world” is everything and anything that displaces God as the center of our life, the foundation of our life, the end of our life (1 John 2:15-16). It could be science without God, art without God, music without God, travel without God, religion without God. It can use corporations, the media, movies, Hollywood, Instagram, politics.
We are in great danger of being seduced by that world. That’s why the world is some-times portrayed in the Bible as a prostitute (Hosea 1:2; Rev.17:5, 18).
- It’s very attractive
- It’s very popular
- It’s very deceptive
- It’s very dangerous
When we read Proverbs 7, we read about a prostitute seducing a young man to his dest-ruction. Of course, this can be literally true. It happens all the time. However, the prostitute is also symbolic of the world’s seductive danger. Solomon put this passage in the Bible to help us avoid and escape the world’s seductive charms. Let’s identify this great enemy so that we can avoid and escape it.
For more see my sermon notes here.