Key Verse: "Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth."
- Colossians 3:2 KJV
The Bible speaks often about the world, but it uses the word in different ways. Sometimes it refers to the physical earth that God created, sometimes to the people who live in it, and often to the sinful system opposed to God. As followers of Christ, we are called to understand these distinctions and walk wisely.
First, the world as God’s creation is good. “The earth is the LORD'S, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein” (Psalm 24:1). God made the world and everything in it for His glory, and man was placed in it to worship and serve Him.
Second, the world represents the people God loves. John 3:16 declares, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” God’s heart is for humanity, desiring that all would come to salvation through Christ.
Yet, there is another sense in which the world is portrayed as an enemy of the believer. Scripture warns us: “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him” (1 John 2:15). Here, the world means the system of sin, pride, and rebellion against God. James 4:4b echoes this truth: “...whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.”
We live in this world, but we are not of it. Jesus prayed for His disciples, “They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world” (John 17:16). Our calling is to shine as lights in a dark place, influencing the world for Christ without being conformed to its ways. Romans 12:2a reminds us: “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind”.
The world offers temporary pleasures and passing glories, but the believer looks forward to something greater: “And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever” (1 John 2:17).
Are you clinging to the things of this world, or are you living with eternity in view? The world may tempt and distract, but Christ calls us to set our affection “...on things above, not on things on the earth” (Colossians 3:2b).
