Overcome Worldly Desires

1 John 2:15-17 “…If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world…”

In order for us to love the Lord, we must overcome worldly desires. Humans have five basic senses: sense of sight (eyes), sound (ears), smell (nose), taste (tongue) and touch (skin). Humans will feel a sense of pleasure when these five senses are satisfied. For example: seeing pleasant things, hearing nice sounds, smelling fragrance, tasting something delicious and touching soft things. And sometimes, the world offers us things that could satisfy our senses. This can make people be more attached to the world and be very dependent on the things of this world. Not to mention, the need for pride and recognition from others. Each day, people try to satisfy their fleshly desires more. This is why we need to repent from all of our fleshly desires and know the Lord Jesus deeper.

When people repent and know Jesus as their Lord and Savior, they will be confronted with a new truth. Jesus does not offer the splendor or luxury of the world. Instead, he exemplifies humility through His life on earth. He showed us righteousness, peace and joy. Those who repent will not be able to immediately change their mindset. Even Jesus was aware of this; it is not easy to change our paradigm that was already set from the start. He also acknowledged that the love of money (one form of fleshly desires) is His best competitor in winning people. Therefore, the Lord gives us His Spirit to dwell within us to lead, strengthen, and enable us to live as Spirit-filled people. Human beings are being processed to no longer prioritize their fleshly desires and to start learning to develop their spirit. What the Spirit desires is against what the flesh desires. If we want our spirit to grow and be stronger, we must resist our fleshly desires. Not only that, we must also make an effort to overcome them.

Source: GBI Gatot Subroto, Jakarta Bulletin