Falling Star

B. H. Carrol once said that if you saw a falling star you could be sure that it wasn't a star. That is similar to what John was saying when he said, "They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us." 1 John 2:19

Antichrists

Don't miss it, John is not talking about the Antichrist but Antichrists. Who are antichrists? Those who deny the deity of Christ. However, those who preach Christ plus anything (good works, Ten Commandments, sacraments) to be a Christian are really antichrists. It is only by Christ Jesus that we are saved. It is also against Christ if we take away from either His humanity or His deity. Paul tells us in Colossians that In Him is the fullness of God.

Last days

How can this be the last days when we live two thousand years after the Biblical writers told us that it was the last time? When John says that it is the last time he is telling us that this church age and when this age ends there will be no other.

GPS

Global positioning system has become very popular over the past few years. We use one contantly in our truck at BfM and I use my personal one whenever we travel. They can save you time and make traveling so much easier. However, you probably heard the horror stories of people following their GPS and getting hopelessly lost. When I read those stories I usually think of two problems that may have occurred. The first is wrong settings. The unit may have been set for the shortest route but not necessarily the fastest or the most travelled. The other problem is some people put too much trust in their GPS. Instead of following their instincts they blindly follow the instructions given to them by a voice in the unit. I want to say to those people, "stay on the main route. The GPS will recalculate."
So what does this have to do with 1 John? John warns his readers to follow what is True. You may read many books but there is only one Book that you can always count on to be true. An author may be 95% true but is wrong 5%. You need to know when to stop following the GPS and look at the map.

Influenced by the World

There are so many areas that the world influences our thinking. Here is a partial list. Feel free to add to the list.
Education
Finances
Investments
Employment
Training
Recreation
Leisure
News
Television
Entertainment
Books
Sports
Psychology
Philosophy
Social media
Worship
Family values
Music
Sexuality
Culture
"Don't let the world squeeze you into it's mold.". Romans 12:2. Phillips.

Work and Leisure

How should a Christian's view of work and leisure be different from the world's? The leisure industry has grown in the past few years. The world takes two differing views of work. Either they get their identity from their work so they become work-alcoholics or they find their work unfulfilling so their work is a means to get funds for their leisure, their leisure becomes where they turn to for fulfillment.
A Christian should never get their identity from their work even there ministry. A Christian gets his/her identity from their position in Christ. Their work should be fulfilling their calling in Christ whether it be in ministry or in service to mankind. Leisure should not be in an end in itself but a means to refresh us.
So what about the Lord's Day? The World has come to realize that a person does need one day different from the other six. A Christian needs to change their routine. They should come apart to worship, take time to rest and take time for recreation. The recreation should not exhaust you but to refresh your mind.

Education

One area of differing world views is in the area of education. Let us first look at the purpose of education. the world's view is to prepare people to live in society while the Biblical view is to prepare people for eternity. I say eternity rather than heaven because eternity begins now. So from the world's view education is to make responsible citizens while the Biblical view is to make a godly people. Second, consider the starting point. The world believes that people are basically good and by educating them they will be made better. The Christian knows that people are born in sin and they first need to be redeemed, have their view point changed, then they can be taught in the things of God.
I taught mathematics and some may wonder what could be the difference between world views. To me mathematics showed the order and precision of a universe designed by a Creator.