Pastor David once said to look for the voice of God in every criticism. So I want to thank Todd for getting me to think about what worldy pleasures are. I started out by wondering if everything that wasn't godly was therefore worldy. That meant I drive a worldy car, watch worldy baseball, wear worldy clothes, live in a worldly house, watch worldy movies (because they aren't in the Bible) and so on. And I read this article and asked myself if I really was being a friend of this world. Well, I certainly am a friend of baseball (for example). In fact, I love it. So this makes me an enemy of God. How can this be? I like this stuff but I don't feel like I'm sinning and I don't feel convicted to give these things up. In fact I thank God for all of this "worldly" stuff He has given me to feel pleasure. So what's the deal and why do people tell me I'm wrong for having stuff in my life, like worldy music, movies, books, etc, that they keep out of their lives?

1 John 2:15 "Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him." Wow, it says it right there. I can't love anything in this world. Those evil-pointer-outers are right. Or are they?

1 John 2:16 (the following verse, what I like to call a bit of context) "For everything in the world - the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does - comes not from the Father but from the world."

It's not the men, the eyes, what I have or what I do that I am to shun and call evil. Look again. It's the cravings, the lust, the boasting. These are attitudes. Generally speaking, this is "the world" (the realm of sin) that God was talking about. Sin is on the inside. Loving and embracing these attitudes is what makes me an enemy of God. Is secular music sin? Is baseball sin? Are my clothes sin? No, You can't tell someone they shouldn't listen to secular music, watch television, wear certain clothes. You have to look deeper (and if you really care about the person, you will) to see the sin on the inside if you want to change their life. It's not the music, it's the anger it provokes (for example). It's not the television, it's the lust. (again, random example). It's not the clothes, its the immodesty. And so on... One important thing to keep in mind: these things I've mentioned don't necessarily imply sin. I like some secular music and it doesn't cause me to sin. Abby likes Dora and Blues Clues on tv. I could go on and on, but I shouldn't. My point: Sin is on the inside. Look there if you want to find it.