If Anyone Loves the World

 

Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 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.

—1 John 2:15-16

“I really love McDonald’s double cheeseburgers! And, I really love the music of The Eagles. I also really love my stuffed animals. And, truthfully, I love to read mystery novels.”

Have you ever heard someone makes statements like the ones above? Let’s face it, people use the word “love” inappropriately all the time. Seriously, can a human love something that cannot love him or her in return? I don’t think so—not at all.

The Apostle John gives very precise instruction in the Scripture verse at the beginning of this blog post. “Do not love the world or anything in the world,” states the Apostle. It is important to note that in the Koine New Testament Greek text, the Apostle uses the neutral nominative form of the word we translate as “the”—indicating that the word “the” refers to non-human entities, or as translated, “things.” In other words, John is clearly stating that which we are not to love are those items that cannot love us back because they are not of human substance.

So, when we say we love any creature or object that is not of human origin, we use the word “love” improperly. Now, I realize that, in making this claim, I have immediately offended every pet owner on earth.

“Surely,” “you would likely insist, my dog or cat or bird loves me.” I do not doubt that your pet responds to your kindness and affection in a way that you have translated into human understanding as “love.” And, I also realize that the response of your pet is both precious to you, heartwarming, and evokes within you a sense of joy and well-being.

However, since your pet does not possess the necessary human reasoning power, your pet cannot really love you in the same way another human can love you. But, that fact does not diminish the role your pet plays in your life, the importance of your pet, nor the great value that pet has to you.

The contrast that the Apostle John makes in the Scripture verse above is rooted in the understanding that our love must be invested in someone who can love us back. That is the very reason that God created humans. God wanted to create someone who had the capability of loving Him back. God created us to love Him. And, of course, that is why God pours His love into us—even though, because of our sin, we do not deserve His love.

One of the main problems with our society today is that we have invested nearly all of our capability to love into things that cannot love us in return. The Scripture verse delineates the major catagories: the cravings of sinful man that appear as the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, and the boasting of what one has accomplished. Said another way, our sinful cravings are fueled by the things we see that we wish we possessed, the desire to satisfy our sexual impulses, and the self-satisfaction, or pride, we feel because of what we have accomplished.

If we invest all our time and energy pursuing these sinful pleasures, we have no room for genuine love. For all real love comes only from God. It is He who places within us the capability of loving—truly loving—another human being. And, it is God who gives us the ability to love Him back.

We need to carefully examine our lives and determine where we may have put some “thing” as the focus of our love, in place of loving back the God who first loved us. Then, we need to re-focus our lives in applying the love that God has given us by loving Him and also loving other humans who so desperately need to be loved.

 

_{Copyright © 2026 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

A Thundering Voice

 

God’s voice thunders in marvelous ways; he does great things beyond our understanding. He says to the snow, “Fall on the earth,” and to the rain shower, “Be a mighty downpour.”

—Job 37:5-6

In the movie adaptations of J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter stories, the Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry can demand the attention of everyone in even the largest of crowds by placing the tip of his wand against the side of his neck and speaking in a normal voice. Through the magic of his wand, suddenly Albus Dumbledore’s voice is magnified to an ear-shattering level. All other talking stops immediately.

Public address systems have a way of making even the most timid speaker command the attention of a crowd. Once a speaker gains the attention of his or her audience, it becomes so much easier to present a message. That’s exactly what happens in the Scripture verse at the beginning of this blog post.

Elihu speaks to Job and his three friends. He shares with them some of the wonderful attributes of God. One of those attributes is God’s thundering voice. No one can talk over the sound that God makes when He speaks—though countless numbers of people seem to want to do that today.

When God speaks, we need to listen, carefully! We always need to hear what God has to say, even when the sin that pervades our lives may make it difficult to hear what He’s telling us. That’s why we need to set aside time every day to spend time reading and meditating on God’s written Word. By doing so, we have the opportunity of giving careful attention to what God may wish to say to us.

Let’s determine to listen to what God says. Whether He chooses to speak to us with the voice of thunder, or in a still, small voice deep within our hearts. Whatever God wishes to say to us is most certainly worthy for us to hear.

 

_{Copyright © 2026 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

The Proper Direction

 

“Come now, let us reason together,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.”

—Isaiah 1:18

The opening words of the Scripture verse at the beginning of this blog post seems quite out of place in our current society. The whole idea that people might confront each other and, instead of fighting or using harsh words, might decide to “reason together.” At least from my vantage point, there is very little reasoning together going on these days.

When we consider that these words through the Prophet Isaiah actually come directly from God, the words become all the more amazing. This verse actually follows a somewhat longer soliloquy where God begins to share an important message with the people in the southern kingdom of Judah. The six verses from Isaiah 1:12-17 that proceed the verse at the beginning of this blog post read as follows:

“When you come to appear before me, who has required of you this trampling of my courts? Bring no more vain offerings; incense is an abomination to me. New moon and Sabbath and the calling of convocations—I cannot endure iniquity and solemn assembly. Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hates; they have become a burden to me; I am weary of bearing them.

“When you spread out your hands, I will hide my eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not listen; your hands are full of blood. Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow’s cause.”

This is clearly a call from God, asking His people to confess their sins, repent of those sins, and make restitution for those sins through obedience to His perfect will. This is what the Word of the Lord does: it calls us to action—an action in accordance with God’s divine and perfect will for us.

Today, in the United States of America, we need to carefully and intently read and heed God’s written Word. We need to meditate on what God’s written Word instructs us to do. Then, we need to faithfully and obediently do exactly what God’s written Word tells us to do. That, my dear ones, is the formula to turn our sinful and darkened nation around. We need to return to God and humbly ask for Him to set all things in the proper direction.

 

_{Copyright © 2026 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Bringing All Things Together

 

He made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment—to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.

—Ephesians 1:9-10

Life often seems like quite a perplexing mystery. Just when we think we may have figured out what is going on around us, something will occur that turns us upside down. But, we can take comfort from the verse at the beginning of this blog post.

In writing to the Christians at Ephesus, the Apostle Paul speaks of God in a very special way. Paul tells the Ephesian Christians that life is really not the mystery that they may have thought it was. In fact, Paul insists that God has made known to us the mystery of His divine and perfect will through His Son, Jesus. The terms for all of life rest with God. He created all things. He sustains all things. He controls all things. Everything in life proceeds according to God’s good pleasure.

As much of a mystery as life may seem to us, it is no mystery to God. At such a point when time reaches its fulfillment, God will bring everything and everyone—in heaven and on earth—together under Christ, who will reign as the head. These words are intended to give us assurance and comfort.

Every time I see an advertisement for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, I cry. That’s right. Whenever an advertisement comes onto the television screen showing these little children afflicted with cancer fighting for their lives, I begin to shed tears. Even as I am writing these words, I feel tears welling up in my eyes. It breaks my heart to see these little ones having to deal with the horror that cancer represents. Theologically and intellectually I recognize that cancer has come into existence as a result of the sin curse placed on Adam and Eve at the dawn of human existence because they could not follow the one and only rule that God gave them. It grieves me that these little children must suffer because of Adam’s sin.

At the same time, I recognie that God remains fully in control of all that occurs and that some day He will bring order to all things under the headship of Jesus. There will be no more sickness, no more death, no more poverty, no more heartache, no more sorrow, no more despair, no more mental illness, no more sin. I long for that day. I pray for that day to come quickly.

We who follow Jesus have the great comfort from knowing that in a day not that far away, all things will be resolved under the headship of Christ. We will see Him as He is. And, we will become like Him because Scripture tells us in 1 John 3:1-2:

See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.

 

_{Copyright © 2026 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Servants of God

 

This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.

—Romans 13:6

I confess to you that when this verse came up on my list of “Verses for Each Day” I wanted to skip this one and find a substitute. I have never met anyone who really wants to pay taxes.

I can remember the chagrin I felt when I looked at my first real pay stub and took note of the taxes that had been withheld from my pay. My paycheck was quite meager and it was made all the more so by the deduction taken out to pay my taxes. At the very moment that I studied that pay stub, a political advertisement began to play on the radio. Immediately, my thoughts turned to what the politician was saying. “Hey!” I thought to myself. “You had better do the right thing, Mr. Politician. I pay your salary!”

Later, as I rode my bicycle home from where I worked, I noted the potholes in the road. I remember thinking that the road crew should fix those potholes pronto. After all, I pay their salaries! And, in that moment, I began to develop an attitude that has fueled my Conservative point of view for all these many years of my life.

As I stated in my blog post of two days ago, it is sometimes hard to think of governmental authorities as God’s servants—particularly when they do things or say things with which we do not agree. Nevertheless, Scripture seems quite clear. After all, the Apostle Paul is writing during a time when he lived under a government that was far more oppressive than the government most of us have lived under. If Paul can write these words in his circumstance, surely we can learn to accept these words in our circumstance.

Today, I invite you to join me in praising God that He is the One who ordains authorities and places them over us. Let’s pray for our governmental leaders—even the ones we do not particularly like, or with whom we do not agree. We do well to remember that our prayers have a way of blessing even those who might never bless us.

 

_{Copyright © 2026 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Competent to Serve

 

He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

—2 Corinthians 3:6

One of the great blessings of the Christian faith comes from the fact that God has made all of us priests. By this use of the word “priest” I intend to mean one who ministers to the world around him or her on behalf of the triune God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Yes, I am keenly aware that God has called certain individuals to dedicate their lives to accept a special calling from God to serve and lead others in their Christian spiritual formation. Whether we call such individuals minister, pastor, preacher, priest, bishop, or even pope, we recognize that they have made a sacrificial response to God’s calling. Yet, such recognition does not dismiss the reality that all follwers of Jesus have a calling from God to minister to the needs of those around them because of what God has done for them through His Son, Jesus.

In writing to the Christians at Corinth, as stated in the verse at the beginning of this blog post, the Apostle Paul affirms that not only has God called believers to serve Him as His ministers, He has made believers competent to do so. “Wait a minute,” you may interject. “I’m not at all certaint that I am competent to minister in the way you suggest.&ldqo;

Let me assure you that God has given you every talent and ability you need to serve Him. God wants you to approach your ministry with all of the essence of who you are. He wants you to serve as His minister. There are people who cross the pathway of your life each day to whom only you can properly minister. All of your uniqueness—your personality, your abilities, your skills, your mindset, every portion of who you are—is used by God to minister to others.

Do you think you are an oddball? Do you think you are not handsome enough or beautiful enough? Do you have a raspy voice or is your voice pitched too high or too low? Do you have some handicap? Do you feel you are not smart enough, or clever enough, or cool enough?

None of these things matter. God has called you to Himself. He has revealed the great gift of salvation that He has given you through His Son. He has placed the Holy Spirit within you. And, for His very good reasons, He has called you to minister in His behalf.

As we go out into a needy world today, we must keep in mind the fact that God has called us—exactly who we are and exactly as we are—to serve Him by ministering in His name. What a blessed, blessed privilege we have to do so with great joy.

 

_{Copyright © 2026 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Established by God

 

Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.

—Romans 13:1

All across the United States today, people will go to the polls and choose Senators, Representatives, and other leaders. This year, of course, many have already voted by mail. As one who for many years—because of my disability—have voted by Absentee Ballot, I understand the privilege of casting one’s ballot by mail.

After voting by mail for nearly twenty-eight years, you may wonder why I am encouraging others to show up in person to vote this year. I suppose I am choosing to do this partly in protest against the way that some states are handling the expanded efforts to encourage people to vote by mail. I am keenly aware of the potential for manipulating the outcome of the election that voting by mail affords. I am also quite untrustworthy of the hyperpartisanship that has overtaken our political process. I want to make absolutely certain that my vote counts.

I have friends, Christian friends, who have thrown their hands up in the air and stated that they won’t vote because none of the candidates for office seem worthy. I can understand their frustration, even though as an avowed Conservative, I have been quite satisfied with the more conservative policies that have come out of Washington in the last two years—certainly not fiscally, but in every other way.

More so, the reason why I encourage everyone to vote later today stems from the Scripture verse found at the beginning of this blog post. In this verse, the Apostle Paul reminds his readers, who happen to reside at the seat of power for the Roman government, that we Christians have a responsibility to submit to governing authorities. Admittedly, it is easier to accept this verse if one agrees with what those authorities are doing. I had a particularly difficulty time living the reality of this verse during the twelve years of the last twenty-six years when our nation was ruled by those decidedly not conservative, because of my strong Conservative views.

If you have already voted by mail, or if you will go to your designated polling place today to cast your ballot, I invite you to join with me in doing so recognizing that this opportunity comes from God. He is the one who establishes authorities over us. That we have the privilege of helping to choose who will lead us is a great honor that our wonderful nation has given us because God has so established it.

 

_{Copyright © 2026 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}