1 John 2:15-17 “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. (16) 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. (17) And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.”
There are certain aspects of life in this current age, which will not be present in the age to come, for they are not of God. In the above passage of scripture, the Holy Spirit through the apostle John, informs us as to what aspects of this current age are not from God, i.e. the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life. So what specifically, is the Holy Spirit referring to, when He speaks about these aspects of life? Some of these aspects are; striving to achieve wealth, prestige, fame, fortune, success, striving to be better than others in whatever field you can think of, and doing anything that would draw attention to oneself, i.e. to be admired by them. And so, any activity in this current life, that produces any of these aspects mentioned, will be activities that will not be present in the age to come.
James 4:1-4 “Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? (2) You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. (3) You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures. (4) Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.”
Again, in the above passage of scripture, the apostle James confirms what the apostle John wrote, i.e. that striving after the fleshly pleasures of this life, is completely contrary to the kingdom of God. Think which activities produce carnal pleasures in this life, and you can be assured that you will not find any of those activities in God’s new earth. Many mistakenly think that the New Jerusalem and the new earth will be a place where all their fleshly desires and cravings in this life, will finally be met. But that way of thinking couldn’t be further from the truth, for the eyes of man will never be satisfied (Proverbs 27:20). And so, there can be no doubt, that there is absolutely nothing about the kingdom of God, which the flesh would find attractive at all.
Michael E.B. Maher
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