The Cardiology of Worldliness B

What does that system appeal to you and us. What is the matrix of fallenness, the pathology of fallen is the cardiology of the unregenerate that the world appeals is the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and most catching monkeys in the whole and then when the monkey would stick his hand into the coconut. He wouldn't be able to pull his clenched fist out of the narrow opening to free himself. All the monkey had to do is drop the treat, but instead it would cling to it until death came know it's a lot like sin and Christians, we tend to cling to it even though we know it's deadly and unsafe. So what makes sin so alluring and what can you do about its power. Find out today as John MacArthur helps you resist sin. Continuing his series on grace to you titled the love God hates, and now here's John first John 215 to 17 do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the father is not in him for all that is in the world. Lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life is not from the father but is from the world and the world is passing away, and also its lusts, but the one who does the will of God abides forever. I want to focus a little bit on diagnosing the cardiology of worldliness. All that is in the world. The sum of it is the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, none of that is from the father. All of it is from the world. Just a few questions to start a frame up the big picture.

Let's ask the question what is sin, and the answer is simple.

First John 34.

Sin is the transgression of the law, not what is sins nature, going beyond just the simple definition of what it is, what is its nature. That is to say what is its characterization or what are its essential components. What is it like how is it described in the Bible and first of all, sin is defiling. It is not just an act of disobedience is an internal pollution. Secondly, sin as to its nature, is rebellious.

It is rebellious. It isn't just that you slip up and break the law of God is that there is in you a will to rebel. Thirdly, we could say about sin, that it is in gratitude further sin is incurable. It is incurable man does not have in himself the capacity to do anything about his sin, he is sin to the bone and he cannot alter that. And then we need to add that sin is deadly because the Bible says that soul that sends it shall die. The wages of sin is death. The next question you might ask about sin is how many people are affected by sin and the answer to that is everybody all Romans three says have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Romans 310 says there is none righteous, no not one. No one escapes sin. No one sin overpowers man brings them under Satan's control brings them under God's wrath subjects and all the miseries of life and ultimately dams them to eternal hell now. That leaves a final question that finally gets us to our text is the final question, given that this is our condition were talking here about humanity not Christians talking about the world. Given that this is our condition and it's so systemic and so endemic and so deep so profound so incurable. What does the world do what does the world appeal to to draw out our sin. That question is what's answered here. All that is in the world. Remember, the world is the system of evil overseen by Satan. Energized by demons.

What does that system appeal to in us. What is the matrix of fallenness, the pathology of fallenness, the cardiology of the unregenerate that the world appeals to it is the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life was of the three gateways which the world system finds its way into the fallen heart and generates sin.

All that is in the world. The world is the anti-God Antichrist anti-Scripture anti-righteous deceptive order controlled by Satan, the world is synonymous with the kingdom of darkness. It is dangerous. It is deadly. It is designed by Satan to appeal to these three avenues into the fallen heart.

Let's look at these three just briefly the lust of the flesh. This is the craving of our sinful hearts epi through media desire. The craving of the sinful hearts, common word used in the New Testament sometimes means good desires at the context is what you have to look at the sea whether its meaning is positive or negative. This means the negative cravings of our sinful heart. Our world impulses.

The impulses that draw us toward the the evil that is around us. So the evil in us is attracted to the evil around us, or rather the evil outside of us solicits the evil that is in us, that doesn't mean we talked about lust of the flesh, the media think of sexual sin. Well, that certainly included, but that's not any limit on this it's any desire for anything outside of God's law, any attitude, any thought any word, any action that God forbids. It's the corruption of desires its selfish desires of any kind, sinful desires of any kind.

The gamut in God is not saying we can't have desires. There are normal healthy desires nothing wrong with desiring partner in marriage. Nothing wrong with desiring to eat but it sinful to desire a partner outside your marriage it sinful to become a glutton.

Obviously nothing wrong with enjoying a good time and having fun, it's wicked to be consumed with pleasure and irresponsible regarding duty.

Nothing wrong with being comfortable it sinful to become a slave to luxury everything can be perverted lust of the flesh is a slavish kind of relentless gratification of all desires outside of God's limits or exceeding God's limits oblivious to what is good and reasonable and righteous. That's the lust of the flesh. It's wanting what you want and you could care less what God has to say. What are these last well as I said there not just acts of immorality. Galatians 519, the deeds of the flesh are immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, outburst of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these fill in your own list. Anything done to satisfy your yearning that violates the law of God the world is made up of these things that's essentially what the world system is in the world on the outside, the world system on the outside. The Satan rules is simply an external projection of the heart of man the world really appeals to the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life, because the world is made up of sinners who run on that basis to a function on the basis the second that he mentions is the lust of the eyes. It's it's not just what you feel it's not just those impulses and compulsions that you feel down inside toward self-fulfillment against the will of God.

It's also what you see. It's also what you see eyes. Proverbs 2012 says her gift from God. What a blessing. What a wonderful grace to be able to see the beauty of God's creation to see all the people that you know and love all the wonders of life. The evil of the heart, twists and perverts the eyes, and Jesus is if you look on a woman to lust after you've committed adultery in your heart and what God gave you to appreciate his beauty can come a point of terrible sinful pursuit lots wife misused her eyes and parish killed by God Aiken saw with his eyes coveted and took Sampson saw something he wanted with his eyes and it cost him his eyes.

David was walking on his balcony and with his eyes he saw a woman who was another man's wife, and he paid profoundly for that iniquity. The rest of his life. That's why the psalmist said please Lord, keep my eyes from beholding vanity. That's why Job said Job 31 I made a covenant with my eyes the lust of the flesh is the allurement that comes from the bodily impulses.

The impulses of the mind and the body, the lust of the eyes is what is the lure of the outward appearance to form of covetousness. The third component in this matrix is the boastful pride of life. Boastful pride allows own may it's not just pride. It's the braggart it's the loudmouth poster fact the allies on was the braggart. This form of worldliness. This component of our fallenness. This piece of the matrix in which fallenness functions that gets projected into the world and then appealed to by the world. This is at the base of all sin.

The boastful pride of life is the desire to be better than everybody else did the desire to tell everybody how much better you are. It is the desire to exceed everybody else boastful pride of life to make your life more important than everybody else's life, there you have it. That's really the cardiology of of the worldly heart is driven by sensuality, covetousness and pride, sensuality, further defining a little bit is the corruption from the lower part of man's nature, gratification of bodily desire and forbidden ways.

Covetousness is the corruption of a nobler part of man's nature, unlawful abuse of God's creation. Pride is the corruption of the noblest part of man's being the self exaltation of his spirit made in God's image, lust of the flesh, that's just based desire gratification covetousness that's a little bit higher on the scale, you see something you recognize the attractiveness of it and you wanted for yourself. And so there comes in the covetousness, jealousy sometimes leads to murder James pride is the corruption of the noblest part of man's life that is his and Maggio Daisy, his mind his rationality.

What exalts man above all the rest of the creation is that he is made in God's image instead of being humbled by that he seeks to fulfill things that glorify himself and not God and sensuality. He functions lower than an animal in covetousness. He seeks to have everything that his fellow man has in pride he defies God sensual. He's like an animal covetous. He's like all other men desiring to have what they have, but in pride he defies God he rears up to replace the sovereign God himself. He like the devil who was lifted up with pride therein is the web of sinful impulse provides the beachhead for the systems temptations to land and conquer the sinners heart that's so far a bit of an abstraction.

Let me give a concrete conclusion by having you turn to Genesis 3. Here is the first temptation. The first sin in the fall of the human race.

Genesis 31 to 7 Satan comes along, he finds the woman even the garden verse one. He approaches the woman he says some indeed, has God said, you shall not eat from any tree of the garden is the first question in history.

By the way, designed to start you on the path to distrusting God. He wants you to doubt the character of God wants Eve to disobey God wants Eve to believe that God is a liar and that God is restrictive needlessly wants to put her in bondage. So here for the first time he offers you the option of subjecting God's word to human judgment. This is a sad moment. This is the first time got anything God said was subjected to human judgment as God said, you shall not eat from any tree of the garden Satan in a way poses the question turns the positive in the negative. God originally said you can eat from anything in the garden.

Everything in the garden except that one tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Satan turned it into a negative, has God said, you shall not eat from any tree of the garden, emphasizing the negative of forcing Eve to contemplate the fact that God is restrictive.

He turns what was a provision with only one small limitation into what is a prohibition setting her up for the main assault on God is implying God is restrictive.

God is narrow. God hampers freedom.

God wants to rain on your parade.

God doesn't want you to have some that's really good.

He wants to limit your enjoyment. He wants to limit your pleasure. On the other hand, he implies, I am devoted to your full fulfillment. I am in I am in there. The freedom business. God may even be cruel and uncaring. If he restricted you from that tree, God's probe bondage on pro-freedom of the woman answered the serpent said from the fruit of the trees of the garden we may need but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, you shall not eat from it or touch it. God didn't say that I didn't say that by by adding those words or touch it.

She's saying yeah I you know you might be right, and she starting to add restrictions to what God said feeling the weight of Satan's approach. There is no defense of God here. She doesn't say how dare you question the word of God you didn't get it right. It was a provision with only a minor restriction, not a prohibition. She doesn't defend God at all. She says yeah you shall not eat from it or touch it, lest you die.

God didn't say that, but she is beginning to buy into this idea that God is restrictive, so she throws in a restriction of her own. Her heart has set its course and she fell really at that moment. The moment she didn't defend God. Satan knew it. So in verse four he went all the way serpent said to the woman, you surely shall not die. He knew where she was.

God said, you'll die.

Satan said no you won't end by saying that Satan said God is a what a liar is not only narrow, not only restrictive in all and was a rain on your parade and only wants you to keep from enjoying the pleasure that tree, but he didn't tell you the truth I'm telling you he lied to you, you won't die. That's a lie.

Well, why would God lie what why would God say I'll die verse five because God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be open and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.

The reason he doesn't want you to lead us not because he loves you and you'll die.

It's because if you eat, you will be like him and he hates competition anybody equal to him. He's jealous and it's an evil jealousy. That's a narrow jealousy. It's a restrictive jealousy she was gone, in her mind she had fallen, but you had yet send she was in a fallen condition. She hadn't yet send what is the matrix in her fallenness that's going to literally cause her to sin. Verse six. Those who follow this when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, said stomach barley appetite, lust of the flesh was related to hunger. She had all kinds of things to eat. It was the idea that there was some satisfaction being withheld from her.

It was good for food. Lust of the flesh fulfill some desire some appetite. Secondly, she saw also that it was a delight to the eyes. That's the lust of the eyes did not only excited her. Her sort of basic desire for the sensual joy of food excited her otherwise noble appreciation of beauty. So it went from her physicality to her emotion and she saw that it was a beautiful tree that made it desirable she could appreciate beauty, and so she was seduced by her hunger and she was seduced by her vision and then she also saw that the tree was desirable to make one. What lies what was that pride of life. That's the matrix, but sin works on the baser desires and appetites of the body. The nobler visions of beauty and foreman in the highest of all, the ability to know wisdom because you made in the image of God comes a point of pride. There was physical impulse. There was an emotional impulse. There was an intellectual impulse that is the matrix of temptation comes in that way it did it that first time and it always has. Since one closing illustration. Luke four in Luke four Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and led by the Spirit in the wilderness Luke four verse one. He was 40 days in the wilderness, tempted by the devil where when you love to know how the devil tempted Jesus you duties revealed are yet nothing during those days when the entity became hungry, he was being tempted the whole time. And here we get an indication of how the devil worked on him. The devil said to him, if you are the son of God, tell the stone to become bread.

40 days of not eating you can imagine he was hungry right make some bread out of those stones, you have the power to turn those stones into bread fulfill that hunger. Jesus said it's written, man shall not live on bread alone. It didn't falter that so Satan let them up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world. They look all that your eyes can see anyone at them on the lust of the eyes and the devil said to him, I'll give you all this domain and its glory.

Look at all all the wonder of the created world.

It's been handed over to me he said and I give it to whomever I wish.

He is the prince of this world and if you just worship me. It will be yours. Look at it'll when you like to have that you have nowhere to lay your head who have only to close on your back, you who are the Messiah of God impoverished Jesus answered and said to him, it is written, you shall worship the Lord your God and serve him only.

I can't serve you.

I can't worship you temptation to the lust of the flesh. She met with Scripture from Deuteronomy. The temptation to the lust of the eyes, he met with Scripture again from Deuteronomy is only 1 Last Pl. to go and that's to the pride of life, so he led him to Jerusalem.

Had him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, probably a 400 foot drop at least to the valley below on that south east corner of the temple ground. If you are the son of God, throw yourself down from here you want these people to recognize you as the Messiah, the son of God. Remember, the Old Testament says Psalm 91 he will give his angels charge concerning you to guard you on their hands they will bear you up, less use strike your foot against a stone. Can't you imagine Jesus he says, can't you imagine you want acceptance you want to be popular you want to be somebody you want the accolades of the world just dive off this 400 foot precipice and the Angels all gather around you and you float down like a feather in your land and they'll all bow down and you'll be preeminent appealing to the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh. Now the pride of life. Jesus said to him, you shall not put the Lord your God to the test and again quotes from Deuteronomy just met every temptation with Scripture. He was in all points tempted like as we are yet what without sin.

This is how the world comes beloved. This is how the world comes it comes at the base level of bodily desires. It comes at the nobler level of the vision of beauty and it comes at the highest of all the intellectual levels of desire for knowledge and wisdom and to be significant. That is the matrix of temptation. Everything in the world works in that complex. This is the heart of man. This is how the world operates.

Spector first John for minute. That's not us were not part of that anymore. Gratefully, all that is in the world is not from the father in the world is passing away, and also its loss. But the one who does the will of God abides forever. That's not us. We are not driven by the world. We are driven by the will of the father. We don't always do it the way we should. But that's always the longing in our hearts always the longing in our hearts we don't love the world, we don't love the things in the world because the love of the father is in us.

We are not of the world. We still have the residual impact of sin in us, we still can be tempted that way. But it goes against the grain of who we are. We do not love that system. When we fall victim to it. We hate the system and we hate the sin. This is how we are distinguished as true believers.

This is grace to you with John MacArthur.

Thanks for being with us along with teaching every day on the radio. John also serves as Chancellor of the Masters University in seminary, and he has titled our current series. The love God hates well John, this study is made it clear the world system is going to at times tempt believers in seem attractive to us.

So with that said, I'm wondering what can we as Christians do. In these moments of temptation, how practically can we resist worldliness, and I think part of it is just knowing it, just realizing it, realizing the world is not your friend. The media is not there to increase your sanctification.

The film industry is not there to make you love holiness.

Whether you're talking about television, music, whatever it is the educational system, the University system is not there to increase your Christ likeness. It's all part of the same system under the power the prince of the year and it exists to destroy and to kill, because by definition, Satan destroys and kills and he is a liar and deceiver all that the world has to offer all the systems of the world whether their educational systems sociological systems entertainment systems whenever they are they have one goal that is to deceive and destroy. And I think it you have to start there. You can't play around with the enemy. You need to separate yourself from the enemy, and that's what this entire series is been about the love God hates you must you must not love the world and I don't mean you sit around saying oh I love all that's wrong in the world. I mean you don't expose yourself to all that this is such an important series. It's available on three CDs. That's right.

It's available in three CDs and will send them to you if you just contact our ministry very reasonable price. Contact grace to you ask for the three CDs on the love God hates or if you choose, you can download the series free of charge, what, why should you do that because you need to have this vendor repeated and meditate on it and share it with others do that today. Yes friend. This study can help you accomplish a crucial life-changing goal that is recognizing worldliness and avoiding it to download John series, the love God hates or to order the CDs. Contact us today our web address Jide TY.org. Again, our study, the love God hates is free to download@jidety.org. There you will also find every other sermon from John's 50 years of pulpit ministry 3500 messages total. All of them free to download or if you'd like to order this series on CD go to our website or call us at 855 grace and when you get in touch. Let us know if today's lesson will encourage you. Perhaps you already thought of some practical ways to fly John series, the love God hates share that with us.

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After hearing this broadcast. We love stories like that email your feedback to letters@tty.org once more that's letters@tty.org or you can send a letter to Grace to you. Box 4000 panorama city, CA 91412 now for John MacArthur in the entire grace to you staff, I'm Phil Johnson encouraging you to be here tomorrow when John looks at how you can make a difference in evil culture. He's starting a series titled God's word to an ungodly society with another half hour of unleashing God's truth in one verse at a time on grace to you