We need to start by having a clear understanding of what we're dealing with. When the Bible uses the English word WORLD, it can have three possible meanings so we need to understand the context when we see it in scripture. The same is true for the Greek language that the New Testament was originally written in and so we should consider the following meanings:

1. The word WORLD can refer to the planet earth.
2. The word WORLD can refer to all the people on the earth or to all the nations of the earth.
3. The word WORLD can refer to the system of life that Satan has implemented through mankind that's based on selfishness, lies, deceit, error, lust, corruption, pride, fear, hatred, bondage, darkness, sin and death.

The third definition is the focus of today's article. The World is a SYSTEM of living that flows out of man's fallen nature and is based on the Flesh and the five physical senses. It's occupied and loved by the people who have chosen to follow a substitute for the Lordship of Jesus Christ and for the most part it reflects the values and preferences of those non- believers. The World is based on self-interest and unrighteousness and manifests principles of life that are the exact opposites of what we find in the Word of God. Following are 10 of the key New Testament scriptures that describe the World:

John 1:10 = the World does not know Jesus.
John 7:7 = the World hates Jesus because He testifies of its evil.
John 14:17 = the World can't receive the Spirit of Truth (the Holy Spirit).
John 15:19 = the World hates Believers.
1 Corinthians 1:20 = the wisdom of the World is foolish.
Galatians 1:4 = the World is evil.
2 Peter 1:4 = the World is corrupted by lust.
1 John 4:5-6 = the World has the spirit of error.
1 John 5:19 = the World lies in wickedness.
Revelation 12:9 = the World is deceived by Satan.

In addition, the Old Testament says in several places that the World is filled with violence. So, hopefully you get the idea that the World system is not something Christians should want to be a part of. And on top of all the negative statements about it in the Bible, we also need to consider that, contrary to popular doctrine, God is NOT even the one who is currently controlling what happens in the World. If not God then who is in control?

In Part 43 of this series UNDERSTANDING THE SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD, one of the important points of discussion was identifying who actually controls the things that happen on the earth. Tradition says God's in control of all things including even the bad things that happen here but the Bible actually says it's Satan who controls the World. We invite you to request a FREE copy of that previous newsletter (the June 13 issue) which discussed these points of view in some detail. In the meantime following is a short summary of the relevant conclusions.

After God created the earth and all its contents and inhabitants, He gave the Man in the Garden DOMINION over everything on the earth (Genesis 1:28). DOMINION means to rule and reign over something. In other words God delegated His authority over the earth to Mankind. At that point the Bible says God rested from all His work (Genesis 2:3), indeed He actually CEASED from His own works (Hebrews 4:4), leaving to the Man the responsibility of carrying out his assignment to fill the earth and subdue it (Genesis 1:28).

In time the man and woman sinned and as a result God's delegated authority was passed on to Satan who replaced Adam as ruler and became the "god of this world" (2 Corinthians 4:4). Indeed, the Bible says that "the whole world lies in the power of the evil one" (1 John 5:19) who's described in other scriptures as the "prince (ruler) of this World" (John 12:31, 14:30, 16:11) and the "prince of the power of the air" (Ephesians 2:2). And so, what the Bible CLEARLY says is that Satan is the one who's ACTUALLY controlling the World and that he'll continue in that capacity until Jesus returns to complete the establishing of His Kingdom (Revelation 19:15- 16 and 20:2-3).

Could the Lord God, the One with the real power and authority, kick Satan off the planet now if He wanted to? Of course He could but He has chosen not to fully dispose of Satan for the time being because He won't violate His own Word that originally delegated His authority over the earth to mankind. In other words, He has chosen to bind Himself to His own covenant of delegated authority until men are ready to reassert their dominion as the true kings and priests of the planet (Revelations 1:6).

In the meantime, Jesus came and died on the Cross to make it possible for men to begin the process of regaining their lost property. What Believers have to do then is live by FAITH, resist the devil to make him flee (James 4:7) and live life according to the principles found in the Word of God. Believers live IN the World but we're not OF it; we belong to the Kingdom of God which has established a beachhead IN the World through faith in Christ. Satan is still the ruler of the World but Believers don't have to submit to his authority and he's not allowed to come into your part of the Kingdom of God unless you open a door. In sum, we're supposed to resist the devil's authority and take refuge in the Kingdom. Friend, resisting his authority by all means includes resisting the influence of his World.

Indeed, the Bible clearly instructs us not to love the World or the things of the World (1 John 2:15). Once we're born again the Lord expects us to come out of the control of the World and begin to re-establish ourselves in the household (Kingdom) of God (Ephesians 2:19). But if we continue to walk in the Flesh, if we continue to allow our carnal nature to control us, we'll wallow in the frustrations and defeat of the World when we could be enjoying the blessings and victory of the Kingdom. God doesn't compromise His Word and so we're WARNED in scripture to stay away from the World as we can see in the following verses:

Matthew 16:26 = "For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?"

Luke 21:34 = "Be on guard, so that your hearts will not be weighted down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of life (stay away from the world)"

Romans 12:2 = "And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by he renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect."

Colossians 3:1-2 = "Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God (Ephesians 1;20). Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth "

Titus 2:11-12 = For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age

James 4:4 = "do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore, whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God."

1 John 2:15-17 = "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, the 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. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever."

The Word of God is clear and direct in warning us about worldliness confirming that it's been a concern from the beginning of the Church. But despite all the warnings, the World continues to seduce many of us into its activities and values and systems; in fact, most Christians give no thought to it. We live in the World and we do things day after day the way the World does them. We say the things they say even though those words produce death and we manifest the same worries and concerns and fears even though Jesus said: "Do not let your heart be troubled" (John 14:1). Friend there are important consequences to worldliness that God wants us to avoid because they interfere in our spiritual development and they quench our victory in Christ.

Now, according to the dictionary the word WORDLY describes someone who's devoted to the temporal WORLD and/or who's NOT spiritual or religious. And WORLDLINESS is the condition of being WORLDLY. Is it possible for Believers to be highly prone to WORLDLINESS? It sure is and a lot of Christians these days are so devoted to the things of the WORLD they hardly even realize where they are. Yet according to scripture, there're at least five major groups of NEGATIVE consequences that WORLDLINESS brings into peoples' lives.

1. Worldliness destroys the influence of the Truth. Perhaps the greatest deficiency in the Body of Christ today is our ignorance concerning the Word of God. Part of the reason for that ignorance is that many of us are too close to the world even though scripture tells us what to expect: >"And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful" (Matthew 13:22). Believers are choking the power of the Word in their lives and causing it to be unfruitful because they're too close to the World. Their understanding has been darkened and their hearts have become hardened because they walk in the futility of their own intellect (Ephesians 4:17-18). And many have LOST the ability to know what the will of God is for their lives (Romans 12:2).

2. Worldliness deludes Men into a state of false security. The picture that the Bible depicts of life just before the Flood shows what happens when people are totally engrossed in the World instead of God: >"For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the (second) coming of the Son of Man be" (Matthew 24:38-39). The people thought they were okay, secure in their World without God only to be washed away in the Flood. And Jesus prophesied in these very scriptures that the same false security will again bring disaster when He returns to earth to complete the establishing of His Kingdom.

3. Worldliness dulls our faith and always produces death. "For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace" (Romans 8:6). To be "carnally minded" means to allow your mind to be dominated by your five physical senses which is exactly how the World operates. The alternative is to have your mind renewed by the washing of the Word (see Romans 12:2, Ephesians 4:23 and Ephesians 5:26) so you can operate by faith instead of in the five physical senses. Since faith comes by hearing the Word (Romans 10:17), our involvement in the World chokes off our faith which slows down or even stops the process of being conformed to the image of Christ (Romans 8:29) and without faith we're unable to please God (Hebrews 11:6). Indeed, the Bible instructs us NOT to be conformed to the World but instead to be transformed by the renewing of our minds.

4. Worldliness works to take control of our lives. The World is seductive because it has a lot to offer the five senses. If we don't resist it, the World will steadily increase its control in our lives to the exclusion of everything spiritual. A carnal Christian is a Believer who is operating in the Flesh by the five physical senses instead of walking in the Spirit. The World continuously tries to hinder Believers' spiritual growth and development resulting in the same environment of fear, selfishness, defeat and death that non-believers experience. In Christ we are free (Galatians 5:1) but the World imposes control and bondage (Ephesians 2:2).

5. Worldliness leads to religious apostasy. The greatest danger the Word of God is warning us about is that Believers can finally become so connected to the World, so in love with what goes on there, they can fall away from the faith (backslide). The Bible tells of Demas, one of Paul's followers, who actually deserted this great Apostle and went his own way because Demas loved this present World (2 Timothy 4:10). And to the ones who think they have everything they need from the World and want to be play-Christians in name only, Jesus said the day will come when He will spit them out of His mouth (Revelation 3:16).

Because of the limited remaining space today, we have relegated this section to the essentials but promise to come back in a future issue as the Spirit leads to expand the discussion. But for now, you can successfully resist the call of the World by submitting to the following steps:

• Accept that the World poses a threat to your victory as a Believer.
• Acknowledge a responsibility to actively resist and stay away from Worldliness.
• Ask the Lord to help you overcome the World every step of the way.
• Continually study and meditate on the Word of God to increase your wisdom and strengthen your faith.
• Implement for yourself and your family ALL the principles of life you find revealed in the Word.
• Actively resist the World by using and speaking the authority you have received by the name of Jesus.
• Look within the Kingdom of God to find the alternatives for the World's ways of doing things.

Friend, you should be looking at this subject as though you're engaged in a literal WAR against an enemy who wants to kill you. Indeed, complacency about the World can cost you the victorious life Jesus died for you to have. The Body of Christ MUST come to the point of standing against the love of the World. There's not anything the World has that the Kingdom of God doesn't have a better version of. Resist the World and seek first the Kingdom of God and your victory in Christ is assured not only for the age to come but also for this one.

The Bible says that the devil comes ONLY to kill, steal and destroy and since he's the god of this World, these are the underlying attributes of his domain. Beloved, if we get too close to his World, if we identify with it and talk like it and love the things in it, and look like it then we become subject to the power of the devil's attributes. Even though we're part of the household of the real God, our attraction to the World opens the door to death, theft and destruction. And that's why so many Believers these days aren't experiencing biblical prosperity in their lives.

But the good news is that the Spirit of God has come to replace the spirit of the World so that those who want to can know the things of God (1 Corinthians 2:12). Even though the World lies in darkness, Jesus is the Light that's ALREADY shining on the earth (1 john 2:8) so that those who want to can walk in that Light and stop stumbling around in the darkness (1 John 2:10). Friend, our faith overcomes the World (1 John 5:4) because Jesus has already done the real overcoming for us (John 16:33). And He that is now in the heart of a Believer is greater than your enemy who's in the World (1 John 4:4). Friend the World is in the process of passing away, it's dying from the Curse; but the one who does the will of God, the one who resists that World NOW will live forever (1 John 2:17).

Thanks for reading Prosperous Life Newsletter today. We'll be looking for you again in three weeks on Friday, September 26th. In the meantime, may the Lord bless you and your family with the fullness of biblical prosperity and with every spiritual blessing.

If you have never invited Jesus to become the Lord of your life, you can do so today by saying the following simple prayer:

Jesus I believe in you and I receive You as my Lord and Savior. I believe You are the Son of God and that He raised You from the dead. Thank you that my sins are forgiven and that I am reborn, a new creature in You.

If you were sincere as you prayed, God has already come into your life and you are a new creation. Now ask the Lord to lead you to a good faith based bible teaching church where you can be developed to fulfill your potential in the Kingdom of God. If you're unable to find a church, give us a call and we'll help you find a good one.

Please e-mail your prayer requests to: theway@makeaway.net. We'll be honored to bring them before the Lord each Tuesday morning at 10:00 AM, Eastern Time.

If you have been blessed and edified by Prosperous Life Newsletter, please pray about making a Spirit-led love offering to support the work of the Ministry (Galatians 6:6-7). PLN is a non profit [501(c) (3)] gift to the Body of Christ so your financial gifts should be tax deductible (please consult your tax advisor). You may mail your check or money order to Cornerstone Consulting Ministries to 10621 N. Kendall Drive, Suite 113, Miami, Florida 33176 or click on the donation tab for other payment options. May God bless you with His abundant harvest in return for sowing your precious seed into this Ministry.

It would bless us to have an opportunity to answer your questions concerning any of the areas covered by the ministry of PLN. We would also be happy to consider your comments and suggestions. Please feel free to e-mail them to us or give us a call anytime during normal business hours at our toll free number 1-800-357-4223.