Understanding “The World”

For several sessions, we've been talking about overcoming the world. But this week, we want to address a more fundamental question: WHAT IS THE WORLD and WHY does it need to be OVERCOME?

“The world” is both a physical and spiritual place. Physically, as humans, we are born “in the world,” while spiritually, thanks to Satan and Adam, we are born with “the world” in us. Therefore, we are all born both “in” and “of the world.”

The world became what it is, the moment Adam sinned by choosing the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil over the Tree of Life. Instantly, Lucifer became “the god of this world,” and the Father’s loving intention for each child to know WHO he is dramatically shifted by Lucifer to only knowing WHAT he is. Remember, the Lord told Adam, “In the day you EAT of it, you (knowing WHO you are) shall surely die (Gen. 2:17).” The serpent lied to Adam by telling him: “You (knowing WHO you are) will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you EAT of it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil (Gen.3:4-5).” This is how all mankind lost their/our identity as SONS OF GOD! Just as Esau traded his birthright for a bowl of soup, Adam traded our birthright to become “god look-alikes,” after the image of our substitute father, the devil. Since we no longer know WHO we are, we have been demoted to identifying with WHAT we are, as determined by WHAT we do.

I believe there must have been a time when Lucifer came before God requesting to make a place for all the “look-alikes,” like himself, where they can pour everything they have into trying to be something they are not, while trying to convince everyone, including themselves, that they are looking successful doing it, and call that place “the world.”

The Chief “Look-Alike:” (The Five Great “I WILLS” of Satan)

Isaiah 14:12–15 12 “How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, You who weakened the nations! 13 For you have said in your heart: ‘I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation On the farthest sides of the north; 14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be LIKE the Most High.’ 15 Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, To the lowest depths of the Pit. (NKJV)

As humans, being “like God” has become an exercise in “being good” by tapping our conscience and deciding through human reasoning what’s right and then trying to do it by human effort (“I’m just doing the best I can! – That should be enough to please God (if there is a God)!”). This is what the world has become. The religious version of being “like God” is similar, except you supplement your reasoning list of everything you think is right, with everything you reason that God would surely want, along with the Ten Commandments (which was conveniently expanded to 613 rules and regulations at no additional charge), as well as all the other religious doctrines, teachings, prophesies, opinions, etc. that you picked up along the way and then you busy yourself trying to keep and do them, all by human effort. Even if you thought you once knew WHO you are and WHO God is, trust me, in a very short time, the world will make sure that you don’t!

So, the problem is bigger than men losing their identity—not knowing WHO they are, God has also lost His identity—they have no idea WHO their Heavenly Father is either. John stated it this way: “He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not (John 1:10, KJV).”

When God spoke to Adam concerning the result of his disobedience, He said: “Cursed is the ground for your sake; In toil (In the sweat of your face, Vs. 19) you shall EAT of it all the days of your life (Gen. 3:17).”

Under the curse, we suffer death to our identity—knowing WHO we and God are. When we can’t live by faith, we default to works of the flesh—our identity and salvation is then in WHAT we do.

But Jesus came, “That He might destroy the works of the devil (1 Jn. 3:8).” Part of His plan to rectify the curse Adam brought on mankind was that from the cross, He would take on the nature of Adam and once and for all, He would both atone and repent for the sins of Adam, and thereby OVERCOME THE WORLD. At the last Passover meal with His disciples, He disclosed His reversal of that curse:

Guarding THE WAY of the TREE OF LIFE

Luke 22:15–16 15 Then He said to them, “With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; 16 for I (as the Second Adam) say to you, I will no longer EAT of it (from The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil) until it is fulfilled (the death of the first-born has been satisfied and the curse has been forever reversed) in the kingdom of God.” (NKJV)

By so doing, Jesus opened the way now for us to EAT eternally from the Tree of Life which has been guarded and kept by angels and a flaming sword since the first Adam chose to EAT from the wrong tree.

Genesis 3:22–24 22 Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever”— 23 therefore the Lord God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground (hard works of the flesh—rather than dress and keep the garden) from which he was taken. 24 So He drove out the man; and He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life. (NKJV)

THE WAY of the TREE OF LIFE is REST, not WORKS OF THE FLESH! The sword that turned every way in the garden of Eden is found in Hebrews 4: 1-13, where he is talking about the Rest of God. He said, “For the word of God is life-giving, powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword.” The two-edged sword in the book of Hebrews is in the context of REST. It is not just any word that is life-giving—It is the word that flows from rest. That same chapter points us to a faithful High Priest who is at REST on a Mercy Seat, because He has FINISHED HIS WORK! It is the place where we can come boldly to the throne of grace, obtain mercy, and find grace to help in the time of need. When we know WHO He is and WHO we are in Him, He freely gives and we freely receive everything we need flowing from REST, not WORKS OF THE FLESH. Like our Heavenly Father, we do WHAT we do by grace through faith, all flowing from WHO we are from REST!

WHO is he who overcomes the world?

1 John 5:4–5 4 For whatever (not whoever) is born of God overcomes the world (present tense). And this is the victory that has overcome the world (past tense) —our faith (by which we trust and believe in Jesus as our Lord and Savior). 5 WHO is he who overcomes the world (present tense), but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? (NKJV)

There are only two families in the world: the family of Adam, born after the flesh of man, and the family of Christ (the Second Adam), born after the Spirit of God.

Another way to understand “the world” is to see it spiritually as a fallen way of thinking—it’s “the way ‘everyone’ thinks!” Therefore, the way to overcome the world is by receiving a higher way of thinking—It’s the way GOD thinks! It’s called having “The mind of Christ (1 Cor.2:16).” But in doesn’t come by wishing, it comes only by surrendering your old life and your old way of thinking to God and then receiving a brand-new life in Christ through the miraculous power of His resurrection. Jesus put it this way: “You must be born again (Jn.3:7).” Then, when you receive that new way of thinking, you will also need a new way of speaking to God. That’s when it becomes absolutely necessary to ask the Father, who knows “how to give good gifts to His children,” for the baptism in the Holy Spirit, so you can pray and talk to God in your new heavenly language and the enemy and the world won’t have a clue what you are saying, but the Lord will (Luke 11:13).” One way to receive it is through the laying on of hands. We can certainly help you with that today! John said, “You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world (1 Jn.4:4). How’s that for overcoming the world in a big way?