We have seen in this series of blogs that we are to love everyone, but that does not mean that we are to love everything.

Philippians 1:9 (ESV)
⁹  And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment,

If your love is not discerning, it is not the proper kind of love.  Paul makes it clear that we should not love indiscriminately.  What are some things we should not love?  Here are a few.

We should not love the world.

1 John 2:15 (ESV)
¹⁵  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.

First, let us understand that the world that John is referring to is the one over which Satan rules (2 Corinthians 4:4).  This world is the realm of ungodliness that contains anything that runs contrary to the will of God.  This is why John said we are not to love it, or the things in it.  It is the world that Paul said was crucified to him (Galatians 6:14), and to which we should not conform (Romans 12:2).  To conform means to act in agreement with, and one thing we should never do is find ourselves in agreement with the world.

There are many people today who would gladly sell their souls for the pleasure of this world.  Why?  Because they have been drawn to it by the glamour and the glitz of it, not realizing that it is all temporary (1 John 2:16-17).  Do not sell your soul for temporary pleasure.  It simply is not worth it.

We should not love false doctrine.

Psalm 119:127-128 (ESV)
¹²⁷  Therefore I love your commandments above gold, above fine gold. ¹²⁸  Therefore I consider all your precepts to be right; I hate every false way.

The false ways that the Psalmist refers to are in contrast to the commandments and precepts of God; therefore, they refer to any teaching that contradicts or is not found in the Bible.  False doctrine leads people away from God.  It does not matter how sincere the false teacher is, the result is the same.  False doctrine leads to a false religion (Matthew 15:8-14; Psalm 127:1).  It can only condemn, not save (Galatians 1:6-9).  False doctrine also leads to false hope (Proverbs 14:12; 1 Thessalonians 5:1-3), deceiving thousands into thinking they are saved when, in reality, they are not.  We should abhor any form of it.

We should not love the praise of men.  Most people like being praised; however, if we develop too deep of an affection for it, even to the point where we will sacrifice the will of God on its altar, then we like it too much and that will, inevitably, lead us to reject God and lose our souls (Matthew 6:1-7, 16-18; John 12:42-43).

What do you love?  Let’s make sure we have a discerning love.  If we do, we will love the things that God loves, and hate the things He hates.

As you wind down for the night, think about these things.