Where does the saying \u201cBe in the world but not of it\u201d come from, and what does it mean?<\/b><\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
This familiar expression is derived from Jesus\u2019 prayer for His disciples in John 17: \u201cNow I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world . . . They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world\u201d (vv. 11, 16).<\/span><\/p>\n While the whole New Testament contrasts believer and world, no writer dwells on this distinction more than John. With over one hundred references, John accounts for about half of the New Testament total. And Jesus\u2019 prayer in John 17 refers to \u201cthe world\u201d nineteen times alone! Let\u2019s see how this chapter helps us understand the meaning of this saying and of the world itself.<\/span><\/p>\n Jesus opens and ends His prayer confessing that He transcends the world<\/span>.<\/span><\/i> He asks the Father to glorify Him \u201cwith the glory which I had with You before <\/span>the world<\/span><\/i> was,\u201d for the Father \u201cloved Me before the foundation of <\/span>the world<\/span><\/i>\u201d (vv. 5, 24, emphasis mine throughout). From this we see that by using the word <\/span>world<\/span><\/i>, Jesus has, in part, all creation in mind.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n In between these two verses are several sayings that describe Jesus\u2019 relationship with <\/span>the world<\/span><\/i>. Jesus states that the Father sent Him \u201cinto <\/span>the world<\/span><\/i>\u201d (v. 18) and that He spoke \u201cin the world\u201d (vv. 13), yet He was \u201cnot of <\/span>the world<\/span><\/i>\u201d (vv. 14, 16). But Jesus sharpens the distinction further. He says, \u201cI do not pray for <\/span>the world<\/span><\/i>\u201d (v. 9) but for those the Father has \u201cgiven Me out of<\/span> the world<\/span><\/i>\u201d (v. 6). And \u201c<\/span>the world<\/span><\/i> has hated them because they are not of <\/span>the world<\/span><\/i>\u201d (v. 14).<\/span><\/p>\n From these statements we glean that the world Jesus refers to so often in John isn\u2019t so much the material cosmos as it is the spiritual condition of creation in its rebellion to its Creator. Although God \u201cso loved <\/span>the world<\/span><\/i>,\u201d the mission of God is \u201cto save <\/span>the world<\/span><\/i>\u201d from itself, from the darkness that defines it (3:16, 17; 12:47).<\/span><\/p>\n At the conclusion of His prayer, Jesus states clearly the defining difference between the believer and the world: \u201cO righteous Father! <\/span>The world<\/span><\/i> has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me\u201d (v. 25). So to be in the world but not of it is to live as those who know and love God, <\/span>in<\/span><\/i> a world that does not know Him or love Him. The distinction is simple, yet monumental.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n While the world hates, our relationship with it is not antagonistic. Just as the Father sent His Son into the world, Jesus leaves us with His mission: \u201cI also have sent them into <\/span>the world<\/span><\/i>\u201d (v. 18). Jesus prays that God\u2019s mission goes forward as the love that unites Him and the Father, with every believer, bears witness to the world: \u201cthat <\/span>the world<\/span><\/i> may believe that You sent Me\u201d (v. 21).<\/span><\/p>\n To be in the world but not of it requires discernment and vigilance. And it requires abundant grace toward this world. We must love as our Father does, while not loving worldly ways. John, one more time: \u201cIf anyone loves <\/span>the world<\/span><\/i>, the love of the Father is not in him. . . . And <\/span>the world<\/span><\/i> is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever\u201d (1 John 2:15, 17). May God help us!<\/span><\/p>\n \u2014 Elder Jason Overman<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n\n\r\n \r\n \r\n\r\n