Loving the World, Luke 11:43
"Woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye love the uppermost seats in the synagogues, and greetings in the markets."
This is the second of six woes that Jesus pronounced upon the Pharisees and religious leaders of His day. Each of the six woes has to do with something that they did which was hypocritical and kept others out of the kingdom of God. Each had to do with their keeping the law externally but not internally. Each had to do with the reality of the sin lurking in their hearts.
This second woe that was pronounced was because they loved having the best seats in the synagogues and being greeted in the markets. Notice that Jesus doesn't condemn them for having the best seats in the synagogues or for being greeted in the markets, but rather, for loving these things. They loved the world. They loved being exalted. They loved fame, fortune, and being praised. They sought after the praises of men, which is why they loved the best seats and the greetings. In having those best seats in the synagogues, it would appear to others that they were more righteous and more holy than the others. In their love for being greeted in the markets they showed that they were indeed men-pleasers and not God-pleasers. This Jesus condemned.
God wants to bless us beyond our wildest imaginations. But we can use those blessings to shame others and exalt ourselves if we are not careful to remain humble in the sight of the Lord. There is nothing in us that deserves blessing. There is no one person that is greater than any other person (excluding Jesus, because He is actually God and therefore quite a lot better than all of us!). We have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. None of us, not one, deserves anything from Him.
Yet, He chooses to bless us. He chooses to bestow upon us abundantly beyond what we could ever ask or imagine. And why? Because He loves us with an unmatchable and undying, unquenchable love. He loves us so much that He died in our place on Calvary-- to redeem us from the certain hell that would befall us due to our own sin. And so because any blessing we receive is given purely on the basis of grace-- unmerrited and undeserved favor-- we can by no means boast of ourselves.
God wants to bless us, and we can delight in those blessings and take joy in them. There is no need to feel guilty or ashamed for having good things, for every good and perfect gift comes from above. But when we take our eyes off the giver and pride ourselves and take delight simply in the gift, we become in danger of falling into the same sin of the Pharisees and religious leaders of Jesus' day, that sin which Jesus so openly pronounced woe upon. Take care to keep your eyes on the Giver and enjoy the gifts that He gives!