Inspirational: WHAT DOES THE WORLD HAVE AGAINST LOVE AND JOY?

By; Linda Kirby/WGON 8.17.26

It’s a strange thing to watch: a world starving for peace, aching for joy, and desperate for love… yet rejecting the very Source of all three. People shout for “inclusion,” but the one thing they refuse to include is Godliness. They demand acceptance, but they will not accept the God who created them. They preach love, but despise the Author of love Himself. Jesus said plainly, “Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil” (John 3:19). That’s the heart of it. The world isn’t fighting politics or tradition — it’s fighting holiness.

Holiness exposes darkness. Holiness confronts sin. Holiness demands surrender. And holiness brings a joy the world cannot manufacture, control, or counterfeit. So when the world rejects God, it is really rejecting the only path to the peace it claims to want. They talk about building a utopia, a perfect society filled with harmony and unity. But how can a world filled with anger, chaos, bitterness, and rebellion create paradise? A heart full of hate cannot build a home full of love. A life driven by chaos cannot produce peace. A soul rejecting God cannot create a utopia. Scripture says, “There is no peace,” says my God, “for the wicked” (Isaiah 57:21). Their utopia will always collapse under the weight of their own unrest.

Yet here is our hope: love and joy are not fragile. They do not depend on cultural approval. They do not rise and fall with society’s moods. They come from Jesus, and no amount of worldly chaos can silence what He places inside His people. The world may hate holiness, but holiness is exactly what will heal it. The world may reject God, but for now, God has not rejected the world. While they chase a false utopia, we hold the promise of a real one — a Kingdom ruled by the Prince of Peace, where love is pure, joy is full, and righteousness reigns forever. Jesus said, “My peace I give you… not as the world gives” (John 14:27). His peace is not fragile. His joy is not temporary. His love is not conditional.

So what is our lesson? Stand firm in love. Stand firm in joy. Stand firm in holiness. The darker the world becomes, the brighter the children of God shine. And one day soon, the world’s false utopia will crumble, but the Kingdom of Jesus will rise — and that Kingdom will be filled with everything the world claims to want but refuses to receive: love, joy, peace, holiness, and the presence of God Himself. As Scripture promises, “Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end” (Isaiah 9:7).