And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof; but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever. 1 John 2:17.
The lessons of Christ are of that character to show the relative importance of heaven and earth. He presents before the mind's eye that the claims of heaven are first in importance. God's claims are supreme. He demands the whole heart, mind, might, and strength. Earthly things He assigns their place, to be subordinate to the eternal interests.
The temptations of Satan present earthly things and make them all-absorbing and attractive, so that the heavenly realities are eclipsed and the attachment to the world made first; and this has become so great a power that Omnipotence alone can dislodge it. Satan's work is to chain the senses to this world. Christ came to break the satanic enchantment, counterwork the work of Satan, and charm the mind away from the earthly to the heavenly. He alone is able to break the enchantment.... A few years and the world and all its glory, which has through the bewitching power of the great deceiver become an object of worship, are to be burned, with all the embellishments of the art of man. Then what will be found to compensate for the loss of the human soul?
The Prince of life calls the attention to the eternal world.... He would have the infinite grandeur of the future hold the attraction of human minds, and the present world take its subordinate place in the affections. He sets in order things that Satan has transposed. Having taken the world from the throne where it has become a ruling power and worshiped as a god, He assigns it its proper place....
With eternal realities in view we will habitually cultivate thoughts of the presence of God. This will be a shield against the incoming of the enemy; it will give strength and assurance, and lift the soul above fear. Breathing in the atmosphere of heaven, we will not be breathing the malaria of the world. We will not remain in the darkened cellar, but come up into the upper chambers where every window that looks toward heaven is open and catches the bright beams of the Sun of Righteousness.11Manuscript 42, 1890.
From Our High Calling - Page 285
Our High Calling