“I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.”
John 17:14 (NASB)
Here Jesus is telling us we are in the world but not to be of it. I John 2:15-17 (Message Bible) defines for us what being of the world is and the results and being in the world but not of it: “Don’t love the world’s ways. Don’t love the world’s goods. Love of the world squeezes out love for the Father. Practically everything that goes on in the world—wanting your own way, wanting everything for yourself, wanting to appear important—has nothing to do with the Father. It just isolates you from Him. The world and all its wanting, wanting, wanting is on the way out—but whoever does what God wants is set for eternity.” This makes it very clear that love for the world pushes out the love for God so you could be in the world and function in the world as a believer but not be of the world by loving God. So it’s not so much about what you don’t do or what you do but do you love God with all your heart soul and mind? You see, the more you love God, the more you will push out the love for the world.