How Can a Christian Avoid Worldliness?

The term “worldliness” can describe the infiltration of the world’s mindset into the thinking process of the believer. When Christians live inconsistently with what is taught in the Scriptures, they are labeled “worldly” Christians. Those inconsistencies most commonly regarded as evidence of “worldliness” include participating in the party scene, addiction to any drugs, including nicotine, alcohol, even obsession with materialism.

Deep at the root of worldliness is the preeminence of something other than God as the ultimate object of human’s interests and desires. While many diversions and pleasures are not necessarily wrong, they can become sinful when they become the highest priority, and God is put on the back burner. Paul exhorted the believers in Ephesus to be different from their neighbors in the way they viewed the world:

So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more. (Ephesians 4:17-19).

Defining the specifics of “worldliness” can be a challenge. Behavior patterns seem to change with the times, swinging like a pendulum from one extreme to the other. For many years, Christians believed that any consumption of alcoholic beverages, smoking, going to the movies and listening to rock and roll music constituted “worldliness.” Some groups forbade members of the opposite sex from “mixed bathing” at the pool or beach. Various denominations were established that emphasized such standards to the point that they stopped fellowshipping with other Christian groups that did not adhere to the same standards. Using the clarion call of “be ye separate” (2 Corinthians 6:17), many Christians isolated themselves from the world in a cultural and religious ghetto, failing to be “salt and light” (Matthew 5:13-16) in the world.

This particular solution to “worldliness” has been termed legalism: the establishing of rules of behavior for every Christian to follow. Ironically, legalism is a “worldly” way of expressing religious beliefs and includes external rituals and harsh rules for everybody to see. The problem with legalism is that it has no power to motivate the inner being, no ability to transform our sinful disposition. If believers aren’t careful, rules and law keeping soon begin to define the essence of the Christian life. Instead of the vital presence of the Holy Spirit urging a believer towards holiness, the Christian life is defined as a list of do and don’ts that lack the power to fulfill God’s righteous purposes and lose the joy of the relationship with Jesus. Legalism substitutes external moral codes for the indwelling Christ (John 15:5) and deadens the very message that is to bring abundant life to the soul (John 10:10).

In reaction to the negative and stifling perspective of legalism, many believers view their faith, not as a set of rules to obey, but as a wondrous relationship with the Living God to enjoy. They understand that the hazard of worldliness in the believer’s life goes way beyond the triad of smoking, drinking and carousing and includes all sorts of life activities: sensual forms of entertainment, prejudice, unethical business practices and false advertising gimmicks. The temptation to engage in some form of worldliness can be found everywhere.

In spite of the impotence of legalism to advance true holiness before the Lord, specific standards of conduct can be very helpful for individual Christians. When seen as principles for wise behavior, these standards can help to guide us through the cultural morass and choose a better way. They establish parameters for living wisely, lest we find ourselves compromising our faith and diminishing biblical ideals. Such rules can be beneficial when they are adapted individually and are not regarded as the standard for everyone. It is not legalistic to live by rules of conduct we make for ourselves as long as we do not impose our standard in judgment of others (Romans 14:13; Philippians 3:15-16). The most important hedge against worldliness is to prioritize every aspect of life under the preeminence of Jesus Christ, his grace and his kingdom work (Matthew 6:33; Romans 12:1-2).