The Word on Worldliness

1 John 5:4 “4 For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.”

There is virtually no area or aspect of our lives that is not touched on by the Wesleyan/Holiness tradition. Wallace Thornton makes the list, “from clothing, amusements, and mate selection to education and church worship have fallen under the ethical scrutiny of those determined to perpetuate the Wesleyan Vision.” Why? Just to be strange, peculiar, or different? Well, maybe in one since of the word, but also to guard against what we call, “WORLDLINESS”

I have mentioned before that I have heard of many things preached against, from hairspray & bobby pins, to buttons on shirts and dresses, to the kind of dress socks men wear, trying to guard from worldliness.

Here are a few ways other describe worldliness, I thought they were good and wanted to share them with you.

"Worldliness is what makes sin look normal in any age and righteousness seem odd." – Dr. David Wells

Worldliness is the lust of the flesh (a passion for sensual satisfaction), the lust of the eyes (an inordinate desire for the finer things of life), and thepride of life (self-satisfaction in who we are, what we have, and what we have done). Worldliness, then, is a preoccupation with ease andaffluence. It elevates creature comfort to the point of idolatry; large salaries and comfortable life-styles become necessities of life…. But more importantly, worldliness is simply pride and selfishness in disguises. It’s being resentful when someone snubs us or patronizes us or shows off. It means smarting under every slight, challenging every word spoken against us, cringing when another is preferred before us. Worldliness is harboring grudges, nursing grievance, and wallowing in self-pity. These are the ways in which we are most like the world. – Dave Roper,

Worldliness is not only doing what is forbidden but also wishing it were possible to do it. One of its distinctives is mental slavery to illegitimate pleasure. Worldliness twists values by rearranging their price tags. – Erwin Lutzer

Worldliness is horizontal life. Worldliness has nothing of the vertical in it. It has ambition; it has no aspirations. Its motto is success, not holiness.It is always saying. Onward, never upward. A worldly man or woman is a man or woman who never says, “I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills.” Anonymous

1. What is worldliness? A predominant passion for obtaining the good things of this life; covetousness; addictedness to gain and temporal enjoyments. Webster

a. System (kingdom) of worldliness

i. in direct conflict with Godliness, so much so that John instructs us earlier in this Epistle to love not the world, neither the things that are in the world.

ii. All that is of the world is the lust of the eye, the and the pride of life.

iii. Culturally ingrained in some aspects

b. Standard

i. Follows the fads and fashions of the worldly system rather than concerning itself of what God wants.

c. Satanic –

i. It is in direct rebellion against God at its core, for we read in 1 John 2 to love not the world neither the things that are in the world and if any man love the world the love of the Father is not in him.

d. Spirit – The spirit of worldliness in everything that wants to put something above, beside, or apart from God.

2. What has been worldliness?

a. Apples – Apostles

i. Worldliness started before the Conservative holiness movement. It began in a garden when the first two partook of the wrong; Eve looked, lusted, lied, and died. And so the pattern of a worldly heart was begun.

ii. You can trace it’s ugly black line throughout the lineage of the world from there but we want to just pull out a few for reference sake

1. Nimrod (Gen 10:8)

2. Sodom & Gomorrah – Eze 16:49 Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fullness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy.

3. Corinthian Church

a. Corinth was one of the most wicked cities in the first centrue

i. Right in the middle of this was a little Christian Church

ii. Some problems in the church and community

1. Divisiveness

2. Immorality

3. Gender bending

iii. Paul lists some worldly attitudes and conduct 1 Corinthians 6:9-10

b. Clement – Cartwright

i. As we have already seen worldliness was not something whether in conversation, conduct, or clothing that was allowed to continue in the church. Paul’s letters were strong, forceful and to the point.

ii. We find that when the Apostles made their exit from the stage of life, God raised up some men to carry on the cause of Christ. Clement of Alexandria was one of those and his writings from 150-215 give a glimpse of the firery preacher that he must have been. Not letting things go without getting specific. When I read his article on dress he did not pull any punches nor did he speak in a general way and hope to get his point across like some of us do today. He went right to the heart of the matter and cut away with the sword of the Spirit. Listen to some of his writings.

c. Methodism – Holiness Movement

i. Wesley too had some strong ideas about worldliness and dress.

We can see that all throughout the ages God has had a people who might not have understood everything, who maybe didn’t get things just right, but they had a love for God and a hatred for anything that looked like, smelled like, tasted like, or even hinted like worldliness. I have to ask myself why would this change now?

3. What is worldliness today?

a. It is not just something you wear or put on

b. It is not just the way you walk or talk

c. It is not just places you go

The verse talks about an overcoming faith. A faith that overcomes the world. Not just a system of beliefs, or strongly believing something, but a faith that has made us a child of God. You remember in Eph. 2 where it talks about us being saved by grace thru faith. We are told here that whatsoever is born of God this is the only stipulation if you are born of God you are already an overcomer. If you keep the faith. As he continues in verse 5, Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God? Look at the analogy between this verse and the deliverance at Jericho. McGee has a good point on this