The first chapter is called "Is this verse in your Bible?" and is all about 1 John 2:15 which says "Do not love the world or the things in the world..." C.J. Explains that this is a verse that we like to mentally or even physically at least cut out of our Bible. We are afraid of the effect this verse will have on our lives so we avoid it or change its meaning. C.J. makes the comment that "the greatest challenge facing American evangelicals is not persecution from the world, but seduction by the world." C.J. defines worldliness not as the earthy world because created it and it was good. Rather C.J. says
Worldliness, then, is a love for this fallen world. It's loving the values and pursuits of the world that stand opposed to God. More specifically , it is to gratify and exalt oneself to the exclusion of God. It rejects God's rules and replaces it with our own (like creating our own Bibles). It exalts our opinions above God's truth. It elevates our sinful desires for the things of this fallen world above God's commands and promises.C.J. would say that worldliness isn't ultimately in the world but in our hearts. Our desires are what makes a good gift from God a worldly idol. He makes clear that the point of this book is not to be legalistic or allow you to ignore 1 John 2:15, but rather to bring the matter off the surface and get to the heart of the matter.
Chapter 2, by Craig Cabaniss, is all about media and its effects on our lives. "As followers of Christ, we cannot afford to take lightly the media's pervasive presence in our lives" -Craig Cabaniss. Craig comes at you, on this subject, straight to the heart. Why are you watching that? Is there a point to your watching or are you just watching? Craig wants us to be discerning in what we willing put in our minds. A point he makes which I find is very interesting and helpful is, as he describes it, living coram deo. Which means living "before the face of God." He doesn't say that we should all get rid of our TV's or laptops but that we watch discerningly with gratitude to God for creativity, beauty, and laughter. Craig points out that if we are more discerning in what we watch and where we go on the internet then we will have so much more time to spend in fellowship and community with others. As he puts it "there's a world of things to do with the TV turned off."
Chapter 3, by Bob Kauflin, is all about the music we listen too and subject ourselves too. Bob doesn't say that there is only one style off music that we should listen too because not one style can capture who God is. But he does stress the importance of being discerning with what we listen to. He says, "listening to music without discernment and godly intent reveals a heart willing to flirt with the world... If we're concerned about the seductive effect worldly lyrics can have on our souls, we won't be racing close to the edge of sin, seeing how much we can take in before it finally starts affecting us."
Chapter 4, by Dave Harvey, is about the stuff in our lives. The Bible tells us that we are not to covet which means desiring stuff too much or desiring too much stuff. Materialism pervades every heart, according to Dave, whether it is obvious or not. "covetousness chains the hearts to things that are passing away" -Dave Harvey. There are four chains that Dave goes into in depth. first is stuff makes me happy, then it is stuff makes me important, thirdly our stuff makes us secure, and finally stuff makes me rich. But Dave makes the point that when we die we will stand before God with nothing. We need to measure our riches with what Christ did on Calvary.
Chapter 5, by C.J. Mahaney, is about our clothes. This chapter is directed mainly at women, but C.J. again is not looking to put boundaries on the surface but rather looks to the heart of the matter. He says, "Any Biblical discussion about modesty begins by addressing the heart, not the hemline." C.J. defines immodesty as an act of drawing undue attention to yourself. It's pride, on display by what you wear. And thus, modesty is humility in how you dress. He asks a very good question, in my opinion, to the women of the church. Are your role models the godly women of Scripture, or the worldly women of our culture. C.J. also gives words to the fathers of women saying that an immodestly dressed woman means usually the father has failed to lead, care for, and protect her. C.J. in this chapter is trying to protect the men as well as the women and asks women to think of their brothers in Christ before the dress.
The final chapter, by Jeff Purswell, totally changes focus and rather than how to avoid being worldly he goes into how we are to love the world. Jeff starts by helping lay down a biblical worldview for living in the world and walks through creation, the fall, redemption, and consummation. Jeff then gives us three tasks of how we are to love the world. The first is to enjoy the world and going along with the theme of the whole book explains that "worldliness is not a matter of matter, but of the heart. the "world" we are forbidden to love (1 John 2:15) is not the earthy creation but the rebellious, independent, God-rejecting, mindset of those who inhabit this creation." Second, we are to engage the world. God placed man in the garden to work and keep it (Gen. 2:15). Jeff explains that a biblical worldview "gives us new eyes to see all of life: every sphere is charged with potential, every activity providing an opportunity to serve God, encounter God, obey God, enjoy God, testify to God, and bring glory to God." Finally, Jeff calls us to evangelize the world. "A biblical worldview can transform evangelism from a neglected Christian duty or mark of elite spirituality to an exhilarating privilege for every believer." Jeff ends the book by showing us the cross and how it defines us and the way we are to live in this world.
In my opinion this was a great book that is almost all practical while giving hundreds of scripture which helps to show how we are to avoid worldliness. I totally recommend it to anyone in a heartbeat.
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