What Does the Bible Say About Worldliness

The dictionary definition of “worldly” is “relating to, or devoted to, the temporal world.”
Worldliness, then, is the condition of being concerned with worldly affairs, especially to
the neglect of spiritual things. Scripture has a great deal to say about worldliness,
none of it good.

The epistles depict worldliness as the exact opposite of godliness. The world’s wisdom
is not wisdom at all (1 Corinthians 3:18–19). Rather, it is foolishness, especially the
world’s wisdom when it comes to spiritual things. We see that today in the endless
discussions of “spirituality” by men whose spiritual wisdom is based on nothing more
than worldly illusions. True wisdom that comes from God is the exact opposite of the
foolish “wisdom” of the world throughout Scripture. The message of the cross is
foolishness to those with worldly wisdom who are perishing (1 Corinthians 1:18)
because true wisdom comes not from man’s philosophies, but from God’s Word. True
godliness is always opposed by the world.

Furthermore, Paul refers to a “worldly sorrow” (2 Corinthians 7:10) which is the
opposite of the godly sorrow that comes from true repentance. Godly sorrow is what
we feel over our sin when we come to see it as God sees it and when our view of it is
in accord with His. Worldly sorrow, on the other hand, does not stem from the
knowledge of sin against a holy God, but rather from circumstances in which the
worldly find themselves. Worldly sorrow stems from a love of self and may arise from
the loss of friends or property, from disappointment, or from shame and disgrace. But
once the circumstances right themselves, worldly sorrow disappears. Godly sorrow,
however, is only alleviated by turning to Christ, who alone provides freedom from the
sorrow, the penalty and the power of sin.

Finally, Scripture draws a clear distinction between friendship with God and friendship
with the world. James 4:4 tells us that “friendship with the world is hatred toward God.”
He goes on to say that “anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an
enemy of God.” The apostle James uses the strong words “hatred” and “enemy” to
drive home the point that we can be in the world or in the kingdom, but not both
because they are at opposite ends of the spectrum. Those who choose worldliness
choose to live in the enemy’s camp because all that is of the world is under the control
of Satan (1 John 5:19). He is the ruler of this world, and when we choose the world,
we enlist in his evil army and become enemies of God.

For the Christian, the choice is clear. To avoid worldliness, we must mature in the
faith, growing up in all things in Christ so that we are no longer spiritual infants, tossed
about by the lies of the world (Ephesians 4:14–15). We must come to know the
difference between the wisdom of God and the foolishness of worldly wisdom, and that
is only achieved by careful and diligent study of the Word, seeking God’s wisdom in
prayer (James 1:5), and enjoying the fellowship of other mature believers who can
encourage us to reject worldliness and embrace godliness.
– Steve Ledford