Some months ago I — politely, I hope — replied to a Bible study question, not with an answer, but with another question. The question was something like, “How can we avoid the world?” And suddenly I realized something I had not previously considered so directly. ¹

“Could I instead question the question?” I asked. “Does Scripture encourage us to base how we believe, and what we do, on ‘avoid the world’?”

I’ve been hearing this a lot, especially this time of year. The recent resurgence of the Yoga Controversy — thanks to Al Mohler, who added some balance in a more-recent column — has also brought on more responses akin to: Christians should avoid the world.

This is not a myth. But it is a half-truth.

Similarly, these two statements are also not myths:

• You must repent of your sins.
• God’s love is what saves you.

But take either one of those, apart from other truths and the context of Scripture, and try to build beliefs out of it, and you’ll likely end up with a System that may be internally consistent, yet not consistent with all of God’s Word. So it is with “avoid the world” and misreadings of this:

Many Christians say this clearly indicates we must avoid anything “worldly.” Yet they can’t avoid applying this verse selectively. Christians on the internet who say everything about Halloween, including candy and costumes, is “of the world” and thus should be avoided, don’t consider if the same applies to their of-the-world internet use. Few Christians would go to the extremes of groups such as the Amish — yet even the Amish have concluded that practices like wearing clothes, as most of the world does, and farming, also a continually popular occupation in the world, don’t count as being “in the world.”

1 John 2: 15-17 is not talking about avoiding every Thing in the world. Instead John refers to Christians loving worldly things more than they love God. His specific phrases show actual sin: “the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions.”

Saying “Christians must avoid the world,” without Biblical balance, ends up ignoring 1) sin’s ultimate origin (Mark 7), and 2) the goodness God has left in the world, such as governments (Romans 13), kind parents (Matthew 7: 9-11) and God’s glory shown in nature, which even in a sin-cursed world reflects His love and creativity (the entire book of Psalms).

But because of sinful hearts, people use and abuse good things in the world for sin: costumes, food, media, travel, family, churches, even Christian doctrine. The sin comes from within. And it continually surprises me that some conservative Christians, often by accident, accept the liberal-theology idea that sin does not come from within, but without, from The Environment.

Moreover, Christians who say only “avoid the world” have a wrong foundation: figure out what’s wrong with the world, then avoid it. This mindset turns our focus off God as our positive, and to “avoid the world” as our negative. That’s a sure way to get both truths wrong.

Grace prevents that. Instead of fixing our eyes upon “the world,” however that is defined, and trying to deduce how we must avoid worldly things, we should fix our eyes on Jesus Himself.

Only then can be discern Biblically what counts as un-Godly worldliness, and avoid it. But our reasons should not be based on reaction, emotions or mere “logical” deductions of what may or may not be sinful, based on possible associations with bad guys or actual bad things. Our reasons should be based on glorifying God, delighting in Him and seeking Biblical balance.

(Tomorrow: why do Christians, in boycotting Halloween, label as “evil” things that don’t exist?)