Further copies of this extract must not be made for distribution without permission from the copyright owner, The Banner of Truth Trust , Edinburgh, Scotland. And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand. I believe that all the evidence points in one direction. It is that Evangelicals, while commonly retaining the same set of beliefs, have been tempted to seek success in ways which the New Testament identifies as 'worldliness'. Worldliness is departing from God.
Worldliness is the mind-set of the unregenerate.
It adopts idols and is at war with God. Because 'the flesh' still dwells in the Christian he is far from immune from being influenced by this dynamic. Apostasy generally arises in the church just because this danger ceases to be observed. The consequence is that spiritual warfare gives way to spiritual pacifism, and, in the same spirit, the church devises ways to present the gospel which will neutralise any offence. The antithesis between regenerate and unregenerate is passed over and it is supposed that the interests and ambitions of the unconverted can somehow be harnessed to win their approval for Christ.