Watchman Nee is certainly a challenging and controversial figure on the spiritual landscape of 20th century Christianity. I know people who love Nee and his writings, and I know people who avoid his books like the plague. One thing is for certain, though, Nee was a devout man. He was a man whose convictions about Christ overcame him, spilling into every practical area of his life.
I found Nee’s book, Love Not the World, to be both troubling and compelling for this very reason. It is hard-hitting and painfully practical. For Nee, nothing is neutral, and no worldly activity can be considered benign. There is only FOR God and AGAINST God. Nee believed that the world and everything in it is orchestrated by Satan to be anit-God. According to him, Christians living in the world must tread lightly and with fear lest we be turned against God also.
This book is actually a collection of addresses given by Nee during the period of 1938-41, and the cultural references are bit dated. However, neither of these realities lessen the impact of the message. It reads like an impassioned sermon. Even when I found myself disagreeing with Nee, his words still got to me. This book made me wrestle with ideas I have uncritically accepted as I have grown up in the Christian faith. What does it really look like to “love not the world?” Even if I’m not sinning, does the filthy mindset of the world negatively affect my walk with Jesus?
The final chapter—and the most controversial for me, personally—concerns money. Nee believed that money itself was inherently evil. As an American surrounded by incredible wealth and prosperity, is it possible my money is far more dangerous to my relationship with Jesus than I ever imagined? Even if I strive to be generous, has consumerism gripped my soul, and I have become desensitized to it? This is provocative stuff. Even if you don’t agree with all of Nee’s thoughts, you have to admit he is correctly identifying where the real tension points are when it comes to following Jesus.
I recommend this book not because I agree with everything in it, but because I think we all need a prophet to come along once in a while and shake us out of our stupor.
George W. Sarris does an excellent job with the narration of the audiobook version.
Please Note: This audiobook was gifted as a part of the Christianaudio Reviewers Program in exchange for my unbiased review of this work. This has in no way influenced my opinion or review of this work. More information can be found about this and other Christian audiobooks at christianaudio.com.