Ungodly – Living Apart From God

To be ungodly is to live without reverence for God. This article explains what ungodliness means, how it shapes the way people think and act, and what God has done in Christ to rescue the ungodly – including those who now follow Him.

What Does ‘Ungodly’ Mean?

The ungodly, because they are separated from God, act in ways that are contrary to His nature, live in disobedience, or have an irreverent disregard for God. Being ungodly ranges from those who are generally ‘good-living’ people to evil despots, yet what they have in common is that they are not children of God but remain under the influence of Satan; they have not come to salvation and so are disconnected from the source of eternal life (Jn 10:10).

Ungodliness is a settled posture of the heart – living without reverence for God

Ungodliness is the condition of being polluted with sin and controlled by the sinful “flesh” nature and the desires of the world. It is more than an occasional wrong act – it is a settled posture of living without God, in which the heart neither worships nor honours Him. Their affections, ambitions and values are ordered around self and the world rather than around their Maker.

The Way and Destiny of the Ungodly

The pathway of those who do not honour God is the opposite of those who follow in His ways. Because the destiny of the ungodly is horrendous, we should intentionally seek to turn sinners from their ways (Ps 1:1-6; Jas 5:20; 2 Pet 2:4-6, 3:7).

The ungodly mirror their master, Satan, showing no reverence for God

While we should interact with non-believers, seeking to influence them for good, we are warned to be on our guard against being contaminated by, or embracing, the practices of evil people (Jude 1:3-19). Intimidation and peer pressure are powerful tactics that Satan uses in his attacks against Christians.

Christ Died for the Ungodly

Thank God, as recipients of His grace, we have passed from death to life because “Christ died for [us] the ungodly” (Jn 5:24; Rom 5:6,8; Eph 2:3). At salvation we became “new creations” – no longer hell-bound sinners but blood-washed saints (1 Cor 6:11; 2 Cor 5:17; 1 Pet 1:3).

Christ died for the ungodly – by grace we have passed from death to life

The old carnal nature still resides within, however, and it is our ongoing responsibility to put it to death (Rom 8:13). Even careless speech advances ungodliness, for those who engage in “endless chatter” become “more and more ungodly” (2 Tim 2:16).

As believers, although we are declared righteous before God, we are still in the sanctification process of being made holy by being transformed into His image, and we still fight our fleshly urges – sometimes acting in ungodly ways (Rom 7:21-23, 8:29-30; 2 Cor 3:18; Phil 1:6). When we are aware we have sinned, we need to confess it to God (1 Jn 1:9).

Turning From Ungodliness

Scripture sets out a clear path for turning from ungodliness. It begins by recognising and agreeing with God that ungodliness is sin, rather than excusing or renaming it (Prov 28:13). It continues with confessing it honestly to God, holding nothing back (Ps 32:5), and decisively putting off the old way of life – the habits, speech and attitudes that belonged to the former self (Eph 4:22-24; Col 3:5-14).

God’s clear path: recognise, confess, put off the old life, walk by the Spirit and keep saying ‘No’

The old way is then replaced with what reflects the nature of Christ, walking by the Spirit so that the desires of the flesh lose their grip (Gal 5:16,19-25). Day by day, keep saying ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, living self-controlled, upright and godly lives in the present age (Tit 2:12). As we symbolically put to death the evil practices of our hearts, minds and bodies, we will become increasingly alive in the Spirit (Rom 6:6-7,11-12).

When God Works Through the Ungodly

God sometimes works through those who do not acknowledge Him to bring about His divine purposes and glory. When Joseph’s brothers intended to harm him, God used their evil plans for good (Gen 50:20).

What people intend for evil, God uses for good

Pharaoh opposed the Israelites leaving Egypt, yet his resistance became the very stage on which God displayed His power (Ex 14:17-18). A foreign king likewise supplied the materials for the walls of Jerusalem to be rebuilt (Neh 2:5-9).

God allowed the brutality of the evil Assyrian conquest to discipline godless Israel, but ultimately it rebounded and brought about Assyria’s own destruction (Isa 10:6,12-27).

The ultimate example is Jesus, as Peter explained to the crowd: He was “handed over to you by God’s set purpose and foreknowledge, and you with the help of wicked men put Him to death” (Acts 2:23). His death and resurrection opened the way of salvation for the ungodly – “For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was [literally] put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit” (1 Pet 3:18). Ungodliness is never the end of the story: God remains sovereign over the ungodly, able to turn even their opposition into the means of His grace.

Reflection and Application

Ask God to search your heart and show you any area of life still lived without reference to Him (Ps 139:23-24).
Confess known ungodliness today, asking God to cleanse your heart (Ps 51:1-2).
Name one ungodly habit of speech or behaviour and deliberately replace it with what reflects Christ (Rom 12:1-2).
Pray regularly for unsaved family and friends, asking God to turn them from the pathway of the ungodly (1 Tim 2:3-4).