David F. Wells is a professor of Historical and Systematic Theology at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and in his book God in the Wasteland: The Reality of Truth in a World of Fading Dreams; he depicts how modernity has invaded and corrupted the church and offers a biblical antidote so that the characteristics of biblical faith are preserved. This is Wells sequel on the subject to his first book titled No Place for Truth. In that book, he set out and described and diagnosed the cultural factors that have diminished the place and importance of theology in the church but offered no resolutions in solving the dilemma. Forthwith, Wells advances these arguments about how the evangelical crisis of modernism or more commonly known as "worldliness" has pushed out God and the truth of His Word. In this relationship between Christ and the culture, what is highly prescribed is an awakening and the necessity of rediscovering our theological roots.

According to Wells, the rudimentary predicament in Evangelicalism is the identical one that has taken out the effectiveness of mainline Protestantism today. Wells calls it "modernity" where liberal Protestantism conciliated to the modern world. This is not because the modern world has become more theological but because Protestantism has become modern. It has become an informal religious establishment that derives its power not from its theology but from the culture. Thus, the central issue is the relationship between Christ and culture and that modernity is not just an issue, but according to Wells it is the significant issue (p. 26). In his analysis of modernity, he contends that it is necessary that we understand that the love of God and the love the world are in competition. However, most evangelicals are oblivious to it because over the past few decades there has been an erosion of biblical separation and a distinct movement to conformity and a gradual descent into the "me" generation. Distracted by the cajoleries of modern culture, we have lost our focus on transcendent biblical truth. Evangelicals have been beguiled by the efficiency of our culture's techniques, and strategies (p. 58). This modernity movement has gone far away from looking for men who can preach and teach to those who can manage and have the knowhow of marketing and selling the goods of the gospel.

Wells stated that in light of the church being run as an organization in contrast to the body of Christ as an organism, the focus of the church has shifted from God to that of an organization. Although there is still a belief in God, it is only now that he has become to be less significant or as Wells puts it, God becomes weightless. Weightlessness is a condition, a cognitive and psychological disposition that can sweep through all doctrinal defenses because it is not itself perceived as a doctrine (p. 90). The answer to rediscover the importance of the biblical doctrine of God, according to Wells, is to decisively move away from modernity and prevailing anthropology and to also move away from our humanistic theology. At this point, Wells turns from the culture and focuses on primarily the theological. The two themes that Wells develops are the transcendent holiness of God and secondly the immanence and the church's need to rediscover the one and to run from its abuse to the other. Only then will God begin to have weight again.

In the closing chapters, Wells looks at the coming generation of church leadership by surveying seminaries. In that he found that the respondents were first of all at least aware of the changing shape and that theology was important to them. Secondly, that theology is indeed important and should be central in the life of the church. Thirdly, that the students were dissatisfied with the current status of the church, and that it has lost its vision (p. 213). Finally, in his last chapter he talks about some of the changes that the church needs to effect in order to regain its spiritual authenticity.

God in the Wasteland is a companion volume, as already stated, to his earlier No Place for Truth, a book described by Time magazine as a "stinging indictment of evangelicalism's theological corruption." Wells is not alone and has been joined by evangelical leaders as Charles Colson, Mark Noll, and Richard Mouw and as Carl Zylstra states that they "have begun to outdo even mainline critics in questioning whether modern evangelicalism has sold its principles in order to achieve popular success." The central issue for Wells is the proper relationship between Christ and culture. He opposes any fusion between the Christian faith and modern culture, whether that of Protestant liberalism or the more recent cultural accommodation of evangelicalism. Evangelicals, he contends, have bought cultural acceptableness by giving a blind eye to theology, and substituting a message of happiness versus that of holiness. He says he has written this book because "the vision of the evangelical church is now clouded, its internal life greatly weakened, its future very uncertain, and I want something better for it…the evangelical church to be the church" (p. 214).

In this book Wells presents his argument for a counterculture Christianity from a classical Reformed evangelical theology. His analysis is fastened on some familiar and yet dismal examples of the mega-church phenomena, televangelists, Barna and his connection and influence with the church-growth movement, and the social gospel. The result is theology loses its necessary place and preeminence in our Seminaries to that of management and marketing techniques. The degree in which your church is considered a success is the size and structures you have and how many needs can be met by the congregation, or more accurately stated—consumer. Pastors and church leaders can still preach about all the great doctrines but seldom does it get out from within the church walls. The TV preaches about a consumer gospel and how God can be used as the means to good health, riches, and, a trouble free life. Wells believes that Christians are to stand against worldly culture and stay true to its nature. Only, "this kind of distance, this kind of dissociation from modernity, this kind of opposition to modernity as an essentially ungodly worldview" (p. 119), will preserve Christian identity.

This "otherworldliness" has as its nemesis the second generation western evangelicals who have been captivated by the social scientific. Rather than being sensitive to subjective belief, Christians should understand that the issue is a matter of truth rather than psychology. For Wells one either begins with the human perspective or with God. However, Robert Johnston states the following:

Wells inability to hold on more comprehensively to the dialectic of Christ and culture causes him to lose sight of aspects of classical theology that would make his theology more adequate biblically. The example is given where Wells believes the cross takes precedence over resurrection, and in the process the material is slighted for the spiritual. Transcendence is highlighted over immanence, with the Spirits work in the wider world noted but effectively ignored for the Spirit's work in applying what Christ has accomplished. God's holiness is asserted as fundamental in defining God's character, with divine love of being reduced merely to an expression of holiness. (What does Wells do with the theology of 1 John?) In his desire to argue "objective" truth, he undervalues the "subjective." … But his propensity for overstatement and his revulsion from contemporary culture causes him to underestimate or ignore other biblical doctrines which are more culturally "relevant" at present.

The last two chapters Wells focuses on the seminarian himself through a comprehensive survey take in 1993 in which seven Evangelical seminaries took part in. His findings were relatively hopeful as those taking the survey do have a high regard of Scripture and believe that theology should be a cornerstone in the life of the church. He also stated that most were indeed not satisfied with the current status of the church (p. 213). Although this book was written in the mid-nineties it holds true today. As I presently serve as a pastor in a church, I see how modernity has crept virtually unnoticed into my own thinking and church. It is an easy thing to do to begin to give our congregations what they believe they want rather than what they need—theology. Most within the church are more concerned with what they believe and yet have no idea why they believe or where it fits theologically if at all. They want a gospel that will answer the question to their problems quickly and painlessly. God is just another means to the end that can be pulled off and put back on the shelf as needed.

God in the Wasteland is a book that has no doubt shaken a few chains of evangelicals and those whom are not as, no doubt, we all to some degree have come under the shadow of modernity. The competition between this world and God is evident and most have unfortunately put God aside and not allowed God to have the preeminence, he not only deserves but commands. The challenge for the church and those that lead in it is to bring back theology and allow it to have its prominent place in the teaching and preaching. That the decisions and actions we take would be based on a biblical worldview rather than the bottom line.