Worldview

Lately I have felt an increasingly greater need to focus some attention on issues relating to the Christian worldview. Recent events that have been occurring within evangelicalism reveal that most Christians, though they may understand the gospel, don’t understand the implications of the gospel in everyday life. That is why I plan on doing more regular posts addressing political issues (not politicians), art, and other “worldview issues” on a weekly basis.

What is a worldview?
No doubt many of you don’t know exactly what a worldview is. Your worldview is the lens through which you view the world. Specifically it relates to your beliefs on God, man, morality, truth, origins, and even the future. One could add or subtract many things from that list but it should give you a basic idea.

What is a biblical worldview?
Certainly there are several different opinions on what consists of a biblical worldview, however, I think we can pull out some things that are agreeable. A small summary of how the Bible depicts each area that consists of a worldview should give you an idea of what a biblical worldview looks like.

God- God is the Creator of everything. He is triune (therefore fully self-sufficient), eternal, self-existent (therefore not needing a creator), Holy, and perfect in every way.

Man- Man is the highest of God’s created order, created in the image of God. As God’s creation man is a dependant being and accountable to God’s judgment.

Morality- God’s moral Law is the foundation for human morality. Though not every person has or will receive the special revelation of this Law their own actions show that it is revealed in their conscience. Therefore, every person has sufficient knowledge to be judged by their Creator (see Romans 1:18-3:20). However, man is incapable of achieving perfect morality because every person is born with a sinful nature.

Truth- Because there is a Creator who serves as the foundation of truth it must be said that truth is objective. Therefore truth is not a mere practice of observing societal norms; rather, it is the practice of finding what God has revealed in total.

Origins- God created the world in six days (see Genesis 1). The first man and woman sinned against God and their sin is imputed has been imputed to their offspring ever since.

Future- All of human history has a purpose that will culminate in redemption. The return of Jesus Christ will bring the degradation of sinful man to a climax and restoration and redemption to those who have been saved by his sacrificial death.

How does all of this (and other biblical truths) affect your everyday life? That’s what I want to spend more future posts dealing with.

Grace and Peace,
Stephen