FOOD FOR THOUGHT
Why do so many Christians not have a consistently biblical worldview?
A biblical worldview is one's total conception of the world from a biblical standpoint. It's a Christians basic belief system about the meaning of life, the nature of God, the source of Truth, and other foundational concepts. Yet many Christians worldview it's not biblically consistent. They may approach some issues from a biblical viewpoint, but not every issue.
There are many possible reasons why some Christians fail to have a consistently biblical worldview:
1) They are ignorant of what the Bible says. They do not know the word. if someone doesn't know what the Bible says about the sanctity of human life, for example, it will be difficult for him to form a biblical view on the subject. For those who are ignorant, education is the key.
2) They reject what the Bible says on certain issues. The Barna group conducted a survey asking questions about the Bible to determine if people truly believed what the Bible said. The results were startling: only 4% did. Professed Christians did not fare much better. If a professed Christian does not believe what the Bible says, it will be impossible for him to have an authentic biblical worldview. For those who are contrary, repentance is key.
3) They are more concerned with what the world thinks of them than what God thinks."fear of man will prove to be a snare"proverbs 29:25). A believer who views the world from a biblical standpoint recognizes that he is not of the world. Jesus said, "if you belong to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world. That is why the world hates you (John 15:19 17:14). When a believer starts making compromise with the world's way of thinking, he loses focus on God's perspective. For those who are fearful, courage is key.
4) They are lukewarm in their commitment to Christ. Like the Church of Laodicea, they are neither cold nor hot (Revelation 3:15), unwilling to take a stand for Christ. For the lukewarm, commitment is the key.
5) They are influenced by the lies of the world. From the time of Adam and Eve, Satan has used his ability to deceive and confuse (Genesis 3:1- 6; Revelations 12:9) a powerful tool in Satan's arsenal is that the Bible is a book of myths, that it's full of errors and not to be trusted. Satan wishes to convince people that the Bible is no longer relevant; it's laws and principles are obsolete. Many in the church have been influenced by such. For the deceived, discernment is the key.
6) They are swayed by their circumstances and doubt God's promises. In Matthew 14 when Peter stepped out of the boat to walk on the water, he was demonstrating a biblical worldview: Jesus is the source of all power. However, when Peter focused on the Storm-tossed sea, his worldview shifted: maybe the waves are more powerful than Jesus. For the doubting, faith is the key.
To have a consistently biblical worldview we must go back to the Bible and take hold of the promises God has made to us, for the world offers us nothing (Luke 9:25; John 12:25; Matthew 6:19).
Reflection
Do you want to know the love of God or the wrath of God?
Do you want to be saved from the wrath of God? The religious world would only talk about the love of God, for God is love, but His wrath will come on all who reject His love. God the Father sent His son to die in our place for the sin of the world. It is His unsearchable love that caused Him to do this. Our sin has separated us from Him and has rendered us"dead". Because the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23.
If He loves people so much, why then "wrath"? The answer is simple: it is because so many have denied that they are sinners and have rejected His love and salvation found only in Jesus Christ! How about you? You only have two choices. Your eternal destiny is at stake! Do you want to know the love of God or the wrath of God? If you want to know His love then what should you do? He has a plan that can never be changed or altered.
It begins with a word not often heard today:" REPENT"John the Baptist continually spoke of it. Jesus Himself demanded it and his followers throughout history have preached it. Nothing has changed! The only way He has ordained for all of us to be saved is this way! No other way! Here it is 2nd Corinthians 7:10"for godly sorrow produces repentance unto salvation! We must begin by knowing deep within that we are sinners and feel deep sorrow about our condition before God! This reality should lead us to get a loan with Him, confessing our sins and asking for forgiveness knowing He will. This sorrow and confession automatically leads us to REPENT. Repentance means to change the direction of our life. We live a life of rejection of Christ and rebellion against Him now we turn our whole being and living towards Him and His lordship for us! In other words we surrender everything to Him and His control.
This and only this results in"salvation".
1st John 5:13 these things I write to you who believe on the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life and that ye may continue to believe on the name of the Son of God. So, we all must choose, the love of God or the wrath of God. John 3:36"he who believes in the Son has eternal life and he who does not believe shall not see life but the wrath of God abides on him". Well, what are you going to do now? Your eternal destiny depends on your decision. Thank you for reading this message.
