Biblical Worldview
Notes
Transcript
Introduction:
Introduction:
We have taken the month of June to focus on being of one mind as it says in:
10 Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.
The first Sunday in June we focused on our vision and mission as a church.
Looking back over the last couple of years we have gone through quite a bit as a church. Some really great things, others not so much. We’ve had births, deaths, families leave, families become apart of our church; however, all of it beneficial for our walk with God!
We talked about our finances, heart for missions, current funds, and some future building plans and projects: Focusing on our children’s ministry building, our sanctuary bathrooms, trying to get bathrooms on the backside of our youth building, and replace an AC unit or two.
We went over again our focuses or the pillars of our church:
To be established in the Worship of God
To be established in the Word of God
To be established in the Work of God:
Established in the ministry: the purpose of your life
Established in the local church: the context of your life
The mission of our church is to win souls, train disciples, equip ministry leaders for the work, and be a sending out church.
The second Sunday we talked about evangelism and discipleship:
Remember I asked you to adopted this philosophy pertaining to witnessing/evangelizing: RICED
R || relationship: building relationship with others, not just with believers but with unbelievers too.
I || intentionality: being intentional with the time you have been given. Family you are not promised tomorrow, do not waste the time God has given you to speak truth into peoples lives. You don’t have to be annoying, but if you are seriously praying for the lost in your lives God, I believe will give you opportunities to speak truth into their lives.
C || congruency: living our the Gospel in your lives. Allowing it to permeate throughout every area of your life. Do you go to the gym? How can you live for Jesus there? Go to school? how do we live for Jesus there too. Remember we do not want to compartmentalize Christ. He is the epicenter that effects the whole of our lives.
E || evangelism: boldly proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ to unbelievers.
D || discipleship: is a relational process in which a mature follower of Christ shares with a newer believer the commitment, understanding, and basic skills necessary to know and obey Jesus as Lord.
Family if it is our goal to win souls, how can they be won if we are not sharing our faith? If there are no new converts how can we train up disciples? If there are no new believers how can we equip ministry leaders to perpetuate the work? If we are not winning souls we are not planting churches or sending out missionaries… meaning we are not living in obedience to the Word of God.
This leads us to our topic this morning: what is a worldview and why should we have a Christian worldview.
Biblical Worldview:
Biblical Worldview:
I will preface our study this morning with this simple statement: I am by no means an expert on each one of these worldviews. My world view comes from Scripture and not the other way around. I am going to do my best to briefly and concisely bring up a few opposing worldviews and do my best to adequately describe them.
If you hold to an unbiblical worldview I love you, and I’m sorry your wrong. It is not my intention to come out swinging at your beliefs, my goal is however to preach truth.
Five percent of the people think; ten percent of the people think they think; and the other eighty-five percent would rather die than think.”–Thomas Edison
I love this quote, even if Thomas Edison didn’t say it. Because it does get to part of the root problem with our society especially went it comes to current issues.The church has, since the time of Christ, held to certain beliefs found in God’s Word. If you are unwilling to submit to God’s Word you are going to have a hard time understanding the importance of having Biblical Worldview.
1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
27 Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.
Worldview: is a comprehensive view of life through which we think, understand, judge, and which determines our approach to life and meaning.
It is basically a set of assumptions that give meaning to one’s thoughts. Assumptions about the way things are, about what things are, and why things are.
“One’s worldview is perhaps best reflected by one’s answers to the ultimate questions of life: who am I? Why am I here? Where am I going? What’s it all about? Is there a god? How can I live and die happily? What are good and evil? What would I be willing to die for?–Olthuis (A philosophical theologian)
There are a number of worldviews in the arena such as:
Monotheism: One God exists who is separate from but involved with the universe.
There are three world religious—Christianity, Judaism, and Islam, are monotheistic. However our doctrine of monotheism differs from those of the other two by teaching Trinitarian monotheism.
[Disclaimer we could spend a lot more time then we have available this morning to look at the fallacies in each of these worldviews]
Judaism and Islam deny Jesus’ deity. Christians become smug and arrogant, not believing they need to think and engage a world for Jesus.
Deism: God created an orderly universe to operate on its own
God isn’t involved in daily life so prayer is a useless activity.
Naturalism: Matter is all that exists and is best understood through science. Humans are just highly evolved animals.
There is no God and humans are only physical, highly developed machines.
Nihilism: We must question objective truth and positive values.
Life is a hopeless, meaningless existence.
Existentialism: Life has no objective meaning, so significance is individually created.
There is no purpose to life beyond the immediate moment, so live to satisfy yourself now.
Pantheism: Everything that exists is God (Spirit). Matter is an illusion; thus we are all divine by nature.
Gnosticism is what the early church battled against, claiming that the material world was evil, only the spiritual mattered. Jesus Christ was fully God and fully man, meaning he was a perfect and complete spiritual and physical being. Which leads us to understand that God cares for us physical beings too.
New Consciousness: Reality is beyond reason and can only be understood by altering the mind.
We need to alter our mind if we want to understand reality.
Postmodernism: There are no objective truths or morals.
In God’s Word we have been given absolute truth.
Pluralism: The different world religions represent equally valid perspectives on the ultimate reality; there are many valid paths to salvation.
6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.
Moralistic therapeutic deism: God just wants us to be happy and nice to other people; He intervenes in our affairs only when we call on Him to help us out.
Deconstruction:
refers to the process of questioning one’s own beliefs due to new experiences, reading widely, engaging in conversations with “the other,” and interacting in a world that is now more connected and exposed to religious diversity than ever before.
Important to ask what they mean.
One can be very good and beneficial while the other a cover for sin.
[good example myself]
[bad example Joshua Harris]
Personal Combination: While this isn’t a worldview, some people combine elements of other worldviews and create their own, unique view of the world.
1) Who am I?
1) Who am I?
You are a creation of God, made in His image.
Scripture:
27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.
2) Why am I here?
2) Why am I here?
You are here to glorify God and enjoy a relationship with Him.
Scripture:
7 Everyone who is called by My name,
Whom I have created for My glory;
I have formed him, yes, I have made him.”
3) Where did I come from?
3) Where did I come from?
You were created by God.
Scripture:
3 Know that the Lord, He is God;
It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;
We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.
4) What is my purpose in life?
4) What is my purpose in life?
Your purpose is to love and obey God, and to make Him known to others.
Scripture:
37 Jesus said to him, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”
5) What’s it all about?
5) What’s it all about?
Life is about knowing God and fulfilling His purposes.
Scripture:
36 For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.
6) What would I be willing to die for?
6) What would I be willing to die for?
You would be willing to die for your faith in Jesus Christ and for the sake of spreading the gospel. All in for the glory of Christ.
Scripture:
7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
33 But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.
7) How can I live and die happily?
7) How can I live and die happily?
By trusting in Jesus Christ for salvation and living according to His teachings.
Scripture:
21 For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
8) What happens after I die?
8) What happens after I die?
Believers go to be with the Lord in heaven; unbelievers face judgment and eternal separation from God.
Scripture:
27 And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment,
9) Does God exists, and, if so, what is He like?
9) Does God exists, and, if so, what is He like?
Yes, God exists; He is holy, loving, just, and omnipotent just to name a few attributes: He is also Triune: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Scripture:
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
26 “But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me. 27 And you also will bear witness, because you have been with Me from the beginning.
7 For there are three that bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one.
10) What are good and evil?
10) What are good and evil?
Good is anything that aligns itself with God and His character and commandments; evil is anything opposed to God.
Scripture:
14 Depart from evil and do good;
Seek peace and pursue it.
11) What is real?
11) What is real?
Reality is defined by God and His truth as revealed in the Bible.
Scripture:
17 Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.
6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.
12) What is wrong with the world?
12) What is wrong with the world?
Sin and rebellion against God have corrupted the world.
Scripture:
12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned—
19 For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; 21 because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. 23 Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body.
13) Why is there so much pain and suffering in the world?
13) Why is there so much pain and suffering in the world?
Because of sin and the brokenness it causes in human lives and the world.
Some have speculated a couple wrong answers:
God is not in control
27 So the men marveled, saying, “Who can this be, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?”
29 Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will.
9 Remember the former things of old,
For I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like Me,
10 Declaring the end from the beginning,
And from ancient times things that are not yet done,
Saying, ‘My counsel shall stand,
And I will do all My pleasure,’
God is evil
12 The righteous shall flourish like a palm tree,
He shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
13 Those who are planted in the house of the Lord
Shall flourish in the courts of our God.
14 They shall still bear fruit in old age;
They shall be fresh and flourishing,
15 To declare that the Lord is upright;
He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.
God planned redemption
9 who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began,
God subjected creation to futility
20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope;
God is the one who designed hope in the sufferings of the world.
14) How can we fix it?
14) How can we fix it?
It will not be fixed this side of the second coming of Christ.
Yet we can be doing our part by being believing and confessing Jesus Christ is our Lord and savior and to live in accordance to the will of God.
It is His will for us to evangelize, disciple, living for Him with our whole being. Because we love Him.
Scripture:
14 if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.
5 So the people of Nineveh believed God, proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least of them. 6 Then word came to the king of Nineveh; and he arose from his throne and laid aside his robe, covered himself with sackcloth and sat in ashes. 7 And he caused it to be proclaimed and published throughout Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying,
Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything; do not let them eat, or drink water. 8 But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily to God; yes, let every one turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. 9 Who can tell if God will turn and relent, and turn away from His fierce anger, so that we may not perish?
10 Then God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God relented from the disaster that He had said He would bring upon them, and He did not do it.
19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments.
15) How can I live a joyful, meaningful life in a world with so much evil?
15) How can I live a joyful, meaningful life in a world with so much evil?
By trusting in God's sovereignty, relying on His grace, and living out His purposes.
Scripture:
2 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. 4 But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
16) Do absolute moral truths exists?
16) Do absolute moral truths exists?
Yes, absolute moral truths exist, and they are defined by God's character and revealed in Scripture. Truth is not relative.
Scripture:
160 The entirety of Your word is truth,
And every one of Your righteous judgments endures forever.
17) Is absolute truth defined by the Bible?
17) Is absolute truth defined by the Bible?
Yes, the Bible contains absolute truth as it is inspired by God.
Scripture:
16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,
18) Did Jesus Christ live a sinless life?
18) Did Jesus Christ live a sinless life?
Yes!
Scripture:
21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
19) Is God the all-powerful and all-knowing Creator of the universe, and does He still rule today?
19) Is God the all-powerful and all-knowing Creator of the universe, and does He still rule today?
Yes!
Scripture:
11 Yours, O Lord, is the greatness,
The power and the glory,
The victory and the majesty;
For all that is in heaven and in earth is Yours;
Yours is the kingdom, O Lord,
And You are exalted as head over all.
20) Is salvation a gift from God that cannot be earned?
20) Is salvation a gift from God that cannot be earned?
Yes!
Scripture:
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.
21) Is Satan real?
21) Is Satan real?
Yes!
Scripture:
8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.
22) Does a Christian have a responsibility to share his or her faith in Christ with other people?
22) Does a Christian have a responsibility to share his or her faith in Christ with other people?
Yes!
Scripture:
19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
23) Is the Bible accurate in all of its teachings?
23) Is the Bible accurate in all of its teachings?
Yes
Scripture:
16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,
Extra questions:
Extra questions:
As a Christians should we be concerned with sanctity of life?
Is homosexuality a sin?
What about transgenderism?
Benediction:
Benediction:
24 The Lord bless thee, and keep thee:
25 The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:
26 The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.