Why Worldview Matters Series

Why Worldview Matters

Romans 12:1-2

Rev. Brian Bill

September 9-10, 2023

How many of you wear glasses or contacts? Actually, we all use lenses to view the world around us.

[Put on different colored glasses]

• Contrast red (Republican) and blue (Democrat).

• Contrast green (Packers) and blue (Bears).

• Contrast pink (female) and blue (male).

• Contrast optimistic (rose colored) and pessimistic (dark).

• Contrast different moods.

At its basic level, a worldview is the lens through which we see, define, and make judgments about the world around us. It’s the framework from which we view reality and make sense of reality.

Jeff Myers, president of Summit Ministries, defines worldview like this: “A pattern of ideas, beliefs, convictions, and habits that help us make sense of God, the world, and our relationship to God and the world.”

To illustrate, a two-year-old believes he is the center of his world, a secular humanist believes the material world is all that exists, and a Buddhist believes he can be liberated from suffering by self-purification. Last week, when I was out for a run in Virginia, I came across a sign in someone’s yard which very clearly stated the homeowner’s view of the world: “We believe science is real, women’s rights are human rights, black lives matter, no person is illegal, love is love, diversity makes us stronger.”

Before we go much further, we’re kicking off a new series this weekend. Seismic shifts have hit our society, leaving people unmoored from truth and unsettled in their faith. The question asked by David in Psalm 11:3 resonates among many today: “If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?” This verse can also be translated this way: “If the foundations are destroyed, then what have the righteous done?”

In our present cultural environment, it’s imperative for followers of Christ to be convictional, courageous, and compassionate. We must know what we believe, why we believe it, and how we can communicate it to others. In short, we must be unshaken in our faith (Psalm 62:2), and unashamed of the gospel (Romans 1:16). Grounded in truth and lived out in God’s grace, our faith in Christ will change our own lives and ultimately help transform a broken world.

Here’s the topics we’ll be addressing:

Why Worldview Matters

The Real Reality

Who Jesus Is

The Timelessness of Truth

Your Identity is Essential

Being Salt and Light in Society

Putting it Into Practice

Here’s our main point for today: What you believe about God’s Word will determine how you view the world around you. If your worldview does not come from God’s Word, it will come from the world.

Sadly, according to George Barna, the percentage of those with a biblical worldview has been declining in each successive generation.

• Boomers (10%)

• Gen X (7%)

• Millennials (6%)

• Gen Z (4%)

Barna summarized these findings as “frightening.” These results generated a headline for an article in the Christian Post which read like this: “Biblical Worldview Much Closer to Extinction.”

The news continues to get worse. According to the American Worldview Inventory for 2023, there are some alarming trends taking place today.

• The share of the population which claims to hold a biblical worldview fell from 6% to 4% in the last three years.

• The share of born-again believers who say they are deeply committed to practicing their faith fell from 85% to 50%.

What you believe about God’s Word will determine how you view the world around you. If your worldview does not come from God’s Word, it will come from the world.

Perhaps this diagram will help explain the importance of worldview. Simply put, our worldview affects our reality, our beliefs, our values, and our behavior.

• Our worldview establishes what we believe to be real.

• Our beliefs establish what we believe is true.

• Our values determine what we believe is good.

• Our behavior influences what we do.

All of this is so important because our view of the world helps us make sense of life’s biggest questions.

1. Origin: Where do I come from?

2. Identity: Who am I?

3. Meaning: What is my purpose?

4. Morality: How should I live?

5. Destiny: What happens when I die?

Here are some popular worldviews today.

1. Pragmatism: I want whatever works for me.

2. Individualism: My interests are the center of reality.

3. Consumerism: My worth is tied to what I own.

4. Naturalism: Since this world is all there is, I can live like I want.

5. Moral relativism: My truth is more important than absolute truth.

6. Hedonism: My goal is to maximize pleasure and minimize pain.

7. Nihilism: My life has no meaning, so I do what I want.

8. Moralistic Therapeutic Deism: God is not involved in my life, but He wants my problems to be solved and He wants me to be good and nice to others.