In my apologetics class this quarter, we have to answer some biblical worldview questions.\u00a0 Here is my response:<\/p>\n
Our worldview is a set of beliefs by which we filter all information that we encounter.\u00a0 It drives our decisions, sets our goals, and defines our success.\u00a0 Many Christians can\u2019t put their worldview into words.\u00a0 I believe that is an area where Satan can get a stronghold and make you ineffective in evangelism.\u00a0 In order to be an effective voice for the Kingdom, you must be able to articulate the truths of the Bible and how they affect your life.<\/p>\n
As an administrator in a Christian school, we are always evaluating how we are doing training our students to develop a biblical worldview.\u00a0 It is exciting to ask these questions to a freshman and then to check back in with them when they are a senior to see how God is working in their hearts and minds.<\/p>\n
How do we find happiness?<\/strong>\u00a0 I believe that true happiness is found in running hard after Christ and the things that He has set before us.\u00a0 I think of Hebrews 12: 1-2 \u201cTherefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.\u201d\u00a0 The idea of finishing the race marked out for me means that God is pleased with me and that would make me happy.<\/p>\n J.P. Moreland, author of Love the Lord with All Your Mind, says, \u201cBut from Moses, Solomon, Jesus, Plato, Aristotle, up to the Declaration of Independence, happiness meant \u201ca life of wisdom, virtue and character.\u201d The difference is glaring. But more importantly, according to Jesus of Nazareth and common sense, one gains more pleasurable satisfaction by largely forgetting about it, giving one\u2019s life to others, and seeking wisdom, virtue and character. You gain your life as you lose it for God\u2019s honor and other people\u2019s good. Pleasurable satisfaction is a poor goal, but a great byproduct of a more important goal\u2014becoming good at life.\u201d<\/p>\n How do we find wholeness?<\/strong>\u00a0 John 15:5-8 speaks of wholeness and being complete, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.\u201d\u00a0 I know that growing up I tried to fill my life with good grades, sports, friends, and other things that would get the world\u2019s approval.\u00a0 However, those things always left me feeling like I was still missing something.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t until June 23, 1994 when I asked Jesus to come into my heart and be my Lord and Savior that I really understood what it meant to be whole.<\/p>\n What goals are really worthy of pursuing?<\/strong>\u00a0 I think the number one goal for me to pursue with my life is to do whatever it takes to make the name of Christ famous.\u00a0 John 3:30 says, \u201cHe must become greater; I must become less.\u201d\u00a0 That is totally contrary to what the world would have us to believe, but this world is temporal and Christ is eternal.\u00a0 I want to be eternal.\u00a0 In Truth Decay, Douglas Groothuis says \u201cTruth decays in large part because those who should be truth-tellers and truth-bearers are too frequently shirking their divinely appointed duties, through cowardice or ignorance or both.\u201d\u00a0 If I am not passionately sharing God\u2019s glory with those far from Him, then I am part of the reason they are being pushed away.<\/p>\n What is life \u201cfor\u201d?<\/strong>\u00a0 I believe that before Christ, our life is all about serving ourselves and getting all we can get.\u00a0 I think that God allows that for a short time so that we can see how hollow that pursuit is.\u00a0 We reach a certain time where we are convicted that the sin in our life and our separation from God requires us to make a choice.\u00a0 Do we want to continue to pursue our own human destinations and let that be the total fulfillment of our lives?\u00a0 Or, do we want to abandon ourselves and our pursuits in favor of joining what God is doing all around us and what He has been up to since the beginning of time.\u00a0 Louie Giglio wrote a book called i am not, but i know I AM.\u00a0 In it he talks about this choice.\u00a0 He says that we can either let God be a character in the small story of our lives or we can choose to play a role in the greater story of God and His glory.\u00a0 I believe that the purpose of life for a Christian is to continue to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ.\u00a0 (2 Peter 3:18)\u00a0 I believe we are also called to the words in 1 Peter 3:15-16, \u201cBut in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In my apologetics class this quarter, we have to answer some biblical worldview questions.\u00a0 Here is my response: Our worldview is a set of beliefs by which we filter all information that we encounter.\u00a0 It drives our decisions, sets our goals, and defines our success.\u00a0 Many Christians can\u2019t put their worldview into words.\u00a0 I believe […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-307","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/meganstrange.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/307","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/meganstrange.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/meganstrange.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/meganstrange.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/meganstrange.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=307"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/meganstrange.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/307\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/meganstrange.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=307"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/meganstrange.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=307"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/meganstrange.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=307"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}