I can’t believe the gall of that guy,” Mark said in a low tone as he sipped from his cup at an office coffee break.
“What guy?” Chris asked, leaning forward to learn more.
“Oh—Eric, the brilliant new VP of marketing.” Mark’s words dripped sarcasm. “He’s out of his mind if he thinks he’s going to get away with this.”
“Away with what?” Chris asked impatiently. “What’s going on?”
“Well, he asked me last week to get him all my ideas for the upcoming product line,” Mark began. “He knew I had spent a ton of time and creative energy putting together some really great ideas. And I just found out this morning that he presented my ideas to the top brass and took all the credit for it.”
“That’s so wrong!” Chris responded.
“Don’t think he’s going to get away with it,” retorted Mark. “I’m making it my personal mission to see that he goes down in flames!”
We’ve all been treated unjustly at some point in our lives. People take unfair advantage of others every day. You’ve heard it said that we live in a dog-eat-dog world. And it’s natural to want to see justice done. But the kingdom of this world has a means of obtaining justice that’s quite different from that of the kingdom of heaven. In fact, the kingdom of this world sees and acts differently on every level than Jesus’ kingdom. Jesus prayed these words to his Father concerning his followers:
They do not belong to the world, just as I do not. I’m not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from the evil one. They are not part of this world any more than I am (John 17:14-16).
Jesus prayed that we would live in this world but not be a part of the way it thinks and lives. To do that requires that we first have a relational transformation. We are to relate no longer to the beliefs and values of this world, but instead to Christ himself. And in that redeemed relationship we believe what he says and embrace his values. From Christ’s new set of values we then act in a new set of ways. Instead of, for example, setting out to get even, as Mark plans to do in our story, we are to act as Christ did when he went to the cross. “He did not retaliate when he was insulted. When he suffered, he did not threaten to get even. He left his case in the hands of God, who always judges fairly” (1 Peter 2:23).
How Mark and the rest of us act in any given situation is based on a set of basic assumptions about how life works. Mark’s attitude that drove him to get even with his boss came from somewhere. It’s natural for him to feel used and disrespected by his superior who claimed credit for his work. But why did Mark decide to “get even”? Something led him to that choice. The choices we make, the way we see our lives, and how we respond in every situation are based on a set of assumptions about how life works. And these assumptions define our worldview.
Each of us believes certain things about God, ourselves, and all of life, and we interpret those things through our past experiences and relationships. We all have a worldview whether we know what it is or not—because everything we think and do is filtered through our assumption of how life works.
We build those assumptions through a series of stages, and they finally emerge as actions. First, all that you have learned and everything you know, even how you learned it, comes out of a relationship with someone or something. You are a relational being, so much of what you are today is a direct result of who you’ve related to and how. Then, out of those relationships you establish what you believe. Relationships are the fertile ground in which beliefs grow. Then your beliefs shape what you value, and your values drive your actions (see diagram).
Let’s look at Mark again. He grew up in an abusive home. His father wasn’t around much, but when he was there, he was mean to Mark. At the age of 16, Mark fought back. He wasn’t going to take it anymore. He moved in with his grandparents and finished high school. Now married and with a good job, he visits his parents now and again, but he’s not relationally close to them.
Every attitude we have and every behavior we exhibit comes from this developmental process of relationships, beliefs, and values.
Out of an unhealthy relationship with his father, Mark formed some beliefs about how the world works. He developed a belief that said people care only about themselves, and they will hurt you if you get in the way. From that belief came his values, which are to place great importance on your own turf and your own accomplishments, and use them to further yourself. From that value came his mode of action, which was essentially self-protection: “kill or be killed.” So Mark dealt with bullies and abusers with a “get smart, get even” course of action.
Every attitude we have and every behavior we exhibit comes from this developmental process of relationships, beliefs, and values. If you had positive and godly relationships in your formative years, you are more likely to have developed biblical values. Your view of how the world works has been formed by those relationships and is most likely still growing. Your view of the world should in fact be in a constant state of development as you grow deeper in your knowledge and relationship with God. As our beliefs and values conform to God and his Word, they are reflected in our attitudes and actions.
Most theologians and apologists would agree that our worldview comes out of our relationships, beliefs, and values. But that really doesn’t define what a worldview is. Philosopher and theologian Dr. James Sire gives us a clear definition from his book The Universe Next Door. He states that a worldview is
a commitment, a fundamental orientation of the heart, that can be expressed as a story or in a set of presuppositions (assumptions which may be true, partially true or utterly false) which we hold (consciously or subconsciously, consistently or inconsistently) about the basic constitution of reality, and that provides the foundation on which we live and move and have our being.1
Most of us arrive at our worldview without even knowing it. Yet Dr. Sire points out that there are at least eight basic issues or questions that determine the assumptions we hold about “the foundation on which we live and move and have our being.” You and I have probably already consciously or subconsciously answered those questions. They revolve around our understanding of reality, the nature of the universe, the nature of humanity, the issue of human knowing, morals and ethics, what happens to a person at death, the meaning of history, and our core commitments. If you have embraced the nine truths we have covered so far in this handbook, here is how you would answer the eight questions that define your worldview. These answers are stated in the first person as if you were answering them yourself.
1. What is reality? In other words, what do I consider to be ultimately real? When I stop to consider what makes anything in life real, I conclude it is God. Reality reflects the nature and character of a relational God who has created me as a relational being, and he defines my reality.
2. How does the world exist? I believe the personal Almighty God spoke into existence all that exists. He is the Creator God who formed the world around me and the reality in which I exist.
3. What is a human being? Humans are the personal creation of the relational God, made in his likeness and image with dignity and worth. Because God is three persons with infinite love in perfect relationship, I was created to live in loving relationship with God, myself, other humans, and the physical world I inhabit.
4. Why is it possible to know anything? An all-knowing God has given me, his creation, the capacity to know and be known. He is the source of all knowledge. All of eternity will not be enough for me to discover the infinite knowledge of God and his creation. I will only be able to scratch the surface.
5. How do I know right from wrong? The character and nature of God are absolutely good and right and holy. Everything that is good and right and holy flows from his character and nature, and only from them. To determine what is moral and ethical I must measure it by God and his Word as my universal standard of right and wrong.
6. What happens to me at death? First, I must die because sin has entered the human race and has separated me from God, the life-giver. But because God is love and because he is merciful, he has provided a way for me to be brought back into relationship with him. Therefore, because I have accepted his provision (Christ’s death on the cross), when I die physically I will live eternally with him in a new heaven and earth. Otherwise, I would be separated from him in an eternal aloneness—hell.
7. What is the meaning of human history? History is linear, so it has a meaningful sequence of events that God interweaves and with which he interacts to move the human saga from a beginning, through a middle, and to an end. God created time, by which human history could be chronicled, and at the beginning of time he created the world and all there is. Sin entered the world and humans died—separating them from God. God then entered the world in human form to offer redemption. During the sequence of history since the fall of man, God is in the process of restoring all things to his original design. Sin and death will be done away with, and redeemed humans will forever live to glorify God in perfect relationship with him. The meaning of human history is ultimately the working out of God’s purpose on the earth, which includes a purpose for my life culminating in eternity with him.
8. What core commitments are consistent with my worldview? I am committed to love and worship God with all my heart, soul, and mind and love my neighbor as myself. This means I am committed to seek to know God intimately; to love my first neighbor (my family), those within Christ’s body, and those in the world around me; and to engage in Christ’s mission to redeem the lost until his kingdom comes.
The answers to the eight questions above form a biblical worldview based on the truths we have covered so far in this handbook. We propose that this view of life makes sense out of all the confusion, chaos, and tragedies of this world. By adopting and affirming these truths, you have just defined your own worldview. And in the next chapter we will discover how that biblical worldview defines who you are, why you are here, and where you are going.