WHAT IS YOUR WORLDVIEW?

Richard Bewes, former Rector of the church where I began my ministry, All Souls Church in London, writes in the February issue of Decision magazine, about an incident that happened to him. He was interviewing three applicants for the post of head teacher of their church school. He ended each interview with the request: “Now please describe your world view. Your view of the meaning of life in this world.” None of them had an answer. They floundered in confusion. He said to his fellow school governors: “there’s no way we can appoint any of these three. After all, education is far more than boning up on mathematics or chemistry. The whole point is to help young people establish their relationship to the universe! And if aspiring head teachers haven’t sorted that out for themselves yet, why on earth should we appoint them?”

After the failed candidates left the room one board member asked, “Richard, would you share with us your worldview?” He went on to list the four unchanging truths that undergird the whole Bible.

1. Creation. It must be recognized that we are not simply a collection of biochemical reactions, existing in a strange, mechanistic universe. At the heart of all things is a personal Creator who has formed us in his own image so that we, too, might live, develop, create and explore – in an eternal relationship that reflects the divine attributes.
2. The Fall. We must further understand that the whole human race entered into a state of rebellion against the Creator. All tragedy and evil stem directly from that initial rebellion.
3. Redemption. God has reached down to reclaim the whole fallen world, through the redeeming power of his Son, the Savior. The cross and resurrection assure us that no person, ideology or evil regime, ever need be written off as beyond reclamation and forgiveness.
4. The Final Triumph. Christ’s return in judgment will finally dismantle all evil, ushering in the new heaven and the new earth that will incorporate all of his redeemed family – forever.

What is your world view?