The Gospel Of Biblical Worldview

Paul is writing the book of Romans as an occasional letter to the believers in Rome, whom he has never personally met, but desires to connect with very soon. It appears to be a pastoral letter written in an apocalyptic style, because he is dealing with a church that needs direction. He is writing boldly to them to encourage unity as God’s people. Romans 15:15 attests to the strength of his message when he states, “I have written very boldly to you on some points”. Paul is in essence building a framework of beliefs for believers to view the world around them (Caner & Hindson. 2008. Pg.498). Romans though not a systematic theological message, chapters 1-8 are strong truths for a foundational biblical worldview.

In conversations with people I meet, my goal is not to proselytize them or foist my views on them. Rather, I wish to treat them with the respect and courtesy due them as an individual created in the image of God. My heart is to show genuine interest in them by asking questions to learn more about who they are and where they are at, and responding respectfully to what they have to say.

In their book, “Making Sense of Your World: A Biblical Worldview,” Phillips, Brown, and Stonestreet (2008) organize the basic questions of life into five categories: origin, identity, meaning, morality, and destiny (p 9). How one answers these questions is a person’s worldview. How one lives one’s life will be determined by how he or she answers these questions. The answers are largely determined by what one believes about God. The knowledge that we learn in life will be interpreted differently based on an affirmation or denial of God. As Aristotle stated, “It is not the facts which divide men but, the interpretation of the facts” Aristotle (as cited in Hummel, 1986, p. 23). Someone who affirms God (his existence and ways) will come to significantly different conclusions than someone who denies God (his existence and ways).

The Bible is full of narratives and accounts which point to our need for a savior and God meeting that need through Jesus Christ. The New Testament begins with four accounts of Christ's life; same person, same life, somewhat different stories. In general, it seems as though the church looks at all the gospels as a whole, treating each gospel as pieces of a puzzle that give us a full picture of Jesus’s time here on earth. However, if we look at it from the perspective of the people who would be reading these accounts or from the perspective of the authors our view might be a little different. Each account of Christ’s life has specific choices made by the author to guide our understanding and have an effect on how we read the text. One relatively

Paul’s letter to the Romans presents a systematic approach to the Gospel. This makes the Gospel of Roman an important book when it comes to the Christian Worldview. The Book of Romans covers a wide array of topics that are important to believers to understand and to live by. These topics includes: the attribute and existence of God, origin of creation, problem of evil in conjunction to sin, solution of sin to reach salvation, ethics and morality and lastly hope for humanity/creation. This reflection paper will show what Paul teaches us in regards to these topics and how it is applied to Christian’s worldview.

When one has decided on a worldview, it will govern the life they lead and play into motives, morals, and actions. I have chosen a path in which I believe is not of human ideas but a holy, purposeful way to live. I am an evangelical Christian and I believe the Bible is God’s written Word and I base my entire life and the way I look at the world off of it. There are five categories that are unique to my Biblical worldview that shape the way I live. Metaphysics, Theology, Epistemology, Anthropology, and Ethics determine the different branches in my worldview and the assumptions I make. In my opinionated worldview, God exists and is at the center with everything else revolving around Him.

In this assignment you will summarize and analyze the essential elements of the Christian worldview and reflect on implications for your own worldview.

Ethan Pope describes characteristics of a Biblical worldview in his article, “Developing a Biblical Worldview.” He suggests that there are two basic worldviews: one that centers on God and one that centers on nature and man. A Biblical worldview centers on God as Creator of the universe and everything in it. Others center on the belief there is no God; therefore, the universe formed itself and man is his own god. This view is called Naturalism or Atheism. (Pope, 2002).

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16, ESV). This is probably one of the most recognizable Bible verses of all time because it encompasses the core beliefs of Christianity. The Christian worldview is a set of monotheistic beliefs and values that involve a personal and relatable God that relies heavily on faith in God and Jesus Christ. This paper will describe the essential elements of the Christian worldview: God, humanity, Jesus, restoration as well as evaluate some of the benefits, perplexities, and impacts of being a Christian and explain how I am able to live out my own personal Christian beliefs.

There are multiple essentials that need to be address when trying to define the Christian Worldview. The first being God, the creator of the universe and his personality. The second is humanity and how it’s communion with God has been lost. Next is Jesus, the son of God and the bridge for humanity back to God. Which leads into the most hopeful part of Christianity known as restoration, which Jesus paid for with his blood on the Cross. Of the shared world views, Christianity is the most unique yet universal because of its salvation based on relation and God’s unconditional love.

Worldview is generally defined as the way individuals interpret reality or the world around them. Everyone has a type of worldview whether consciously and subconsciously, a personal worldview is everything a person “believes to be true”, and also what that individual “believes becomes the driving force behind every emotion, decision and action”.1 Consequently, worldview affects people’s reaction or response to every aspect of life; religious beliefs, education, economic, career, relationships, marriage, politics, healthcare and every other thing.1

Many people in the world today have decided that a world view doesn’t matter; that everyone can simply believe what they would like to believe, and it wouldn’t make a difference. However, someone’s worldview determines there every act! Hitler for example, believed that Jews, disabled people and elderly people were worthless; he thought that he could make a perfect world. So his beliefs led to his actions. There is only one world view that is correct, one that would explain all questions and that is a Christian world view. Many people would say that the Bible is a fraud, but there are 5,664 Greek manuscripts of the original wording of the New Testament, as well as 18,000 other unchanged manuscripts in other various languages. How then, could it all be made up? To acquire a Biblical world view, a person must know how the Bible answers seven questions, for example: What is the origin of the universe? What is the cause of evil and suffering? What happens after death? What is the basis of morality and ethics? What is the nature of man? What is the meaning of history? What is the nature of God?

The first element of my worldview is, I believe the Bible is God’s Word. The Bible was written through the inspiration of God and the life and teachings of Jesus; “In the beginning was the

Please watch each of the following three videos, one at a time. After you complete each video, write about 100-125 words about what got your attention. It could have been something that you disagreed or agreed with, or something that you will just need to think about for a while. If something just really strikes you, you might want to pause the video while you write it down. It is very easy to rewind and replay something.

The dictionary explains a worldview as a comprehensive conception or image of the universe and of humanity’s relation to it. Across the globe, many different denominations have diverse worldviews. However, out of all the various worldviews, only the Christian worldview tells of a loving God who created the universe, who through his love and not by the works of man wants each individual to have an intimate relationship with him. This God loves his creation so much that he sacrificed his beloved Son Jesus, to die for the sins of each person. The Christian worldview explains the essential nature of God, the universe and mankind, the baseline of morality and ethics, the cause and effect of evil and suffering, life after death, and the essential meaning of history.