life values

LISTEN NOW! (Or WATCH FULL PROGRAM!) As we walk through our daily lives, one thing that we may not even realize that we have is a world view. On top of that, there are many different entities trying to sway and change what our world view is. We may not understand it at the moment, but our world view is pivotal to who we are. It is the lens by which we see the world that we are living in. What is our value structure? What are our priorities? If someone thinks they don’t have a world view, simply talking to them will eventually reveal what their world view is. Our world view is the sum of life’s experiences and the choices that we decide to make in response to these experiences.

In a brief animation, Impact 360 Institute reveals how a couple can come together and agree on a myriad of casual topics, ranging from music, favorite foods, to the latest tv show episode. Yet, they can have two stark realities of what their personal world view is. For instance, consider this thought provoking question: what happens when you die? Is there life after death? For those that shake their heads at these possibilities, consider, again, this thought; “If life just ends at death, then everything we do or say comes to nothing. What meaning, or purpose can our lives possibly have?” When two people begin a conversation, agreeing on casual conversations, the question of their world views may be what matters most. “A worldview is the set of lenses through which you see the world around you. It’s a web of habit-forming beliefs that help you make sense of all your experiences. Through your worldview, you interpret life in a particular way.”

One of the most important things about you is your view of the world. In today’s culture, there are endless amounts of differing world views. But if someone does not have the correct world view, shouldn’t we tell them? If someone does not have an understanding of a Biblical worldview, would we not want to help them understand the Biblical worldview? The view we have of the world, and how we live our lives is paramount, as it inevitably impacts how we look at eternity, or if we even consider eternity a reality.

Simply put, God created the Universe and everything in it. The question then arises is: what do Christians believe? A recent study from the Barna Group reveals some shocking discoveries. In this study, Barna Group looked at how the beliefs of Christians, that were surveyed, compared to New Spirituality, Secularism, Post Modernism, and Marxism.

When looking at New Spirituality, the study states, “Practicing Christians find the claims of New Spirituality among the most enticing, perhaps because it holds a positive view of religion, emphasizes the supernatural and simultaneously feeds into a growing dissatisfaction with institutions.” Nearly 3 out of 10, (28%) of Christians surveyed had beliefs that agreed with New Spirituality. Essentially, “all people pray to the same god or spirit, no matter what name they use for that spiritual being”. When you look at the geographical make up of those surveyed and their responses, it reveals more interesting information. The closer one is to the city, and the younger they are, the higher their agreement is with these statements. Naturally, the older and further they are from the city, the less one is to believe these statements.

Additionally, there are some differing responses when looking at race. 32% of Practicing Christians surveyed believed that “if you do good, you will receive good. If you do bad, you will receive bad”. 52% of Blacks agreed. 42%of Hispanic agreed. And, 27% of Whites agreed. As in the previous question, age revealed a stark difference in response as well. 50% of those under 45 years of age carried these same beliefs, while those over the age of 45, only 24% agreed.

Truth of the matter is that none of us can life a good, religious life. All of us fall short, and are in need of a Savior. Jesus paid the price for sin. Living our lives solely by what the recent magazine headline claims, or what secular media voices are promulgating, brings eternal consequences. There is only One God, who exists in 3 Persons: The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit.

When discussing the Bible, the topic of Science is often brought into the mix. In other words, “Secularism”.  The Barna Group study describes it this way; “The secular worldview prioritizes the scientific method as an explanatory framework for life and advances a rational and materialistic view of the world.” If someone ever asks you, “well how do you scientifically prove that?” Asking them the same question to their question may reveal that they don’t have the answer.

When Practicing Christians were surveyed, 10% believed that ‘a belief has to be proven by science to know it is true’. Of those surveyed 14% of the males agreed, and 7% of the females agreed. Again, age and geography showed similar results. 25% of them were under 45 years of age agreed, and only 3% over the age of 45 agreed. Regarding Secularism, the study also wanted to know how Practicing Christians responded to the statement that a person’s life is valuable only if society sees it as valuable. Remarkably, only 13% of those surveyed agreed. 27% of those surveyed in cities agreed, while only 6% of those in rural areas agreed.

These results cause us to reassess what we are teaching in the Church. Never before in the history of our culture do we have the wealth of resources of Biblical knowledge and insight at our fingertips. But, is it creating disciples of Jesus? Simply because someone claims to be a ‘Practicing Christian’, does not mean much. The question is, what does their life tell you? Many throughout the world are striving to live a life that is ‘good’. But, even Jesus understood that the only good in Him was God, as was His response in Mark 10:18. “Why do you call me good? No one is good – except God alone.”

In today’s culture, there is incessant push for tolerance. The more we look at this ‘tolerance’, it appears that there is tolerance for everyone except, Jews, Christians, and the truths of the Bible. The Impact 360 Institute also released a short animation about the reality of tolerance. When people are told that Christianity is true, some balk at this claim. “People should choose their own beliefs…but that doesn’t mean that everyone’s beliefs are true.”  Some may consider this ‘narrow minded’. Yet, the truth of 2+2=4, isn’t balked at. Nor is it considered being ‘narrow minded’. “It means that truth is narrow because it excludes all the answers that are not true.” As the animation continues, a dialogue of “absolute truth” and “relative truth” ensue, highlighting how confusing we can become, the further we are from truth. The words of Jesus are not only truth, but Jesus Himself is the Truth. These were His words in John 14:6, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

Understanding what I worldview is greatly impacts how we see our world. It additionally imperative that we have the correct worldview. Be deeply encouraged and informed as you see the full report from The Barna Group’s Study, and so much more. Also shared in this segment: scientific evidence, science, philosophy, rationality, does God exist?, Christian Universities, Marxism, Can I talk to Jesus?, how to have a relationship with Jesus?, New Spirituality, reincarnation, Hinduism, What is a Biblical Worldview?, and life values. Greg and John shared in this segment. 
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