May 2008 Newsletter


"The World As We See It"

By: Brian Buehrlen

As Christians, we see things differently than most. Or at least we should! Through our eyes, we watch the days pass and we anticipate an end that will be bitter-sweet. It's good to remind ourselves, once in a while, exactly how we see the world and for that matter, how others see it. Why? Because it is ones world view that determines what his actions will be.

"A world view is a set of presuppositions which we hold about the basic makeup of our world," says James Sire. In simpler terms, it is, "An overall picture or idea of the world that one uses to help him understand everything that happens." We can thank Richard Koffarnus for that definition. To better understand the idea of a world view, I quote Sire once more- " It is from the heart that all one's thoughts and actions proceed."

A world view answers particularly three questions. What is God? What is man? And finally, what is man's destiny? These questions are answered differently by much of the world. But lets answer them from a Christian's perspective. Shall we?

For the Christian, God is the creator of all that is. We believe the account in Genesis is a description of such a truth. God is eternal. He is holy and blameless and the list goes on. For others, God is non-existent. And for some, Christians merely speculate concerning the things of God because truth is hidden.

The Christian sees man as the climax of God's creation. Man is made in God's image! We also recognize that God is still concerned and involved with His creation. Others turn to evolution to answer the question of who man is.

What about man's destiny? The Christian says man has purpose, given of God. Most likely, we turn to Matthew 28:16-20 to see our purpose spelled out. Our eternal destination is heaven or hell, depending on the individual. This destination is reached after the death of the physical body. Many other world views give man no purpose. Sometimes the death of the physical body is his end, other times he potentially enters new levels or stages of life.

Why does any of this matter? Well, society is ever moving further from a Christian world view. Many buy into what makes them feel good or at least what doesn't cause guilt. The television promotes free sexuality. We are encouraged to succeed no matter what the cost. Our music tells us, "only the good die young." Considering this, I felt the need to remind you of those simple things that we believe about God, self, and the future. Don't forget them!