Five foundations of a Christian Worldview
What are Five foundations of a Christian Worldview? “World view” is a collection of beliefs, understandings, and concepts about the nature of the universe as a whole and what people know, more or less, about the planet earth, its history and inhabitants. While what is believed doesn’t change what is, it does limit what is perceived. A now famous study was conducted at Harvard in which subjects were shown a deck of cards. The deck had been altered to include, among other changes, a red queen of spades and a black jack of diamonds. No one, not one, person noticed. Their “world view” of cards didn’t include red spades or black diamonds. Therefore, they could not be seen. Thus a world view is a very important foundation for all of life, and especially for the life of a Christian, even if its form and shape is often unnoticed.
For any part of Christianity to make sense this first pillar is essential. The whole of creation is an overlap between a physical creation and a spiritual reality in which miracles are possible and God acts in history. To believe any part of the Christian story one must have this, mostly unspoken, yet rock bottom solid understanding of the universe. Without it Christianity is just another myth children believe and adults find quaint.
The next simple pillar is absolutely essential. There is a creator God whose highest value is love. Miss this one and the whole building tumbles. Judgment, justice, commandment, everything, apart from God’s agape, unconditional love just isn’t Christianity.
The next piece slap up against love is freedom. God’s second highest value flows from the first. Without freedom there is no true love. From these foundations Christians understand why God allows evil. On top of this building block comes the Christian understanding of human beings falling into sin through bad choices.
Closer to the surface of Christian views lies the incarnation. God came into the material world as a human being. The one God experienced, in the person of Jesus, to live among human beings. His purpose was us to reveal his character, share the human experience,( including death), and rise again for the salvation of the world.
Completing the Christian world view is the understanding of what happens to those who have faith in Jesus and trust in his death and resurrection. They are reconciled to God, saved from the power of sin and death, as new creatures in Christ able to grow in Grace and promised eternal life after the physical death of the body.
There is more to be said about the Christian faith. Forgiveness, mercy, obedience, service, the great commandment, etc. are all important parts of Christianity. Yet these five stand under, if not out, as essential to the rest:
A world in which spirit and mater overlap
A priority of love
The necessity of freedom
The incarnation of Jesus including his death and resurrection
A Christian’s response of faith leading to reconciliation, salvation, and eternal life.
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