by Pastor Patrick Cho

Lately, Lighthouse has been hearing more and more from Pastor John and me about developing a biblical, Christian worldview. In one sense this means believers need to be able to view the world through God’s eyes. The only way to practically accomplish this is to take the claims, philosophies, and ideologies of the world and pass them through the filter of God’s Word. This is an important issue because too many Christians have not considered the ramifications of it. Understanding what the Bible says concerning our world, our jobs, our families and relationships, and ourselves is tremendously important. Too many Christians who do not give this much thought fall into reasoning like the world.

Part of the problem is that Christianity to many is still a compartmentalized portion of their lives. Even people who may be very involved in the life of the church (attending Bible studies, leading ministries, etc.), may not fully understand what being a Christian means in the workplace, culture, home, and school. While they strive to live according to biblical principles when it comes to spiritual disciplines, they do not consider what impact being a Christian has in their work, studies, and families. When it comes to “extra-religious” areas of their lives, they do not see things through God’s eyes.

This is particularly dangerous because some of the most significant decisions in life are made outside of church life. God never intended for us to compartmentalize our faith. Not having a good understanding of scriptural principles to guide someone through life is extremely detrimental leading inevitably to horrible life choices and unsound counsel. As a result, people are left to make decisions based upon what they reason is fair, right, or good. The problem is that God has not left it to us to determine that. He determines what is fair, right, and good, and we live in response to what He decrees.

This is one of the reasons why we see more and more Christians abandoning biblical principles for what is practically appealing. In evangelism, in an interest to not offend others, Christians shy away from preaching the entire gospel. The gospel becomes a conversation where everyone has a say and is partially right. In the workplace, Christians lie in interviews and on resumes. They cheat in order to gain another rung in the ladder of achievement. All the while, justification is thrown around that everybody does it (the same justification that is used when Christians download songs and software illegally, by the way).

Convictions are being replaced by compromise. Where once we would have had church members be willing to die for the sake of the gospel, we now see them watering the gospel down and making it more “user-friendly” and “culturally sensitive.” There is reluctance in standing for the truth because “the truth divides,” because it means we need to tell someone they are wrong.

Of course this is not to say that people do not matter – that we should not think about what people feel and should preach the truth regardless of an individual’s personal life circumstances. Certainly we can respond to people and meet them where they are. Jesus did! But this does not justify turning the tables on what the Bible clearly teaches is the truth. Jesus did not compromise truth in the name of love. He taught the truth in love. Understanding how truth and love come together in a practical way in everyday life situations requires a development of a strong biblical, Christian worldview. Instead of forcing to fit biblical principles into an antibiblical cultural frame, believers need to learn to stand on convictions and live lives in consistency with what they believe to heighten their testimony and prove that it is God through His Word who changes lives.