Purpose of Christian Worldview: Our Minds

“Now I have no other desire than to love Jesus even unto folly.” – Little Flower of Lisieux.

G.K. Chesterton has said that the Christian man, or man of faith, must be prepared to not only be a martyr, but to also be a fool, as the world is not going to think like you.

We are called to have a different mindset from the rest of the world. The mindset is not only intellectual, but also spiritual. In order to have a Christian worldview the two have to go hand-in-hand and are intricately intertwined. So, what does it take to have these both focused in a Christian perspective? Paul who was a very intelligent man was called “out of his mind” by Festus, and Jesus, the smartest of all, was called a “madman” and “possessed.” Kind of makes at least one test to see if you are living as the Christians did in Biblical times. Are you seen as different in the way you see things as compared to others? Have you been called names? Today it could come off as a “tea-totaler,” “goody-two shoes,” “boring, and/or dull,” or my favorite, “you are just an intolerant Christian.” 1 Corinthians 1:18, “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”

“God will not make me think like Jesus, I have to do it myself; I have to bring every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.” – Oswald Chambers. We have to obediently go after Jesus. It is an undertaking and something that we have to commit to, and it is something that is not easy. Mark 8:34, “When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.” This is a strong statement in the cost and the obedience. It would be like saying today, “. . . take up his electric chair/gas chamber, and follow Me.” We are to deny the things of the world and follow Christ.

There are those times in our daily lives when we are foolish and deserve the attacks, but if we are not continually growing we will never see the foolishness we commit, nor learn from it. Are you ready to be called a “madman” for God? How about foolish? Iacapne da Todi said, “It seems to me great wisdom in a man if he wishes to go mad for God.”

How do we develop the Christian thought style? Certainty, humility, spirituality, rationality, mystery, and intensity of Christian knowing are all styles of thought. We utilize all of these as we move towards taking a thought captive in our lives. All knowledge and truth are from God no matter whom it comes from in society. Learning truth and living it out is part of developing a Christian worldview lifestyle.

Knowledge comes from the Hebrew word, “to know,” which means, “to care for.” Meaning there is more to having a Christian mind then just knowing knowledge for knowledge’s sake. It means using that knowledge and caring for it appropriately. When we learn and know the greatest commandment is to love the Lord our God with all our hearts, soul, and mind; are we doing it? When we know that we are to love others as ourselves? Are we doing it? Caring for it is acting upon the knowledge that is laid down before us in the Word of God. “The wicked person, by contrast, understands all knowledge in relation only to himself or herself rather than to God and therefore ‘understands no such concern.’” The worldly person does not take care of what he/she knows, but only uses it for selfishness.

Apologetics, in my opinion, is one critical piece that today most Christians do not understand, nor do they utilize it effectively. Apologetics has slipped under the radar and has become complacent today, as it was referred to in the previous blog. We are struggling in the Evangelical circle with anti-intellectualism. We need to bring back intellect into our faith that is supported and strengthened by the Holy Spirit.

What is apologetics? 1 Peter 3:15, “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;” As the verse says, it is a defense of the Bible, and what it is to be a Christian. Today churches are moving away from orthodoxy and it happens down a slippery slope. Without people learning what the Bible says in the right context we become susceptible to transient philosophies and unorthodox practices within the church.

We are too caught up today in victim playing, blaming, and acting in fear. We need to get our minds and hearts in line with what God says. What would happen if we started make a move towards moving our minds in a more a Christian intellectualism?

What do we need to add to our lives or turn away from so we can grow in Jesus?

Matt. 10:34-35, “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword. For I have come to ‘set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law’;”