Thinking Christian: A Counter-Culture WorldviewSample

THINKING CHRISTIANLY

It is not only our individual minds that can reject God. At a societal level, what happens when God is rejected?

Since the Enlightenment of the 17th and 18th centuries, Western society has been subjected to a process of de-Christianization. Secularization has taken its place. Religious ideas and institutions have increasingly lost their social significance and influence. Religious thinking has become less meaningful, and the Church and its leaders have become more marginalized. Secular thinkers argue that God either doesn’t exist or at least is an irrelevance to daily life. In fact, He could be dispensed with entirely, and very little would change. But the Bible says otherwise. To turn away from God affects a society at the deepest possible level and this is what we are witnessing around us today.

In Romans 1, Paul speaks of those who have “given themselves over” to sin, but we also read that “God gave them over” to their sinful desires and appetites as an expression of His wrath for their denial of Him. When God is denied, society does not stay the same. It tends to become individualized, sexualized, and violent. As Christians, we’re swimming in the secularized waters of our culture, and it is important that we learn to think “Christianly.” Consider the following comparisons between a biblical and a secular worldview:

Biblical vs Secular

Who is the focus? God vs Self

What is the standard for life? Bible vs Culture

What is the purpose of life? Holiness vs Happiness

What big problem does the world face? Sin vs Systems

What is evil? Missing God’s mark vs Anything that makes me unhappy

Where do I find salvation? Jesus Christ vs Discovering my true self

How do I achieve a breakthrough? Surrender to Christ vs Healing from trauma

How should I live? Humbly vs Self-Sufficiently

Ask Yourself:

-Observe the culture as you move through your day- advertising, music, TV shows, movies, etc. How do they reflect the secular worldview?

-How have the secular waters of the culture around me influenced my thinking?

-Am I living like God is the center of my life, or am I at the center?

Pause to Pray:

God, you sent Jesus to save the world. To save ME. Thank you, Jesus, for your sacrifice! Thank you that you made a way for me to live in your light, no longer enslaved to my sinful self. Open my eyes to see what is good and lovely in the world you have made. Also, open my eyes to see and my mind to discern where I have been thinking and living within a secular worldview rather than a biblical one… Amen.

Take a Next Step:

Return to the list of attributes in Philippians 4:8 (true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, or praiseworthy). How will you add these things to the world around you today? For example- what does it look like to live and work in a manner that is excellent?