Christian Worldview, Part III – The Presuppositions of Which the Christian Worldview Consists

So, we've seen that a worldview is a network of presuppositions that is not tested by natural science and in terms of which all of our experience is related and interpreted. Now I want to spell out the network of presuppositions which make up the Christian worldview. In this I am largely indebted to James Sire and his book The Universe Next Door.

Note that there are basically six questions which will essentially define one’s worldview. Here they are:
1. What is the nature of ultimate reality?
2. What is the nature of the world around us?
3. What is a human being?
4. What is the meaning of reality?
5. Is knowledge possible? If yes, how may we come to know things?
6. What is the nature and basis of morality?

So I want to answer these questions from a Christian perspective and thereby define the Christian worldview.

1. What is the nature of ultimate reality? Answer: The Triune God of the Bible exists eternally (John 1:1; Acts 17:28; Col 1). God exists absolutely and eternally. It is impossible for God to not exist since God’s nature is eternal and unchanging. Note that the Scriptures do not attempt to prove God’s existence, rather they presuppose God’s existence and speak about the implications of God’s existence on our lives.

2. What is the nature of the world around us? Answer: The world is God’s creation and is governed and sustained by his almighty power to operate in a uniformity of cause and effect in an open system (Gen 1-2; Col 1). So, God is the ultimate reality upon which everything else depends. All other things were created and are sustained by God. And as God sustains His creation, he is in sovereign control of it, working all things after the counsel of His will. Things operate in a uniformity of cause and effect, that is, they operate in accordance with the laws God has established. But the universe is an open system, which means that God may step in at any point and supernaturally intervene to bring about His purposes. A deist, on the other hand, would believe that the universe is a closed system. God created the universe and left it alone like a watchmaker who builds a watch, winds it up, and then leaves alone to run on its own. But as Christians, we believe God created the world as an open system; it’s a world in which he supernaturally intervenes.

3. What is a human being? Answer: A human being is a creature who is created by God in His image (Gen 1:26-27). Humans are currently in a fallen state which renders them naturally enslaved to a life of bondage to sin apart from God’s redemptive work (Rom 1-3, 6, 8). Now, what does it mean to be created in the image of God? That we are created in the image of God means that we are like God in certain ways. We have intellect, emotion, and will, we have the capacity to love and to be loved, we are personal beings, etc. But it also means that we serve as representations of God. Consider this example, think of a political cartoon. A political cartoon will often bear the image of a politician in order to portray that politician in a certain light (often a negative light!). I remember one political cartoon here shortly after Obama was elected. It showed President Obama on a platform in a stadium filled with multitudes of people. Behind him there was a great big, red, white, and blue banner that read “The Second Coming.” Now, this cartoon bore the image of Barrack Obama. And in bearing his image, it communicated something about his person (or at least something about the way his person was being perceived). The message was something along the lines of President Elect Obama is being perceived as a savior of sorts. And many, many political cartoons function in this way. They portray those whose images they bear as having certain character qualities or as acting in certain ways. This is part of what it means that we bear God’s image. We represent God—we communicate something about God in the way we conduct ourselves. From a Christian perspective, then, this is part of what it means to be human. We are creatures who bear the responsibility of representing God in the way we live our lives (which is the reason that sin is so serious. When we sin, we are sending the message that this is what God is like. God is a liar. God is unloving. God is unmerciful. This is what it means to be human).

4. What is the meaning of reality? Answer: All reality exists to bring glory to God (Isa 43:6-7, 48:9-11; Rom 9:22-23; Eph 1:4-14). God has created all things for His Own glory. Now, when some people hear this, they think that God must be some kind of cosmic narcissist. But I think this is due to the fact that we impose our status as creatures upon God. As creatures, it is inappropriate for us to seek to the worship of other creatures. As creatures who are both sinful and dependent upon God, we are not worthy of that kind of adoration. But this is not the case with God. God is inherently worthy of all glory. And so it would be wrong in a sense for God to not seek his own glory (if it were possible for God to do wrong!). There is simply nothing higher to which God could aspire.

5. Is knowledge possible? If yes, how may we come to know things? Answer: We are able to come to know things through divine revelation (Ps 119:130; Prov 5:1-2, 22:17-21; Col 2:3; Acts 26:18; 2 Tim 3:16-17). As creatures who are dependent upon God, we must look to him to tell us what to think and how to live. Because we are created in God’s image, we have the capacity for knowledge. Yet all knowledge belongs to God—God knows all things perfectly. Our knowledge, therefore, is a subset of God’s perfect knowledge. We must, therefore, look to God in order to obtain that knowledge. As Paul writes in Colossians 2:3, Christ is the one “in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” Furthermore, because God is the ultimate authority over his creation, his Word is absolutely definitive. There is no higher authority to which we can look to substantiate it.

6. What is the nature and basis of morality? Answer: Morality consists of thoughts, actions, and attitudes which reflect the character of God (Gen 1:26-27). As we have already seen, we bear the responsibility of living in ways that reflect the character of God. We sin when we fail to live in a way that is consistent with God’s character. And so it follows that God’s character is the basis for morality. Those things that are good are good by virtue of the fact that God delights in them; those things that are wicked are wicked by virtue of the fact that God hates them. This is a Christian understanding of morality.