Developing a Consistently Christian

World-and Life-View
by Joe Morecraft, ill
I. To have a world-and life-view or not
to have a world-and life-view, that is
not the question. World-views are
inescapable. Everybody has one. You
have one!
A. A world-and life-view is the way
you look at life and the things, persons,
and events of this world. It is that
perspective and those basic assumptions
you make about life which determine
the way you think and live in this
world.
B. In our world there are a variety of
world-views, for example concerning
the nature of man and of authority.
1. The COMMUNIST World-
View.
a. He sees man as a mere
conglomeration of highly specialized
matter, which is the property of the
state. Consequently, the communist
mistreats and abuses man.
b. His authority for think-
ing, believing, and living is the will of
the dominant class in a society, which
imposes its will on that society by the
coercive force of the state.
2. The HUMANIST World-
View.
a. He sees man as the high-
est being in the universe, a product of
evolution, and at the same time, able to
shape his own destiny. Consequently,
the humanist worships him and seeks
salvation in him through the state.
b. His authority for life is
his own mind and experience, by which
he determines for himself good and evil.
3. The CHRISTIAN World-
View.
a. He sees man as the image
of God, created to glorify, serve and
enjoy God forever. Consequently the
Christian respects man without worship-
ping him.
b. His authority is not his
ability to reason, nor his subjective
feelings, but it is the infallible revela-
tion of God, which is the Bible.
C. A Summary Statement.
1. The communist, humanist,
and Christian each differs from the other
as to what man is. Consequently each
treats man differently. How each looks
at man determines how he will treat
man.
2. F. Nigel Lee writes: "Their
treatment is different precisely because
they each have their own key beliefs
about what man really is. And because
communists trust in matter, and human-
ists have faith in man, and Christians
believe in God, even when they all are
looking at the same object, such as
man, they must necessarily differ from
one another in their evaluation of what
they all see."
3. Or as the Bible says, "As a
man thinketh in his heart, so is he." A
paraphrase of that verse could be, "We
live like we live, because we think like
we think."
4. World-views are important.
Holding a wrong one can be devastat-
ing.
II. There are also a variety of world-
views among professed Christians.
A. The World-View of LIBERAL-
ISM
1. God exists for the sake of
man.
2. God reveals himself more in
the social order, especially in those
crises that lead to social revolution,
than He does in the Bible.
3. God is served in leftist, social-
istic economics and politics rather than
in the church through evangelism and
reformation by the Word of God.
4. The solution to man's prob-
lems lies in social evolution and revolu-
tion.
B. The World-View of PIETISM
1. The pietist is the professed
Christian who sees material, earthly
things as base and dirty; and 'spiritual'
things as the really important things.
2. He spends much time study-
ing parts of the Bible and thinking
about heaven. He has no time to study
this created world and the issues and
concerns of human society.
3. He thinks that interest in and
involvement in politics, economics,
and entertainment are distractions from
man's real interests - the 'heavenly' and
the 'spiritual.'
4. He sees the only solution to
man's problems - the speedy return of
Christ to destroy the world and to
rapture Christians out of it. He sees the
world getting worse and worse, so that
Christ must come back to rescue his
withering and defeated church from the
anti-christ.
C. The World-View of CONSIS-
TENTLY BIBliCAL CHRISTIANITY
1. The consistent Chri stian
serves God by applying the Bible to
every area of life, deliberately pro-
moting God's all-encompassing king-
dom in his home, church, business,
society, civil government, and . in
everything else, while, at the same
time, opposing all unrighteousness.
2. While he desires the return of
Christ, he believes that there is also a
solution for man's problems in history
before the return of Christ, i.e., the
application of the Bible in the power of
the Holy Spirit to the various conflicts
of life through the joint efforts of all
Christians in all fields of endeavor.
D. Which view is right? Does it
matter? How do we determine which is
true? Is there one right view? In other
words .....
III. What is the necessity for developing
a consistently Christian (Biblical) world-
and life-view? There are three important
reasons for this necessity.
A. Because of the suicidal direction
of all non-christian world-views. They
are all self-destructive in their very
nature.
1. Proverbs 8:32-36- "Now
therefore, 0 sons, listen to me, for
blessed are they who keep my ways.
Heed instruction and be wise, and do
not neglect it. Blessed is the man who
listens to me, watching daily at my
gates, waiting at my do01-posts. For he
who finds me finds life and obtains
favor from the Lord. But he who sins
against me injures himself; all those
who hate me love death."
2. Proverbs 14:12- "There is a
way that seemeth right to a man, but
the end thereof is the way of death."
3. Consider these examples of
the suicidal direction of modem non-
christian thought.
The Counsel of Chalcedon December, 1989. page 9
,{
a. At the trial of the Sharon
Tate nturderers, when asked, Why did
you hate Sharon Tate so much that you
tortured her to death?', the young w<r
men invblved, with tears in their eyes
answered, 'You have misunderstood us
We did not hate her. We loved
her intensely, and the most meaningful
way We kneW of to express that love
was to kill her.'
b. I brought this up to the
'pastor' of the Venusian Church, which
has public sex acts in its worship
serVice. His rationale for this was that
everybody had the right to do. whatever
WaS meaningful to them. When I asked
him how he would react if his wife
the temptation tO synthesize and com-
promise and prostitute pure Christianity
with non-christian thought
2. The most conurion synthesis
evangelicals are guilty of today is the
prostitution of Christianity with hwnan-
istic democracy with its emphasis on
man's will and man's autonomy.
a. This democratization of
provides for a sharing of the
sovereignty of God with man. God is
sovereign in the home and church. Man
is sovereign in tJte market place, bank
counter, and political arena.
. b. Salvation is evert demo-
cratized God casts a vote :for you; the
devil casts a vote against and you
The most common evangelicals are
guilty of today is. the prostitution of Christianity
with humanistic democracy with its emphasis
on man's will and man's autonomy.
sidered it meaningful to copulate with a
goat, his reply, '1 could handle 'that.'
c. Modern Iion;-christian
'thought is suicidal. It kills man.
B. Because synthesizing Christiani-
ty with any fotm of non-christian
thought is a destructive prostitution of
Cbristi$1ity. 'This .marriage gives birth
to an hybrid that is half monster and
halt man, wherein the inonstereats tf1e
man and eventually devOurs himself.
1. The constant temptatiOn of
God's people, from Genesis to Revela-
tion, is SYNTHESIS, i.e;, the attemp-
ted mixture of Christianity with' some
forn'l of humanism.
. . a. the mixtUre of themigod-
. Iy genelilogy of Cain with the godly
of Setl1' in Genesis 6:H.
b. The attempted worship of
with the gold. calf ifl Exodus
32. . ' ..
c. The rnixtute of the re-
ligion of Jehovah with the religiort of
Bacil during the time and Ahab
and Jezebel. .
d. The attempt at synthesis
with Judaizers, to 'wruch probJem ihe
book of Galatians was addtes8ed
e. The ' problem with the
Nicolai tans and others in . ihe seven
churches or' Revelation' 2 and 3 reveals
cast the deCiding vote, thereby making
yoUr vote more decisive than God's.
. c. Hence, a man and his free-
dom are central, and the sovereign God
of the Bible is banished to the church
building. Christianity prostituted is
ChristianitY destroyed. .
d. But God does not l!!ave
The Lord God Onmipotent
reigneth! And He will not share His
glory with another. In fact He sinashes
. all idols and all opposition.
e. Revelation 3: 16 para-
phrased: "I WO!lld rather you be hot or
col4, but being syrithetic makes me
sick, God."
C. Because life, vitality, prosperity,
and victory aceompany faithfulness to a
consistently Biblical wori<l;-view.
1. lt glorifies God. It pleases our
Father in heaven for us to love Him
with all OUf heart, soul, strength and
MIND by thinking His thoughts after
nun. . .
2. It enables us to understand
life and human relationships from God's
perspective,' thereby enablmg us to be
successful . in the earth and
. reconstructing life according to the
Word of God.
3. It secures God's rich, life-wide
The Counsel of Chalcedon December, 1989 page 10
blessings for us and our children, spell-
ed out in Deuteronomy 28:1f.
IV. How can such a world-view be con-
structed? The basis for a consistently
Christian world-view is the nature and
authority of the written Word of God.
A. Because Jesus Christ is the su-
preme lord, He has given us a book that
is an expression of that lordship and
which is. of all-embracing authority as
the governing principle of the true
believer in all he thinks and does.
1. "The word of the Lord endures
forever."
2. "the Scripture cannot be

3. "Thy Law is a lamp unto
feet and a light unto my path."
4. "In Thy light shall we
0
See
light"
5. "Ma,n shall not live by bread
alone, but by every word that proceeds
from the mouth of God."
B. The Bible is the INFAlliBLE
revelation of God. It is authoritative in
everything about which it speaks. It is
thoroughly reliable.
1. "ALL Scripture is God-
breathed. ... " .
2. "Every word of God is flaw-
less .. " (Prov. 30:5)
3. "All the utterances of my
mouth are in righteousness. there is
nothing crooked or perverted in them."
(Prov. 8:8)
C. Furthermore, the Bible is AIL-
SUFFICIENT and complete, as God's
revelation. It is authoritative in . eveiy-
thing about which it speaks, and it
speaks about everything. It gives direc-
tion for conceivable circumstance
and problem.
1. Ftov. 30:6- "Do not add to
His words lest He reprove you, and you
be proved a liar."
2. Dt. 12:32- "Whatever I com-
mand you, you shall be careful to do 1t;
you shall not add to or take away from
it.'' See also Rev. 22:18-19.
3. n Tim. 3:17- " .... that the
man of God may be perfect, thoroughly
equipped unto every good work."
D. Coupled with this scriptural prin-
ciple is the truth df the priesthood of all
believers.
1. I Pet. 2:9.: ". . . . you are a
chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy
natjon, a people for God's own posses-
sion....
2. As priests, it is our right, du-
ty, and ability (because of the illumina-
tion of the Holy Spirit) to read, study,
interpret, teach and apply the Word of
God for ourselves.
3. The Bible is the Manual of
Creation. It teaches us how 'to put it all
together', whether you are referring to
the home, school, church, or political
structure.
V. Let me give some brief examples
now of how to allow the teachings of
the Bible to shape your world-view.
A. We believe in the universal gov-
ernment of the Almighty God.
1. Dan. 4:34f- "His dominion is
an everlasting dominion, and His king-
dom endures from generation to genera-
tion. And all the inhabitants of the
world are accounted as nothing, but He
does according to His will in the host
of heaven and among the inhabitants of
the earth; and no one can ward off His
hand. . . . "
2. Matt. 28:18- "All authority
in heaven and earth has been given to
me."
3. The government of God is
total and unrestricted. It is over every-
thing -- every human being, every hu-
man relationship, every human activity,
and every human institution.
4. 'Government' may be used
without a restricting adjective only in
reference to God. All human authorities
and governments are limited and re- .
stricted by God. For example, family
government, church government, civil
government, etc.
5. Total government by God
means total accountability to God of all
men and all their institutions.
6. The attempt to seize total
government by man through the state
leads to tyranny, slavery, and chaos.
The choice before us is: CHRIST OR
CHAOS!
B. We believe in an accomplished
salvation by Jesus Christ alone.
1. Acts 4:12- "And there is sal-
vation in no one else. For there is no
other name under heaven that has been
given among men, by which we must
be saved."
2. Therefore, no human institu-
tion may be viewed as messianic. No
human institution can produce the solu-
tion for man or cradle-to-grave security.
3. Salvation is not to be found,
offered, or sought in man, education,
church, music, art, science, technology,
politics, the U.N., etc.
4. While these things have their
place (except the U.N.), they must not
be asked to give more than God in-
tended for them to give.
5. Do not go beyond Christ for
salvation. Emphasize that Christ alone
is savior in the sanctuary, the market
place and in the political arena.
C. We believe in the direction and
authority of God's Law.
1. Matt 5: 17f- "Do not think I
came to abolish the Law or the pro-
phets, I did not come to abolish but to
confirm (fulfill)."
2. Rev. 14:12- "Here is the per-
when He delivers up the kingdom to
God the Father, when He HAS abo-
lished all rule and all authority and
power, For He must reign until He has
put all His enemies under His feet." I
Cor. 15:24f.
3. "The kingdom of the world
has become the ki,pgdom of our
and of His Christ, and He will reign
forever and ever." Rev. 11:15.
4. Therefore, we are victory-
oriented and not defeat-oriented as we
face our tasks, problems, and future.
We look for the progressive advance of
Christ's kingdom in the earth until Psa.
66: 1-4 is a reality. As we are faithful to
Him, we fully expect to win.
a. Victory-orientedChristian-
God's law was given to his redeemed people,
not as a means of salvation, but for the
enhancement of life, Dt. 30:19.
severance of the saints who keep the
commandments of God and their faith
in Jesus." (There is no dichotomy here
between grace and law.)
3. Therefore, depending upon the
power of the Holy Spirit, the Christian
works toward the establishment of
God's law in every area of life, if liberty
and justice for all is to prevail, or even
be passible. There is no basis for
either, except in the solid rock of bib-
lical law -- all other ground is sinking
sand, Matt. 7:24f.
4. God's law was given to his
redeemed people, not as a means of sal-
vation, but for the enhancement of life,
Dt. 30:19.
5. "The source of law for a
society is the god of that society." -
Rushdoony. In the U.S. does the civil
government get its law from God or
man?
6. Isa. 33:22- "The Lord is our
Judge. The Lord is our Lawgiver. The
Lord is our King. He will save us."
D. We believe in the triumph of
God over all His enemies.
1. "All the earth will worship
Thee, and will sing praises to Thee."
Psa. 66:4.
2. ". . . . then comes the end,
ity motivates to persistent action and
faithfulness.
b. Defeat-oriented Christiani-
ty squelches and neutralizes. Why act if
we are certain of defeat?
VI. Finally, consider the application of
Biblical principles to the popular p(>iiti-
cal issues and cliches and allow the
Bible to detennine your policital views.
This is a crucial part of developing a
consistently Christian world-view.
A. 'You can't legislate morality.' -
- It is true that you cannot make men
good by passing laws. But it is also
true that laws are expressions of a
moral system, a definite understanding
of good and evil. The question is--from
which moral system are we going to
derive our laws - God's or man's?
B. 'You can't impose your morality
on others.' -- It is true that we cannot
create our own morality and then force
it on others, although that is what the
humanists are doing on all sides. But it
is also true that we, as Christians, are
to call our nation back to God's morali-
ty and God's law, if we are to be blessed
by Him and if we are to escape his judg-
ment.
C. 'You can't identify your views
The Counsel of December, 1989 page 11
with those of God.' -- We must be
careful here, it is true. But it is also
ttve that God has clearly and infallibly
revealed His will in the Bible; and in-
sofar as our views ai"e in accord with
His revealed will, we may speak with
authority and dogmatism.
D. 'You must be religiously neutral
in politics.' Religious neutrality in
politics or in anything else for. that
matter, is a myth. Jesus said that we are
either for Him or against Him; and
between those two poles there is no
neutral ground.
E. 'You must separate church and
state.'
1. True, if you mean that we
must keep separate the institutions and
functions of church and state. The
church is to administer grace and the
state is to administet justice.
2. False, if you mean that the
state is not to be submissive to Christ
and His law. We do not believe in the
separation of God and state, Bible and
state, Christianity and state or Christ
and state.
Conclusion:
And so you have a sketchy overview of
how to develop a consistently Christian
May God grant that we
will bring our every thought into cap-
tivity to Christ, in Whom is gathered
up all the treasures of wisdom and
knowledge. 0
Join us in the
Worship of God
Chalcedon
Presbyterian
Church
Joe Morecraft, III
Minister
Comer Roberts Dr:
&Spalding Dr.
Dunwoody, Georgia
(404) 396-0965
Devotion to Divine Honor
and Glory of God
by Gardiner Spring
I
ntimately connected with the spirit
of self-denial is su.preme devotion
to the . honor and glory of God.
From the formation of the first angel of
light down to the period when the hea-
vens shall pass away as a scrOll; the
Creator of the ends of the earth had His
eye steadfastly fixed on the same grartd
object As all things are of Him, so all
will be to Him (Rom. 11:36). He who
made all things for Himself cannot fail
to pursue the end for which He made
them, and to obtain it at last When the
proceedings of the last day shall have
been closed, when the assembled worlds
shall have entered upon the unvarying
retributions of eternity, when the hea-
vens and the earth shall have passed
away and a new heaven and a new earth,
the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, shall
have COll'le down froin God. out of
heaven; He that sitteth upon the throne
shall say "It is done; I am Alpha arid
Omega, the beginning and the end!'' In
the winding up of the scene, it wUl
appear that God Himself is the frrst and
the last, not merely the efficient, but
the final cause of all things. The vast
plan which has for its object nothing
less than the brightest manifestation of
the Divine Glory has an unalienable
right to the most unreserved devoted-
ness of every intelligent being. To the
advancement of this _plan, God therefore
requires every intelligent being to be
vohirttarily subservient.
All the strength and ardor of affection
which we are capable of exercis41g
must be concentrated here. Every facul-
ty, every thought, every volition, every
design, must. be devoted to this great
cause. The injunction is explicit:
"Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or
whatsoever ye do, do all to the Glory of
God" (I Cor. 10:31). Now the heart of
depraved man is obstinately averse to
such a course of feelings and conduct.
Instead of being supremely attached to
God and the good of His Kingdom, men
are by nature lovers of their own selves.
And here lies the controversy between
man and his Maker. God requires men
to regard His glory as the great end of
their existence, but they disregard His
reqUisitions and prefer their own will
and ends to His. This is the disposition .
of every natural heart; hence the
ficatioo of this spirit, and the supreme
of the heart and life to the service and
glory of God, is evidenceofa radical
change of moral character.
It was the character of Jesus Christ
that "He went about doing goOd." God
is served and glorified by a life which is
actively engaged in seeldng the good of
others. Where the heart is seriously .and
intensely interested in the service. of
God, it cannot be satisfied without
cb:Qlplishing something for the cause of
Gad: in the earth. Our Lord alludes. to
this ot' discipleship when He
says, "Herein is my Father glorified
that ye bear much fruit, so shall ye be
my disciples" (John 15:8). The true
Christian possesses such impressions
of his absolute dependence arid has such
view of God's entire right to him that
he feels that all he is and all that he has
belong to God. And hence his heart in
the first place is devoted to the service
of God. He has a saered relish for the
duties and design1 which he knows
every creature 'of Qod O\lght to aCcom-
plish. The service of God is no irksome
employment, but one in which he feels
heartily and cheerfully engaged. There is
nothing to which his affections 'are so
strongly attached and in which he takes
so much delight as in doing good. He
loves the work ofpleasing and glorify-
. ing his Redeemer, and of doing good to
his fellow men. "My meat," saith the
Lord Jesus, ;'is to do the will of him
who sent me, and to fuush his work"
(Johri 4:34). And the disciple, though
far from coming up to the high standard
of his Master's example is in this
respect like his Lord. There is a plea-
The Counsel of Chalcedon December, 1989 page 12