Tag Archives: Worldview

Our Worldview vs the Beloved Community’s Way

Lent

March 19, 2023

Scripture Reading: John 9:1-41

Jesus heard that they had driven him out, and when he found him, he said, ‘Do you believe in the Son of Man?’ He answered, ‘And who is he, sir? Tell me, so that I may believe in him.’ Jesus said to him, ‘You have seen him, and the one speaking with you is he.’ He said, ‘Lord, I believe.’ And he worshipped him. Jesus said, ‘I came into this world for judgment so that those who do not see may see, and those who do see may become blind.’ Some of the Pharisees near him heard this and said to him, ‘Surely we are not blind, are we?’ Jesus said to them, ‘If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now that you say, “We see”, your sin remains. –John 9:35-41

Are we turning people away from church because we practice our worldview rather than Christ’s?  Jesus called us to a new worldview, the Kingdom of God, or what is also referred to today as the Beloved Community. The Pharisees chose the parts of their faith tradition that met their worldview and ignored others. Thus, they judged other people based on their worldviews. In the first century, having any kind of disability was often viewed as a punishment for sin, for example, being blind.

I was appalled this week when the news showed a segment of debate in our state legislature regarding a bill that would legalize corporal punishment in our public schools for children with disabilities. The bill’s legislator quoted scripture saying spare the rod, spoil the child.  Those exact words are not in scripture; they are derived from Proverbs 13:24, Those who spare the rod hate their children, but those who love them are diligent to discipline them. Another legislator challenged the bill by asking if we were going to make state laws from all the rules in the Bible. The example that came to my mind was Deuteronomy 21:18, 21 as an example, If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son, which will not obey the voice of his father, or the voice of his mother … all the men of the city shall stone him with stones, that he die.  There were not enough legislators present to act on the bill. It will be reconsidered next week. 

How many of our faith expressions are we sifting through our worldviews?  How much of the loss of interest in being a Christ follower relates to how we live God’s love, picking and choosing what is acceptable and good and what is not?     

Jesus said it best as quoted in Matthew 7:5, You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor’s eye.  Our public schools have been grossly underfunded for years, there are not enough counselors, and there are many better ways of disciplining children that do not require corporal punishment.  Poor education is directly related to adult criminal behavior. When I was in school, I routinely watched many, particularly boys who were disrupting class, got called to the front of the room, were told to grab their ankles, and got several licks with a paddle. It never stopped their hijinks. They did not want to be there in the first place, and being rowdy usually opened the way to dropping out of school, often leading to a life of crime.

Prayer: Lord, open our eyes to discern how others see Christ in our behavior and grant us the courage to change our worldview today to bring us into sync with your Beloved Community vision. Amen.

N.T. Wright has a good study regarding worldviews and our faith views, Worldviews, the Bible, and the Believer. For more information, see https://www.udemy.com/course/worldviews-the-bible-and-the-believer/

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Is Our Worldview, Ordering our Lives?

Living in the Spirit

Living in the Spirit

September 20, 2022

Scripture Reading:

Amos 6:1, 4-7
Alas for those who are at ease in Zion,
   and for those who feel secure on Mount Samaria,
the notables of the first of the nations,
   to whom the house of Israel resorts!
Alas for those who lie on beds of ivory,
   and lounge on their couches,
and eat lambs from the flock,
   and calves from the stall;
who sing idle songs to the sound of the harp,
   and like David improvise on instruments of music;
who drink wine from bowls,
   and anoint themselves with the finest oils,
   but are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph!
Therefore they shall now be the first to go into exile,
   and the revelry of the loungers shall pass away.

Well, one thing I am sure of, I am not at ease. I wake in the early morning stewing over how to fix what I see is broken in our world, while recognizing that what I see as broken many see as wholeness. Where and how did we get so divided? I recall a conversation a few years ago with a friend comparing our college years. While we both graduated in 1969, she was only vaguely aware that Martin Luther King Jr. had been assassinated or that the Democrat convention of 1968 broke out into a riot over the Vietnam War. Her college experience was centered on sorority parties, football games, and planning her wedding after graduation while I was protesting war, racism, and poverty. She was a good student and a caring loving person with a worldview far removed from mine. She grew up in an upper-middle-class home with loving parents who were active in the church. She did love her neighbors, yet she rarely had the opportunity to move beyond her neighborhood’s boundaries. We do not have to fight over whether true history should be taught in our public schools, we are immune from its reality. Our culture drives our understanding, and as Amos says so potently the worldview of Israel was leading them toward exile.

How do we reinvent our worldview? How do we let go of things that were or are so precious to us? I, too, like parties, football games, and celebrating friends’ marriages. That is not the point. There is a whole diverse world out there of which we are a part, where bad things happen to good people we are called to love as our neighbors. By widening our worldview, and stretching our ability to welcome the stranger, we may surprisingly find our way out of exile and into God’s Beloved Community.

Prayer: Lord, open windows in our worldview to finding our way out of division and into your Beloved Community. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Doing God’s Righteousness

Advent

December 18, 2020

Scripture Reading:
Romans 16:25-27
Now to God who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages but is now disclosed, and through the prophetic writings is made known to all the Gentiles, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith— to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever! Amen.

Seeking God’s guidance in how we live our faith is key to everything we do. Understanding God’s guidance requires us, as with our computers continually, to clear the cookies that send us in wrong directions or clutter our storage space so much we do not have room in our souls to receive God’s righteousness. We must do this regarding every aspect of life. I remember sticking my arm out to protect a foster child I was transporting when I had to slam on my brakes to miss an animal in the road. My arm would have been useless if that had been a car pulling in front of me. So, we now have seat belts and child seats. I had no problem adapting to seatbelts, but a lot of people did, some still do.

It is sometimes harder to reassess faith issues, often handed to us by parents or respected faith leaders. Both were doing their best to train up their children in the way they should go* at the time. My ancestors who owned slaves, probably referred to passages in the Bible to support that practice. Polygamy was as much an economic reality as a faith construct. Having been raised on a farm, I can assure you that the women worked as hard as the men. They just had different duties. Those same duties changed when industrialization increased. Such changes have resulted in imbalances of worth among occupations. Gleaning what is right, what is just, requires God’s enlightenment from well-practiced communication individually and in communion with other people of faith. Such dialogue must include a careful discernment of how our worldview shapes our faith rather than the example of Jesus Christ and God’s righteousness.

*See Proverbs 22:6

Prayer: Lord, help us discern your righteousness and justice as we serve you in this world today. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Christ’s Worldview

Living in the Spirit

September 19, 2020

Scripture Reading: Matthew 20:1-16

‘For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. After agreeing with the laborers for the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard. When he went out about nine o’clock, he saw others standing idle in the market-place; and he said to them, “You also go into the vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.” So they went. When he went out again about noon and about three o’clock, he did the same. And about five o’clock he went out and found others standing around; and he said to them, “Why are you standing here idle all day?” They said to him, “Because no one has hired us.” He said to them, “You also go into the vineyard.” When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his manager, “Call the laborers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and then going to the first.” When those hired about five o’clock came, each of them received the usual daily wage. Now when the first came, they thought they would receive more; but each of them also received the usual daily wage. And when they received it, they grumbled against the landowner, saying, “These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.” But he replied to one of them, “Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? Take what belongs to you and go; I choose to give to this last the same as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous?” So, the last will be first, and the first will be last.’

I heard many sermons on this scripture over my years. Does a deathbed confession merit eternity in heaven, and what about that prodigal son? Dr. Fred Craddock was my Introduction to the New Testament professor in college. He was trying to reach a room full of freshmen who were required to take the class. I do not recall the scripture Dr. Craddock addressed, probably something from Paul, but I think what he illustrated applies to this scripture. He drew a long horizontal straight line at the top of the blackboard. Under it, he drew what essentially looked like a bell curve with its top center resting just a hair below the straight line. He noted that the straight line was salvation and the bell curve was where diverse people with varied backgrounds might be charted based on human measures of outward righteousness (my words, not his). The space between where one was located on that curve does not matter; salvation is dependent on God’s gift of grace, which fills any void.

We humans seem to need to meet some external measure of our worth, often allowing society to dictate who is right and who is not. Our culture does tend to caste wealth as a measure of worth. My guess is everyone who reads the above scripture, at least those who live in the USA, squirm a bit, thinking that is not fair. In our cultural worldview, we would be correct. Jesus is calling us in this scripture to share his worldview. He wants us to love and want the best for all with no strings attached. God created a diversity of people, and it would be extraordinary for them to all think and act alike. I think what Jesus is saying is we must see our cultural worldview through the lens of Christ’s worldview and make any adjustments necessary to assure that Christ’s worldview dominates.

Prayer: Lord, help us take the time to consider how you would view every situation we encounter, whether it is something we find strange or something we take for granted. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Dueling with God

Living in the Spirit
October 22, 2018

Scripture Reading: Job 42:1-6, 10-17

Then Job answered the Lord:
‘I know that you can do all things,
   and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
“Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?”
Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,
   things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.
“Hear, and I will speak;
   I will question you, and you declare to me.”
I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear,
   but now my eye sees you;
therefore I despise myself,
   and repent in dust and ashes.’ –Job 42:1-6

Job is an uncomfortable book to read. It requires us to face how our worldview sometimes gets in the way of our faith view. When Job asked the question: “Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?” He is quoting from an earlier question of God (38:2): “Who is this that darkens counsel without knowledge?” with one-word change as noted in bold. God’s chosen word has the connotation of dimming; Job apparently took in God’s word to mean conceal. God’s word suggests a lessening of consideration of counsel for no reason as not being prudent. Job’s word implies ignoring counsel for no reason. I think the author of Job changed the word to illustrate how our intake of information is filtered for good or bad by our culture, life experiences, and heritage. Our worldview impacts all our lives, correct or not.

Our quest in life is to become our fullest potential as we intersect with all other people and the world around us in loving as Jesus loved. We cannot change what we have already experienced or inherited; we can choose to offer that knowledge and those traits to God for help in restructuring negatives into positives and life lessons into examples of courage and hope as we strive to prevent our past negatives from being stumbling blocks for us or others.

Testing our worldview against the plumb line of God’s worldview is challenging and sometimes painful, but I have found it to be powerfully freeing as I strive to love like Jesus. I hope you will find the same thing happening within you.

Prayer: Lord, help us to see clearly as we examine ourselves and work to restore any brokenness and separation from you in our lives, so we can readily receive and accept your counsel. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Testing our Worldview

Living in the Spirit
October 3, 2018

Scripture Reading: Psalm 26

Vindicate me, O Lord,
   for I have walked in my integrity,
   and I have trusted in the Lord without wavering.
Prove me, O Lord, and try me;
   test my heart and mind.
For your steadfast love is before my eyes,
   and I walk in faithfulness to you. –Psalm 26:1-3

For some reason, I am spending a lot of time recently considering my worldview and the worldview of others and how such worldviews impact my faith-view and my interactions with others. We are all products of our culture, our histories, our environment that shape how we intake information and apply it. While I have lived in towns or cities since I was 18 years old, I will always carry some of my farm- based childhood in my worldview. That is neither good or bad; it is part of my reality. I am female, white, heterosexual, well educated, and middle classed. I was taught to go to church on Sunday (actually every time there was a service) and to love my neighbors whether I wanted to or not. For those first 18 years of my life, I am sure I assumed that almost everyone else was just like me. College gave me the first major opportunity for that understanding to be tested.

I find that I have gone full circle. Everybody is just like me, unique. Because we are all unique and because we first experienced our uniqueness in family and community, they become a part of our uniqueness as they also shaped the ways in which we respond to diversities in individuals, families, and communities.

The Psalm above calls us to a higher level of understanding of how our uniqueness impacts our interactions with others as we attempt to live as God would have us live among all God’s children. Because our worldviews are so deeply ingrained, we must seek the Lord’s input to prove and try us as we seek to rid ourselves of any wrong values in our worldview and take on the Lord’s view.

Prayer:
Prove me, O Lord, and try me;
   test my heart and mind.
For your steadfast love is before my eyes,
   and I walk in faithfulness to you. Amen

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Jesus’ Worldview

Living in the Spirit
August 31, 2018

Scripture Reading: James 1:17-27

But be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. For if any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are like those who look at themselves in a mirror; for they look at themselves and, on going away, immediately forget what they were like. But those who look into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and persevere, being not hearers who forget but doers who act—they will be blessed in their doing.

 If any think they are religious, and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world. –James 1:22-27

The book of John tells us that Jesus is the Word (John 1:1) I think James is picking up on that idea when he instructs us to be doers of the word—model our lives after Jesus. He practiced what he preached, and he did not cherry pick the words he read and applied.

I am thankful the book of Mark includes the story of the Syrophoenician woman (Mark 7 24-30) it described an encounter Between Jesus and a foreign woman that went against the ideas of Jesus’ culture. Jews did not interact with gentiles. Yet when this woman brought her daughter to Jesus to be healed his first reaction was to turn her away, but she challenged him on following his culture rather than his heart and the heart won.

In our diverse world, we encounter different ways of being all the time that may be uncomfortable for us at first because it is not of our culture or what some call our worldview. What we must discern is how our interaction with others appears through Jesus’ worldview and adapt our worldview accordingly.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.