BLESSING #11: The Blessing of a Defendable Worldview
The Dalai Lama, the spiritual leader of the Tibetan people, has said, “This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart is our temple; the philosophy is kindness.”
God’s Word is filled with blessings that belong only to the saved. My friend Mike is lost and, therefore, doesn’t enjoy any of these benefits. Do I? Am I aware of all that I have “in Christ”?
In thinking about the many blessings which our unsaved friends don’t have, we need to think about another blessing which we followers of Christ have been given and it is this —
11. WE HAVE A DEFENDABLE WORLDVIEW ! THE BLESSING
Not to get too philosophical, but any worldview other than that given by God in His Word is susceptible to attack and eventual overthrow. Wow! What a dogmatic statement! But seriously, if biblical Christianity isn’t true and the Bible isn’t God’s Word, why should we bother following Christ? There are clear and strong evidences of the Bible’s truthfulness; Christ’s life, death, burial, and resurrection; and the fact that the God of the Bible is real and holy and angry at sin.
THE BIBLE The Bible gives many examples of believers defending the truth of the gospel (see Acts 17 as a great illustration of a philosophically-informed Apostle Paul presenting the truth about Jesus). In fact, Jesus followers are commanded to be ready to give reasons for their faith in their Savior. We read in I Pe. 3:15, “
But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect . . .
Please notice in this passage that the defense of our faith (1) begins in our hearts! We revere, show proper respect for the Lord, when we are prepared to stand up for the truth. Notice also that (2) we are to always be prepared to give an answer. Preparation takes effort and study and intention. Notice as well that (3) we should expect people to ask us about our faith! It’s a lot easier to witness when we are asked about our walk with the Lord. And, lastly, this passage teaches that (4) our attitude (gentleness and respect) are really important to our witness.
ACTION STEPS 1. Our society suffers from what one writer calls “truth decay.” Someone has said that “Apart from blunt truth, our lives sink decadently amid the perfume of hints and suggestions.” Study at least 10 verses on truth (perhaps two per day) that you find in the Scriptures. How might you practically stand for the truth of the gospel?
2. If you’ve been a believer for a while, become friends with someone from a different religion or even a cult. Ask them a lot of questions about their faith and graciously share with them what you know about Jesus’ identity and His being the only way to salvation.
3. Consider offering a group study on a book like Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis. And make sure some participants aren’t yet believers!
PRAYER 4. How do I pray for my unsaved friend? First of all, I need to understand his present worldview. Then do whatever I can to challenge it in light of the gospel. And, third, I need to pray for God the Holy Spirit to open my friend’s eyes to how he ought to view life and eternity and . . . Jesus.