Tag: Worldview

Oxymorons and the Image of God

 

by Sean Perron


There is absolute truth and it absolutely matters. Christians must love truth because they follow the Truth.
Everything is staked on what we believe.

I want to be the kind of man who lives and dies for the Scriptures. Yet, the great irony is that in my defense of the Bible, I can often sin against others and therefore violate the Bible. If I am not careful, I can treat people of opposing views as completely evil. My view of them becomes one-sided and I only think of them as someone who doesn’t believe [blank].

People are more complex than this and I find myself shocked at times when,

  • I receive a kind note from a pro-abortion friend who asks about my life says they are praying for me.
  • I see a theistic evolutionist who gives sacrificially to the poor.
  • I hear of a universalist who welcomes the broken into their home to minister to them.


Perhaps even reading these lines grates against you. Indeed they should. God wants our doctrine and our lives to match and everyone of the above examples is an oxymoron. These friends claim love Jesus but are believing false teaching.

How should we engage those we strongly disagree with?
I do not have all the answers, but here are some thoughts from the book of James.

1) Be slow to anger (James 1:20)
Be slow to anger, for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. Check your heart.
Jesus remained sinless the entire time he flipped tables and drove out the hypocrites. Do not have as high of expectations for yourself. Often times our righteous anger is self-driven. We are so sinful that we can claim a good cause and spew our venom at the same time. Love is not easily angered. There are times when our blood should boil, but we must have our hand on the stove dial, and there always needs to be love in our burner.

2) Give mercy as you have been given mercy (James 2:13)
For judgement is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy.
If the person you are critiquing believes the true gospel, treat him as you would a brother. We have the right to strongly disagree, but we do not have the right to sin against one another. Give the benefit of the doubt and do not treat a brother or sister like a dirt bag to drag through the mud.

3) Tame the Tongue (James 3:2-10)
With our tongue we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the image of God. This ought not be! In our critique, do we show honor to the individual? Or do we curse the ground they walk on?
Do we treat them as people created by God for his glory? Do we give them respect? Or do we treat them like vermin to be exterminated?

4) Love your neighbor as yourself (James 2:8)
Treat others as you would want them to treat you. Be fair in your representation of their arguments. Do not use Ad Hominem arguments that attack them rather than their beliefs. Cultivate a genuine love for them in your heart. Pray for them and long for them to believe truth. “For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even tax collectors do the same?”

5) Be confident and calm in Christ (James 3:13-18)
Even though we have the right to bear arms, let us load our arsenal with bullets of truth, love, meekness, and humility.
In our conversations, let us be winsome and confident in the truth. The wisdom that is from above is gentle, open to reason, full of mercy, good fruits, impartial and sincere. Let us display this confidence by maintaining control in the conversation and not yelling at those who disagree. Christ does not need our help in convincing others of the truth. He simply calls us to be faithful to share the truth in love with all meekness.

6) Do not speak evil against one another, brothers (James 4:11)
God does not want us to slander his creation. Let us be careful that we do not sin against God while we represent him to the watching world. Let us be especially careful when we talk about brothers and sisters when they are not around. God hears every word about his craftsmanship and takes it seriously. Even liberals are made in the image of God and we should treat them as such.

7) Bring people back from wandering (James 5:20)
God does not call us to be pacifists when his glory is at stake and souls are on the line. God rejoices when one wandering soul returns to the truth and repents. Let us be people who speak the truth boldly in sincere love.

Blessed are those who proclaim truth to all people and treat them as people made in the image of God.

Worldview

“So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” 1 Corinthians 10:31

Does the Bible change the way we look at sports, dating, music, sleep and free time? Christianity is much larger than Sunday morning or youth group. I have often slipped into the inconsistent framework of being a Christian by creed but an atheist in practice. Being a Christian involves your daily life. Jesus desires and demands influence in our daily lives. Going to church once or twice a week does not make someone a follower of Christ.  Jesus said, “Whoever desires to come after me, let him deny himself and pick up his cross daily and follow me.” (Lk 9:23) The Christian worldview is comprehensive.

“Whatever you do” is a pretty broad statement (1 Cor 10:31). How is it possible to glorify God in “boring” daily routines? It begins with the gospel and then connects to the glory of God. Jesus’ death on the cross has purchased every good gift we can experience in life (Rom 8:32). Everything we enjoy is a gift of grace that Jesus bought for us when He died on Calvary. “for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.” (1 Cor 6:20). We cannot honor God without His help. Trusting in the cross changes everything we do. We have been set free from sin to properly enjoy life. How can we glorify God in whatever we do? We can glorify God above all things and in all things.

1. Above all things. Glorifying God is about calling attention to God. It is about bringing honor to Jesus. When we glorify God it makes Jesus look attractive to a lost world. Glorifying God involves showing that He is more valuable than everything. Here are a few practical questions to check your heart:

  • When you play football, is it clear to everyone that Jesus is more valuable to you than winning a game?
  • When you eat dinner, do you enjoy Jesus more than food or do your cravings command you?
  • When carrying on conversation with your classmates, do your words edify and make Jesus look good or tear down and exalt yourself?

I have a friend who reminds me frequently to “hold loosely.” Hold onto the things of this world in such a way that if God were to take them away you would still worship Him. My pastor often says that food, sex, family and ministries are good gifts but bad gods. Beware lest any gift becomes an “idol of the heart.” Enjoy Jesus above all things.

2. In all things. When a prisoner is set free from jail, he truly appreciates enjoying the warmth of the sunlight. He is thrilled to breathe fresh air and knows it is a precious gift that he does not deserve. Children are kings at enjoying the simple things of life. The Christian should also enjoy God’s gifts and realize they are free to enjoy them because of the gospel. Therefore, glorify God by playing basketball to the best of your ability. With the right heart, playing your hardest actually honors God. Worship God by enjoying every winning touchdown, ice cream, or day off from school. Laugh hard and live it to the brim. Enjoying God’s gifts makes Jesus look good!

God calls us to live an everyday life for the glory of God (1 Cor 10:31). This does not mean you need to force “Bible talk” into everything. God wants you to live life loving Him above all things and in all things. John Piper champions this topic in chapter three of Don’t Waste Your Life. He says every gift is a ray that points back to Jesus.

“The sunbeams of blessing in our lives are bright in and of themselves. They also give light to the ground where we walk. But there is a higher purpose for these blessings. God means for us to do more than stand outside them and admire them for what they are. Even more, he means for us to walk into them and see the sun from which they come. If the beams are beautiful, the sun is even more beautiful. God’s aim is not that we merely admire his gifts, but, even more, his glory.” (p.59)

He is the fountain from which all blessings flow. Living life this way gives you the highest joy because it is found in God. God has pleasures at His right hand that he offers to anyone who will taste and see His goodness. Why would anyone minimize the Christian life to only two days a week?

Sean Perron