We aren’t called to a Biblical worldview

Whoa! Hold the phone. The pastor just said something that sounds heretical.

We aren’t called to a biblical worldview.

This may be difficult to take in – especially if you live in a world that is all about right/wrong. The Bible has to offer a worldview in which the only concern is if you are right or wrong. But that isn’t what we are called to as Christians either.

Are you saying that anything goes then Pastor? Nope. Certainly not.

I’m asking you to have some complexity and perplexity mixed into your faith. Life and faith are complicated and messy things. The Bible is not and should not be treated as an answer book for all of life’s situations. It’s never meant to be that. The Bible isn’t supposed to be the thing we go to at the end of an argument in order to decide who is right and who is wrong. If that’s how we use it, we’ll be misusing it. It becomes no different than any other weapon we may wield. You use a weapon to defeat an enemy. The Bible isn’t a weapon to defeat enemies with.

The problem with having a biblical worldview is that many parts of the Bible no longer apply to life. When’s the last time you were concerned about what fabric you are wearing and whether it is sinful or not? Or if you should eat shellfish or not because they are anathema? See, there are parts of Scripture which just aren’t helpful to everyday life. And that’s ok. It doesn’t mean that we throw out the parts that don’t pertain to every day life. They are still important.

Here’s what you need to keep in mind – the Bible wasn’t written for you. I mean that in quite a literal sense. It’s not a personalized set of directions for each and every person who ever lived and will ever live.

The problem with having a biblical worldview is that we think the Bible offers us answers to all our questions – even the questions that the writers of the Bible could never have conceived of. Again though, this doesn’t mean the Bible is without value – it certainly have plenty of value.

So if we aren’t called to a biblical worldview (because who really wants to dash babies against rocks anyway? Yes, Psalm 137:9 really says that. Look it up if you dare…), what are we called to?

A Jesus worldview. Guess what, Scripture helps with this. In Scripture we get the words of Jesus. We see the themes that God has always been up to without cherry picking odd passages out to prove how right we are. When Jesus is our worldview lens, how we interact with the Bible changes. It no longer is a weapon or answer book, but rather becomes a letter with a loved one that shows great joys and sorrows. It shifts from being a weapon to prove rightness to a tool to begin conversation. It shifts from a rule book of what we must to, to the whisper of God telling us what God has done and invites us to participate in.

We aren’t called to a biblical worldview. We are called to a Jesus worldview.