What is a Christian worldview?

A worldview is the way a person chooses to view the world around them. Each person bases their view of the world upon their specific perspectives, comprehension of concepts, experience, and what they believe to be true.

Let's take an apple for example. A child might see it as a snack. A farmer might see it as a commodity. An artist might see it as a subject to be captured.

The reason each response is different is because each perspective is influenced by the way they view apples. Our worldview affects how we think, feel, and live every day.

Our worldview determines the basis for our thoughts, emotions, and choices as we respond to things.

A Christian Worldview

"Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." —1 Corinthians 10:31 (NLT)

A Christian worldview is a perspective that uses biblical truth to help formulate thought patterns, emotional responses, plans of action, and beliefs. A Christian worldview looks at everything through God's eyes and helps a believer know how to respond to their experiences in Christlike ways.

For example, let’s say that your non-Christian friend tells you that they're going to cheat on the test. As a Christian, you believe that cheating is always wrong. They say that it's only wrong if you get caught. Why are your beliefs so different? Because of your different worldviews.

A Christian worldview says, "I'm accountable to God and must honor Him," which means we make decisions from that frame of reference (1 Corinthians 10:31). We believe that cheating is wrong—even if we don’t get caught—because God says that we should be honest (Proverbs 10:9; Proverbs 12:22). But the friend's worldview does not include consideration for what God says is true, so they don't feel the need to be accountable to anyone.

This is just a simple illustration to remind us that the worldview we choose determines how we think, feel, and act in our daily lives and answers big life questions like: Does truth exist? Does God exist? How did everything begin? Why am I here? How should I live? What happens when I die?

When Worldviews are in Opposition

"We who are strong must be considerate of those who are sensitive about things like this. We must not just please ourselves. We should help others do what is right and build them up in the Lord." —Romans 15:1-2 (NLT)

A person's beliefs may align fairly well with a major worldview like Christianity, secularism, or new age spirituality. Most often, however, the perspective that we choose is a hodgepodge of different beliefs that are based on many different sources. Our personalities, life experiences, traumas, past relationships, education, and more will all affect how we think, feel, and act.

Those who have a Christian worldview based on the Bible can help those who struggle to see God's truth (Romans 15:1-3). Harmful beliefs can create a lot of anxiety and frustration or result in terrible real life consequences.

Why Worldviews Matter

Worldviews govern how leaders rule countries, what teachers teach in school, how parents instruct their children, how work ethic is defined, and so much more. Worldviews affect what people believe about God, how they define morality, how they address injustice, and what decisions they make about spirituality. Worldviews affect how friends treat one another, how dating relationships are navigated, and where people choose to invest their resources (Matthew 6:21).

Everyone has a worldview, regardless of whether they're conscious of them. But does that mean it makes no difference what kind of worldview you have? Is everyone's "truth" 100% true for them? Actually, no—because truth is an objective reality.

Truth is truth—no matter what anyone's worldview is. Sometimes people have a worldview that skews how they see something, and so they believe it to be true. Though a person's perception of reality may be affected by their worldview, reality and truth do not change with individual perceptions. God still exists even if people don't believe He does.

Why a Christian Worldview is Beneficial

"All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right." —2 Timothy 3:16 (NLT)

People will have both healthy and unhealthy beliefs. Some beliefs shine light on truth and others try to hide it. A healthy worldview can have a positive result in our lives, and an unhealthy worldview can result in hurt, pain, and suffering. What we choose to believe has consequences, and those consequences affect us and those around us—both now and into the future.

Worldviews based on ultimate truth bring blessing, and those based on worldly desires and self-centeredness ultimately lead to death (Proverbs 13:14; 14:12, 14:27; Romans 6:23). So it's important that we formulate our worldview based on truth.

In the Bible, God has gifted us with a system of beliefs to help us make sense of the world, make sense of our existence, answer the big questions in life, and encourage us to grow into kind, compassionate humans (John 14:6; Psalm 19:7-9; 2 Timothy 3:16). A biblical worldview helps motivate and guide us as we seek to follow Christ (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

Examining Our Worldview

"Work hard so you can present yourself to God and receive his approval. Be a good worker, one who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly explains the word of truth." —2 Timothy 2:15 (NLT)

It's good to regularly examine if our beliefs and actions are still in alignment with God's Word. If we find that we've twisted something in our belief system that doesn’t match the truth of Scripture, we ought to find the source of those lies. Reject the things that cause harm and replace them with a Christlike mindset (Romans 12:2; John 17:17).

When we have a biblical worldview, we can truly find order in the chaos of existence (Psalm 23), meaningful and purpose-driven fulfillment in life (Colossians 3:23-24), and assurance of our eternal fate after our time on earth is over (John 3:16-17, 17:3).

"Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect." —Romans 12:2 (NLT)

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