Does Your Worldview Give Human Experience Meaning?

Worldview is a philosophical term referring to the system of thought that defines a person's understanding of reality, knowledge, and ethics. From the very genesis of the science of philosophy, philosophers have attempted to answer such questions as, “how did life originate?” and “what is man's purpose?”. All worldviews but one have failed in their attempt to address these basic queries.

The Christian worldview is the only system of thought that can answer the question of the beginning of life. And the Christian worldview is the only system that makes human experience intelligible and meaningful. The Christian worldview is the only foundation that gives purpose to reality, knowledge and ethics.

The Christian starts with the presupposition that God has revealed Himself in the pages of scripture. The God of scripture has revealed that He created life in the beginning, for the purpose of glorifying Him. This answers the question of the beginning of life and the purpose of life. The Bible also reveals that God is a God of order, and that He set in motion fixed laws that account for consistency in life's experiences – reality, knowledge, and ethics.

In order to make sense of reality, knowledge and ethics every other system of thought must borrow from Christianity. An illustration from each of these categories will confirm the superiority of Christian thought among the smorgasbord of philosophies available.

In the arena of reality, it is sufficient to ask the question to any expectant mother whether she expects to birth a child or a puppy, or some other creature. If she answers, “a child,” she has demonstrated her belief in the Biblical principle that everything reproduces after its own kind – which is antithetical to the idea of chaos creating everything man can experience. If chaos truly rules the day no mother could ever be certain what the outcome of her pregnancy would be.

Considering knowledge through different worldviews may be the most amusing exercise in this whole study. It is the God of order that models order in knowledge. Because Biblical principles require consistency, men acting under these principles have taken pains to define terms. In fact, an atheist who claims to deny Christianity requires a definition of terms when arguing against the God of order, found in Christianity. If chaos truly reigns, there is no guarantee that a term carries the same definition from the beginning of an argument through the argument and to the end of that argument. In fact there is no guarantee that any given term means the same thing in the mind of the atheist from one declaration of the term to the next. In other words, if one truly believes that chaos rules not only can he not argue any point intelligibly, he cannot even speak in a daily conversation, or even think any thought with confidence of knowing what he himself means when he speaks or thinks. Certainly everyone who denies the Christian system of thought is able to argue, speak and think intelligently; but he only does so by borrowing from a Christian worldview.

All men have some system of ethics. When governors create a new law they base that law on some definition of ethics. If it is not based on Biblical ethics, then there is nothing on which to base that law, because anything that you want to base that law on 'begs the question'. For example, assume that you base it on happiness for the most individuals in that society. The next question is, who determines happiness, and who determines whether most people want happiness? No matter what 'foundation' you are going to set above Biblical Christianity you will end up in an endless regress of questions to get to an ultimate foundation.

God has not answered every question in His revealed word. He has, however, answered the most basic questions that philosophers have been asking since the beginning of time. You can assure that your search for the answers to the meaning of life will never end, or you can humble yourself before the almighty Creator of heaven and earth, and settle for the answers that He has revealed in His word; the Bible. You have already borrowed from Christianity in many aspects of your thought processes. Give it up to God, and begin to glorify and enjoy Him forever.