Complete a paper comparing the Christian worldview to the secular worldview of a

Question

Complete a paper comparing the Christian worldview to the secular worldview of accounting. In this paper, the student will research a topic(s) of choice that will analyze the Christian worldview as compared to the secular worldview. A good book to help you chose a topic(s) is “Where to Find it in the Bible” by Ken Anderson. My suggestion is that you buy the original book, which is 578 pages in length and contains a great many topics to help with writing your paper. The compact/pocket size of this book is much shorter and contains fewer topics. Specific Requirements: The Christian worldview paper should be a minimum of 8 double spaced pages and should also include a separate title page and bibliography. It should contain 3 sources for secular views and 3 biblical verses/scripture, APA format. I choose topic(s) from book Honesty, Truthful and Respect.

Explanation / Answer

A worldview is a set of beliefs used to understand the world. Everyone has a worldview. Everyone has a set of principles by which to judge right and wrong, and which guides them in everyday living. You stop at a red light, go at a green. You leave a tip with a waiter or a waitress. You try and color coordinate your clothes. You voice your order for food to a speaker box while sitting in your car. You cast a vote for a political leader. Why do these things? Because you are accustomed to doing them in a manner that is consistent with what you believe. In other words, you behave according to your worldview.

Your worldview forms the basis of how you interpret reality. Your world view is a lens through which you look at the world. Your worldview shapes your moral opinions. It affects what you believe about God, marriage, politics, social structures, environmental concerns, educational requirements, economics, the raising of children, what kind of foods to eat, etc. It affects everything, because all of that which is around you and all of that with which you interact must be interpreted and must be understood in light of your worldview.

According to Barna Research,1 "About half of all adults (54%) claim that they make their moral choices on the basis of specific principles or standards in which they believe. Other common means of making moral choices include doing what feels right or comfortable (24%), doing whatever makes the most people happy or causes the least conflict (9%), and pursuing whatever produces the most positive outcomes for the person (7%)."

Why the difference in results? People have different worldviews, different opinions about God, man, purpose, life, right and wrong

Philosophical and Social Questions

There are some basic philosophical questions that most everyone in the world wonders about. Generally speaking, it is the answers to the following set of questions that guide how the next set of questions are answered. First, let's look at the philosophical worldview questions.

Answering these questions forms the most basic elements of our worldview. Once these are answered, you are better able to form answers to the next set of questions, those related to society.

A world view affects behavior and beliefs

You behave according to what you believe, not what you don't believe. I can recall having conversations with atheists who said they "lack belief in God". They don't believe or disbelieve in God. Yet, when I defend the Bible as being true or the Christian God as the only God, they are quick to attack my arguments in order to disprove God's existence. So, I tell them that they are behaving according to what they believe, not what they don't believe. It is inconsistent to say that you lack belief in something and then behave as though you deny the existence of that something. Without admitting it, their worldview didn't "lack belief about God"; it denied God. There's no getting around it. Different worldviews affect behavior -- whether or not someone is aware of it.

Since I've already mentioned atheism, let's take a look at that perspective for a moment. How would an atheist answer the philosophical questions such as "How did we get here?" An atheist would probably say we evolved from lower primates. Of course he would deny that God exists and he would probably say that after we die, we cease to exist. Since there is no absolute God, morals would not be absolute. Instead, they would be based upon personal preference and whatever works in society.

A Christian, on the other hand, would answer the questions differently. A Christian would say that God created us and put us in the world with a purpose. The purpose is to bring glory to God and to exercise proper and responsible dominion over creation. A Christian would say that when we die, we either end up in heaven or hell. Of course, a Christian would deny we arrived via evolution and would also deny that morals are subjective.

What are the elements of a Christian worldview?

Christianity teaches a set of beliefs that form the basics of our worldview. Following is a list of some of the elements that make up the Christian worldview.

An absolute God exists

If an absolute God exists, then it means that God is self-sufficient and lacks nothing. If God is self-sufficient, then he needs no external cause for his existence. This would mean he is eternal. If he is eternal then he does not change.

God created the universe

If God created the universe, then he is all powerful -- since it obviously takes a great deal of power to create the universe. This would also mean that God is separate from creation and not a part of the created order. From the previous point where we see that God is absolute and unchanging, we could see that God's nature would be reflected in the created order. As a painter leaves a part of himself on the canvas, so God reveals himself in creation. Creation is, therefore, ordered, predictable, and dependable. This would mean that when Christians look into creation, they would expect to find a predictable, regular, and testable world.

Man is created in God's image

This means that God, who is rational and intelligent, has impressed his image upon the hearts and soul of human beings. Therefore, people can be rational and turn their attention towards the world and since they believe that the universe reflects God's creative nature, they can have confidence to look into creation and expect order. They can also expect that since they are made in the image of God, they have the ability to unlock the secrets of the universe.

Also, if man is created in God's image, then all people are worthy of respect and honor.

This would also mean that when a new life formed in the womb, it is human from the time of conception. Therefore, abortion would be wrong.

Furthermore, if we are created in God's image, then we did not evolve from lower primates. This would mean that we have purpose and are not merely the result of random development through evolution that is, supposedly, guided by natural selection. Natural selection works on the theory of survival of the fittest and this could have a very harmful effect on society if "survival of the fittest" is transferred into a moral principle. It would justify oppressing the weak and helpless.

Man was given dominion over creation by God.

This means that all aspects of the created order on earth are to be governed by man according to how God has revealed himself and his will for us in the Bible. Therefore, politics, medicine, art, ecology, society, economics, exploration, philosophy, mathematics, education, etc. all fall under the domain of human responsibility and should be considered realms for man to control -- under the wisdom and direction of God's revelation, the Bible (more on that below).

Mankind is fallen

The Fall of mankind through our ancient father Adam, tells us that at the heart of every one of us is a predisposition toward sin. Sin is rebellion against God and, therefore, it is a rebellion against what is good. Sin has not only affected man's soul and body, but it has also affected his mind. Therefore, the Christian worldview would say that even man's best reasoning is touched by sin and cannot be perfect. Furthermore, since man is sinful and his heart's intentions are predisposed towards wickedness, we conclude that those in power are highly susceptible to corruption. Therefore, governmental systems should be developed with Christian principles in mind to help guard against that.

In fact, Christianity influenced the development of the Constitution and American government. Our founding fathers developed the judicial, executive, and legislative branches of government which are there to exercise a system of checks and balances over each other. Why? Because of The Fall, man has a tendency to gravitate towards corruption.

Jesus is mankind's only hope for redemption

Because man is fallen, he is in need of rescue from God's righteous condemnation -- which is eternal damnation. Also, since he is fallen, there is no way he can redeem himself. Therefore, Jesus, who is God in flesh, died for us and rose from the dead. We receive his righteousness and forgivness by faith. This basic theological truth means that Christians should then preach that good news of redemption in Christ to all the world. Therefore, one of the most basic Christian principles is promoting Jesus as the means by which we are made right with God.

The Bible is the Word of God

Of course I have already mentioned the Bible, but the Bible is the inspired and inerrant word of God. From the Bible we derive the truths by which we govern our lives. It is from the Bible that we learn about God himself, his created order, the Trinity, redemption, about sin, salvation, hope, and what is morally correct. The Bible reveals the will of God for mankind, for the family, for raising children, for proper behavior in society, etc. It is from the Bible that we can learn the direct will of God.

God Provides for his creation

It is from the Bible that we learn of God's loving provision for us. We know that God lets the sun and rain fall down upon both the good and the bad. We know that God causes the crops to grow and cattle to multiply. We know that though we live in a fallen world, God has promised that he will never leave us or forsake us. Therefore, we can rely on God's provision for us and should have confidence that he will continue to provide for our needs.

So, you can see that there are basic principles which form the Christian worldview. There are more, but the above eight items are representative of Christianity's perspective and truth and how it influences belief and action.

A biblical worldview is based on the infallible Word of God. When you believe the Bible is entirely true, then you allow it to be the foundation of everything you say and do. That means, for instance, you take seriously the mandate in Romans 13 to honor the governing authorities by researching the candidates and issues, making voting a priority.

Do you have a biblical worldview? Answer the following questions, based on claims found in the Bible and which George Barna used in his survey:

Did you answer yes to these? Only 9 percent of "born- again" believers did. But what's more important than your yes to these questions is whether your life shows it. Granted, we are all sinners and fall short, but most of our gut reactions will reflect what we deep-down, honest-to-goodness believe to be real and true.

3. How does a biblical worldview get diluted?

Here is the big problem. Nonbiblical worldview ideas don't just sit in a book somewhere waiting for people to examine them. They bombard us constantly from television, film, music, newspapers, magazines, books and academia.

Because we live in a selfish, fallen world, these ideas seductively appeal to the desires of our flesh, and we often end up incorporating them into our personal worldview. Sadly, we often do this without even knowing it.

For example, most Christians would agree with 1 Thessalonians 4:3 and other Scriptures that command us to avoid sexual immorality, but how often do Christians fall into lust or premarital and extramarital sexual sin? Is it simply because they are weak when tempted, or did it begin much earlier, with the seductive lies from our sexualized society?

4. Why does a biblical worldview matter?

If we don't really believe the truth of God and live it, then our witness will be confusing and misleading. Most of us go through life not recognizing that our personal worldviews have been deeply affected by the world. Through the media and other influences, the secularized American view of history, law, politics, science, God and man affects our thinking more than we realize. We then are taken "captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ" (Colossians 2:8).

However, by diligently learning, applying and trusting God’s truths in every area of our lives — whether it's watching a movie, communicating with our spouses, raising our children or working at the office — we can begin to develop a deep comprehensive faith that will stand against the unrelenting tide of our culture's nonbiblical ideas. If we capture and embrace more of God's worldview and trust it with unwavering faith, then we begin to make the right decisions and form the appropriate responses to questions on abortion, same- sex marriage, cloning, stem-cell research and even media choices. Because, in the end, it is our decisions and actions that reveal what we really believe.

"

The following is a recent paper that I wrote on Secular Humanism for a class at Liberty. Hope you enjoy it.

Worldview Analysis of Secular Humanism

By: Pastor Brian Chilton

The Christian theist is opposed by many worldviews. While various religions and worldviews have been around since the early stages of human history, one such worldview has grown in prominence in recent times: secular humanism. This paper will give a summary of secular humanism’s core beliefs, will give a critique of secular humanism, and will pose a method of sharing the gospel with a secular humanist. Is secular humanism reasonable? To answer the question, a summary of secular humanism must first be given.

Summary of Secular Humanism

Secular humanism is a worldview held by atheists and/or agnostics that promotes the human above all things. SecularHumanism.org, a site devoted to secular humanism, defines secular humanism as the following:

Secular humanism is comprehensive, touching every aspect of life including issues of values, meaning, and identity…Secular humanism is nonreligious, espousing no belief in a realm or beings imagined to transcend ordinary experience…Secular humanism is philosophically naturalistic. It holds that nature (the world of everyday physical experience) is all there is…Secular humanism provides a cosmic outlook—a world-view in the broadest sense, grounding our lives in the context of our universe and relying on methods demonstrated by science…Secular humanists hold that ethics is consequential, to be judged by results.[1]

The secular humanist evaluates everything from the perspective of what is seen or what can be known by the senses. Therefore, a belief for the secular humanist is brought forth not only by what can be experienced through the senses but also by that which is tested using scientific methodology. Sam Harris, an atheist, defines “belief” in the following way, “The brain’s capacity to accept such propositions as true—as valid guides to behavior and emotion, as predictive of future outcomes, etc.—explains the transformative power of words. There is a common term we use for this type of acceptance; we call it ‘belief.’“[2] So the secular humanist would have no room for God or for anything “supernatural” due to the heavy dependency upon the human sensory experience. For this reason, the secular humanist defends evolution with the fire of a Christian evangelist. As Geisler wrote, “Evolution is the secular humanist’s way to explain origins. Either the universe and living things originated by means of the intervention of a supernatural Creator, or they evolved by purely naturalistic means. Nontheists thus have no choice but to defend evolution.“[3] No worldview is free from critique. Secular humanism contains several problems. The next section will address two of the problems found in secular humanism.

Critiques of Secular Humanism

Secular humanism holds many glaring holes at the core of its philosophy. Many pages could be written, but for the sake of space, this section will focus on two implosions or fatal flaws found at the core of secular humanist thinking: the implosion of causal relationships and the implosion of the humanist’s own morality.

Secular humanism implodes by causal relationships. The scientific method is based on cause/effect relationships. This is the crux of scientific research. However, modern secular humanists, especially humanists’ associated with the New Atheism, seem to bypass the necessity of causal relationships when it comes to the origin of the universe. Something must be eternal. Either the universe is eternal or a transcendent God is eternal.

The secular humanist seems comfortable in espousing that the universe came from nothing. Famed atheist Richard Dawkins wrote in the afterword of A Universe from Nothing: Why There is Something Rather than Nothing, “Finally, and inevitably, the flat universe will further flatten into a nothingness that mirrors its beginning.“[4] This is problematic at its core. How is it that the universe (something) can become nothing? Furthermore, how is it that nothing can produce something? Is the “nothing” that is presented actually be “something”? If the “nothing” is “something,” then the “nothing” is not really “nothing” but “something.” A thing cannot both exist and be non-existent at the same time. A thing either is or is not but it cannot be both. Therefore, an uncaused cause must exist. The secular humanist would claim that the universe has always existed and has gone through an infinite regress of past events.

Logic shows that an infinite regress of past events is impossible in the natural sphere. If this is impossible, then God’s existence is far more reasonable than it would be to espouse that the universe was a “nothing” turned “something.” As Craig and Sinclair write, “When we use the word ‘exist,’ we mean ‘be instantiated in the mind-independent world’…Since an actual infinite cannot exist and an infinite temporal regress of events is an actual infinite, we may conclude that an infinite temporal regress of events cannot exist. Therefore, since the temporal regress of events is finite, the universe began to exist.”[5] Since there cannot be an infinite regress of past events and the beginning of the universe cannot be attributed to “nothingness,” the only logical cause of the universe and everything within it is an uncaused agent we know as God. If humans can believe things from logic, which many humanists would agree, then belief in God is warranted, if not demanded, due to the necessity of an uncaused cause for all natural things. But, secular humanism implodes on another front: its own morality.

Secular humanism promotes morality, but the humanist’s morality implodes as the humanist does not really possess a standard for morality. The Humanist Manifesto II states, “Ethics stems from human need and interest. To deny this distorts the whole basis of life.”[6] If the humanist is correct, then humanity should become more moral over time and the humanist should be the most moral person of all. However, this is not the case. John Lennox eloquently writes, “…I would like to ask you also to imagine a world with no atheism. No Stalin, no Mao, no Pol Pot, just to name the heads of the three officially atheistic states that were responsible for some of the worst mass crimes of the twentieth century.“[7] In addition, Stalin, Mao, and Pol Pot operated from what they considered to be their own needs and interests. Therefore, the secular humanist has no standard for morality whatsoever because all morality becomes relative. So, how would you share the gospel with a secular humanist?

Proposed Plan for Sharing the Gospel with the Secular Humanist

The secular humanist holds a high view of humanity and a low view of the supernatural. The Christian theist, or evangelist, should approach the secular humanist differently than that of other worldviews. In some respects, sharing the gospel with the secular humanist requires steps that adherents of other worldviews would not require. Four steps should be used to reach the secular humanist beginning with objective truth.

The evangelist must first present to the secular humanist that objective truths exist. Many secular humanists have fallen into relativistic thinking. An easy way to present the flaws in relativist thinking is to show that relative statements are given objectively. Therefore, even the relativist benefits from objectivity when promoting relative claims. Once the evangelist lays out the logic and standards of objective truth; the Christian evangelist moves on to show the necessity of God’s existence.

The Christian evangelist would do well to know and present the cosmological, teleological, and moral arguments for God’s existence. The secular humanist should be shown that God’s existence is not only reasonable but also necessary to explain the existence of anything. This step could take a considerable amount of time depending on the secular humanists’ level of opposition. From here, the evangelist would move to God’s revelation given in the Bible.

The evangelist needs to show that God has given a personal revelation concerning Himself in the Bible. The evangelist would do well to present archaeological evidences for the Bible and must be able to show the evidences for the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Some secular humanists make assumptions against the Bible without research. Lastly, the evangelist would present the person of Jesus Christ to the secular humanist.

The gospel message will be shared completely with the secular humanist as the evangelist presents the person of Jesus Christ. At this stage, the legitimacy for the Bible and truth will be established. Here, the evangelist shows the need for salvation and the message of salvation. Since the secular humanist holds ethics in high regard, the evangelist should present the high ethical message given by Christ Jesus.

Conclusion

Secular humanism is not a reasonable worldview. Secular humanism holds that morality is based upon the person and no other. Yet, that relativist thinking leads to a vast array of logical inconsistencies which eventually ends with no establishment of moral reckoning. Secular humanism holds to science as a means to know everything. Yet, science cannot prove the need for science. Also, the secular humanist must deny the very principle upon which the foundation of science is built, causal relationships, by denying the necessity of a first cause to all natural things. The Christian theist would do well to present the need for objective truth, the necessity of God’s existence, the revelation of God given in the Bible, and the person of Jesus Christ to the secular humanist. While the secular humanist has built a foundation upon logical inconsistencies, the evangelist must remember that the secular humanist is foremost a soul in need of salvation.

Bibliography

American Humanist Association. 1973. “Ethics,” Humanist Manifesto II. http://www.americanhumanist.org/Humanism/Humanist_Manifesto_II (accessed April 25, 2013).

Council for Secular Humanism, “What Is Secular Humanism?” http://www.secularhumanism.org/index.php?section=main&page=what_is (accessed April 24, 2013).

Craig, William Lane, and James D. Sinclair, “The Kalaam Cosmological Argument,” The Blackwell Companion to Natural Theology ed. William Lane Craig and J.P. Moreland (West Sussex, UK: Wiley-Blackwell, 2012), 117.

Dawkins, Richard, Afterword to A Universe From Nothing: Why There is Something Rather than Nothing by Lawrence Krauss (New York, NY: Free Press, 2012), 188.

Geisler, Norman, “Humanism, Secular,” Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 1999), 342.

Harris, Sam, “Belief,” The Moral Landscape: How Science Can Determine Human Values (New York, NY: Free Press, 2010), 115.

Lennox, John, “Is Atheism Poisonous,” Gunning for God: Why the New Atheists are Missing the Mark (Oxford, UK: Lion Publishers, 2011), 83.

[1] Council for Secular Humanism, “What Is Secular Humanism?,” http://www.secularhumanism.org/index.php?section=main&page=what_is (accessed April 24, 2013).

[2] Sam Harris, “Belief,” The Moral Landscape: How Science Can Determine Human Values (New York, NY: Free Press, 2010), 115.

[3] Norman Geisler, “Humanism, Secular,” Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 1999), 342.

[4] Richard Dawkins, afterword to A Universe From Nothing: Why There is Something Rather than Nothing by Lawrence Krauss (New York, NY: Free Press, 2012), 188.

[5] William Lane Craig and James D. Sinclair, “The Kalaam Cosmological Argument,” The Blackwell Companion to Natural Theology ed. William Lane Craig and J.P. Moreland (West Sussex, UK: Wiley-Blackwell, 2012), 117.

[6] American Humanist Association. 1973. “Ethics,” Humanist Manifesto II. http://www.americanhumanist.org/Humanism/Humanist_Manifesto_II (accessed April 25, 2013).

[7] John Lennox, “Is Atheism Poisonous,” Gunning for God: Why the New Atheists are Missing the Mark (Oxford, UK: Lion Publishers, 2011), 83.

• Where did we come from?
• Why are we here?
• Is there a God?
• If there is a God, what does he want?

• What happens to us after we die?
• Did we evolve or were we created?
• Is morality absolute or subjective?

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