World war of Worldviews

A WORLD WAR of
WORLDVIEWS
by Dr. Peter Hammond

“Blessed is the man who does not walk
in the counsel of the wicked
or stand in the way of sinners
or sit in the seat of mockers.
Psalm 1:

But his delight is in the Law of the Lord,
and on His Law he meditates day and night.

He is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither.

Not so the wicked!
They are like chaff that the wind blows away.

Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked will perish.”
Psalm 1

“He who is not with Me is against Me,
and he who does not gather with Me scatters.”
Matthew 12:30

Our worldview needs to answer the basic
questions of life:
1. What is reality?
2. What is our basis of knowledge?
3. How can we know what is right or
wrong?
4. What is man?
5. What happens to a person after death?
6. What is the meaning of history?
7. Why is there suffering and evil?
8. What is the purpose for our existence?
9. How should we live?

The Bible makes clear that:
1. God is ultimate reality (Ps 90:2; Gen 1:1).
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word
was with God and the Word was God.”John 1:1
2. Our basis for knowledge is God’s Revelation
(2 Peter 1:19-21).
“In the past God spoke . . . through the prophets .
. . but in these last days He has spoken to us by
His Son . . .” Hebrews 1:1-2
3. We can know what is right and what is wrong
from the Word of God (Romans 12:1-2).
“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for
teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in
righteousness.” 2 Timothy 3:16

4. Man is created by God but human nature is sinful
(totally depraved) (Gen 1:27, 28; 3:6-12;
Rom 3:10; 5:12; Eph 2:1-3).
“For we are God’s workmanship, created in
Christ Jesus to do good works . . .”
Ephesians 2:10
5. After death each one of us shall face eternal
Judgement and shall either enjoy God’s gracious
rewards in Heaven or endure just punishment in
hell (John 5:28-29; Dan 12:2; 2 Thess 1:8-9).
“Man is destined to die once
and after that to face Judgement.”
Hebrews 9:27

8. The purpose of our existence is to glorify
God and to worship Him forever (John 4:24).
“. . . Whatever you do, do it all for the glory
of God.” 1 Corinthians 10:31
7. Suffering and evil are the result of man’s
rebellion against God since the Fall
(Rom 1:18-32).
“Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked.
A man reaps what he sows.” Galatians 6:7
6. History is His - story. God is sovereign over
history (see Lev 26, Deut 28 and 32; Jer
18:7-10; 2 Chron 7:14).
“The most High is sovereign over the
kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone He
wishes.” Daniel 4:25

9. We should
therefore live in
obedience to the Bible
(1 Sam 15:22;
Matt 7:21).
“The Lord your God
commands you
this day to follow
these decrees and laws,
carefully observe them
with all your heart
and with all your soul”
Deuteronomy 26:16

WHY WE THINK AS WE DO:
HEREDITY – the genetic makeup received
from our parents.
CULTURE – the system of moral and
aesthetic values in the society in
which we live.
FAMILY – upbringing, events and
relationships.
NATIONAL – political developments
and crisis situations that affect
each one of us.

EDUCATION – at school and at home.
ENTERTAINMENT – music listened to, the
films we watch, the books we
read, the things we do.
RELATIONSHIPS – friendships, people
we work with, neighbours and
marriage partner.
PERSONAL CHOICES – or the lack of them.
REVELATION – God’s acts of Grace in
communicating to us through His Word
and in His works.

Some humanist worldviews
RATIONALISM – seeks to discover the
structure of reality guided by human reason
alone.
EMPIRICISM – declares that reason alone is not
sufficient. All our knowledge must be based
upon information provided by our senses.
MATERIALISM – maintains that there is no
reality beyond the physical.
EXISTENTIALISM – evaluates everything from
subjective personal experience.
AGNOSTICISM – maintains that it is
impossible to settle the primary questions of life
because of the limitations of human knowledge.

Evaluating Anyone’s Worldview
General questions to ask about an author,
lecturer, speaker, journalist or anyone else:
1. What is he using to interpret the facts?
2. What are his fundamental beliefs about
life?
3. How consistent is his worldview?
4. What are the practical implications of
his worldview?
5. What will it mean for me personally?
6. What will it mean for the world in
general?

Specific questions:
1. INTELLECTUALLY – What does he
believe is true about himself and his place in
history?
2. PHYSICALLY – How does he treat, or
mistreat, his body by eating, sleeping and
exercising?
3. SOCIALLY – How does he interact with
friends and enemies, the rich and the poor, the
strong and the weak?
4. ECONOMICALLY – What is his motivation
in work and how does he spend his wages?
5. ETHICALLY – What moral guidelines and
obligations directs his thinking about justice
and righteousness?

Mind Siege
Lies of our age:
•Man is good by nature but corrupted by society
•Every man possesses an innate moral
goodness
•Happiness is the measure and goal of our
lives
•Only fools restrain their desires
•Everything is relative
•All you need is love
•Only material and economic changes can
produce social change

Secular Humanism says:
"There is no God to save us; we must
save ourselves!"
Postmodernism says:
"There is no absolute truth; we must
create our own!"
New Age thought says:
"There is no God; I am my own god!"

 "At first the temptation is to see
mankind as God.
 Then it becomes us as God.
 And finally it is me as God.
 So the progression moves from the
worship of man,
 to the worship of us,
 to the worship of me.
 In the end all anthropolaters become
I-dolaters. "I am God".
 Like little antichrists, they exalt and
magnify themselves in the temple of
their own minds." Dr. David Noebel

General Choices Each
generation has to decide:
 Is Christ superior to Nietzche?
 Is God smarter than Karl Marx?
 Is freedom better than totalitarianism?
 Is private ownership of property better
than socialism?
 Is Creation better than evolution?
 Is purpose and design superior to
random chance?
 Is Truth better than falsehood?

 Is love better than falsehood?
 Is good better than evil?
 Is right better than wrong?
 Are moral absolutes better than
moral relativism?
 Is adoption better than abortion?
 Is marital love better than
pornography?
 Is self control better than loose
living?
 Is personal responsibility better than
victimization?

“You adulterous people,
do you not know that friendship
with the world is hatred towards God?
Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world
becomes an enemy of God.” James 4:4

“See to it that no one takes you captive through
hollow and deceptive philosophy, which
depends on human tradition and the basic
principles of the world rather than on Christ.”
Colossians 2:8

“Elijah went before the people and said,
‘How long will you waver between two opinions?
If the Lord is God, follow Him,
but if Baal is God, follow him.’”
1 Kings 18:21

“But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you,
then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve,
whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River,
or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living.
But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”
Joshua 24:15

“Therefore I urge you brothers, in view of God’s mercy,
to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and
pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship.
Romans 12:1

Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world,
but be transformed by the renewing of your mind;
Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is
– His good, pleasing and perfect will.”
Romans 12: 2

Frontline Fellowship
PO Box 74
Newlands
7725
Cape Town
South Africa
E-mail: admin@frontline.org.za
Web: www.frontline.org.za

World war of Worldviews

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