Changing your worldview glasses

I spent the first 18 years of my life in rural Missouri where most people viewed life pretty much like I did. Back then I probably did not even know the word "worldview." Yet I had one. This worldview was "a set of premises (assumptions that may be true, partially true or completely false) that I held (consciously or subconsciously, consistently or inconsistently) about the basic structure of the world (James Sire, The Universe Next Door)." True for people in general, "these beliefs were so obvious to me that they seemed to be universal. They were just the way things really are. I assumed that others saw things the way I did. Since these assumptions were taken for granted, they were not subjected to critical evaluation and were simply taken for granted (Paul Hiebert, MissionShift)."

This changed in 2000 when we moved to Eastern Europe to serve as missionaries. Since then, I have been surrounded by people who see life differently, and I have been challenged to reevaluate my assumptions. Eastern Europeans certainly see reality differently than I formerly did. They know that sweet cherries and sour cherries are not two kinds of the same fruit, but two different fruits; and they are sure broccoli and cauliflower are types of cabbage. They are sure that sitting in a cross draft will give you back pains, and drinking cold drinks will give you a sore throat (especially in winter). And, of course, drinking any fluids while eating will impede digestion. However, eating pieces of raw pork fat called "salo" is in no way bad for you. Sitting on the ground in any month other than June, July or August can make a woman sterile, and sitting at the corner of a table can reduce a young guy's chance of getting married.

While living all this time encountering very different views of the world, I have had to learn to do two things. I have had to do all I could to try to understand how others view the world, and I have had to determine what to accept and what to reject based on biblical principles. The apostle Paul had to do this, too. In Acts 17.22-34, Paul had an opportunity to speak before the chief counsel on philosophy and religion in Athens. In his speech, he drew on his understanding of the worldview of Greeks to present the gospel to them. Paul began by drawing attention to the fact that they were extremely religious in every respect (Acts 17.22 CSB). The word "religious" could have either a positive (dedicated to a particular religion) or negative (superstitious) meaning.

The Athenians were very active in their religious practice but there were significant problems in it. Paul quickly notes this in verse 23. "The Athenians, who feared they might overlook venerating some deity they did not know about, dedicated an altar TO an unknown God (Bible Knowledge Commentary)." Paul uses it to begin to talk to them about the one true God. He is the God who made the world and everything in it. He is Lord of heaven and earth (v. 24 CSB). "This teaching flatly contradicted both the Epicureans, who believed matter was eternal and therefore had no creator, and the Stoics, who as pantheists believed God was part of everything and could not have created himself (MacArthur Study Bible)." Having challenged the Greeks' view of the origin of the material world, Paul emphasized that this one true God is not in any way dependent on man. He does not live in shrines made by hands. Neither is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything (vv. 24,25 CSB). Instead, he himself gives everyone life and breath and all things (v. 25 CSB). The Stoics would have agreed with Paul that a god does not need anything, but Greeks actively involved in maintaining the temples and sacrifices would have opposed this idea.

In verse 26, Paul moves on to challenge Greek national pride. From one man he has made every nationality to live over the whole earth and has determined their appointed times and the boundaries of where they live (CSB). "The Athenians believed they had originated from the soil of their homeland and were different than other peoples (Holman Bible Commentary)." Paul told them all peoples were created by the one true God through one man, Adam, and that he rules over all nations determining their rising and falling and even their geographical borders. God does all this so people would seek him. In verses 27-29, Paul calls into question the Greek practice of making physical idols. He starts by drawing attention to God's omnipresence. "He is not far from each one of us. For in him we live and move and have our being (vv. 27,28 CSB)." Then he goes on to point out that absurdity of associating divinity with physical statues. "As even some of your own poets have said, 'For we are also his offspring.' Since, then, we are God's offspring, we shouldn't think that the divine nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image fashioned by human art and imagination (vv. 28,29 CSB)." To bolster his argument, Paul refers to two Greek poets. "The first part of verse 28 comes from Cretica by Epimenides, and the second part of the verse from Hymn to Zeus, written by the Cilician poet Aratus (Holman Bible Commentary)." Paul's logic is clear. "God is not like gold or silver or stone, of which idols are made. God made us (we are God's offspring). We are much more complex and wonderful than these lifeless materials. Therefore, God himself must also be much more wonderful than these things (ESV Global Study Bible)." These comments not only struck at the heart of Greek worship but also touched on the lucrative industry of idol making.

So far, Paul has mostly pointed out the faults in the worldview of the Athenians. In verses 30-32, he calls for change. "Therefore, having overlooked the times of ignorance, God now commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has set a day when he is going to judge the world in righteousness by the man he has appointed. He has provided proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead (CSB)." They had lived in ignorance and needed to repent. They were wrong in worshiping multiple false gods and needed to turn to the one true God. This change was extremely urgent because they would one day be judged by this God's representative (Jesus). While the ideas of repentance and judgement would have been hard to swallow, the idea of resurrection from the dead would have been unbelievable. Greeks believed the spiritual was good, but the material was bad. The physical body was like a prison, and death was the release from that prison. The idea of someone returning to that prison was absurd. Consequently, when they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some began to ridicule him, but others said, "We'd like to hear from you again about this (v 32)." Evidently, the scoffers were in the majority, and those who offered to listen again may not have been very serious because Paul left their presence (v 33). Paul challenged the worldview of the Athenians and called them to change. Most wanted no part in it. So, Paul did not continue discussing this with them.

However, some people joined him and believed, including Dionysius the Areopagite, a woman named Damaris, and others with them (v. 34 CSB). A few were persuaded and chose to change their worldview. They took off their old worldview glasses and put on new ones. This was a very hard and courageous step because "'worldview glasses' are very difficult to remove or change to others. Once worn, they stick tightly. Trying to take off old 'glasses' and put on new ones is always associated with great effort and even pain. From a Christian point of view, the negative result of this fact is that, without taking off the old 'glasses,' a person will not be able to look at the world in a Christian way, no matter how sincerely he strives to become a Christian (Jonathan Lewis, World Mission)."

What kind of worldview glasses are you wearing? Are you willing to take off your old ones and put on new ones to follow Christ?

DAN UPCHURCH is a native of Bollinger County. He and his wife, Lori, have spent many years as missionaries in Ukraine and currently serve in Poland.