World View and the Kingdom of God

Ron MacDonald

Durban, South Africa

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January 1996; revised September 2003

Author’s Note:

I revised this in an attempt to bring some clarity into the relatively recent interest of “Multicultural Christianity”. At present I am associated with a local church and a church network that is known world wide for its effective work in a multicultural setting. Personally, I am devoted to bringing down the walls that have separated Christians, and race and culture have been main culprits. As a missionary in South Africa I have found that major attempts to unite congregations and Christians in practical ways are very often unsuccessful and usually result in a “peace” between the various cultural groups, but the divisions remain.

Our good intentions have not brought the expected fruit. In practice, various mixes must occur between the mono-culture of a single family and the other end of the continuum, multi-ethnic celebrations of gathered churches. Our posture toward cultures should be friendly and inclusive with regard to the people in those cultures. To be preoccupied with our culture, even for the purpose of being united is focusing on the wrong thing. It is our culture that emphasizes our differences and we are focusing then on the differences. There is an order of attention here that, when adhered to will more likely bring the required unity.

My thesis is the emphasis upon being “multi-cultural” is misplaced, and should be on that which moves us into an infinitely greater “world” of “The Kingdom of God”. If we seek the Kingdom of God, the other matters will be resolved. The word translated “Church” is literally “the called out ones”. Culture is part of the system we are called out from.

1. INTRODUCTION

For many years the term World View has been used as a means of understanding the dynamics of culture and human behavior. This paper will attempt to explain some of the practical implications and even more significant consequences of our World View and the Kingdom of God For our purposes, a few simple definitions are in order. The Kingdom of God is here considered as the rule of the government of God over all creation. World View is the matrix or understanding in which we receive and give meaning to information, and the platform on which we respond. It extends deep beyond our awareness, and most often is a hidden motivator. Everyone has a World View in varying degrees of complexity and sophistication. We are born with one and continue to expand, adjust and modify it as we mature. With the exceptions of our very life source and human nature, nothing reflects the fall of man more than his World View. We read in Genesis that the first result of the sin of Adam and Eve was that they saw themselves as naked. They had a radical shift from God Consciousness to Self Consciousness. Their world no longer revolved around God, but now they were the center of the universe. Survival came as a result of their labors and all remaining life, as corrupted as it was, now focused upon their own desires, goals, and comfort. No longer were they motivated to serve and obey the rule of God, but now they served a new god. As the temptation had so diabolically promised–they had indeed become as gods, and had begun to create their own world.

2. THE CONCEPT OF WORLD VIEW

When one is born as a baby his World View is purely reflective of his fallen nature. He knows somewhere down deep that he wants to be god, but the world he finds himself in is not cooperative. Circumstances do not yield to his claim for deity, so he assaults this unresponsive world with demands worthy of the most relentless tyrant. Had he the physical powers of adulthood he would be a dictator second to none.

Evolution of a World View

Never does he resign his claim for total sovereignty, but as he grows older he learns about cause and effect. In a feigned posture of compromise he makes a fragile peace with other contenders for the throne, but all the while collecting knowledge, strategy, possessions and other power weapons to fight his way up the royal ladder. Even the cellular events of the very beginnings of human life occur in the harsh competitive environment where there is commonly only one survivor. The quest is never really abandoned. The intensity of the battle, the awareness of his own capabilities compared to the others, and the rebukes of life may cause the battle or the definition of victory to take on bizarre aberrations, but down deep, he still goes his own way. Goals and purpose might be sublimated, compromised, or twisted, but in the end, remains the desire to be recognized as king. All that is seen and learned is absorbed and evaluated in light of this agenda. This struggle among the individuals in society forms the patterns and traditions that we call culture. When reality becomes too intense and the possibility of success becomes too remote, the pursuit is never abandoned, but lived and experienced in the imagination and dreams. If he cannot bend reality to his will, then he reshapes his concept of “reality”.

Our World View becomes the filter or eye glasses through which we see what we call reality. It becomes the hidden motivator that gives meaning to what we perceive, and purpose to our actions. There are as many World Views as there are contenders for the throne. Some are very philosophical, while others practical and seemingly virtuous in serving mankind. As certain individuals gain degrees of power, they impose their world system upon others, who may accommodate, modify, or even resist. He learns to make a degree of peace with others, but behind the scene lays that primeval urge to take charge if given opportunity. Even the redemptive actions of God Himself cannot make it righteous. Only a removal from its authority and power will enable it to be ruled over and serve the purposes of the Creator. This, what we call World View, is the perception of fallen man from his now dimmed and dying eyes of flesh. It is indeed limited to “worldly things”, and sight into the eternal beyond the world of limited senses is now totally obscured. Reports of “sightings beyond” by others are considered foolish and fanciful. There is not only an inability to accommodate these reports, but to do so would cause his world view to crumble into rubble, undoing his dream of sovereignty for ever.       

Manifestation of Culture

Even though self will remains on the throne, man has found that his survival is facilitated by bonding together with others of like passions. A king must have his subjects, and the promise of one day inheriting this society encourages man to submit to the demands of the unity of shared living space, resources, and traditions. So it is that the corporate outworking of individual needs is served on a primary level in a cultural expression. That significant power could be summoned from man’s combined will is evident in the events leading to the Biblical episode of the city and great tower built in Babel. God elected to invade this new world man was building, and judged his impudence by fragmenting and scattering this attempt to rule the earth. With communication limiting people into smaller groups, language became the prime delineator of culture on the earth. Gradually the separation resulted in geographical relocation with the accompanying unique cultural elements. But only the circumstances had been changed. The underlying quest for sovereign reign had only been frustrated, not abandoned. All of the developing traditions, methods, and life styles were to be contaminated by the curse of the fall. Consequently, all world cultures are corrupt and incapable of ultimately serving the purposes of God. As these new cultures established order and power they evolved into hundreds of kingdoms, each struggling to become the kingdom on the earth. What was to come, however, was not another flawed world system, but one birthed out of the eternal aspirations of God.

3. THE KINGDOM OF GOD

To call the Kingdom of God a world view, even the correct one, is not quite right. It transcends the concept of world view as much as the heavenlies transcend the earthlies. There is so much of the Kingdom that is beyond an earthly view that it must stand alone in its category. The Scriptures speak of many kingdoms in the world, but like the gods of this world, they too are idols. The reasoning and laws behind these worldly kingdoms come from a fallen creation. The Kingdom of God is not a “view” or perspective, but reality itself! The natural man cannot accept this.

Translation into a New World

The Scriptures speak of our transfer from the kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of His Dear Son. This clearly puts forth the necessity of our being removed from all world views and established in a new way of thinking and behaving. Merely adding Christian principles and values to an old world view is ineffective because they just don’t fit worldly kingdoms. They look compatible, but when planted in foreign soil take upon themselves the nature of that soil. To the outward eye the fruit looks the same, but it is a mutation, and ultimately will not produce the love, peace, and joy of the real thing.

Unfortunately the Church has tried to do just that, — mix their new found faith with their cultural heritage. The Scriptural admonition is to seek HIS kingdom and righteousness. This is not an attempt to come to some sort of realization of imputed grace, but a continual posturing of ourselves to be governed by His ways and desires. Since the Kingdom is, first of all—within, we must be motivated and behave according to His standards. Religion attempts to govern from without, by rules and commands. These people see the kingdom, but have not entered into it. They must be more than born again. Their bottom rock foundation must be changed from the kingdom of self to the Kingdom of God. So this kingdom is not one of knowledge, or externals, but of a major shift from the old world view. This may all seem abstract and merely a part of the on-going work of salvation.

The Practical Outworking of the Kingdom

During the last century the church has struggled to come to grips with the obvious situation where individuals have made an approved acceptance of the claims of Christ, have been baptized, believe all the right doctrine, and yet fail to live their lives under the lordship of Jesus. Groups have had special “deeper life” conferences, theologically coined terms like “carnal Christians”, and even taught, “If he isn’t lord of all, then he isn’t lord at all.” It has been obvious that something is very wrong.

The Church has been so contaminated by the Western World View that not only has the supernatural been removed from otherwise fundamental and evangelical churches, but an anemic body has resulted. A great importance has been placed upon the giving of information with little on the formation in the believer. Christian education has been more preaching than teaching. Little training and modeling has occurred and content has been an end in itself. The liberal world view contends that education alone is the cure to life’s ills. Our concern must be not only the content we give, but how and what the student does with it in the arena of daily living.

Salvation demands a radical shift from his old references to a new “blank canvas” whereon newly defined Kingdom Concepts of such things as family, the work ethic, sexuality, and personal worth are placed. This “canvas” must be so established that all things find a new place on it. Science, history, geography, art, etc. are reoriented and their meanings and purposes flow from this new view through Kingdom “eyeglasses”. The picture on the left illustrates the “line upon line, precept upon precept” method of teaching. (The Biblical reference to this indicates that this is not the best method, but is necessary because of stubbornness.) A method showing integration into the Kingdom view might look like that on the right.

The following table shows the sort of difference referred to:

All content that is taught in the first column is also taught in the second, but in the context of its significance in the Kingdom of God. This means that if one is taught that he is saved from hell, he cannot merely go on in his old way and assimilate his “new found life insurance”. All of the things He does for us are given purpose and value in his rule over us. i.e. Our motivation to evangelize is not primarily that we have compassion on the lost, but because He died for them, and He desires that we tell of His wondrous love. Although these differences appear minor, they are really issues of life and death; of spirit and flesh. One is truly redemptive, the other not. Some of those using the traditional methods would claim that they teach these things. Perhaps they do, but mainly as “add one’s” to the initial lessons. That most have failed in this matter is testified to by the ways various cultures have developed a syncretistic church.

Perhaps one final practical example is in order. One of the most distinctive activities that has definite cultural uniqueness is the eating of food. There is Chinese food, Italian food, Mexican food, and so on. Are we not to eat these foods but only “Kingdom food”, whatever that is. The first question is, “Why eat at all?” Of course we eat to live. (There is the saying that some “live to eat”.) Are we to become ascetics and eat only basic nutritional foods, or are there other reasons? Can we eat meat? Are we eating because we’re hungry or because a worldly advertiser has manipulated our mind? Is it habit? If so, is it a bad habit? Is it yielding to a fad? Can we afford it? Is it wrong to enjoy it? Is one food preferable over another? Can we drink wine? ...the real stuff? Scriptures have much to say about eating and answer all of these questions. They teach principles and absolutes, but all fall under the Lordship of Jesus Christ and his Kingdom. A conclusion to a chapter on this very matter states that the Kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit".

These issues have separated churches, caused new denominations to form, and even been the source of hatred and death. To say they are not important is to be ignorant of our history. Agreed, the questions are not foundational, but the answers are. They are all a part of the constitution and by-laws of the Kingdom of God.

4. SUMMARY

The Kingdom of God is not another World View. It does have similar characteristics, but it differs in that it is not relative, but absolute. It has an existence whether it is seen or not. Man’s eyes do not behold it except as he has been born again. It is entered when one, through obedience, is translated from the Kingdom of Self to the Kingdom of God. It does give the Christian a “pair of eye-glasses” through which all things are seen in a new way, for all things have become new. Even though it is entered into suddenly, there is a growth period. It is not, however, the perpetual immaturity found in much of the church.

The concept of a World View is helpful, however, in distinguishing what we do with all that we learn. It is as a mental “reference library” where things and their meanings are stored. Our behavior and beliefs come from these references. Because of this, only by changing this “library” can we see a change in our beliefs and actions. The Kingdom of God is not a culture, but does modify the original culture of the disciple. It might resemble the original, but that is incidental. If one lives according to the Word of God, the world system will, however, be actively hostile.

The Bible tells us that unless we “do” the Word we will deceive ourselves. Most Christians have contented themselves to hearing the Word and accumulating more and more truths into their minds, but have never truly received them. This has resulted in biblical truths being incorporated into many different cultures and their churches. Although they give the appearance of Godliness, they lack the power.

All of the problems spoken of can be addressed if the Gospel of the Kingdom is presented, and the convert is fully translated into a completely new government. To seek his Kingdom and his righteousness is not a call to super-spirituality, but basic salvation.

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Footnotes:

1. The Western World View is one initially based on Greek rationalism and Platonic philosophy. The Age of Enlightenment reinforced this emphasis to the degree that only that which is scientifically observable is accepted, and the supernatural is almost entirely discounted. Even much of the Church bought into this world view, some relegating the miraculous intervention of God to the distant past or the equally distant future.

2. Preaching as found in many churches today is not based upon biblical patterns, but upon Greek and later oratorical methods. Much of the teaching is often merely lecturing. Effective teaching and discipleship methods are extremely rare.

3. Answering these questions is quite beyond the scope of this paper. Scriptures addressing the issue of food and eating are referenced as follows:(NT Chapters)  Mat 6,  9,11 , 12, 14, 15, 24, 26 Mark 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 11, 14  Luke 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 12, 13, 14, 15, 17, 22, 24  John 2, 4, 6, 13, 18  Acts 2, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 20, 23, 27 Rom 14  ICor 5, 8, 9, 10, 11, 15  IICor 9 Gal 2  IIThes 3  ITim 6  IITim 2 Heb 13 Ja 2, 5 Rev 2, 10, 17, 19