by Mark McClellan
Dean of the Herschel H. Hobbs College of Theology and Ministry, Oklahoma Baptist University

God, Himself, is the source of the Christian worldview. Nancy Pearcy in her book, Total Truth, explains that “Christian worldview thinking is far more than a mental strategy or a new spin on current events.  At the core, it is a deepening of our spiritual character and the character of our lives. It begins with the submission of our minds to the Lord of the universe-a willingness to be taught by Him.

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The importance and impact of worldview

by Tawa J. Anderson
Assistant Professor of Philosophy, Oklahoma Baptist University

Three friends went on safari in the Serengeti, and observed the majestic beauty and diversity of the African wild. The first friend, John Luther, commented boldly: “Is not our God truly amazing?! The Lord has created an amazing array of creatures and landscapes that sing His praises and declare His glory.”

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The Creationist worldview according to the Bible

by Ishwaran Mudliar
Assistant Professor of Old Testament, Southwestern Seminary

Scripture quotations are taken from the New American Standard Bible (NASB).   

Once upon a time, about 4.5 billions of years ago, say the evolutionists, the Earth and solar system came into existence. How exactly no one knows, yet they allege that it happened haphazardly from gas, dust, primordial soup or the like. There was no purpose and no creator, except perhaps some aliens from outer space. Indeed, life is random and meaningless. Evolutionists insist that humans evolved from “ape” men who lived millions of years ago. Through the process of natural selection, animals, “ape” men and men experienced evil, death and misery. Because there is no heavenly Maker and Judge, humans received no code of ethics and have no need of eternal salvation.

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A Christian worldview and human sinfulness

by Stan Norman
Provost and Executive Vice President for Campus Life, Oklahoma Baptist University

A Christian worldview typically and historically takes into account that something has gone horrifically wrong with God’s created order. Any worldview that does not account in some way for the presence of sin is terribly misleading and grossly deficient.  Only in the Christian worldview do we find a revelatory perspective of what the problem is with God’s creation and what He has done to overcome that problem.

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The center of a Christian worldview

by Terry L. Wilder
Professor and Wesley Harrison Chair of New Testament, Southwestern Seminary 

Tawa Anderson basically defined a worldview as “the conceptual lens through which we view our world.”

A worldview is a comprehensive and integrated grid or framework through which we see things. For one who follows Christ, a thoroughgoing view of the world must operate from a biblical standpoint.

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Christian worldview and new creation

by Alan Bandy
Rowena R. Strickland assistant professor of New Testament & Greek at Oklahoma Baptist University

“Something is wrong.” Those very words often send a shiver down our spines. A report comes from the doctor who utters those dreadful words “something is wrong         . . . it’s cancer.” A child in a dusty African village awaits a slow death as he lies on the ground with a bloated stomach, swarmed by flies and dying of starvation . . . “something is wrong.” The coast of Japan is devastated by a massive tsunami causing a large swath of death with continued problems due to nuclear toxic waste leaking into the ocean and poisoning all life within . . . “something is wrong.”

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God, Himself, is the source of the Christian worldview. Nancy Pearcy in her book, Total Truth, explains that “Christian worldview thinking is far more than a mental strategy or a new spin on current events.  At the core, it is a deepening of our spiritual character and the character of our lives. It begins with the submission of our minds to the Lord of the universe-a willingness to be taught by Him. The driving force in worldview studies should be a commitment to ‘love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind.’ (Lk 10:27) . . . God is not just the Savior of our souls; He is also the Lord of creation.  One way we acknowledge His Lordship is by interpreting every aspect of creation in light of His truth. God’s Word becomes a set of glasses offering a new perspective on all our thoughts and actions.”

God, by revealing Himself in the Bible, has given us the lens to see and understand the creation we are a part of, what our life is meant to be and what eternity with God truly means.

We wear glasses when we have poor eyesight so that we can see clearly just what we are looking at. Many of the objects that we see do not change, but the ability to see them for what they actually are does change with glasses.  We might not see steps clearly and fall. An object may be beautiful, but we would not know. The glasses are the lens through which we see things as they really are. That is what a Christian worldview is, and that lens is God as He has revealed Himself in the Bible.

This makes our understanding of the inspiration, authority and total truthfulness of the Bible paramount. It is the source of all truth and the lens by which we see God, the world, life and eternity truly (2 Tim. 3:15-17). We believe the Bible is completely truthful because God is completely truthful (Heb. 6:17-18). God is the only One who knows all of reality truly and comprehensively, and Jesus Christ is at the very center of that truth.

He is truth (John 14:6; Heb. 1:1-3). Nonetheless, we live in an era in which many of the cultural, societal and educational authorities oppose the existence of absolute truth or even that there is a truth or truths that are true for all people. Knowing that there are things, ideas, understandings or reality that is true is essential to life. Our very being cries out for it. From my years in the courtroom, I remember the familiar words, “the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth so help you God.” The Bible reveals a comprehensive truth about how to know God, understand the world we live in and live life fully as He has purposed.

Another way to consider this is a large puzzle with many very small pieces.  While some of the beauty of the complete picture can be seen as more pieces are in place, we can only see it completely when all of the pieces are in place.  The Bible represents the completed puzzle, the full picture (the one we see on the puzzle box). As we study and grasp the Bible and its grand narrative, it provides us with our worldview. It puts together pieces such as what is God like?, what is my relationship with Him and my deepest need?, how do I understand things that are wrong in the world?, what should I expect of myself and others?, what standards of conduct should I live by?, what should I live for?, how does my daily life relate to what is unseen?, is there an eternity? and many other dimensions of reality.

We all live every day with a worldview. For the Christian, the growth and clarity of that worldview develops most importantly in the study of the Bible and our own spiritual growth (Psalm 119:11; Col. 2:6). Let’s return to the picture of the lens or the glasses. This time let’s picture the lens as clouded or dirty in need of cleaning. The continual growth in our knowledge of the Bible and its truth and our own spiritual growth gradually cleans and clears the lens of how we understand everything, so we can see God and all of reality more clearly.

I cannot overemphasize this. Everyone, including Christians, receives countless pieces of information, ideas, beliefs, values and more every day that can influence our own worldview, even though many of them are contradictory and untrue. We often adopt them and live as if they are true. It can be compared to an attempt to put pieces from another puzzle into the puzzle we are attempting to complete. Our lives are then lived according to a mixture of what is true and untrue. Tragically, even in the church, people have embraced ideas and feelings that are not consistent with the teaching of the Bible, and perhaps most tragically, to create a god of our own human sensibilities and one created in part by other worldviews. For the Christian, there is no such god. That is why the development of a strong, biblical, Christian worldview is essential for the Christian and the church today. The Bible determines our theology and our theology determines our worldview.

The next articles will explain four biblical and theological pillars of the Christian Worldview. They provide us with the overarching completed picture, puzzle or grand story of God. The study and understanding of a Christian Worldview calls us to look at and study the great true story of the entire Bible to answer the most important issues and human longings.

Suggested Readings:  Total Truth by Nancy Pearcy;  The book series on Developing a Christian Worldview (with individual and group study guides) by the late Charles Colson and Nancy Pearcy;  Hidden Worldviews by  Steve Wilkens and Mark L. Sanford; Worldviews in Conflict: Choosing Christianity in a World of Ideas by Ronald H. Nash

Three friends went on safari in the Serengeti, and observed the majestic beauty and diversity of the African wild. The first friend, John Luther, commented boldly: “Is not our God truly amazing?! The Lord has created an amazing array of creatures and landscapes that sing His praises and declare His glory.”

The second friend, Charles Dawkins, immediately responded: “An amazing array of creatures, to be sure. But you err, my good man, in ascribing their existence to a Creator.  No, these animals are the result of unguided, purposeless random mutation and natural selection. We too are the product of a godless evolutionary process.”

The third friend, Shirley Chopra, serenely replied: “I pray you both would be enlightened to the full reality disclosed by our animal brothers and sisters. For they bear the same spark of divinity that lies within you and I. Do you not sense them calling out to you, seeking to communicate with your spirit?”

The same animals, the same nature preserve—the same objective truth. Yet three friends have different perspectives as to what those animals represent. Why? Simply put, John, Charles and Shirley are experiencing a clash of worldviews.

Worldview is the conceptual lens through which we view our world. Worldview contains a set of fundamental assumptions and understandings about life, the universe and everything. James Sire defines worldview as “a commitment, a fundamental orientation of the heart, that can be expressed as a story or in a set of presuppositions (assumptions which may be true, partially true or entirely false) which we hold (consciously or subconsciously, consistently or inconsistently) about the basic constitution of reality, and that provides the foundation on which we live and move and have our being.”

Our worldview answers four fundamental questions about reality.

1. What is our nature? Who am I? What does it mean to be human? What distinguishes us from other creatures? Are we the product of random mutation and natural selection, or are we the handiwork of divine creation? Are we purely physical, material beings; or do we have an immaterial soul?
2. What is our world? What is the nature and character of the world? Is the world ordered or chaotic? Is matter eternal and uncreated, divine and co-eternal with ‘god,’ or limited and created? What is “ultimate reality?” Is the universe all that is, all that ever was and all that ever will be? Does God exist; if so, what is God like?
3. What is our problem? What is wrong with us, and how can it be solved? Why are things not the way they ‘ought’ to be? Is it sinful rebellion against God? Ignorance, religious superstition and lack of education? The illusion of personal desires? How can we go about solving the problem?
4. What is our destination? Is there any meaning and purpose in life, or are we random creatures in a purposeless, meaningless universe? What happens to us after we die? Is physical death the end of human existence? Are we absorbed into an impersonal ultimate reality? Are we judged at the throne of God Almighty for an eternity in Heaven or Hell?

What is our nature? What is our world? What is our problem? What is our destination? Every person possesses a worldview which provides an answer to these four core worldview questions.

Everyone has a worldview, and worldviews answer these four fundamental questions. So what? Why does worldview matter? Simply put, worldview matters because it affects everything that we think and do—most importantly, worldview determines our “pool of live options.”

The pool of live options is our set of possible explanations for a given event.  Whenever possible, we interpret events in a way that fits with what we already believe. Thus, when we encounter something new, we interpret it through our worldview, which provides a pool of live options. For example, imagine that Aunt Rose is diagnosed with terminal cancer. Her family prays for God’s miraculous healing. Weeks later, the doctors find her to be free from cancer. How do you explain what happened? Simple: God healed Aunt Rose out of His compassionate mercy in response to His children’s prayers. For the atheist, such an explanation is not possible—it lies outside the pool of live options. Either the initial diagnosis was mistaken, or some treatment rid her body of cancer, or there is some unknown natural explanation for her healing. Whatever the case, Aunt Rose was not the recipient of a divine miracle—God does not exist to perform such miracles, and therefore it cannot be the explanation.

There are many different worldviews out there (Christian, Muslim, Atheist, Buddhist, Hindu, Existentialist, New Age, etc.). So how do we know whether someone’s worldview is true—that is, if they see the world the way the world really is? (See Rom. 12:2; Col. 2:8)

How can we check our own worldview eyesight? I offer three suggestions.

1. Internal Consistency (logical coherence). Does the worldview make sense with itself? Some worldviews contradict themselves: for example, the belief that it is absolutely true that there is no absolute truth.
2. External Consistency (fits reality). Does the worldview make sense of the real world? Some worldviews deny fundamental reality: for example, the belief that evil and suffering is an illusion.
3. Liveability (subjective satisfaction). Does the worldview make life liveable? Some worldviews deny meaning and purpose in life. Such a worldview cannot fulfill the inherent need of human beings to live a meaningful life.

In this series of articles, we want to invite you to consider the importance of worldview.  Worldview is the conceptual lens through which we interpret the world around us. It provides answers to the fundamental questions about life, the universe and everything. Worldview affects the way that we live and move and think. It is, therefore, crucial that we examine our worldview, to ensure that we see the world the way God does.

Scripture quotations are taken from the New American Standard Bible (NASB).   

Once upon a time, about 4.5 billions of years ago, say the evolutionists, the Earth and solar system came into existence. How exactly no one knows, yet they allege that it happened haphazardly from gas, dust, primordial soup or the like. There was no purpose and no creator, except perhaps some aliens from outer space. Indeed, life is random and meaningless. Evolutionists insist that humans evolved from “ape” men who lived millions of years ago. Through the process of natural selection, animals, “ape” men and men experienced evil, death and misery. Because there is no heavenly Maker and Judge, humans received no code of ethics and have no need of eternal salvation.

To the contrary, the holy Bible declares that the eternal God created the universe out of nothing in six days, and rested on the seventh day (Gen. 1:1-2:3; Ex. 20:8-11).  Man’s body was created from the ground on the sixth day and the LORD God breathed into him the breath of life (Gen. 2:7). Possessing the image of God, his purpose is to glorify God forever (Gen. 1:26-27, 31; Rom. 11:36).

Man has the capacity to reason and commune with God, but animals are devoid of this capacity. Plants, animals and man do not possess deity and are not to be worshiped (Jer. 10:1-10; Acts 10:25-26; 12:20-23).  Only God is be worshiped. In addition, man’s Maker and Judge is holy and expects holiness in man, without which no one will see the Lord (Isaiah 6:1-13; Psalm 73:1; Heb. 12:14-17; Matt. 5:8; Titus 2:11-14).  Man is accountable to God.

Let’s elaborate. Scripture teaches that God is eternal, unchanging, and created the world out of nothing. “Before the mountains were born, or You gave birth to the Earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.” (Psalm 90:2). “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today, yes and forever.” (Heb. 13:8) “By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible.” (Heb. 11:3) The Creator spoke and the perfect and good world systematically came into existence in the span of six days (Gen. 1:1-2:3).

Our Almighty Creator made man for the purpose of glorifying Him forever. “For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen.” (Rom.  11:36)  “Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” (1 Cor. 10:31)  We do not exist to please and glorify ourselves, but the God Who created us (John 8:29; 2 Cor. 5:9; Col. 1:10).

Yet, fellowship with our Maker and Judge is broken by sin. Our greatest need is to be reconciled to God. Adam and Eve, the first human couple, were tested by the Lord in the Garden of Eden, yet failed in disobedience (Gen. 1:26-27; 2:7, 18-25; 3:1-24). Because of their sin and each person’s many sins, death entered into the world, and lost man’s penalty for sin is the Lake of Fire forever (Rom. 5:12-21; Matt. 25:46; Rev. 20:11-15). However, Jesus Christ, the sinless Lord and Savior, came into the world to save sinners from eternal punishment if they repent of sin and believe in His death and resurrection on their behalf (Isa. 52:7-53:12; John 2:23-3:21; Acts 20:21; Rom.10:9-13).

The sacred Scripture says, “And God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.” (Gen. 1:27) This means we have a rational capability foreign to the animals and one which is to submit to the will of the Creator. Christian ethics assume these truths so that there is right and wrong, good and evil (Ex. 20:1-17). Man is not a higher animal, nor is he able to decide for himself according to his whims. Moreover, no ethnicity is inherently higher or better than another because all humans possess the image of God (Gen. 5:1-32; 11:1-9; Acts 17:16-31; James 3:9). Therefore, genocide and the suppression of others are contradictory to a biblically-informed Christian worldview.

The preceding views also inform our standpoint on missions. Since the Lord, “made from one, every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the Earth,” (Acts 17:26) and since, “both Jews and Greeks are all under sin,” (Rom. 3:9) it is necessary to proclaim the Gospel of Christ. As Jesus commissioned us, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations…” (Matt. 28:19-20) The one true and eternal God, the Creator of the ends of the Earth, the only Savior, announced long ago, “Turn to Me, and be saved, all the ends of the Earth; for I am God, and there is no other.” (Isaiah 40:28; 45:22; 43:10-11; 49:6).”

For further reading, check Coming to Grips with Genesis: Biblical Authority and the Age of the Earth by Terry Mortenson and Thane H. Ury.  Also visit: www.answersingenesis.org.

A Christian worldview typically and historically takes into account that something has gone horrifically wrong with God’s created order. Any worldview that does not account in some way for the presence of sin is terribly misleading and grossly deficient.  Only in the Christian worldview do we find a revelatory perspective of what the problem is with God’s creation and what He has done to overcome that problem.

With the fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, sin “came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned” (Rom. 5:13). A Christian worldview must adequately engage the enormity of human sinfulness.  Our sin problem must be assessed with the utmost seriousness, understanding that eternal destinies are at stake.  A Christian worldview must never regard the sinfulness of humanity lightly or glibly.

The Bible presents a horrific picture of the manifestation and devastation of sin. Sin is idolatry, rebellion, missing the mark, straying from the path, treachery, lust, ungodliness and wickedness. Sin disregards, commits willful error, brings guilt and lacks integrity. Sin lusts, perverts and breaks the law. Sin is overstepping a boundary and a failure to reach it, a transgression and a shortcoming. Sin is like a beast “crouching at the door” (Gen. 4:7). Sinners are not merely sick or morally weak; we are fallen, dead in our sins and trespasses (Eph. 2:5).

The magnitude of the sin problem must be considered against the backdrop of the person and work of Jesus Christ. The Gospel itself is a message that God is not indifferent or indulgent to sin. God will execute His judgment upon sin and the sinner. The severity and depth of sin is nowhere more fully revealed, and its judgment nowhere more strongly depicted, than in the crucifixion of the Son of God. The sinless One took upon Himself the curse of sin in order to liberate us from it (Gal. 3:13). By taking our guilt upon Himself, Christ destroyed sin in His own body (Rom. 8:3). Through His death, sin is judged, and its power destroyed. The death of Jesus provides a sacrificial payment for sin’s guilt and brings liberation from sin’s penalty and power.

Numerous social, political, theological and philosophical theories contend that sin did not originate with human beings or that humanity is not ultimately responsible for sin.  Many have attempted to understand and explain sin independent from a belief in an actual historical Fall and the corruption of human nature. For example, Unitarians assert that human beings are morally neutral. Human conduct is sinful when it acts contrary to accepted social customs or cultural mores. Thus sin is defined as antisocial behavior, according to H. Shelton Smith in Changing Conceptions of Original Sin. Corliss Lamont contended in The Philosophy of Humanism that human nature is morally neutral, believing that propaganda and cultural conditioning result in selfish and violent impulses.  According to Lamont, education would bring the transformation of antisocial passions, motives, ambitions and habits. Karl Marx located human evil in the dialectical conflict of social classes in his Capital and Manifesto of the Communist Party. He believed that a socialist re-distribution of resources and power would inevitably lead to utopia. Jose Miranda identified the root of all human evil in the economic oppression of the poor by unjust social structures. Transformation of social structures would ultimately lead to real justice for all people, thereby eliminating human wickedness.

Although contemporary culture belittles the problem of sin and makes light of its devastating effects, the Bible underscores the plight of the lost and the need for the power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to save us from our sin.  For those who have an overly optimistic opinion of the human condition, the Bible provides a realistic assessment of our sinful predicament and magnifies the necessity of the salvation of God. The seriousness of our sin problem is revealed when we contemplate the majesty and wonder of the Gospel of Christ. The Gospel is the revelation of the profound measures that God undertook to bring salvation from sin. To ignore or denigrate the plight of fallen humanity is to belittle the sacrifice of the Son of God.

A Christian worldview grounded upon the written revelation of the Bible requires that we assess human nature in light of the Fall and its effects. The disobedience of Adam and the judgment pronounced by God radically altered humanity. Opinions that regard human beings as morally neutral are at best naïve and superficial or at worst defective and delusional; all such assessments are unbiblical. Jesus Himself assumed the sinfulness of all people, and He insisted that everyone who sins is a slave to sin (John 8:34).  In a post-Fall world, sinfulness is part of the “warp and woof” of our existence. Sin is a corrupting presence in each human being, infesting and enslaving all persons. Contemporary understandings of human nature must take into account humanity’s fallenness and the inherited corruption that issue forth in sinfulness.

Only God can extricate us from the quagmire of our sin. The reality of our sinfulness should foster a desperation for God to intervene graciously in the midst of our polluted existence. We cannot transform our own hearts, and we cannot save ourselves. Our sinfulness highlights the supreme necessity of God’s merciful redemption to pay the price for our sin and to liberate us from our horrible plight. Our sinful condition graphically depicts our spiritual standing before God. Because of our sinful state, all sinners stand justly condemned before the bar of God’s righteous judgment. This truth should remind us of our absolute need for God and His salvation.

A Christian worldview also asserts that the redemptive mission of God to save us from our sins occurs in and through the Church. In light of the Great Commission, the Church must always employ ministry strategies that proclaim the Good News both in word and deed. Redemption from the devastating effects of sin occurs in the power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. People find liberation from and forgiveness for their sin as the Holy Spirit brings transformation through the gospel ministries of the Church. Although strategies and methods may change, the message that Christ has conquered sin does not. This perspective about sin must be at the core of a biblically-grounded Christian worldview.

Excerpted from R. Stanton Norman, “Human Sinfulness,” in A Theology for the Church, ed. Daniel L. Akin (Nashville:  B&H Publishing Group, 2007).

Tawa Anderson basically defined a worldview as “the conceptual lens through which we view our world.”

A worldview is a comprehensive and integrated grid or framework through which we see things. For one who follows Christ, a thoroughgoing view of the world must operate from a biblical standpoint.

A Christian worldview stands in contradistinction with other worldviews present in the lives of people, philosophies like naturalism, spiritism, pantheism and postmodernism, to name a few. Steeped in sin and outside of Christ, we will follow whatever system or combination of beliefs are trendy, meet our needs or satisfy our desires and passions, and they are usually those which hold us the least accountable for our actions and decisions. Such is the nature of humanity.

Stan Norman has highlighted in his article the magnitude and horrific nature of sin. Not a pretty picture! Outside of Christ we are dead in sin and indeed enslaved to it. We are separated and estranged from a holy God Who cannot tolerate our sin. We stand in need of salvation, redemption and deliverance from sin and its effects. However, the problem is that God judges and exacts payment for sin, but we cannot save ourselves, nor do anything to satisfy the demands of this holy God. “But God demonstrates His own love for us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Rom. 5:8). Through His death on the cross, Christ appeases, or satisfies, the wrath of God toward sin and makes payment for it (cf. 1 John 2:2). We appropriate the salvific grace of God through Christ’s death on the cross into our lives through faith (Eph. 2:8). “For God loved the world in this way: He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16). Jesus “died for all, so that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for the One who died and was raised on their behalf.”(2 Cor 5:15).

So, given the above, what is it that leads or changes us so that we view the world through a biblical, Christian “conceptual lens?” I would maintain it is the person of Jesus Christ and what He has done on the cross that leads us to see the world from a Christian perspective. Though it may seem like a blatantly obvious deduction, this tenet is arguably the center of a Christian worldview. The Lord Jesus has secured salvation for us through His cross death on our behalf, and now we want to see the world as He does. Frankly, outside of Christ we couldn’t care less about the Christian worldview, but when we believe in Jesus and follow Him, our way of life and thinking transform (2 Cor. 5:17); our way of seeing things changes. Such a change is the work of the Spirit through salvation.

Part of this new way of thinking is the realization and acknowledgment that Christ “owns” or possesses us. The church at Corinth, a group of believers who in essence had gotten away from a Christian worldview, were chided by Paul into acknowledging the Lord’s “ownership” of them and the implications of that ownership in the different areas of their lives. First Cor. 6:19c–20 reads, “You are not your own. For you were bought with a price. Therefore, glorify God in your body.”

Though the apostle wrote these words in the immediate context of warning his readers against sexual immorality, the larger context is one in which he instructed the Corinthians with the principle that they “belong to Christ” and not to so-and so (cf. 1 Cor. 1:12).

We, too, belong to Christ, and because God has “bought us,” we want to please Him, not only out of duty, but also out of gratitude. Indeed, followers of Jesus who stand in a right relationship with God want their way of thinking and viewing the world to be Christ’s. They want to do His will. But how do believers in Jesus know the will of God? Where is it to be found? The will of God is grounded in and upon the written revelation of the Bible. We know God and come to understand His way of thinking and viewing the world through his authoritative Word.

As mentioned earlier, the Christian worldview stands in stark contrast to other worldviews. What is it about the person of Christ that separates the truth claims of the Christian worldview from those of all other philosophies? Easy—it is His resurrection from the dead. Jesus Christ “was declared the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness by the resurrection from the dead.” (Rom. 1:4; cf. 1 Cor. 15:3–4). He is God. No other founder or advocate of another worldview can genuinely claim that for himself.

“Something is wrong.” Those very words often send a shiver down our spines. A report comes from the doctor who utters those dreadful words “something is wrong. . . it’s cancer.” A child in a dusty African village awaits a slow death as he lies on the ground with a bloated stomach, swarmed by flies and dying of starvation . . . “something is wrong.” The coast of Japan is devastated by a massive tsunami causing a large swath of death with continued problems due to nuclear toxic waste leaking into the ocean and poisoning all life within . . . “something is wrong.” When we look at all the images of fallen sinfulness and global brokenness, we cannot help but sigh deeply within and say “something is wrong.”

According to a biblical worldview, God also looks upon his good and glorious creation and says “something is wrong.” Yet the story does not end there, because God Himself will repair, redeem, and renew creation from all the disastrous effects of sin and the curse (Rev. 22: 1-4). The Christian worldview not only explains what is wrong, but it also tells us where we are headed by answering the question: “What is our destination?” The answer to this question may be found in the scriptural teachings about the New Creation.

The creation account of Genesis emphasizes the goodness of all the created order with the repeated refrain “it was good” (Gen. 1:10, 12, 18, 21, 25, 31). When Adam and Eve disobeyed God’s command regarding the tree of knowledge, it impacted the entire created order and subjected humanity and the Earth to the tyranny of sin (Gen. 3:17-19; Rom. 8:19-22). God, however, promised a seed or offspring from the woman who would crush the head of the serpent (Gen. 3:15). Generations later, God made a covenant with the descendants of Abraham on Mt. Sinai and gave them His Law to obey (Exod. 24). The problem is that Israel failed to keep the Law because their hearts were sinful and needed to be made new.

Jesus Christ inaugurated a new covenant through His death and resurrection. At His last Passover meal with His disciples, Jesus said “this cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is poured out for you.” (Luke 22:20) The author of  Hebrews tells us “but in fact the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which He is mediator is superior to the old one, since the new covenant is established on better promises.” (Heb. 8:6). The resurrection of Jesus not only secured our salvation, but also inaugurated the new covenant and initiated the first step of the new creation.

The apostle Paul understood the importance of the new covenant and the indwelling Spirit as bringing about the new creation through salvation. In the context of the new covenant and Christ’s reconciling work, Paul describes the transformational nature of salvation by stating, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” (2 Cor. 5:17) He also reminds the Galatians, “For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation.” (Gal. 6:15) This means that God’s redemption of creation begins in the lives of people who are set free from the curse, penalty and dominion of sin through the work of Christ. The new creation has already begun with believers who are made new by the Holy Spirit and are producing His good fruit in their lives.

While God has already begun His work of new creation through the salvation of individual people, God will completely redeem all of the created order through the consummation of the new creation. Paul tells us that all of creation groans in longing expectation for the time when Christ returns and the people of God are glorified bodily (Rom. 8:19-21). The longing of creation to be liberated from the tyranny of sin will be fully satisfied at the end of the age when Christ “makes all things new.” (Rev. 21:5).

In light of all this, Christians have a hope that extends to every aspect of life in this fallen world. All of history is moving toward the new creation that God has planned. This new creation has already begun with the new life of the believer who can live in freedom from the control of the fallen sinful nature (Romans 6). What is more, when we consider our fragile economy, presidential elections, wars and natural disasters, we need not fear or worry. We can know that God is in control and in the end, He will make everything right, and we will partake of the new creation.

When we get to the end of the story, the words “something is wrong” will never be uttered again because the creator God has fixed His fallen and broken creation. John the apostle sees the final restoration of creation when he writes:

“Then I saw a new Heaven and a new Earth, for the first Heaven and the first Earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. . .  And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be His people, and God Himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” (Rev. 21:1-4)

It wasn’t exactly an in-your-face clash of styles, but when the offender choir had finished its renditions of “I Was Created to Worship You” and “God is Good,” and marched back to their seats, the SCM sang “I Am” in an entirely contrasting style (a capella) to yet another standing ovation from the crowd of about 200 in attendance.

The styles really didn’t matter; the Object of the worship was the same. And, those lifting their voices in song shared more than an ability to sing praises to God. Although one group enjoys freedom outside the “yard,” and the other is under constant supervision behind the razor wire that lines its perimeter, each group shares the common identity of being a child of God free to worship his Creator.

There wasn’t any barrier to prevent the worship, adoration and thankful prayers to be lifted heavenward that evening—and both groups were changed as a result.

“I must say that it was nothing short of amazing! I knew it would be a special evening for two reasons,” said James Bradford, minister of music at Oklahoma City, Quail Springs, and interim SCM director. “God showed His favor by inspiring the leadership at the state level to approve our request (to go) quickly and the leadership at the prison couldn’t wait for us to get there. I give much credit to Lt. Gov. Todd Lamb’s office, Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma prison chaplain Don Williams, Warden Mike Addison and Chaplain Joe Spears for working together to make our entry possible.

“The most exciting part of the whole evening was witnessing the power of the Holy Spirit move through the courtyard where we sang.  The worship was singly focussed toward the Lord by both churchman and offender.  I don’t believe I have ever witnessed the intensity of the excitement, passion and focus coming from the Churchmen as I did that evening. They gave everything they had to communicate the Gospel. The offenders opened their hearts and were truly moved to worship and respond. The presentation at JHCC will be remembered as one of the highlights of ministry for the Singing Churchmen of Oklahoma for years to come.”

As for the offenders who came to the concert, “They absolutely loved it. I have had nothing but good feedback,” said Spears. “The Churchmen did a great job. Even the staff was amazed at how wonderful it was. Many of the officers were standing at the back listening, and that doesn’t happen very often.”

“The evening was absolutely wonderful,” said Lighthouse Choir member Hank M. “It touched so many men’s lives. I have been walking around the yard since, and the men are talking about the power that the SCM have and the glories that we got out of it. They brought tears to many men’s eyes. It was great.

“It made a great difference. I hope and I pray that they can get to see them again.”

“I am just so thrilled that you guys were able to come and Lighthouse Baptist Church was able to host you guys, Spears added.”

Lighthouse Church was organized in June 2011 as a church plant of the Union Association, said Spears, who is the church’s pastor. The church meets on Thursday nights in the facility’s chapel with between 60-70 in regular attendance. Union Association Director of Missions Preston Collins said the church has recorded 47 baptisms since the first of the year.

The baptismal pool will be especially busy in the near future, since 18 offenders indicated they had accepted Jesus Christ as Savior following Bradford’s short invitation at the close of the concert.

“Spears has such a heart for each offender at JHCC,” Bradford said. “He volunteered for many years, and finally got the opportunity to serve full time as JHCC Chaplain. God has honored Chaplain Spears, and his influence and impact on those men is immeasurable.

“Many offenders have found forgiveness and salvation through his ministry. His main objective is to touch the lives of each new offender admitted to the Oklahoma prison system through JHCC. Countless men have experienced encouragement and hope in a seemingly hopeless situation. Joe Spears is a hero in my book!

“My deepest appreciation goes to the Warden Mike Addison, Chaplain Spears, the staff and officers for allowing the SCM to share in a blessed and anointed evening at the JHCC. All praise goes to our precious Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!”

“Whenever we sing, the Churchmen always strive to exhort and encourage our audience,” added Steve Holt, worship pastor at Lawton, Cameron and SCM president. “At JHCC, we were the ones who were encouraged and blessed by the praise and worship of the men who came to hear us sing.

“I was humbled and challenged by the sincere passion of the offenders to share the life-changing truth of the Gospel and genuinely live out their faith inside the walls of the prison.

“It is my prayer that the Churchmen will have future ministry opportunities like we had at JHCC.”

“I was honored to see the Churchmen hold true to our emphasis of servant leadership this year,” Bradford concluded. “Matt. 20:28 says ‘Christ did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life-a ransom for many.’ I’ve seen that lived out to the fullest in each of the Churchmen this season.  Oklahoma Baptists can be proud of the way our worship leaders serve their Lord, their families, their churches and each other all for God’s glory.”

One of his major responsibilities was planting new churches. Today, four years into retirement, Lam is still planting churches, not just in Oklahoma, but across the nation. In October 2010, the Chinese Baptist Fellowship of the U.S. and Canada appointed Lam church planting ambassador. Since that time, 17 new Chinese churches have been planted, and there are 13-15 “in the works.”

In retirement, Lam serves on the staff of Oklahoma City, Northwest, which currently has eight congregations meeting on its property.

“My vision meshed with Northwest’s,” said Lam. “I came to help them add congregations. When I came, we had five congregations, and now we have eight, including a Mandarin church, which was started last June with Pastor Anthony Li, and now has about 40 members.”

Lam said God gave him a gift of how to start churches, although he didn’t actually get into “church work” until he was in his 40s.

Born on the historic day of Dec. 7, 1941 in Fu Zhou, mainland China, Lam and his family joined a mass exodus of people who fled to the nearby island of Taiwan as communists took control of mainland China. He stayed there 10 years, then moved to Hong Kong for his high school years and came to the United States when he was 18 to study math at the University of Nebraska.

In 1975, he moved to Tulsa to work as a computer analyst with American Airlines. In 1985, Lam surrendered to ministry and started classes at Oklahoma Baptist University, receiving a bachelor’s degree in biblical studies in 1989.

In 1985, he started Tulsa International as a Chinese Bible study meeting on the University of Tulsa campus, and it became a church in 1991.

Lam said there are currently 240 Southern Baptist Chinese churches in the U.S. and Canada. In June 2010, he was invited to the North American Mission Board to  discuss how to increase the number of Mandarin Baptist churches, because 90 percent of Chinese newcomers to the U.S. are from mainland China and speak Mandarin.

“The vision we came up with is to add 600 churches in the next 10 years,” said Lam. “That seems impossible, but there are 50 states in the U.S. and 10 provinces in Canada. If every state and every province starts one new church a year for 10 years, we have our 600.”

Lam has traveled across the nation presenting his four-part strategy for starting the Chinese churches.

First, said Lam, is prayer, followed by finding church planters and training them. Then comes discovering partners.

“We need five churches to help for three years, each giving $100 a year, and we can start a church,” Lam explained.

Fourth is deciding where to place the church by studying population and demographics.

Lam observed that to start churches, there needs to be a movement created, as well as a positive atmosphere.

“We must let people know they can do it,” he declared. “There are not enough pastors to do this. We have to engage lay people.”

Lam noted that the need for Chinese churches is great.

“In 2011, Chinese students surpassed students from India in the number of international students in the U.S.,” he revealed.

Lam said he goes to China twice a year to learn again how Chinese people think.

“Although I am Chinese, I have been in America 51 years,” he said. “So I have to renew my mind in Chinese.”

Lam acknowledged that almost 10 percent of the Chinese population is now Christian.

“That doesn’t sound like much, but with a population of 1.4 billion, that means 140 million Christians live in China, making it the top country in numbers of Christians.

Lam disclosed that there are only 10 Chinese churches in Oklahoma, and four of those are in the Oklahoma City area.

“My goal is to see other churches like Northwest, with multiple congregations, said Lam. “I hope other churches will be inspired to do this.”

“We are so grateful for all of the people involved in the preparation, production and promotion of the Baptist Messenger over these 10 decades,” editor Brian Hobbs said. “They leave us with a strong legacy and great footing for the future. We pray God continues to bless the Baptist Messenger in the years to come.”

The Baptist Messenger has a print circulation of nearly 60,000 and a digital version as well. Hobbs became the 11th editor in the Messenger’s history in 2011.

Notable leaders such as U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn, financial expert Dave Ramsey and leaders within the Southern Baptist Convention extended statements of congratulations to the Messenger on its 100th anniversary.

Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin and Lt. Gov. Todd Lamb jointly declared May 15, 2012, as “Baptist Messenger Day” in Oklahoma through an official citation.

R. Albert Mohler Jr., president of Southern Seminary, said on Twitter on May 15, “Congratulations to the Baptist Messenger of Oklahoma on the paper’s 100th birthday today. A century of service to Baptists.”

In conjunction with its 100th anniversary, the Messenger is hosting a series of celebration events that are open to the public. One was held May 15 at the Baptist Building in Oklahoma City, where numerous former staff were in attendance. Popular Baptist Messenger columnist Walker Moore, president and founder of Awe Star Ministries in Tulsa, spoke at the gathering. Moore also is speaking at several “homecoming” events across the state in the next few months. The next is 6 p.m., June 3 at Broken Arrow, Arrow Heights.

The Messenger recently completed a series on the paper’s history “10 decades in 10 weeks,” featuring highlights and history from each decade. In addition, the Messenger will publish a 100th anniversary edition magazine in time for release at the BGCO annual meeting in November. For more information, visit www.baptistmessenger.com.