Whether we realize it or not, each of us has a worldview by which we navigate life. Our worldviews are the philosophy and concept of how the world works. They encompass a wide range of ideas that fundamentally affect all our decisions. Your worldview answers questions like what is my purpose, who is God, is there a God, why am I here, and so much more.
Our worldview is shaped by the influences of our culture, parents, church, friends, experiences, education, and life itself. Having grown up in a children’s home with multiple sets of parents, been adopted, lived in a foreign country during my teen years, attended many different denominations, and then become a Christian in my twenties, my worldview and the many presuppositions I have are often challenged.
Recently, my church began a study in the book of Mark. I love the expository preaching that works through a passage of Scripture, and often an entire book, verse by verse, carefully drawing out the meaning in its original context.
The first sermon was an overview of Mark, an introduction to the bigger picture of what the apostle John Mark was trying to convey. Having been in church my whole life, and having read the Gospel of Mark many time over, I quickly realized that I knew only the stories and memorized popular verses. I had missed the larger overarching theme and purpose of the book.
Mark isn’t just a story of how Jesus came to bring redemption. Rather, John Mark adamantly emphasized that God’s work is often contrary to cultural expectations. The Jews were waiting for the Messiah to set up a kingdom on earth with hopes of overthrowing the Roman Empire. However, Jesus became the Messiah not through power, but through suffering and death.
How does that relate to us today? As a Christian in the 21st century, I am inundated through media, social media, and culture with the mentality that I deserve things to go the way I want them to. My ideals should come to fruition. However, the book of Mark reminds me that we are called to be like Christ. The life of Christ was not one of ease, wants, desires, and ideas. It was a life of service and sacrifice often accompanied by ridicule, hurts, and betrayal.
My life has had many significant changes in the last few years with the death of my father and sister and the ending of a twenty-one year marriage. Processing through the hurts, disappointments, and challenges of these events could easily cause my faith to waver. But by allowing my worldview to be challenged and brought back into the truth of the gospel, I can confidently say that all things are of Him, by Him, and for Him.
