Introduction

Last month’s article here I hope kicked off a long-term goal I have for this blog that entails the unfolding of a Christian worldview. As believers and followers of Christ, there are many things we have to do, study, learn, and then turn our studious learning into living out the reality of manifesting a Christian worldview. First and foremost, however, we in the body of Christ must realize that we cannot shape a Christian worldview through the power of our own flesh. How easy it is for each of us to fall into the trap of trying to accomplish those goals we believe God has set for us through our own power, sufficiency, and endeavors. There is a two-pronged trap that seeks to snare us if we are not careful. First, as stated, we can trust in our own abilities and understanding to get things done. A modus operandi we are told to avoid in Scripture (Proverbs 3:5-6). Second, in surrendering to God, we can become slothful, complacent, and directionless in our efforts. We are called by God to be diligent, but we cannot fulfill that calling by our own strength or by a misguided notion of surrendering. To shape a Christian worldview that guides the way we live in the world I believe entails the following: 1) our thorough understanding of the Biblical notion of diligence; 2) our living by the power of the Spirit; 3) our understanding and belief in the power of prayer; 4) our further understanding of the imputed righteousness of Christ; and 5) our constant trust in the Lord, committing all our work to Him, and doing everything in word and deed in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Diligence

Diligence is a trait spoken of throughout Scripture. English dictionaries define the word as persistent effort and attention to detail. The Hebrew word haht-mah-dah or harus delineates a similar notion, entailing perseverance, persistence, and consistency, particularly at the various tasks of living. The Old Testament Scripture, especially Proverbs, contrasts the lazy and idle with the diligent. (Unfortunately, these verses have been stolen by those who proclaim the prosperity gospel). But Scripture tells us that the diligent will prosper (in life, not necessarily wealth) by attending to and persevering in the tasks of life, which above all entails our pursuit of God. The diligent become skilled at living, which is the essence of wisdom – another notion addressed throughout the book of Proverbs.

The Greek word for diligent is spoude, which entails the pursuit of daily tasks, eagerly, earnestly, and zealously. The tasks set before us if we want to carve out a Christian worldview are beyond our doing apart from the grace of God, and we live in a world that is antagonistic to our goals as Christians. We cannot hope to manifest a Christian worldview while being inconsistent, half-hearted, and not persevering in all that we seek to accomplish. Diligence is a trait that runs throughout all the endeavors we pursue to bring about dominion on this earth in the name of Christ by God’s grace alone.

The Power of the Spirit

Nor can we accomplish exercising dominion in this world by our own strength. The apostle Paul tells us that our lives should evidence our being led by the Spirit (Gal. 5:15-16). As believers in Christ for our salvation, we are gifted with the indwelling Holy Spirit who grants us the strength to live as God would have us live. Such Christian living, while involving many things, entails our working out our salvation (Phil. 2:12), that is our sanctification, pursuing the life and tasks that God has set before us. Again, it is easy to fall into the trap of doing the work that God has set before us according to the power of our own flesh. If we take that pathway, we will surely run into many obstacles and failures. If we are to exercise dominion on this earth that entails carving out the Christian worldview, we must do so by the power of the Spirit. The power that is available to us through the Holy Spirit is the very power by which God raised Christ from the dead (Eph. 1:20). We must be diligent in our pursuit of God so as to live and be led by His Spirit. Otherwise, we are working according to the power of our own flesh.

The Power of Prayer

As believers in Christ, we are children of God, members of His household. Therefore, He is available to us so that we can approach Him at any time, placing our petitions before Him, and be in communion with Him. When I think on how little I embrace this gracious gift, I can’t help but wonder how different my life would have been over the decades if I had prayed more. Scripture calls on us to constantly be in prayer, to pray without ceasing (Luke 18:11; 1 Thess. 5:16-18). Constant prayer means an attitude of prayerful connection with God, not just those times we set aside for formal prayer. The work of dominion, carving out the Christian worldview, requires our diligent dependence on the power of prayer. Do we believe that God desires our communion with Him in prayer? Do we believe that He answers prayer? We will not establish dominion on this earth while not believing in and engaging in prayer because it is not our doing that will bring about dominion and a Christian worldview, but the power of God working in us. The Christian life is a spiritual life, not a secular one. We are called to worship God in spirit and truth (John 4:23-24). We are God’s workmanship called to good works which He established beforehand so that we would walk in them (Eph. 2:10).

The Righteousness of Christ

He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf so that we might become the righteous of God in Him (2 Cor. 5:21).

How difficult it is to fathom that as believers in Christ, God has imputed Jesus’ righteousness to us so that His atoning work on the cross propitiates God’s wrath toward us. We are to walk in – live in – that righteousness that God has imputed to us. We neither merit nor deserve it. On this side of life, we recognize how far we fall short of that imputed righteousness everyday. Only by the righteousness and power of Christ that indwells us (2 Cor. 12:29) can we hope to carve out a Christian worldview while living in the world but not being of it. Hence again, diligence comes into play. We must be diligent in pursuing a life that evinces the righteousness of Christ that indwells us. On this side of life, we will fall short daily of this task. Hence, the pursuit of God in prayerful communion must entail our confessions (1 John 1:9). For the believer, manifesting the power of Christ that dwells in us is not about our perfection, but it is about His working out His will in us through our weakness (2 Cor. 12:29). People must witness through a Christian worldview not our personal power, strength, and perfection, but our dependence of God’s grace in our lives that transforms how we relate, not only to God, but to others in the world.

Trust, Commitment, Acknowledgement

Trust in the Lord with all your heart . . . Acknowledge Him in all your ways (Proverbs 3:5-6).

In everything you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, giving thanks to Him to God the Father. (Col. 3:17).

We will miserably fail in exercising dominion in this world and establishing a Christian worldview if we are not diligent in acknowledging God in all that we do and seek to do everything in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. God Himself will make straight our paths, or they will not be established at all. If we seek to do even the things of the Lord by our own strength, our strength will fail us. As I stated above, it is a razor’s edge that we walk. On the one hand as believers we should not seek to carry out the things of God via the power of our own flesh. On the other hand, we should never interpret our surrendering to God as becoming inert. Each of us who are in Christ have been granted gifts to utilize and paths to work out, knowing that the gifts are from God and the working is His working in us. We live in a world that is antagonistic toward our Christian worldview. While our enemies are real, we can diligently pray to be delivered from them (Psalm 31:14-15), knowing too that Christ has commanded us to pray for our enemies. If we seek to exercise dominion in this world, carving out the Christian way of life, we must trust God with all our heart, acknowledging Him in all our ways, and doing all that we do in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. This calls for our diligence to be totally dependent on Him.

Conclusion

Establishing a Christian worldview in the present culture is a tall order. There is much work to be done that Christians must embrace. The January 14th blog article reached back to categories of thought that I have contemplated for some time. The short bibliography provided in that article reinforces the depth of work that must be done. So it would be easy to become caught up in that work, forgetting as Christians from where our power really stems. We must above all things realize that our battle, rather than being merely academic, political, or cultural, is a spiritual one. But this is not an either-or proposition. In seeking to provide a cornerstone for the Biblical mandate for dominion in our culture, we must by faith apprehend the truth that Jesus Christ is the cornerstone. There will be no dominion or Christian worldview until we realize that our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against . . . the world forces of this darkness (Eph. 6:10-13). That truth requires us as believers in Christ to be diligent in our embracing the strength that God provides us in the battle. To forget that, or to try to fight otherwise, is paramount to our standing on our own strength, the power of our own flesh, which is no power at all. To establish a Christian worldview in the world is a spiritual undertaking. We have one source for such an undertaking. We must build on the cornerstone that is Jesus Christ.

John V. Jones, Jr., Ph.D./March 14th, 2025

CHRISTIAN THOUGHT/Christian Worldview