Every week for more than a decade, I’ve helped lead a Bible study for students from my old high school. The school itself is academically rigorous and intentionally secular. It doesn’t allow religious meetings on campus, so students have met off campus each week for almost forty years to pray and discuss the Scriptures. I attended the group as a student and am truly grateful to be involved again as an adult. These kids have taught me a lot.
One student named Dylan began attending as a junior. And on one Friday morning, he shared some particulars of his faith journey that blew me away. Our conversation went something like this.
Me: What sparked your initial curiosity in Christianity?
Dylan: I woke up one day and thought that I should attend church.
Me: Really? When was that?
Dylan: About five years ago or so.
Me: Your family took you to church growing up and you thought you should take it more seriously?
Dylan: No, I had never been to church before. My parents didn’t go to church. I just knew that I wanted to go.
Me: You just woke up at twelve years old and went to church?
Dylan: Well, my mom dropped me off, but yes.
Me: How did you pick a church?
Dylan: We chose one near our house. I sat in the back by myself for a few years. I read the Scriptures on my own for a while. Then I asked to get baptized.
Me: Wait, what? Did you get baptized?
Dylan: Yes, I did.
Me: Seriously? So . . . who led you to faith in Christ?
Dylan: No one in particular. I guess Jesus led me to himself.
Me: I have never heard a testimony like this before.
Dylan: Really? I don’t know what to compare it to.
Me: How has becoming a Christian impacted you?
Dylan: Life makes sense now.
Dylan went on to study engineering in college. I haven’t seen him in a while, but I think about him often. His faith journey is unique, but his conclusion is not. Jesus makes sense of life. He is the heart of a biblical worldview that answers life’s most important questions.
A worldview is a framework or set of beliefs through which we view the world and our place in it. Often influenced by environment and adopted unconsciously, our worldview seeks to offer us explanations to the big questions of life, such as these:
- What is ultimate reality?
- How did the world come to be?
- What is a human being?
- Who am I?
- Why am I here?
- Do right and wrong exist? If so, what are they?
- What happens at death?
In my experience with young people, the two biggest questions causing concern are those of identity (Who am I?) and purpose (Why am I here?). Unfortunately, the dominant worldviews of today’s secular institutions are naturalism and postmodernism, neither of which offers hopeful answers to these questions. Naturalism claims that the material cosmos is the ultimate reality. In other words, you are an accident and life is essentially meaningless. Postmodernism claims that ultimate reality is impossible to know, a view that may be even more debilitating for someone searching for meaning.
Thankfully, a biblical worldview offers a far superior alternative by claiming ultimate reality to be a Creator who is love (1 John 4:8). And at the heart of this worldview is Jesus Christ, the God who took on flesh, died on a cross, and was resurrected three days later. A worldview anchored in him is true, beautiful, and helpful in the following ways:
True:
If you want intellectual credibility, investigate Jesus. Either he was who he claimed to be, or he was a liar and part of the most impactful hoax in all human history—the resurrection. It’s one or the other. So, investigate the audacity of his claims, the eyewitness accounts of his life, and the impact of his ministry. The evidence for the gospel narrative is solid.
Beautiful:
If you desire existential satisfaction, reflect upon Jesus. If his story is true, then a loving God took on flesh and died to save your life. No other god, philosophy, or form of ultimate reality comes anywhere close in regard to love for you. When this God becomes the foundation of your life, he becomes more beautiful to you. He always has been beautiful, but blurry vision becomes clearer the more you focus.
Helpful:
If you wish to encourage human flourishing, follow Jesus. In both his words and example, he admonished his followers to love. If he died for his enemies so that they may live, and you follow him, you must adopt love as a primary value. And when you see yourself and all of history within the biblical narrative of creation, rebellion, redemption, and restoration that he himself orchestrated, you gain additional values—such as purpose, humility, confidence, and hope—that will transform your life.
A comprehensive worldview is one that is true, beautiful, and helpful. And a biblical worldview centered upon Jesus passes each of these tests. As we investigate, reflect upon, and follow Jesus, we will find, as Dylan did, that life makes sense.
Bryce and the Lost pearl
Life is full of responsibilities for fifteen-year-old Bryce Holland. Between working at his uncle’s horse stables, playing his newly earned spot on the varsity basketball team, and leading a Bible study, the juggling act of his life is on the verge of a crash. The stress sends Bryce over the edge and he thunders away on his uncle’s Clydesdale without permission. When the horse gets away from him, the search to find the missing animal sends Bryce wandering deep through the woods and into a strange new land.
