CONFLICT DUE TO DIFFERENT WORLDVIEWS
Last month, I ended this newsletter with three principles we can use to help resolve the conflicts that occur between people. These principles will work whether the conflict is between nations, people groups, or family members. They are:
I want to explain one reason why I believe there is such conflict among those who claim to be believers in Jesus Christ as Savior. In many cases, I am convinced the reason for division and dissension involves what kind of worldview people have. Worldview, as I am using the term here, is a mental model of the universe. It is the lens through which people see themselves, the world around them, and their place or purpose in that world. As you can imagine, people have widely divergent worldviews. Even those who claim allegiance to Christ have worldviews that are worlds apart. It would require more space than I have in this newsletter to explain the reasons for this.
I do, however, want to include the three elements of a distinctively Christian worldview. They are these:
These points may not seem controversial, but apparently, to many people, they are. According to a 2024 survey, only six percent of professing Christians have a biblical worldview. I will discuss the reasons for this later, but for now, I will say that divergent worldviews account for “believers” believing in many things that are not found in the Bible. I believe that this accounts for many of the controversies and conflicts that occur in the family of God.
For instance, it is difficult for someone who believes that God created everything that we see in the world around us to come to agreement with someone who believes in evolution as the explanation for the vast variety and diversity of life hosted by our planet.
Someone who believes that human hearts, unaffected by God’s grace, are desperately wicked will have a hard time seeing eye-to-eye with someone who believes that all men are essentially good and they only need more money, more opportunity, or more of whatever belongs to others to succeed.
A person who believes that trusting in Christ as Savior is the only way to salvation will not be able to agree with another person who maintains that there are many equally legitimate ways to achieve salvation. A Christian will have an even harder time agreeing with anyone who says salvation is not desirable or even necessary.
When put in these terms, it is easy to see the distinctions between a Christian worldview and some other way of looking at the world. It is also a given that anyone who adheres to a Christian worldview will encounter conflict with others who have a different way of looking at the world.
As believers, we must not relinquish or compromise these essential principles that make up orthodox Christianity. To do so would mean essentially abandoning our faith and accepting anything and everything as being acceptable to God. These issues and many other like them are where the distinction between true biblical Christianity and other belief systems can be easily seen.
Another dilemma occurs when others who may be genuinely saved do not agree with you on a whole host of issues. They see you differently because they see the world differently than you do. They may not just be divergent, but on a completely opposite end of the ideological spectrum from you. These differences may manifest themselves in politics, economic matters, lifestyle choices, or any number of other issues. These people may be very vocal in defending their choices. They may also be critical of you, regardless of what you have or have not done to provoke them to such criticism. It was just these kinds of situations that led to the massive conflict known as the Civil War that I referenced in last month’s newsletter. What do you do, and how should you respond in such cases? Your response can make the difference between escalation, leading to war, and reconciliation, producing peace.
We cannot focus on emphasizing our differences, regardless of how justified we may be in defending our point of view. It is important to view those who array themselves against us not as confirmed enemies to be defeated, but as potential friends to be persuaded.
I am not saying that we should not contend for the tenets of our faith against the onslaught of unbelief and apostasy that surrounds us. What I am saying is that we must recognize that people are not our enemies. When Jesus was answering the most intractable of His adversaries (the religious elites), He identified the real problem, which was the devil and his influence. (See John 8:42-47.)
How does this work out in real life? We maintain what is true (which is the word of God) without spending time and effort refuting every accusation made against us. Paul was no stranger to this kind of treatment. There were those in the church at Corinth (a church that Paul founded) who went so far as to falsely accuse him and even question his apostleship. The accusers were saying, in essence, that Paul had neither the right nor the authority to speak into their lives. Here is his reply, from 1 Corinthians 4:12-13: “…being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we suffer it: Being defamed, we intreat: we are made as the filth of the world, and are the offscouring of all things unto this day.”
In this, Paul was following the example of the Lord Jesus Christ. Here is the principle, put very simply in John 1:11: “He came to His own, and His own people did not receive Him.” Even the townspeople in Jesus’ own hometown tried to kill Him! (See Luke 4:28-29.)
That all the elements of the body of Christ will not even talk to one another should come as no surprise. This sort of thing has been going on since New Testament times, and even longer. Division and discord have been sown by Satan since the beginning chapters of human history. When people align themselves with his deception and division, there is no opportunity for dialogue, or for understanding, and certainly no chance of fellowship. You can reach out to such people all day and night, and if they insist that you are wrong, evil, and unworthy of the least bit of grace, they will not respond to your appeals.
However, when facing such opposition, it is of utmost importance that you do not respond the same way. We must not become cold and callous, or incensed and angry toward those who are dogmatic and hateful, especially when their divisive rhetoric involves non-essential points of doctrine.
Hear these words from Jesus, recorded in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5:10-12: “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when men revile you, and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be very glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in this manner they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
Here is another passage with a similar thought, from Matthew 5:44-45: “But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.”
I will reiterate the three points I shared at the beginning regarding dealing with those who oppose you:
I will have more to say about the power of forgiveness next month. May your life with the Lord be filled with His grace and His glory!
Yours for the Harvest,
Dr. Rod Parsley
Founder & General Overseer
- Love one another. The love that God commands us to extend to others is not a feeling. It involves loving others enough to tell them the truth. The ultimate truth is the message of the gospel.
- Pray for one another. Prayer can be considered as an investment in others’ well-being. Prayer can make what seems impossible possible. Prayer can soften the ground of another person’s heart enough to allow the seed of the word of God to penetrate that heart.
- Forgive one another. I will share more about this profoundly important point in a subsequent newsletter.
I want to explain one reason why I believe there is such conflict among those who claim to be believers in Jesus Christ as Savior. In many cases, I am convinced the reason for division and dissension involves what kind of worldview people have. Worldview, as I am using the term here, is a mental model of the universe. It is the lens through which people see themselves, the world around them, and their place or purpose in that world. As you can imagine, people have widely divergent worldviews. Even those who claim allegiance to Christ have worldviews that are worlds apart. It would require more space than I have in this newsletter to explain the reasons for this.
I do, however, want to include the three elements of a distinctively Christian worldview. They are these:
- Creation—Christians believe Genesis 1:1: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”
- The Fall—as recorded in Genesis 3. This was the beginning of sin, suffering, and separation from God as a result of rebellion on the part of our original ancestors, Adam and Eve.
- Redemption—the story of redemption is the great and unifying theme of the Bible, found from Genesis to Revelation.
These points may not seem controversial, but apparently, to many people, they are. According to a 2024 survey, only six percent of professing Christians have a biblical worldview. I will discuss the reasons for this later, but for now, I will say that divergent worldviews account for “believers” believing in many things that are not found in the Bible. I believe that this accounts for many of the controversies and conflicts that occur in the family of God.
For instance, it is difficult for someone who believes that God created everything that we see in the world around us to come to agreement with someone who believes in evolution as the explanation for the vast variety and diversity of life hosted by our planet.
Someone who believes that human hearts, unaffected by God’s grace, are desperately wicked will have a hard time seeing eye-to-eye with someone who believes that all men are essentially good and they only need more money, more opportunity, or more of whatever belongs to others to succeed.
A person who believes that trusting in Christ as Savior is the only way to salvation will not be able to agree with another person who maintains that there are many equally legitimate ways to achieve salvation. A Christian will have an even harder time agreeing with anyone who says salvation is not desirable or even necessary.
When put in these terms, it is easy to see the distinctions between a Christian worldview and some other way of looking at the world. It is also a given that anyone who adheres to a Christian worldview will encounter conflict with others who have a different way of looking at the world.
As believers, we must not relinquish or compromise these essential principles that make up orthodox Christianity. To do so would mean essentially abandoning our faith and accepting anything and everything as being acceptable to God. These issues and many other like them are where the distinction between true biblical Christianity and other belief systems can be easily seen.
Another dilemma occurs when others who may be genuinely saved do not agree with you on a whole host of issues. They see you differently because they see the world differently than you do. They may not just be divergent, but on a completely opposite end of the ideological spectrum from you. These differences may manifest themselves in politics, economic matters, lifestyle choices, or any number of other issues. These people may be very vocal in defending their choices. They may also be critical of you, regardless of what you have or have not done to provoke them to such criticism. It was just these kinds of situations that led to the massive conflict known as the Civil War that I referenced in last month’s newsletter. What do you do, and how should you respond in such cases? Your response can make the difference between escalation, leading to war, and reconciliation, producing peace.
We cannot focus on emphasizing our differences, regardless of how justified we may be in defending our point of view. It is important to view those who array themselves against us not as confirmed enemies to be defeated, but as potential friends to be persuaded.
I am not saying that we should not contend for the tenets of our faith against the onslaught of unbelief and apostasy that surrounds us. What I am saying is that we must recognize that people are not our enemies. When Jesus was answering the most intractable of His adversaries (the religious elites), He identified the real problem, which was the devil and his influence. (See John 8:42-47.)
How does this work out in real life? We maintain what is true (which is the word of God) without spending time and effort refuting every accusation made against us. Paul was no stranger to this kind of treatment. There were those in the church at Corinth (a church that Paul founded) who went so far as to falsely accuse him and even question his apostleship. The accusers were saying, in essence, that Paul had neither the right nor the authority to speak into their lives. Here is his reply, from 1 Corinthians 4:12-13: “…being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we suffer it: Being defamed, we intreat: we are made as the filth of the world, and are the offscouring of all things unto this day.”
In this, Paul was following the example of the Lord Jesus Christ. Here is the principle, put very simply in John 1:11: “He came to His own, and His own people did not receive Him.” Even the townspeople in Jesus’ own hometown tried to kill Him! (See Luke 4:28-29.)
That all the elements of the body of Christ will not even talk to one another should come as no surprise. This sort of thing has been going on since New Testament times, and even longer. Division and discord have been sown by Satan since the beginning chapters of human history. When people align themselves with his deception and division, there is no opportunity for dialogue, or for understanding, and certainly no chance of fellowship. You can reach out to such people all day and night, and if they insist that you are wrong, evil, and unworthy of the least bit of grace, they will not respond to your appeals.
However, when facing such opposition, it is of utmost importance that you do not respond the same way. We must not become cold and callous, or incensed and angry toward those who are dogmatic and hateful, especially when their divisive rhetoric involves non-essential points of doctrine.
Hear these words from Jesus, recorded in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5:10-12: “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when men revile you, and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be very glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in this manner they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
Here is another passage with a similar thought, from Matthew 5:44-45: “But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.”
I will reiterate the three points I shared at the beginning regarding dealing with those who oppose you:
- Love them by telling them the truth (the gospel)
- Pray for them, that they would see the truth and receive it
- Forgive them
I will have more to say about the power of forgiveness next month. May your life with the Lord be filled with His grace and His glory!
Yours for the Harvest,
Dr. Rod Parsley
Founder & General Overseer