Benld United Methodist Church

FAITH AND WORLDVIEW
Does your worldview, your theology, lead you to create a well or build a wall? What
fills your well? Does your worldview, your theology, open you to healing and
reconciling power? For Christians, is our theology, our worldview, consistent with
the teachings, the life, the death and resurrection of Jesus? Our theology influences
the decisions we make, what we say, and what we do.

"So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation:
everything old has passed away; see, everything has
become new! All this is from God, who reconciled us to
himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of
reconciliation." (2 Cor. 5:17-18a).

In The Heart of Christianity: Rediscovering A Life of Faith (HarperOne, 2004)
Marcus Borg discusses three ways of "seeing the whole." "First, we can see reality as
hostile and threatening." (p. 34) This perspective will cause us to live life defensively,
fearing God's judgment and punishment. Fear will be the motivation for our actions.
Indifference "is the second way of seeing the whole." (p. 35) This results in a
primarily secular way of life and is evident by concern only for ourselves and those
around us.

"The third way we can see 'what is'" says Borg, "is to view it as life-giving and
nourishing. It has brought us and everything that is into existence. It sustains our
lives. It is filled with wonder and beauty, even if sometimes a terrible beauty." (p.35)
This way is seeing is a way of being in and experiencing God's wonderful creation. A
creation where there is newness at every turn. A creation where endings are
beginnings and opportunities for new ways of serving God.

If we live in fear we will always find things to be of which to be afraid. If we live
expecting God to care for us by always presenting us with new opportunities we will
find those opportunities and rejoice when we do.

Easter is a time for newness and rebirth. This is never more evident than in the
Resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Without death there can be no
resurrection. We must set aside the past in order to embrace what is new.

"So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: . . . everything has become new! All
this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ . . ."
God is still creating. Thanks be to God.
Keep praying.

Grace, Peace, and Joy,
Pastor Mark