WORLDVIEWS:

 A "BIBLICAL WORLDVIEW" HELD
BY SOME CONSERVATIVE PROTESTANTS

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Who holds a "biblical worldview:"

Fundamentalist Christians, other Evangelical Christians, and other conservative Protestants commonly refer to their worldview as "the biblical worldview." The implication is that only one biblically-based worldview exists, and that theirs is it.

However, this term may be confusing outside the conservative wing of Protestantism. Many mainline and liberal Christians have worldviews which are quite different from each other and from the conservative biblical worldview. Yet essentially all Christians feel that their worldview is supported by the Bible.

We use the expression "biblical worldview" on this website because that is the term most commonly used by conservative Protestants. However, a term like "Evangelical worldview" or "Conservative Protestant worldview" might be less ambiguous.

One definition of "biblical worldview:"

The Barna Group is the leading conservative Protestant marketing research group providing information about the state of religion in the U.S. -- and in particular the status of Christianity and of its churches and denominations. ₁

They defined a "biblical worldview" as being based upon a foundation of eight beliefs, that:

1. Absolute moral truths exist.
2. The Bible defines these absolute moral truths.
3. Jesus Christ lived a sinless life during his ministry on earth.
4. God created the universe and continues to rule it today. He is omnipotent and omniscient.
5. Salvation is a gift from God. It cannot be earned through good works or behavior.
6. Satan is real living entity.
7. Christians have an obligation to share the Gospel with the unsaved.
8. The Bible is accurate in all of its teachings ₂

At first glance, one might wonder why Jesus' sinless life is of such great importance that it forms a necessary component of a biblical worldview. It is a common belief among conservative Christians that Jesus' life must have been completely free of sin so that the sins of ordinary individuals can be transferred to Jesus when they are saved -- thus making the atonement possible.

Additional beliefs:

Others might add additional core beliefs as required components of a biblical worldview, such as:

How many American adults have a "biblical worldview:"

The Barna Group conducted a study of 2,033 randomly selected adults in the 48 contiguous states of the U.S. between September and December, 2003. They found that only a very small percentage of adults hold the biblical worldview as defined by their eight-point definition. This includes:

The churches that are most effective in teaching a biblical worldview to their membership are:

If additional beliefs were added to the definition of a "biblical worldview," the percentage of American adults with this worldview would undoubtedly be even lower.

The margin of error in the survey is ±2.2 percentage points.

The Barna Group reports that their:

"...research found that one of the most effective methods of enabling people to develop a biblical worldview is by addressing seven critical questions that consistently lead to beliefs and behaviors that are in tune with biblical teaching. Outlining that process in a new book he has written as an outgrowth of the research, entitled Think Like Jesus, [George] Barna also noted that many churches are already helping their congregants to implement such a way of addressing daily challenges and opportunities." ₆

Impact of a biblical worldview on personal beliefs and practices:

The Barna survey showed wide variations in the percentage of adults with a biblical worldview, depending on the person's education, political affiliation, marital status and race:

Senior Protestant pastors who hold a biblical worldview:

The Barna Group surveyed the beliefs of a randomly selected sample of 601 senior protestants in the U.S. during November and December, 2003. They found that a biblical worldview was far from universal:

The survey's margin of error is ±4.1 percentage points.

References used:

1. The Barna Group's home page is at http://www.barna.org
2. "A Biblical Worldview Has a Radical Effect on a Person's Life," Barna Group, 2003-DEC-01, at: http://www.barna.org/
3. "Only Half Of Protestant Pastors Have A Biblical Worldview," Barna Group, 2004-JAN-12, at: http://www.barna.org/
4. Chuck Baldwin, "Christians No Different From The World,"  Renew America, 2005-MAY-31, at: http://www.renewamerica.us/
5. "Barna’s Annual Review of Significant Religious Findings Offers Encouragement and Challenges," Barna Group, 2004-DEC-21, at: http://www.barna.org/
6. George Barna, "Think like Jesus: Make the right decision every time," Integrity Publishers, (2003). Read reviews or order this book safely from the Amazon.com online book store

Copyright © 2005 by Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance
Originally posted: 2005-JUN-03
Latest update: 2005-JUN-03
Author: B.A. Robinson