Written by: Tendai Chitsike
Article source: JOY! Magazine

Romans 12:1-2 provides a very useful roadmap for Christ-likeness in a godless world. We turn our attention to the last part of the instruction: the call to be transformed by the renewing of the mind. It is only when such mind renewal has taken place that the Apostle Paul says, “THEN you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.” The inescapable assumption here is that believers need transforming in the first place. But some might question why such transformation is necessary. After all, aren’t we saved by God’s grace, and aren’t we the temple of His Holy Spirit? While that is true, the inescapable inference here is that without deliberate, intentional, ongoing transformation, our minds will be caught up in unregenerate patterns of thinking and, as a result, we will continue to think and behave contrary to the will of God.

Lacking a biblical worldview
We ought to look at ourselves and ask what the current situation regarding Biblical thinking is within the church. Quite frankly, our situation reflects one of conformity to the world more than transformation unto godliness. As Harry Blamires lamented in his book The Christian Mind: “There is no longer a Christian mind … the modern Christian has succumbed to secularisation.” While we don’t have comparable statistics in our nation, surveys from the USA give us an indication of the scale of the problem, which begins not with laymen in the pews, but in fact with the pastors in the pulpit. A 2022 survey by the Cultural Research Center “revealed that most of America’s pastors lack a biblical worldview … the majority – 62% – hold a hybrid worldview known as syncretism … Specifically, only 47% have a biblical worldview regarding family and the value of life; 44% concerning issues related to God, creation, and history; 43% in relation to personal faith practices; 43% when it comes to matters of sin, salvation, and one’s relationship with God; 40% pertaining to human character and human nature; and 40% when it comes to measures of lifestyle, personal behaviour, and relationships … Lowest of all is a category that might have been expected to top the list: beliefs and behaviours related to the Bible, truth, and morality. Only 39% of all pastors have a biblical worldview in this area.”

Christ’s work continues
Despite the grim picture painted by such sobering statistics, we can still have much hope that Christ will continue the work He started. On our part, here are some suggestions. We dare not water down the Gospel we preach. Only genuine converts will desire such mind renewal. Second, we must be careful to disciple believers in the areas where we are most tempted to think like the world. As students and lecturers in my own congregation are affected by prevailing worldviews on the university campus, we run an annual worldview seminar and speak into ideas that militate against their faith. Our preaching should not only exegete scripture, but the culture we are surrounded by. Most importantly, we must cultivate a desire for Christ and His eternal kingdom more than temporary popularity or financial success, even if it costs us both in church numbers and budget. Last, when our desire to live for Christ is waning, we could go back to the cross and consider the final words of the hymn, “When I survey the wondrous cross”:

Were the whole realm of nature mine, that were an offering far too small;
Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all.

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Date published: 10/08/2023
Feature image: Image for illustrative purposes only. Artwork from www.freepik.com
Tendai Chitsike – Pastor of Every Nation Church in Makhanda. Email: engrahamstown@gmail.com

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