Helping Without Hurting: The Bible and the PoorSample

Worldview Matters

We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ . . . (2 Cor. 10:5)

Importance. How we think matters. Consider Rwanda. Despite the fact that 80 percent of Rwandans claimed to be Christians, a civil war erupted in 1994 in which the Hutu majority conducted a brutal genocide against the Tutu minority and Hutu moderates. An estimated 800,000 people were slaughtered, many by their own neighbors, and an already materially poor nation erupted into anarchy and violence. Lacking a deeply Christian worldview rooted in the dignity of every human as an image-bearer of God, Christians in Rwanda were swept into tragedy and violence.

Implications. James Sire defines a worldview as “a set of presuppositions which we hold about the basic makeup of our world.” Rwandan Christians held a deficient worldview, a privatized Christianity that failed to reach deep and wide into longstanding tribal divisions and hatred. Having a deficient Christian worldview, they failed to recognize the implications of Scripture and the gospel on their lives. And yet they are not alone. Many in the church, regardless of income of education level, fail to grasp and live out the far-reaching claims of the Bible on how we are to think and act. Faith is locked in a cage of Sunday worship and personal piety. We must let it out to do its work. We must “take every thought captive to obey Christ,” unpacking the implications of the gospel for every area of our lives.

Invitation. This course trains churches in Rwanda to form savings group ministries as a discipleship tool. In these groups, community members study Scripture, pray together, and save and lend their money, experiencing spiritual, social, and financial transformation. These groups are reaching deep into people’s world-views, bringing Christ’s healing power to bear on the divisions that led to the genocide. “Savings groups are often where people give and receive forgiveness,” explains Emmanuel. And many of the groups, which are full of people who lost loved ones in the genocide, are now caring for the families of people imprisoned for crimes during the genocide. The power of the gospel is changing their worldview, leading to restoration in their relationships. Today, we need the Bible to renew our minds and equip us to embody the gospel in our lives.

Father, forgive us for our often superficial worldview, for failing to see and act on the implications of a Kingdom perspective. Give us the mind of Christ to view others as You do, act in accordance to Your Word, and pursue justice for those around us.