It might seem that billions of humans might have a very large number of different major belief systems, meaning those which can drive an intense level of commitment. However, there are surprisingly few. And most primary belief systems center around self, family, religion, and causes. The majority of people who have ever lived have utilized a very basic set of core beliefs, and do not think much about higher level issues. In other words, the answer to the question which has been posed regarding what most humans believe is: "the basics." Therefore most people who ever live will have done so under a system of beliefs focused on living a simple life at a rather low level of thinking and expectations, and therefore apart from God and His plan.
Then there are the higher order belief systems which go beyond the basic level of thoughts and beliefs. And it is not simply a matter of education levels, but rather is more about motivation to understand what life is about, and mainly comes down to a religion for most. So when we refer to people engaging in higher order thoughts and beliefs it does not refer to the outcomes, but rather to the complexity of the thinking and believing processes involved. Therefore the mental processes can be complex correct ones, or they can be complex yet flawed, or even complex and evil. So higher order does not automatically mean they are good, accurate, or related to truth. It just means they are more complex. We will expand on this shortly.
The belief systems with the strongest influence over those who hold them center on religion, institutions, family, and self. If a person becomes a Christian, that is a higher order belief system. So also with false religions, which are complex yet not based on truth. There are also higher order belief systems based on supporting causes which a person believes in deeply, whether focused on children or animals or the environment or whatever. Those seeking power often have political belief systems, which are also complex. And anyone motivated to try to understand and achieve at a higher plane, whether from good or bad motivation, has higher order thoughts and beliefs. Again, that does not imply good or bad, just complex. We will discuss how those who are most motivated to achieve higher level thoughts and beliefs are the ones who cause most of the good and bad in the world. Thoughts and beliefs are powerful things because they result in an intensified form of motivation.
Now that we have that overview in mind, let us now take a look at the various forms of beliefs systems starting with the most basic and working up to the higher level ones.
The most common belief system throughout history has been the belief in both self and one's family, which means a person is motivated to support self and family by working to earn a living, marriage and raising children, and generally living a life focused primarily on these issues. This belief system is an approach to life which has shown to enable survival and provide at least some level of stability and basic happiness. Due to the curse put on the earth after the fall of humans in the Garden of Eden, humans are required to work hard and fight the cursed earth for survival. The earth became unfriendly in many ways, and earning a living to care for family took most of one's efforts. The remaining time was often spent doing chores and caring for family, plus trying to relax and avoid physical or mental exertion. The next work day will come around soon. This requirement to toil and struggle to survive is the lot of most people around the world, leading them to think and believe at a fairly basic level. It is survival level living, thinking, and believing, which works well enough for most people. This is the level where most people live. However, if someone takes this approach but also becomes a Christian or pursues another religion, the mixture of the simple life with complex beliefs about religion puts them into the higher order level of beliefs. Religion is a complex belief system.
One might ask why people do not strive to think more complex thoughts and have higher order beliefs. The first answer is many of them live on the lower rung of societies where they struggle just to survive. Life is a daily grind to feed, clothe, and shelter their family, with little time or funds remaining. This daily grind uses most of the time, energy, and resources they have available, with very little left over. Others are just content to have basic beliefs to avoid complexity in the life. Many reject religious beliefs, or are merely a joiner but not a practitioner. Whatever their motivation, most people find that a simple life is either more enjoyable or all they can handle due to the constraints of resources and time.
The Bible says God has given the basics of life, including food, drink, family, work, and other basics, as a gift to all humans, including unbelievers. Ecclesiastes 5:18: "This is what I have observed to be good: that it is appropriate for a person to eat, to drink and to find satisfaction in their toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given them—for this is their lot. 19 Moreover, when God gives someone wealth and possessions, and the ability to enjoy them, to accept their lot and be happy in their toil—this is a gift of God. 20 They seldom reflect on the days of their life, because God keeps them occupied with gladness of heart." Ecclesiastes 3:12: "I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live." And Psalm 145:9 says "The Lord is good to all; his compassion is over all that he has made.” God gives these basic gifts to unbelievers, who will have only their time on earth to be somewhat happy. Having a family, work, the essentials of life, and being a good citizen can enable them to lead a rather normal and contented life. But then eternity is a different matter.
Some people prefer living at a basic level where they think in basic and repeatable ways, and purposely avoid dealing with complexity. This low level approach to thoughts and beliefs is stability for many people, even if they have leisure time available, unlike those who simply struggle to survive. Complex thoughts and beliefs require more complex coping systems to overcome the issues they bring with them. And higher level thoughts require extra effort, which they do not wish to expend. Remember, this simple level of belief system does not apply to believers, since Bible beliefs are the highest level belief system, even if one lives rather simply.
Many people live a simple lust-based life and avoid higher order thinking and beliefs, whereby their primary thoughts are about pursuing satisfaction of lusts, which does not require much thought, but does require lots of "hunter-gatherer" time spent looking for prey. These people avoid deep thoughts in favor of the endless pursuit of pleasure. And not all lusts are carnal, but rather many are based on self-righteousness. For example, people often gain satisfaction by looking down on the carnal lust people, and this builds up their self-esteem by comparison, but without raising oneself at all. So living a lust-based life can be a means of avoiding the complexities of higher order thoughts and beliefs. This form of avoidance is appealing to many who want to live simply yet not be tied to the order God ordained for humans.
Other types of beliefs focus on elevating self far above all others. In rush-hour traffic it is the person who weaves in and out nearly taking off everyone's bumper. They see the universe revolving around them. For others, drugs can induce a belief of invincibility and superhuman powers. And politicians believe laws do not apply to them. Taxing authorities believe your money actually belongs to them, and only let you keep some of it out of generosity. We could go on and on about beliefs related to self-superiority. It is one of the strongest belief systems among people. And it is based on an unrealistic and therefore false view of one's own importance.
There are also plenty of criminals around who live life using a low level belief system. What do they believe? Criminals live the lust-based life and add a strong dose of "survival of the fittest" which enables them to believe whatever they do is beneficial to themselves, so it is justifiable. The victims were too weak anyway, so they do not matter, so at least Darwin would approve. Criminals live on animalistic instincts. Recall our discussion of how the original sin created the Sinful Nature, which brought animalistic instincts into the human soul. That is where criminals get their belief system. At that level of thoughts and beliefs anything can be deemed acceptable if it benefits self. Criminals believe everything should belong to them, since no one else is deserving of it. In this way criminals and politicians are very much alike.
Therefore many people are content to live at a basic level of thought and belief, which avoids complexity in the life. That is happiness to them, or at least it works for them in some way. But this is no excuse for refusing to think about God and the eternal future, since the most important beliefs in life revolve around these issues.
Let us pause and explain that these belief systems can be mixed and matched, with a person holding to some or all of several different types. Belief systems cannot be put into exact molds. They often are like a buffet rather than a single course meal. So these descriptions are general illustrations for the purpose of explanation, and are not meant to be specific cookie-cutter recipes about belief systems. And there are many sub-categories of belief systems, but we are merely trying to give examples of what belief systems are most prevalent among humans. The Reader is fully capable of filling in the gaps based on personal experiences.
Then there are those who try to live a life based on higher level thoughts and beliefs. Christians are certainly in this category, but also many others. And just because they are considered higher level beliefs does not make all of them correct belief systems. At the higher levels people engage in mentally stimulating interests which expand their belief system, and develop a more complex set of beliefs, which can be right or wrong, or even nonsense. Remember, when we say people engage in higher order thoughts and beliefs it does not refer to the outcomes, but rather to the complexity of the thinking and believing processes involved, whether for good or bad, truth or falsehood. After all, nonsense can be more complex than the truth if someone works hard enough at developing it.
Higher level belief systems have key beliefs called "ideology" which dominate in the soul, and are the most deeply held components of one's beliefs. These are some of the most troublesome beliefs with which to deal if they are false. And if a person starts with an ideology which is false, there is little hope for having a belief system which aligns with either reality or truth. Ideology is a type of belief which takes over the entire belief system so that every other belief is first filtered by and through that single core ideology. The key is whether that ideology is correct or false. We believe the ideology of the Christian Bible is true, so to the believer it is what drives every other subset belief. We believe our belief system is both true and aligns with reality, because God created both truth and reality. In our view, belief systems which do not align with the Bible are flawed to whatever degree they are in conflict. Those who reject Biblical theology, such as all other religions, develop ideologies and use them as their basis for thought and beliefs, to various degrees of accuracy. Ideologies are powerful and persistent drivers of human action. When ideologies are based on reality to a large degree they can be constructive, but when they are aligned with anything else they become destructive. Even Satan has an ideology focused on opposing God and avoiding his ultimate fate of being cast into the Lake of Fire forever. That ideology has been the basis for much human suffering.
Now that we have discussed the variety of belief systems, from simple to complex, we will next look at some of the distractions involved in forming belief systems, and why people succumb to them.
In ancient times it was easier to avoid complexity in life, since there were far fewer distractions available. But technology and other issues have changed that. As life became more complicated, people used methods of avoidance, for example Stoicism in ancient Rome, but today it is mainly just Distractionism. Technology causes most of the complexity, but also enables Distractionism to the point where people can avoid deeper level thinking as much and often as they wish. Entertainment, internet cruising, games, communicating nonsense with numerous imaginary friends, and so on can expend all the available time so that thinking is not required. The less time spent in thinking, the more thinking becomes feared. And so the cycle of Distractionism repeats, over and over. In fact, Distractionism is the number one impediment to a useful belief system in the world today. The reason is that it avoids reality, which can often be unpleasant. Nothing wrong with using technology to enhance the life, or to play mindless games occasionally, but it is a matter of degree. If technology is used to consistently avoid thinking and higher order beliefs, especially about God, then it has turned into Distractionism.
Additionally, social pressures keep some from rising above peers to avoid appearing snobbish, which would lead to rejection by their group. This often happens among friends and co-workers where there is a strong opposition to class differences. A person engaged in skilled labor might not want to be viewed as someone who loves to read classic literature and listen to opera, because they would be ridiculed as going above their station in life, even though it is a ridiculous belief held by co-workers. But social pressure complicates life, so it is easier to stay within expected boundaries. Many children do not develop their potential because they do not want to rise above the expected standards of their peer group, so they dumb-down their life to the level of their friends.
The list of reasons people use to avoid higher order thoughts and beliefs is long, but the point is they exist, and they do affect the belief systems of people. Therefore some choose to have a low level belief system because it suits them better for some reason or another. Again, we do not put believers or anyone who practices other religions in this group, because these are higher order belief systems. A person can live a simple life but have higher order beliefs. This is not a commentary on lifestyles, but rather on beliefs.
Some belief systems are formed using the group-think method, which has become very popular. And some people believe what others tell them they should believe, which is a loose form of group-thinking without a defined group. This is belief by popularity of ideas. People look around and determine subjectively what others believe, or say they believe, and then accept them as true. Some believe in whatever is most popular on social media. Often the person joins a group and accepts the beliefs of that group. Which belief does my social media group support? Which one will not get me banned or canceled from a media site or group? That approach leads to decisions on beliefs based on fear of rejection, and one's own belief system is formed by group consensus. This form of belief by popularity is very powerful, with very high pressure for conformance. Their mantra is "Believe as I do or get out of our group." Social ostracism forces conformance and congruence of thought and belief. This is often called "group-think" but takes many forms, often subtle, and usually is enforced by expulsion from the group for lack of conformity. We can see that this is a powerful belief system, but the beliefs themselves are often fungible and imprecise. This requires continual confirmations of the currently acceptable beliefs of the group and causes its followers to live in constant fear of rejection.
Some develop their belief system based on a "party line" of political or institutional beliefs. This belief system tends to drive the entire thought process, regardless of logic or rationality. Whatever lines up with the party line is immediately accepted without scrutiny, debate, inspection, or thought of any kind. The "Party" cannot be wrong, and it is the center of all beliefs for such a person. If it sounds like a religion, that is correct, because it is a secular one. Logic, science, and Biblical truth cannot penetrate the darkness of a party line belief system. In many ways it is less objective than the checkout aisle magazine source of beliefs. But those involved are content to believe what they are told to believe by those higher up the political chain of command. The Reader may wonder if this is really a "belief system" at all since it is so flexible in believing whatever the political or institutional apparatus says to believe. But a belief system does not need to be based on anything real, true, or factual. It only needs to have control over the thinking of the individual inside the system. And it does.
As a short side trip, we mentioned above the "checkout aisle magazine source of beliefs" in passing, but it warrants further explanation. As we wait in line to buy our groceries, we can see the magazine covers telling us about the mixed-up and miserable lives of celebrities and other famous people. The supposition is that these people have it all, so they should be happy. But they are not. If you have ever pondered why these magazines sell, and who might read such things, it is all about making the average person feel better about their own life by comparison. If a person with simple beliefs sees how people who "have it all" can be such sad examples of humanity, it makes them feel better by comparison. So as long as people have someone to look down on, they have some measure of self-esteem. This would be a belief system based on looking down on others by comparison, and elevating self without having to do anything. Just an observation.
Then there is the "science based" approach to forming a belief system. One might think this would be a reasonable approach, and it can be as a part of one's belief system if the science is accurate. Science is important and we embrace its advancements in many fields which have made our lives better. But science must be put into the proper perspective. It depends completely on the facts and assumptions which are used to determine the "scientific" outcome. Most of what is called scientific has at least some projection using unknown or partially known variables. The phrase "garbage in-garbage out" was invented by scientists. A large part of what is called science these days is actually modeling, which is used to predict outcomes, such as future weather, performance of a vehicle being designed, and so on. Real modeling relies on having very few unknowns and very limited variables, otherwise it can be inaccurate, and sometimes grossly inaccurate. The process is dependent on people who must input facts, conditions and assumptions, who must use conjecture sparingly, and the variables must be highly controlled. Therefore when someone says they rely on the science, we need to first know that they used highly accurate data and sufficiently controlled the important variables. One variable is time, and the farther out the model projects the possible outcomes, the less accurate it will be. Therefore science can only explain a tiny bit of everything in the universe. That is why we trust what the Bible says, because God is the Designer of the universe. True science simply tries to understand what God has designed, without undue speculation.
Belief systems are also formed based on supporting causes or trying to improve the world. People want to help underprivileged children or animals or whatever, which of course can be helpful when correctly targeted and implemented. But causes can be destructive when they are radical and implemented by force. Regarding radical causes, some people look for a purpose in life apart from God, trying to create a reason for their own existence. They want to save something or help with something. Not a problem until it consumes that person to the exclusion of clear thinking and normal life functions. For ideas and concepts which do not align with truth, these can become a fanatical pursuit of changing the world into something which cannot happen. These are misguided, and ultimately destructive to self and others. Radical environmentalism is one of the more popular examples, but there are many others. People reject the truth and then are surprised to find they have no meaning or purpose in life. So they seek a cause to make their life meaningful. And they focus on it in a self-destructive way. There is a way to support a cause which makes improvements, but there is also a way to use it to try to avoid the reality of missing out on the true meaning and purpose of life.
Another method of forming a belief system is that everything is equally acceptable, that "all roads lead to Rome," meaning all beliefs are equal. Being neutral in all situations is the goal, which is not the definition of the perfect human. To them, nothing is worth taking a position to defend as right or wrong. In reality, having no opinion is the same as having no belief system. Yet some people believe that having no opinion will prevent criticism. The opposite is true. People without firm beliefs are empty shells without conviction or purpose.
These are just a few examples of some of the more widespread and popular forms of belief systems, the distractions involved in forming them, and how they can be mixed and matched, and pieces added or subtracted. But there is only one form of correct thoughts and beliefs, as outlined in the Bible. No one fulfills this perfectly, except for Jesus Christ. Christians have the opportunity to have correct thoughts and beliefs to the highest degree, but there are many levels of achievement among them. First we must choose to accept salvation by faith in Jesus Christ. Then after we choose salvation, we are required to grow spiritually by learning the Word of God. This is the highest level thought and belief system by far, since it is from God. So for the believer, the standard is the pursuit of correct thoughts and beliefs by studying, learning, and applying the truth from God's Word from our human spirit. We will expand on this one and only correct belief system later.
There are additional types of belief systems, but the purpose of this chapter is merely to provide some examples of the most popular ones, not to list or explain all of them. And to reiterate, a person can have several types of belief systems melded into one overall system of beliefs, whether compartmentalized or integrated, mutually supportive or randomly chaotic. Or nonsensical. For believers, we can have multiple belief systems in harmonious agreement, if they all align with the truth from the Word of God. And not everything is right or wrong, since some things are merely personal choices. But it is the core beliefs which drive most people, if they have any. For those who do not, they just muddle through life trying to avoid thinking too much or taking a firm position on anything.
But let us pause for a moment and examine our purpose here. Most people are generally just trying to make their way through life, to survive and also have some degree of comfort and happiness. Whether they live at a low level of thoughts and beliefs, or something viewed as higher level, is not the point. The issue is whether their thoughts and beliefs are in alignment with the truth, or an alternative route based on something else. And there can only be one truly correct way, and it is found through the Bible. And if a belief system does not lead to eternal life, what good is it?
For those believers who focus on their spiritual life after salvation, their belief system will be based on the Word of God and doing what God wishes them to do. This type of belief system becomes more narrowly focused on truth. Of course, there are various degrees of success in this path, and differences of opinion. But for those believers who neglect or even reject their spiritual growth, they will live generally as the unbelievers live, with mixed-up thoughts and beliefs, even though they are saved.
For unbelievers, having rejected God and His gracious offer of salvation, they must find alternate paths in a search for happiness. We have discussed that God has provided work, marriage and family for unbelievers as a basic form of belief system, in which they can have some level of success and happiness while alive. Some are content in this and live that life, while others seek "meaning" in life, since they do not have God to give them meaning, purpose and fulfillment. This can result in crusading for causes to make one's life count for something, often based on helping other people, animals, the earth, or something which they see as a worthy cause. Nothing wrong with that, except that it can distract from thinking about God and eternity.
This is where people form alternate belief systems designed to make them believe they are better, more advanced, or superior people. They compare themselves to others, and especially those who believe and trust in God. In this way they gain a perceived sense of heightened self-esteem by declaring others to be inferior. This is a powerful motivator, especially in more advanced, or at least wealthier, societies since working less and retiring earlier is possible. This often becomes a secular salvation by comparison approach, not of eternal salvation but a temporal salvation from guilt and despair over having no real purpose in life. The only true sense of purpose, and the only belief system which has meaning, is the one which lines up with the plan of God. That is, salvation, and living a spiritual life as outlined in the Word of God, thinking and believing as God has instructed us, living by the only source of truth, and having a meaningful life.
But for now, take a look around at the world, and you will see many bad examples of what people view as higher order belief systems. There are those who set themselves up as elite members of the keepers of the truth as they view it, although they oppose Biblical truth. Politicians are often a good example of bad beliefs. Power is their primary belief system, but only for themselves, not for the general population. Criminals and politicians are a lot alike, with some wonderful exceptions. But power lust brings in the "criminal animalistic instincts" we discussed when talking about what criminals believe. Giving in to the powerful lusts of the Sinful Nature and combining it with an out of control Emotion plus adding political power is a bad combination in politics. Truth is whatever they say it is, but they lie without apology, while truly believing their own lies. This is not a new thing, but it has become pervasive lately as the world has degenerated. Once again we see how higher order beliefs, although complex, can be destructive. And the world suffers as a result.
We will now take a closer look at why people reject truth.