Why Theology?

    My primary goal in this space throughout this year is to help preachers become better, more focused preachers, and to help those who listen to preaching to be better-equipped listeners. 

    Since I completed my formal education for ministry in the 1980s there have been many changes in the process of preparing candidates for all forms of ministry. This is likewise true of the preaching ministry. When I began my career in ministry most people in ministry; whether called preacher, pastor, reverend, parson, or just by name, filled the role of a generalist. We performed the tasks each of those names describes. Preaching, intra-personal pastoral care, administrative, didactic teaching. The single greatest change in my 40 plus years of ministry is the fragmentation of ministry into narrowly defined, radically segregated specializations. The tragedy is that most congregations of most denominations still function as a one-man shop while functioning amid evolving concepts of how ministry should be done. There are several consequences.

1. Loss of ability in the pulpit.

2. Loss of authority in the pulpit.

3. Loss of accountability in the pulpit. 

And here is where you may get a little uncomfortable. For many congregations and the communities, they serve, the revolutionary model of ministry which emerged in the transition from the 20th to the 21st century has been a failure. Rather than preparing and deploying equipped preachers, the current model has deployed a generation of entitled religious specialists who are not flexible enough to function in the typical congregation to which they are called, and for whom the center of gravity which undergirds ministry has completely shifted. 

    Most young ministry candidates are instructed to have a philosophy of ministry. Virtually every Megachurch has an individualized philosophy of ministry—as if cultural and social factors define and drive what should be believed and taught. What we need is less philosophy of ministry and more theology. Right theology, properly articulated from the pulpit is the traditional means by which disciples are made, trained, and deployed for service. There are not enough consultants to be hired which can enable a congregation to outrun bad theology. And virtually any strategy or tactic combined with properly conceived logistics will be productive in the context of a properly articulated Biblical Theology. 

    I can hear the objections. And that is fine. I will simply answer them. 

    Doctrine is the structure upon which things rest. The New Testament is filled with memorable stories of the ministry of Jesus, the foundation of the Church, and the ongoing work of the Apostles. Gospel, Acts, Epistle, and Apocalypse cannot be properly understood apart from the doctrinal content upon which each book is built. “Whoa there, Bob…What about instruction about right conduct and moral application of the faith?” Glad you asked because that just makes my point even more forcefully. Correct doctrine preached and taught publicly and privately is the foundation for all the morality we find in scripture. I invite you to look at the following passages, examples from Paul, James, Peter, and John. Each addresses moral or behavioral issues by grounding and describing them in doctrinal terms. Though their words are recorded in the New Testament, and we read them therein, make no mistake; This is preaching. This is teaching. This is spiritual formation. This is the work of ministry. This is Theology as the basis for ministry. This is what we are called to do, and it is this work which will abide long after the latest fads and fashions have been swept into the dustbin of history. 

“1Corinthians 15:1   Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, 1Corinthians 15:2 and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.” (1 Corinthians 15:1–2 ESV)

“James 5:19   My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, James 5:20 let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.” (James 5:19–20 ESV)

“but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,” (1 Peter 3:15 ESV)

“1John 4:1   Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. 1John 4:2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 1John 4:3 and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already.” (1 John 4:1–3 ESV)

Because correct doctrine is the structure upon which moral instruction can be based. Without this structure, those who are being directed to behave in such a way can always ask “why, by whose authority, for what reason?” These are questions that require clear, doctrinal answers. The place for doctrine is primarily the Pulpit. Unfocused, vacuous preaching creates vacuous, unfocused disciples. Confused disciples are attracted by novelty, trivia, and entertainment. We have too big a task to allow it to become an aimless distraction. 

    Why theology? Because Christianity is theology! To be Christian means believing specific things about the nature of our world. To be Christian means affirming the trustworthiness and truth of the Bible. To be Christian means accepting the reality of the fall and thus the culpability of humanity. To be Christian means confessing the mysterious incarnation of the Word of God—Jesus Christ who emptied Himself of the divine station to redeem those made in the image of God. These are not truths which spring from human emotion. They are not the conclusions of unbiased observation of the world. They are not “discoverable”.  They are not obvious. They are known by faithful preaching, patient teaching, sensitive prompting, courageous leading. 

    Without theology, all that you have is power, emotion, technique. Without theology, the channel to God is cut and you are left to your own devices. If you wish to make your mark in ministry in that fashion, go your merry, pragmatic way. Guys like me will be there to pick you up and mend the broken hearts and empty minds of your poor sheep.