What's Good or Bad About Theology?

What is the difference between "good" and "bad" Theology? I like this definition form my friend Carey at "The Grumpy Theologian":

...If we dig back into the history of Christianity we find that periodically ideas pop up that are denounced as incompatible with the non-negotiables of the faith. If we dig a bit deeper we find that the most common reasons for these denunciations are pastoral. Docetism (Jesus was divine but not human), Ebionism (Jesus was human but not divine), Arianism (Jesus was neither human nor divine), and a number of other heretical "-isms"are denounced because their teaching has implications that obscure Christ's mediation between God and humanity. In other words, these doctrines are false because they point their adherents' eyes away from the Jesus of the Bible to a different Jesus, one built on human speculation rather than divine revelation. The consequences of believing a false Gospel are catastrophic if we listen to the New Testament (and we must do that listening if identifying ourselves as "Christians" is to mean anything substantive). Bad theology is bad most fundamentally because it is bad for the soul. It points hope toward things that ultimately disappoint (which is what happens when we try to make gods for ourselves out of anything other than the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob) or it crushes hope altogether. False hope and no hope are both bad for the soul.

So far, so good, but what does this suggest about how we should go about doing goodtheology? Let me make a suggestion: Good theology is good for the same reason that bad theology is bad. Both have to do with how they function in pointing us to God. Bad theology is bad because it mis-portrays God and thus hinders our growing closer to Him as He really is. When our relationship to God is stunted by bad theology we suffer from soul starvation--an impoverished theology leads to an impoverished spiritual life. Now let's consider the flip-side of that statement. Good theology is good because it points us to God as He truly is (or, more properly, "Is"). Good theology facilitates transformative encounter with God and fosters ongoing, life-giving relationship with Him...

More worth reading at the link.

.

May 22, 2011: The Pastoral Challenge and Opportunity

It is past 6 pm in my time zone, and we're all still here. 'Nuff said about  that

It is easy to make fun of Mr. Camping, but we must also remember compassion on those who fell for his deluded teachings, and the Pastoral Challenge and Opportunity When the Rapture Doesn't Happen.  Here are some kind and wise words from Eric Landry (via Justin Taylor):

We must be very careful about how we respond. Will we join our friends at the “Rapture Parties” that are planned for pubs and living rooms around the nation? Will we laugh at those who have spent the last several months of their lives dedicated to a true but untimely belief? What will we say on Saturday night or Sunday morning?

History teaches us that previous generations caught up in eschatological fervor often fell away from Christ when their deeply held beliefs about the end of the world didn’t pan out. While Camping must answer for his false teaching at the end of the age, Reformational Christians are facing a pastoral problem come Sunday morning: how can we apply the salve of the Gospel to the wounded sheep who will be wandering aimlessly, having discovered that what they thought was true (so true they were willing to upend their lives over it) was not? If this isn’t true, they might reason, then what other deeply held beliefs and convictions and doctrines and hopes might not be true?

It’s at this point that we need to be ready to provide a reasonable defense of our reasonable faith. Christianity is not founded upon some complex Bible code that needs years of analysis to reveal its secret. Christianity is about a man who claimed to be God, who died in full public view as a criminal, and was inexplicably raised from the dead three days later appearing to a multitude of witnesses. When his followers, who witnessed his resurrection, began speaking of it publicly, they connected the prophecies of the Old Testament to the life and death and resurrection of this man who claimed the power to forgive sins. This is the heart of the Christian faith, the message that deserves to be featured on billboards, sides of buses, and pamphlets all over the world. It is also the message that needs to be reinvested into the hearts and lives of those who found hope and meaning in Harold Camping’s latest bad idea.

 Amen to that!

Pastors Playing 21 Questions

Fro all my pastor friends - Do you ask yourself the same questions that Timmy Brister is asking? See -21 Questions I’ve Been Asking (Myself) Lately « Provocations & Pantings:

"1. If our church would cease to exist in our city, would it be noticed and missed?

2. If all the pastors were tragically killed in a car accident, would the church’s ministry cease or fall apart?

3. If the only possible means of connecting with unbelievers were through the missionary living of our church members, how much would we grow? (I ask this because the early church did not have signs, websites, ads, marketing, etc.)

4. What are the subcultures within the church? Do they attract or detract from the centrality of the gospel and mission of the church?

5. Is our church known more for what we are not/against than what we we/for?

6. What are we allowing to be our measuring stick of church health? (attendance vs. discipleship; seating capacity vs. sending capacity; gospel growth, training on mission, etc.)

7. Are the priorities of our church in line with the priorities of Christ’s kingdom?"

And that's only the first seven questions! The article is very thought provoking; read the whole thing at the link above.

A Half-Step Ahead...

At Blogotional I found this post entitled Pastors and Personality I found these thoughts intriguing.

When it comes to spiritual transformation, I think the same can be true. It takes a lot of discipline for very little transformation. So what is a pastor - a person that is supposed to model the transformed life - to do?

May I suggest rather than modeling transformation, model the path to transformation. That is to say, be human, exercise discipline and be confessing.

Spiritual leadership is not about being at the destination and calling people to you, it is about being a half-step ahead on the journey.

Oh no, not that transparency stuff again! Next thing you know they will want me to share me feelings.

Doctrine-Watching in the Church

Great post last Monday by Jared Wilson at The Gospel-Driven Church with an embedded video of Mark Driscoll talking about Doctrine-Watching in the Church

He has touched on what begins the problem and what perpetuates the problem. When the church runs like a provider of goods and services it slowly stops asking "What glorifies God?" and starts asking more and more "What do our customers want?", and as the pragmatic business model subsumes biblically formulated community, the dictum "The Customer is Always Right" becomes more of a guiding principle than a motivating God-centeredness. In other words, as "What People Want" becomes more central in the life of the church, our theology becomes more flexible and less faithful.

The Church is suffering terribly from theological bankruptcy, and we desperately need to recover the roots of orthodoxy before those who care are too few and before those who care are too few to do anything about it.

At Minimum, Biblical Exposition Involves…

Colin Adams has some good words about preaching at Unashamed Workman. Colin says that At Minimum, Biblical Exposition Involves...

1. Reading or quoting from the biblical passage to be expounded.

2. Giving the basic thrust of that passage’s message.

3. Positively demonstrating the meaning of the text by supplying relevant supporting evidence to your interpretation (historical background, literary context, grammatical support, word studies, wider Scriptural cross-reference, etc)

4. Negatively clarifying what the passage does not mean; ruling out possible faulty interpretations.

5. Drawing out the lessons of the passage for believer and non-believer.

6. Relating the passage to Christ and his gospel (setting the text within the wider framework of biblical theology).

(Note: non essentials to exposition include catchy introductions or conclusions, illustrations, numbered points, alliteration. No doubt some of these can be helpful on ocassion, but you could do exposition without them).

Doctrinal Phone Calls

Anybody ever made or received a call like this? I doubt it.

Hat Tip: Out of Ur Conversations for Ministry Leaders

Oratio, Meditatio, Tentatio - Prayer, Meditation and Suffering

Found another interesting new blog this week written be Allen Mickle and called Oratio, Meditatio, Tentatio

Welcome to Oratio, Meditatio, Tentatio. This blog is devoted to the study of pastoral theology. Here we look at areas of pastoral theology including preaching, counseling, pastoral oversight, spirituality, and anything else that would be of an interest or a help to pastors. The need for pastoral theology that is rooted in the Scriptures is much needed in our age of professionalism, business savy, marketer pastors. We have much to learn from the Scriptures about being a shepherd of God’s flock. Lord willing, posts will be made here by myself and guest bloggers that will help to offer biblical, theological, and historical insight into the work of the pastor.

The name of the blog, Oratio, Meditatio, Tentatio, comes from Martin Luther’s (1483-1546) reflections on the way to do theology and in essence, the way to serve Christ in the pastoral ministry. These three Latin words mean prayer, meditation, and suffering (this third word’s translation is hotly debated). Essentially, the pastor (and all believers) are growing and serving the Lord through constant communion with Him in prayer, the study and reflection on the Scriptures, and in temptation, trials, suffering, and spiritual affliction. The cross of Christ, the center of Luther’s theology, motivates us to serve Christ through these three main ways. Therefore, it seemed fitting when talking about pastoral theology to take a note from Luther and his reflections on the importance of prayer, meditation, and suffering in the life of the pastor.

Lord willing, posts will be edifying, challenging, and encouraging to those interested in or are serving in pastoral ministry. Guest bloggers with much more maturity and ability in the Word will contribute here to help make this a true resource to pastor’s everywhere.

I hope some good stuff comes forth from this site, and I will be watching.