As a Christian in today's culture, I believe that it is necessary for believers to be
"theologically informed." Accordingly, a theologically informed Christian is one that
understands scripture, history, and philosophy, thus providing them with a clearer view
of the biblical text. Sadly, many believers and unbelievers manipulate scripture to
support their agenda whether that be a political, social, or cultural agenda. Whenever
that happens, it discredits their theology, and it could easily be argued as unethical
Christian practices even though the manipulation of scripture can sometimes be
unintentional. Regardless, "theology is about speaking and doing the truth divinely
revealed in Jesus Christ" [1].
Since, "theology is too important to be left to the 'professionals.' Every human being is
accountable before God for responding to the knowledge of God" [2]. As a result, it is
up to the individual believer to seek the correct interpretation and application of
scripture. However, most church goers attend church to receive the correct biblical
understanding of God's Word from their pastor or preacher.; therefore, leaving the
pastor with a tremendous burden. Consequently this is probably why pastors and
teachers are held to a higher standard (James 3:1). Unfortunately, I don't really know
how many of today's pastors are actually pastoring. It is my opinion that many of them
are merely public speakers whose subject matter is the gospel. In fact, many of their
sermons are focused on reaching "lost" people, so that they can receive a relationship
with Christ.
With that being said, I am fully in support of pursuing lost people. In fact, in Luke 15,
Jesus tells us about the importance of it. More specifically, He stated that "there will
be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous
persons who need no repentance" (Luke 15:7). Unfortunately, in the process of reaching
lost people, I have seen believers who need discipled leave the church because they do
not feel that they are growing. Nonetheless, a successful ministry is measured by the
"people's knowledge and love of God," and not by the number of "people, programs,
[or] dollars" [3].
In conclusion, the goal of a "theologically informed" Christian is one that is focused on
making disciples that make disciples. The way that we do that is by reaching lost
people and helping them grow in their love for God. Therefore, it is imperative that we
are sensitive to cross-cultural communication, and we are informed in scripture, history,
and philosophy, but we must also "be careful not to misrepresent the gospel message or
mislead others" in the process [4]. h
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[1] Kevin J. VanHoozer, and Owen Strachan, The Pastor as Public Theologian (Grand
Rapids, MI: Baker Publishing Group, 2015), 16.
[2] Ibid., 16. h
[3] Ibid., 22.
[4] Robertson McQuilkin, and Paul Copan, An Introduction to Biblical Ethics: Walking
in the Way of Wisdom (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2014), 194.
