i I think it is very important that Christians are theologically informed even if it is not to
the degree that one would receive from formal education and training. Many believers
are Biblically illiterate and do not know their left from their right and this greatly hurts
the overall body. Every believer does not need to know doctrine terminology or even
theology that does not pertain to salvation. The theology of transubstantiation V.S.
consubstantiation for instance does not rank very high on the average believers
things they need to know. However, the doctrine concerning why the church partakes
in the Eucharist is important, even if they are unfamiliar with the term. I believe that as
a pastor leads the sheep will follow and according to our text book reading many of
our pastors are not well versed in theological principles as evidenced by 21%
believing that the Bible is made up of “fables legends, history, and moral precepts.”1
How can we expect believers to become more grounded when leadership is failing?
i i i i i i i i i i When believers are not well informed they become easy targets for the enemy to
attack and destroy. The scriptures call him a “roaring lion, seeking someone to
devour” (1 Pt. 5:8 NASB). i Considering that these verses are written to a group of
believers it stands to reason that he is seeking Christians to devour and lions will
always go after the weak on the fringe of the herb animals before the strong middle of
the herd animals. I am unaware if contextually it is the best verse but the concept I
believe is biblical founded when speaking about priest Hosea stats that “my people
are destroyed from lack of knowledge. ‘Because you have rejected knowledge, I also
reject you as my priest’” (Hosea 4:6). Christians need to have at least a basic
understanding of theology in order to defend themselves from the attacks that the
enemy will use against them. Doctrines such as sola gratia, atonement, and
justification to name only a few are helpful to keep believers from falling away and
also for defending the faith that they claim. As John Nicholls explains that Paul’s
words to Titus actually meant not to silence but to muzzle any theological
opponents.2 It is hard to lead others to Christ if you do not know where you stand
before your maker because you have adopted a works over grace mentality or a grace
plus works combination.
i i i i i I highly favor the study of scripture but also the study of church history because if
we do not know history then we are destined to repeat it. It is important to understand
why did the church in general not oppose the Nazis in Germany as the systematically
slaughtered millions of Jews and other “undesirables”. How can the church look back
and repent of this mistake and move forward with the knowledge to prevent similar
actions in the future? Where will the church fall on the side of history with more recent
movement such as BLM and is there a close connection between these two times in
history?
Word count:510
1. Rebecca McLaughlin, Confronting Christianity: 12 Questions for the World's Largest
Religion, (Wheaton, ILL: Crossway, 2019), 96.
Via Lydia Saad, "Three in Four in U.S. Still See the Bible as Word of God," Gallop,
June4, 2014, http://news.gallop.com/poll/170834/three-four-bible-word-god.aspx.
2. Todd Wilson and Gerald Hiestand eds. Becoming a Pastor Theologian, (Downers
Grove, ILL: IVP Academic, 2016), 155. Jason Nicholls, " The Pastor Theologian in the
Pastoral Epistles".
