The Brookside Institute
  • Home
  • About
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Brookside Church

6 Definitions of Theology from "the Pros"

8/9/2016

0 Comments

 
Picture
What is Christian theology? Theology is a combination of the Greek words "theos" (God) and "logos" (word). Most simply and straightforwardly, then, theology is "words about God" or "the study of God." 

But theology isn't JUST the study of God in some compartmentalized, isolated fashion. Because once we start to study and think about God as Christians, we discover that who God is and what God has done has implications for us and the way we live our lives. Whether directly or indirectly, theology influences the way we think, value, and feel about a myriad of other things.

Knowing this, many theologians have worked to "tease out" a fuller definition of theology that (1) captures this comprehensive scope of theology and (2) keeps us focused on what theology is for.

​Here are 6 such "professional" definitions of theology from evangelical scholars (listed in no particular order):

Picture
"…theology is the study of God….Naturally it is not concerned merely with God in himself, but with the activity of God and with every area of human thought and experience which is affected by belief in God" (I. Howard Marshall, Pocket Guide to New Testament Theology, p. 5 - available online here).

Picture
“Systematic theology is the cognitive and passionate enterprise that seeks to know and love the God of the gospel and to demonstrate its understanding in forms of obedient speech and practice” (Kevin Vanhoozer, Dictionary for Theological Interpretation of the Bible, p. 773).

Picture
"Systematic theology is any study that answers the question, 'What does the whole Bible teach us today?' about any given topic" (Wayne Grudem Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine, p. 21).

Picture
“Theology might be…defined as the discipline that (1) presents a unified formulation of truth concerning God and his relationship to humanity as set forth primarily in divine revelation and secondarily in classical church teaching and the field of human knowledge and that (2) applies such truths to the entire range of human life and thought” (Bruce Demarest, “Systematic Theology” in Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, 2nd ed, p. 1162).

Picture
“Evangelical systematic theology is this: it is the science by which evangelical believes learn of God. It is rooted in the Bible and focused on Christ. Through this knowledge, the Spirit transforms us into followers of Christ and forms us into Christian communities, awakening in us the wisdom of God that leads to genuine worship and cultural transformation. Through theology we know and love God” (David K. Clark, To Know and Love God: Method for Theology, p. xxxii). 

Picture
“Theology…encompasses a framework for thinking about the world and a vision for living in it. It seeks to capture the minds and hearts of believers so that they might think Christianly and act Christianly. Theology is the most noble and impassioned of disciplines, and if confined to the classroom, it will shrivel and die” (Richard Lints, The Fabric of Theology: A Prolegomenon to Evangelical Theology, p. 81).
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Picture

    Tim Wiebe

    Christian. Husband. Father. Pastor. Learner. Contributor. Reader.


    RSS Feed


    Categories

    All
    Apologetics
    Bible
    Book Reviews
    Catechesis
    Church History
    Culture
    Devotional
    Ethics
    Mission
    Quotes
    Reading
    Spiritual Disciplines
    Teaching
    Theology

    Archives

    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    February 2022
    March 2021
    September 2020
    August 2020
    May 2020
    February 2020
    November 2019
    September 2019
    July 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014

SITE MAP

Home
About
Blog
Contact
Brookside Church

Top Five Posts from February 2023
#1 - 6 Online Tools that Can Help You Dig into (and Understand!) the Bible
#2 - 5 Ways to Show Readiness for Jesus' Return
​#3 - ​​8 Things We Learn About God in Deuteronomy 4-10
#4 - ​ What's Up with 1 Kings 18:40?
#5 - How 2 Timothy 1-2 Helps Me Approach Teaching

Picture
© 2014-2022  |  11607 M Circle, Omaha NE, 68137 | www.thebrooksideinstitute.net
  • Home
  • About
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Brookside Church