Biblical and Theological Studies (eBook)

A Student's Guide

Michael J. Wilkins, Erik Thoennes (Autoren)

David S. Dockery (Herausgeber)

eBook Download: EPUB

2018 | 1. Auflage
128 Seiten
Crossway (Verlag)
978-1-4335-3492-8 (ISBN)

Infos

There is an abundant need today for biblically grounded and practically applied theology. In this book, a New Testament scholar and a theologian team up to offer readers a robust introduction to biblical and theological studies. This readable guide outlines a distinctly evangelical approach to studying the Bible and theology, highlighting the proper methods for understanding and synthesizing the teachings of the Bible, leading to deeper knowledge of God, ourselves, and how we are to meaningfully apply his Word to our lives. Part of the Reclaiming the Christian Intellectual Tradition series. 

Michael J. Wilkins (PhD, Fuller Theological Seminary) is distinguished professor of New Testament language and literature and dean of the faculty at Biola University's Talbot School of Theology. He is the author of numerous books, commentaries, and articles.

Autor

Michael J. Wilkins (PhD, Fuller Theological Seminary) is distinguished professor of New Testament language and literature and dean of the faculty at Biola University's Talbot School of Theology. He is the author of numerous books, commentaries, and articles. Erik Thoennes (PhD, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School) is professor and department chair of biblical and theological studies at Biola University and a pastor at Grace Evangelical Free Church in La Mirada, California. Previously he taught at Wheaton College and Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He is the author of numerous articles and several books. Erik lives with his wife, Donna, and their four children.

Textauszug

1

Introduction to Biblical and Theological Studies

God has spoken. This whole book is about those three simple words. That God has personally, truthfully, and sufficiently revealed himself in the Bible is the assumption of our understanding of the study of the Bible. That God is and that he has revealed himself are the most foundational beliefs of a Christian. If there is no God (atheism), or if there is a God but he does not personally reveal himself or get involved with creation (deism), then true knowledge of God is not possible. Our efforts to find answers to life’s big questions would then be limited to human experience and speculation. We would be limited to doing “theology from below.” But in the very first verse of the Bible, we are taught that God is and that he is the Creator. Then, the phrase “God said” occurs ten times in the first chapter of the Bible (Genesis 1), and when God creates human beings, he blesses and immediately talks to us and invites us to join with him in ruling and creating. Indeed, there is no greater blessing he could give than relating to us—he is our greatest blessing. That is the main reason he made us in the first place—to know and enjoy him. The God of the Bible, then, is not a mere projection of human longings or an absentee landlord, but a God who powerfully creates and meaningfully relates. He is a God who speaks, and his word blesses, provides, and saves us.

These basic assumptions about God undergird the way we approach biblical studies and theology. The Bible reveals who God is, and that understanding of God then informs how we approach the Bible—as the words of an all-wise, all-powerful, gracious, kind, forgiving, holy, righteous Father and King. We are to fully trust and obey his Word, because of the integrity of its author. The goal is to know the author by listening to his life-giving voice. What we learn, even in an “academic” study of the Bible and theology, should lead to knowledge that unites head, heart, hands, and feet in a holistic, life-changing encounter with our Creator.

Before proceeding any further, it would no doubt be helpful at this point to briefly define what we mean by biblical studies and theology, what the difference is between the two, and why we even make the distinction. Biblical studies is an academic discipline that seeks to understand the Bible as God intended when he inspired its human authors. The study of theology is the effort to summarize the overall teaching of the Bible so it can be meaningfully applied to our lives. Biblical studies provides the understanding of the biblical text so that we can do the theological task of synthesizing what the Bible teaches so that its teaching can inform and influence every area of life.

As we read the Bible, we find that it has an amazingly unified voice and coherent message, even though forty human authors wrote it over about a two-thousand-year period. These authors were from three different continents and from drastically different walks of life: fisherman, king, shepherd, scholar, and priest are just some of the vocations that writers of the Bible had. They were often addressing very different concerns and very different audiences. With this approach to writing a book, it is hard to imagine that you could ever get an integrated, consistent understanding of things. We not only get that, however; we get an unfolding story that explains all of reality with wonderful truthfulness. This story has all the elements of every great story, and this story has not just explained the world as we know it, it has profoundly shaped the world in which we live.

There is an abundant need today for biblically grounded, clear, concise, practically applied theology. The study of theology must focus on the main issues that God himself emphasizes in the Bible, not on speculative areas we may think important. We must go to God to find not only the right answers, but also the right questions. If we allow our quest for truth to be limited by the latest fads, trends, and pressing issues of the day, we won’t get to the most important, God-centered, eternally important questions. Jesus taught us to seek God’s kingdom and righteousness and then trust God to supply the lesser things that tend to dominate our thoughts (Matt. 6:33–34).

Most of our students throughout the years grew up in the church. When they dive in to the study of the Bible and learn the foundational truths of their faith, many of them are often astonished that they never really learned these things before. Perhaps they were taught the Bible well, but for some reason it never sunk in. Yet, it does seem that over the years there has been less and less of an emphasis on studying the Bible and learning basic doctrine in many churches. It seems that cultural influences have had a detrimental effect on the perceived value of knowing the Bible and its major themes. Pragmatism, consumerism, and an entertainment mentality have shifted the priorities of some churches away from our primary calling to devote ourselves to knowing God deeply through his Word. We need an attitude adjustment and reorientation of our priorities back to our main calling to know God according to the Scriptures.

ATTITUDES FOR DOING BIBLICAL AND THEOLOGICAL STUDIES

Now that we have discussed why we study the Bible and theology, we need to consider how we study. Much of this book will be about the proper methods of studying the Bible and theology. But how we study begins with the state of our hearts. Motives and heart attitudes are of utmost importance. You can be intellectually brilliant and highly knowledgeable, and yet be spiritually dead and unwise. Your basic beliefs, assumptions, and attitudes will determine how you approach your quest for truth. How you define God, humans, and the purpose of life will shape your experience in learning and also determine your methods of learning. So how should the Christian approach the study of the Bible and theology? Here are six helpful attitudes to have when approaching Biblical studies:

(1) We should study the Bible with fear and worship of God. God is the greatest thing we could ever try to comprehend. He is perfect in all his ways and staggeringly glorious. When people truly catch but a glimpse of his greatness, they are overwhelmed and forever changed. When Isaiah beheld God’s glory in the temple, he said, “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!” (Isa. 6:5). When Job considered God’s majesty in creation, even in the midst of his great trials he said, “I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you; therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes” (Job 42:5–6). When Peter saw the miraculous power of Christ, he said, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord” (Luke 5:8). True knowledge of God always produces worshipful awe.

After one of the greatest prolonged teachings on theology in the Bible, Paul bursts into praise “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! . . . For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen” (Rom. 11:33, 36). Our theology (right thinking) should always lead to doxology (right worship) and orthopraxy (right practice), or else we have a major disconnect in our theology. On the other hand, if our worship and practice are not grounded in deep theology, worship will be shallow, fleeting sentimentality, and its practice will be merely empty moralism. We never need to fear that our awe will deplete because God is infinite and offers an endless supply of data for our worship and fear of him. The adventure of knowing God provides never-ending vistas of glory. Scottish preacher Alexander Whyte beautifully summarized the God-exalting purpose of our study of the Bible:

First of all, my child, think magnificently of God. Magnify his providence; adore his power, pray to him frequently and incessantly. Bear him always in your mind. Teach your thoughts to reverence him in every place for there is no place where he is not. Therefore, my child, fear and worship and love God; first and last, think magnificently of him!1

Bursting into praise should be a common occurrence for the student of the Bible. We should follow the example of the inspired authors of Scripture who frequently move from teaching about God’s character to unhindered expression of worshipful adoration. One example will have to suffice. After Paul expounds on God’s amazing grace to him although he was a former blasphemer, he cannot help but express his gratitude in praise: “To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen” (1 Tim. 1:17).

(2) We should study the Bible with growing humility about ourselves. As we saw in the previous passages, when we grow in our knowledge of God and we begin to “think magnificently of God,” we also grow in humility. A big view of God invariably leads to a small view...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 16.5.2018
• Reihe/Serie: Reclaiming the Christian Intellectual Tradition
• Mitarbeit: Herausgeber (Serie): David S. Dockery
• Verlagsort: Wheaton
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Religion / Theologie ► Christentum ► Kirchengeschichte
• Themenwelt: Religion / Theologie ► Christentum ► Moraltheologie / Sozialethik
• Themenwelt: Religion / Theologie ► Christentum ► Religionspädagogik / Katechetik
• Schlagworte: Arminian • Bible study • Biblical • Calvinist • Christ • Christian Books • Church Fathers • Doctrine • Faith • God • Gospel • hermeneutics • Prayer • Reformed • Systematic Theology • Theologian
• ISBN-10: 1-4335-3492-4 / 1433534924
• ISBN-13: 978-1-4335-3492-8 / 9781433534928