How To Study Theology

 

All Christians are called to be theologians and if we do not seek to develop a proper understanding of God we will end up with bad theology. With these truths established, let us look into how we can begin to take on a more formal study of theology.

Studying theology is no simple task. In fact, it is one of those fields of study that are simply inexhaustible. The Apostle Paul’s famous doxology (a term for a hymn of praise to God) in Romans 11makes some jaw dropping, worship-producing statements and repeats some weighty rhetorical questions that show up in the Old Testament:

“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor? Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?”Romans 11:33-35

So even before we dive into theology, we have Paul demonstrating that God’s ways are unsearchable, beyond tracing out perfectly. That’s not to say we cannot know a lot of things about God. Thanks to the doctrine of Revelation (which is different from the Book of Revelation) we can!

We simply cannot know everything about God, for He is infinite and we are finite. He is omniscient (he knows all things), we only know some things. He is omnipresent (everywhere at once), we can only be in one place at one time. He is omnipotent (all powerful), we are only so big, so strong, and can only muster up so much strength. He is Creator, we are creation.

So, how or where does one “start” studying theology?  Without even knowing it, you have already entered the world of theological thinking by simply learning about God, yourself, the Bible, and so on.

What You Can Read

There are many options when it comes to reading theological texts. Some helpful places to start include:

The Early Church Fathers (Patristics)
Many of the writings of the early leaders of the Christian church have survived to today. Here are a few areas you can begin looking into, as well as some helpful resources:

  • The Apostolic Fathers
    This collection of the earliest known writings of the church includes the First and Second Epistles of Clement, the Didache, the Epistles of Ignatius, the Epistle of Polycarp, the Epistle about Polycarp’s Martyrdom, and the Shepherd of Hermas.
  • The Writings of the Early Church Fathers
    The Writing of the Early Church Fathers is a collection of writings from the first 800 years of the Church. This collection is divided into three series, Ante-Nicene, Nicene and Post-Nicene. 

Understanding Reformation Theology
Martin Luther, John Calvin, and other Protestants initiated a movement known as the Reformation. Reformation Theology holds to the theological truths they adhered to, such as faith being by grace alone, through faith alone, through Christ alone among others.

An Introduction to Systematic Theology
Systematic Theology arranges the many aspects of Biblical beliefs in a complete and self-consistent way as much as is possible.

  •  Introduction to Systematic Theology by Wayne Grudem
    There is an abundance of books available, and Grudem’s is among the best. It is very readable and understandable (it is, however, over 1,000 pages).  
  • Christian Beliefs: Twenty Basics Every Christian Should Know Edited by Wayne Grudem’s son, Elliot
    This is a much shorter version of the above text (under 200 pages). I’ve used this edition in my churches over the years and have found it to be very helpful when it comes to helping others as they begin dipping a toe in the vast sea known as “theology.” 

Study In Community

Theology may seem overwhelming, and sometimes it is. The field speaks to more than just God. It’s influences our anthropology, sociology, psychology, and so forth. As you begin, go in prayer, and go study in community! It’s best to have a couple of people you can think out loud with, ask questions of, and pray through your discoveries and challenges together.

 

After all, God is a community (the theological word is “Trinity”) and created us in his image (imago dei), and has designed his revelation not to fall into isolated individuals alone but has poured out his presence, blessing, and knowledge of Himself through the Holy Spirit in the Church that Jesus bought with his blood.

Study Your City

If you intimately know whom you want to reach, then you will be better set up to engage people effectively with the gospel of Jesus.

"An inability to interpret the signs of the times is . . . to be guilty of what we might call the “Great Omission.”

–Kevin Vanhoozer, Everyday Theology: How to Read Cultural Texts and Interpret Trends, 17

Over the last few years, the word “missional” has gained particular amounts of attention. However, defining missional can be a complicated process. For example, this week I had a conversation with an aspiring church planter who wants to plant a church in a bar in the southeast as I did a few years ago. He’s been reading, praying, and thinking about what a man on mission looks like. Let’s say you’re in this boat too: being convinced by Scripture and convicted by the Holy Spirit to step out, deeply burdened to see lost people in your neighborhood, bars, coffee shops, gyms, grocery stores, and schools meet Jesus. This means you have to think like a missionary—a mindset that requires both studying the culture you find yourself in, as well as engaging with it.

A call to lead is a call to prepare.

For starters, identifying the needs, the idols, and the history of the city must become part of your routine thinking. This is the prep work, and oftentimes the success of your ministry rides on it. That’s not to say that God can’t use you or accomplish his will or that all the pressure is you, but a call to lead is a call to prepare. A call to obediently make disciples as Jesus commands (Matt. 28:18–20) is also a command to focus on what’s in front of you. This part of the job can be really fun! Most of it can be done by using a concept already in your vocabulary. No, it’s not what some long word theologians constantly debate over—e.g. sublapsarianism, variegated nomism, or penal substitutionary atonement—rather, it is a simple, but often overlooked word: intentional.

KNOW PEOPLE TO REACH PEOPLE

All missionaries (and if you’re a Christian, you are a missionary) have got to be the most intentional people in the world. Asking questions, studying demographics, and making note of trends help make this possible! If you intimately know whom you want to reach, then you will be better set up to engage people effectively with the gospel of Jesus.

As missional Christians, we don’t want to be stuck in the past, speaking to where culture was 10 years ago. We don’t want to answer questions that nobody is asking—we need to be relevant today. We need to speak straight to real people in real space and real time with real questions. We need to provide informed, timely, and biblical reasons for why whatever or whomever they are currently worshiping pales in comparison with our Lord Jesus!

WHAT DO YOU PERCEIVE?

Acts 17 gives us an incredible glimpse into the very flickering flame within the heart of the greatest missionary ever: the Apostle Paul. “His [Paul’s] spirit was provoked within him as he saw that the city was full of idols. . . . So Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus said: ‘Men of Athens, I perceive that . . .’” (Acts 17:16, 22)

Do you see? Paul was perceptive. He was paying attention to where he was. He was fully present! He wasn’t thinking about another missionary post he could serve, another church he could plant, or where else he could be on the map. He was fully present, and thus, he was a perceptive missionary.

Are you present in the ministry or context you’re currently serving in, or are you only planning and daydreaming about what could be?

What are the goals, values, and beliefs of your city?

Here are just a few questions that we, as missional Christians, should be asking:

  1. What’s happening in my city?

  2. Who’s moving into my city?

  3. What buildings are going up in my city?

  4. What buildings are coming down in my city?

  5. How many schools are there in my city?

  6. How many people are here in my city?

  7. What is the crime rate like in my city?

  8. What are the goals of my city?

  9. What are the values of my city?

  10. What are the beliefs of my city?

  11. What is the history of my city?

  12. How long has my city been a city?

  13. At what times and days does everything come alive in my city?

  14. What do the people in my city love about my city?

  15. What do people despise about my city?

  16. What’s the media saying about my city?

  17. What do people in my city put their hope in?

  18. Who’s hurting in my city?

  19. Who’s succeeding and thriving in my city?

For everyday missionaries, the questions are endless.

Bank clerks, grocery store checkers, hair stylists, and property development workers can tell you so much of what you need to know about your city because they are in the city, working in the city, and up to date on what’s going on in the city.

Perhaps if you don’t know where to start, you should go get a trim and practice asking the person cutting your hair questions.

 

Dear Christian, are you studying your city?

A Quick Lesson in Hermeneutics

 

There are various approaches people take when it comes to reading, interpreting, and applying the Bible.

They are engaged in what is known as hermeneutics, the science of interpretation. As soon as you open your Bible and begin reading, you are engaged in the art of interpretation. And to be fair, one act of interpretation has transpired even before you picked up your English Bible. That’s right. You picked up a translation of the Bible.

It isn’t hard to see how radically different the modern world is when compared with the ancient Biblical era.

WHO CONTRIBUTED TO THE BIBLE?

The writers of the Bible are kings, peasants, men, women, slaves, free, fishermen, doctors, lawyers, philosophers, generals, artists, poets, rich, poor, and so on. The Bible is not a list of do’s and don’ts. It isn’t just monolithic and one dimensional; it has multiple genres (law, prophets, poetry, gospels, history, letters, and apocalyptic). These genres contain information about geography, authors, audiences, population, genealogies, and much more.

The Bible is composed of 66 books written by approximately 40 authors and we even have a few books that we don’t know for certain who wrote! To widen the gap a bit more between the “then of writing” and the “now of reading”, consider that the Bible was written from 1400 BC-93 AD, spanning the entire Roman world, using 3 languages.

This is an incredibly complex book or, rather library of books, and really does take some rigorous intellectual engagement to begin to get your head around what you hold in your hands.

Do my culture and personal desires trump the authority of Scripture?

EXEGESIS VS. EISEGESIS

The Bible is old and you are new. Now, let me give you a 10 second crash course in hermeneutics. There’s no way we can come to the Bible unbiased. We all approach Scripture with a worldview, preconceived ideas, theological persuasions, political stances, personal baggage, and so forth. And that’s not always a bad thing!

However, when it comes to actually interpreting the Scriptures, there’s basically two ways of going at it and the two methods are what theologians refer to as exegesis and eisegesis.

Exegesis means “to lead out” or “extract from.” Maybe think ex-odus.  We want to extract from the original meaning of the text, understand it in the world in which is was originally penned, and then make the hermeneutical jump over into the 21st century.

Many others choose another way to read called eisegesis. This means to “read into” and happens when someone imposes their own personal or cultural beliefs upon the Bible. This can be an attempt to make the Bible less offensive or more palatable to suit one’s way of life and avoid being conformed to the image of Jesus. It ultimately undermines the authority of Scripture.

CHRISTIAN, ASK YOURSELF

  1. Who’s Word is this, actually?

  2. Am I out to exegete or eisegete the Bible?

  3. Does my culture and personal desires trump the authority of Scripture in my life, or am I willing to obey, love, and proclaim Scripture regardless of whether I am accepted or rejected? 

Microscope vs. Panorama

What do you do, when you don’t get your way? You’ve got two lenses you could look through – a microscope or a panoramic lens.

I’m sure you’ve noticed this – the world we live in is totally imperfect. At work, at home, in relationships, everywhere, everyday, things don’t always go our way. People cut you off in traffic. Somebody picks up the last gallon of milk in the grocery store right when you were going for it. Your spouse forgot to put your socks in the dryer the night before and now its Monday morning!

Dealing With IT

Here’s a probing question for you: How does IT effect you when you don’t get your way?  How do you handle IT When your boss says “No”? How do you handle IT when your spouse doesn’t live up to your expectations? How do you feel when a friend suddenly tells you the truth about yourself that you really didn’t want to hear? What do you do with IT? Do you put IT under the microscope of your own, biased, ego-centric, self-justifying scrutiny? Are you prone to simply obsess over IT, thinking about IT, talking about IT, being frustrated about IT, boiling in traffic over IT? IT is the one thing that keeps you up at night and if IT would go away, then you’d finally be ok and move along. Oh, how I hate IT.

What is IT for you? What is IT that is under the microscope of your mind, taking countless minutes, hours, and conversations away from you everyday that you really can’t do anything about?

As a Christian, is it a leader in the church or a person in the congregation that is just driving you crazy?  I guarantee you, your placement of that person, that problem, or that issue under the microscope isn’t helping you. In fact, it’s hurting you. It is taking up too much of your think time. It’s robbing your day off, your holidays, and your drive home. It’s depleting your emotional tank that could be spent on loving God and loving people. You’re growing bitter and IT is killing you. You could and should be exercising, finishing an assignment, or having a better time at dinner with your family and friends.. not to mention seeking to fulfill the Great Commission (Mt. 28.18-20).  I know my tendency and temptation has been to put something under the microscope rather than see all things under Jesus’ feet (Eph. 1.22).

Panoramic pictures are amazing. Nowadays, many of our smart phones come with a panoramic feature. Panorama allows us to see far more of what’s going on around the centerpiece of a picture as it provides a broader context into what you’re looking at. Here’s something that, by God’s grace, he is helping me to get better at and so I wanted to pass it along to you. When it comes to frustrating people or circumstances, trash the microscope and enjoy the panorama.

How does that look practically?

At work, sure your boss may give you an assignment that frustrates you. But you know what? Push back and see the big picture! Look at your business overall and not just the issue you don’t like or the assignment you just got. Look at what you’re contributing to and be thankful you have a job and a roof over your head.

If it’s your spouse who forgot to put the socks in the dryer… see the big picture – you have a spouse and own a dryer.  Thank God that for the previous 10,000 days of life, you’ve had socks on your feet and she probably didn’t mean to forget something so essential to your well-being today. She might have had your dinner, your game, or something else important to you on her mind and just didn’t get to your socks.

If you’re involved in the ministry and something isn’t going your way, again, use the panoramic feature.  Push back from the table, and look at the broader context and thank God that you know Jesus, are serving him, and get to see people saved, baptized, healed, start community groups, serve, and go on mission! WOW! You’re a part of God’s mission in this world! You get to reap where he has sown. Recently, on the phone, my friend Justin Holcomb told me he had just finished preaching to a few hundred priests and he said to me, “Alex, have you ever thought about the scandal that it is that we get to be called what Yahweh and Jesus are called? Shepherds! What a scandalous grace!!!” So one thing, your thing, might not be the thing happening the way you envisioned it at the moment, but look at the big picture. It wasn’t about you anyway, right? You get to participate in Kingdom work.

When it comes to setbacks and annoyances, I’m not saying that there can’t be legitimate frustrations. There certainly can. What I am saying is that we are commanded to “think on things that are above and not on earthly things” (Col. 3.2). Today, ask God to help you take into account all that he has done, is doing, and will do, in order to not be overwhelmed in the present moment.

 

Toss the microscope, enjoy the panorama, and rest.

The Experience

 

A few years ago, a great preacher named Louie Giglio wrote a book entitled "I Am Not But I Know I am: Welcome to the Story of God.”   The big idea of the book is to point to the bigness, the grandeur, the majesty of God and our own simple, sinful, finite smallness. He then points to the nearly unbelievable reality that Christians savor every day, namely that we have a personal relationship with this God of great, unspeakable glory!

At one point in the book, he describes one experience in which he felt really small and felt really good. It was at a place I and millions of others have come to love and appreciate – Saint Paul’s Cathedral in London. He sat in that great basilica with the ceiling suspended so far above his head.  The architecture accomplished what it was intended to, namely, to create a sense of awe and wonder. He said, “Sitting here, I feel so small – and small feels surprisingly good. So good that I begin to wonder why it is so surprising that feeling small can feel so good.”

Later that year after reading the book, I had the privilege to go to London and visit St. Paul’s Cathedral. He was right. It is stunning. Completely remarkable. Just the doors alone tower at about 40 feet tall.  I went to where Louie sat (as best as I could remember) and hoped, even prayed with all that I had in me, that I might experience the exact same thing Louie did only months earlier.

No dice. I just sat there like every other tourist looking around… heart unmoved and ADD in overdrive.

What’s wrong with me? I wondered. Do I not love God like Louie? Does God not want me to experience what Louie experienced? Does God love Louie more than me? Could I be missing the will of God? Do I even know God? The feeling and enthrallment of joy, wonder, and awe I was seeking replaced by naval gazing, self-centered, self-pleasing Christianity.

Maybe you’ve been there before like me, hoping to experience what your hero, mentor, or teacher experienced, only to come up empty.

Here’s the deal. God never entrusted that experience he gave to Louie for the sake of my sensory-driven, emotionally-charged, self-pleasing, immature self to go copy-cat. God doesn’t hand out photocopies of everyone else’s experiences and expect his children to all respond the same way every single time.

God grants experiences on his time and on his schedule and to accomplish his purposes in our lives. To seek the experience of God and not the name of God, the honor of God, or the glory of God so as to be conformed to the image of the Son of God, is to be guilty of using God to get something other than God. It is a way of using God to give us an idol. God is not a cosmic-vending machine. He is the reward. I wasn’t seeking God out of repentance or even that he would be my greatest joy. Honestly, I simply wanted to just be like Louie. I wanted to feel what Louie felt the way he felt it, when he felt it.  I fell in love with the fruit, not the Tree. I wanted the chill, the thrill, and the pill-form of pop-Christian sensationalism (which isn’t what Louie was experiencing or promoting).

I got up. Climbed the 528 steps to the top of the dome and looked over the city of London (which was soon to become my home for a year or so) and took in the sight. The Holy Spirit assured me of his love not only for the whole city, but also for me personally. He showed me where I was off in my “hunt for the Holy Spirit” and I told Him that I was wrong and thanked Him for showing me the truth.

I walked down the stairs and was headed to go catch my bus when I walked by what has since become my favorite series of paintings in the world: “The Incarnation,” “Crucifixion,” and “Resurrection” by Sergei Chepik. They are massive paintings, well over 15 feet tall. I was stunned, totally speechless. They are the most breath-taking, jaw-dropping, heart-stopping pieces of art I’ve ever seen with my own eyes. The first I saw was Christ in the manger with angels ringing gigantic bells and the Virgin Mary’s face of wonder, concern… even faith. Yes, it looks like he painted faith. The second was gruesome, a gigantic painting of Christ being judged before his accusers, dragged around like a dog with a noose over his neck and murdered on the cross and the sun goes black and black birds fly off into the sky. The third was Christ triumphant over death as the angels pulling the stones back with what you might imagine a resurrected man to look like.

I stopped dead in my tracks, looked up at the face of the risen Jesus, and all of a sudden I “felt really small” and, you know, I felt “so good.”

 

Dear Christian, I’d encourage you to seek the Giver… not just the gift. 

Whatever!

This is written to those who profess to be Christians but are ridden with pessimism and are short-sighted, naval-gazers who love to simply point out the obvious short-comings of the church.

One word: Whatever!

 

PEOPLE ARE HYPOCRITES

People are hypocrites (including me!), they fail at practicing what they preach (including me!), and many don’t read their Bibles every morning before work (gasp!).

They get distracted by work, family, practices, fatigue, sickness and hobbies. This has been the same old story since the beginning of time. People are broken. Don’t miss the big picture and make mountains out of molehills.

 

BUT JESUS IS STILL SOVEREIGN!

Paul says “whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things” (Philippians 4:8).

I choose to celebrate the fact that over 4,000 churches are planted every year in North America alone. I choose to allow the reality to sink in that over 150,000 people will give their physical lives for Jesus in martyrdom every year (most of whom do not own a copy of the Bible!) I choose to be thankful that literally billions of prayers are prayed to Jesus from cubicles, automobiles, prayer closets, and dinner tables.

For those who see their Bibles as incredible gifts of God, treasure them and pray for the rest of the world to see the value of the diamond that Scripture actually is.

WE ARE THE SMALL PERCENTAGE

For those who like to keep score and monitor others in their progress (or lack of) in daily Bible readings, consider the fact that no Christian including the Apostles ever had a “quiet time” per se prior to the release of the printing press (circa 1500 AD).

We are the small percentage of the world that has the Bible and resources available to us. If many Christians don’t understand this, stop scolding them and bless them. Die on the hill that actually matters.

QUALITY SOMETIMES BEATS QUANTITY

I choose to revel in the fact that my friend Amy read one verse in her Bible last week and God spoke to her. I choose to revel in the fact that my wife quoted a verse to me on Thursday last week and it spoke to me.

Quality sometimes beats quantity. This is not an excuse for a lack of discipleship. This is simply acknowledging our humanness is bound up in imperfection and that Jesus has perfected us by grace and thus we press on for his words of “Well done” and nobody else’s.

 

For those who see their Bibles as incredible gifts of God, treasure them and pray for the rest of the world to see the value of the diamond that Scripture actually is. Dwell on the “Whatevers” that carried Christianity throughout the empire in the first century.

Snuggling Is Holy Work, Too!

 

 

WHEN EDWARDS SKIPPED DINNER

I love theology, preaching, pastoral ministry, scholarship and so on. One man whom I’ve studied for just over a decade now is Jonathan Edwards. This is what he wrote in his journal on January 22, 1734:

“I judge that it is best, when I am in a good frame for divine contemplation . . . that ordinarily, I will not be interrupted by going to dinner but will forego my dinner, rather than be broke off.”

This appears righteous, pious and praiseworthy to all of us. I mean, he’s so God-entranced that he needs to skip dinner to pray, right?

A TRAGEDY OF DISREGARD

But this is not praiseworthy. This is a tragedy. This is Edwards opting out of dinner with his wife and 11 children to go and pray.

What does this communicate to a wife who has diligently worked all day around the house, kept up with the kids and then labored to lovingly prepare a meal for him? (Hint: not good. She’s probably not thinking, Great! That’s what I was hoping for this evening!)

What does this communicate to his eleven children? (Hint: At least one of them is thinking, "Daddy will not be joining us again for dinner tonight because he is talking with Jesus".)

For the Christian all things are sacred—including helping around the house.

It is heart-wrenching news for a child to learn that Jesus takes Daddy away from the family to go do “holier” things than playing on the floor, telling bedtime stories, learning about their interests and snuggling. I want to believe that this was not a daily routine, but Edwards himself considers it to be “ordinary” behavior.

SACRED SNUGGLING

Christians, taking our walk with God is our first priority. Absolutely! Yet, certainly prayer, contemplation, and study can be done on one’s own time and at one’s own personal expense of sleep by getting up a few minutes early or in the truck on your lunch break rather than in the hours a husband and daddy is needed most, especially in the evening.

 

For the Christian all things are sacred—including helping around the house, kisses that go the distance, walking in the door and snuggling with the kids. 

 

Why I Quit Praying for God to 'Use Me'

 

DON'T GIVE UP ON THE CHURCH

I grew up in the church and for that I am eternally grateful! I have given my life to the planting of churches and raising up leaders within churches. I simply cannot imagine my life without the local church and the invaluable role it has played in my life. Though often messy, it is clear to me that God has not given up on but rather loves and inhabits his Church. The Church is what Jesus gave his life for and therefore, the Church is what I am giving my life to.

I became a Christian at the age of 15 and knew I was called into vocational ministry within 90 days. So, one prayer that I picked up on by leaders around me and started praying myself was this – “God, please use me in this world for your glory and our joy.” It sounds right and even biblical. Yet, to be quite honest, I didn’t pray that prayer from a heart that was content with God. No, I prayed that prayer because I wanted to perform for God, others, and myself. I wanted God to give me a platform, put me in front of people that would laud me with praises, and admire my piety. True story. (For those who are reading this that know me, I know you’re grinning).I prayed that prayer because I wanted to perform for God, others, and myself. 

"USE ME"

To this day I still have all of my old journals. They’re so embarrassing to read. Though when I wrote them, I thought they were filled with wisdom and profound insights. Turns out, I may be the greatest naval-gazer in the history of the world. Every couple of years, I’ll pull them down to read them and see if I’ve grown much, if any, in my walk with God. The one phrase that is on every page is “Use me.” And you know what? That’s sad. Really sad. “Why is that sad that you asked God to use you?” Here’s why – I’ve come to believe that God is far more relational than utilitarian. God did not save me so that he could merely “use me.” The obvious rebuttal would be “Oh! But ‘you were created in Christ Jesus for good works!’ (Eph. 2.10). And I could not love that verse more! However, chronology counts and Chapter one comes before chapter two.  My huge error has been to study chapter one and want to apply chapter two. In Ephesians one, Paul says that “he [God] predestined us in love for adoption as sons” (Eph. 1.5). That now changes everything! Jana and I did not have children in order to “use them.” We had children so as to love them, raise them, teach them, and bless them and I’m becoming more convinced that this is nearer to the heart of God. God is far more relational than utilitarian.

My confession is simple – Deep down, for the majority of my Christian life, I have lived, prayed, and “served” because I related to God as my employer, not my “Abba Father” (Gal. 4.6; Rom. 8.15). With God as my divine employer, I could count and quantify my work for him and be the judge of whether I was “useful” or not. Having God as my employer, love, intimacy, acceptance, and belonging were not the name of the game. No. Productivity and getting things done are what was important. Meditation, confession, and repentance were replaced with planning and strategizing. Communion will always trump the calendar. Furthermore, with a divine employer, it was so easy to compare and compete with other Christians, who I saw as fellow employees. Measuring myself against other Christians or students in Bible College and seminary, a secret pride in my heart, robbed me from authentic friendships that include transparency and gut-wrenching vulnerability. When I was broken, at my lowest, I found out just how consumer-based my relationships were. I needed family, not coworkers, to comfort me, and I had none. I related to God as my employer, not my "Abba."

 

LIVING ROOM > WOBBLY PLATFORM

I’ve wondered why I’ve tried to create a wobbly platform or climb the rickety ladder in evangelical circles so many days of my Christian faith and I’ve come to conclude and repent of the fact that I’d rather study the love of God rather than be consumed by it; thinking about the love of God rather than actually feeling loved by God felt safe. God has invited me to trade building a platform for enjoying him in the living room. I, like so many christians that I know, would rather forego my daddy issues and sweep my own brokenness under the rug and look like I have it all together and get on to the “good works prepared for me.” My struggle is not one with being productive in the work of the church as much. No, my struggle has been to actually see myself as one of God’s sons based solely on the work of his Son, the Lord Jesus. To believe that God wants me, loves me, and totally accepts me is where it gets real. God has invited me to trade building a platform for enjoying him in the living room. 

 

In the most powerful anthropomorphic language in the Bible, God is communicating that he is far more relational than utilitarian. In Isaiah 49, the image is one of a nursing mother with her baby. In Hosea, the image is a daddy teaching his toddler to walk by taking him up by his little arms. In Jeremiah, the Father says, “Are you not my darling child?”

 

Do I want to be used by God in this world? I think that’s the wrong question to be asking these days. Will I have the nerve to go beyond studying love of God and allow God to love me in such a way that I feel his love in this world? If so, I’m certain that walking in the good works prepared for me won’t feel so much like “work” but will in and of themselves will feel much more like the reward because I’m going to work with my Abba Father.  Bottom line—God has children not employees.  God gives us a covenant not a contract. God gives us love not busy work.

Exegete Your Family

I believe that all of life is an not just an experiment but an ongoing experience of exegesis. Whether you know that you’re engaged in it or not, you’re exegeting something. To “exegete” means literally “to lead out” or “exit.” Think “Exodus.” It is studying why something is the way it is. In Bible study, it is taking into account the date, the genre, the context, the author, the audience, words used, and a host of other things, so as to know who said what and why. Therefore, it is appropriate for the field of hermeneutics to be likened to the “science” of interpretation, for, it is an exercise in taking observable data and then reporting on that data after examination.  I’d like to speak primarily to men here. Men, you all have an idea of what you want your family to be. If you’re like me, it’s one that loves the Lord and has tons of fun together. But the only way to get there is to know what’s going on here. To give you a corny way of saying it, “this is actual home-work.”

Always Studying Our Family!

As Christians, the question is not “if” you’re studying something, the question is “what are you studying or exegeting? Christian men are called to exegete more than the Bible, but all of life. To be thinking men, to be sharp, considering who and what is before us. To live wisely in this age. Therefore, we are to be continually studying our wives and children. I know that might sound extreme, as though its more “work” for you to do, but bear with me. If you don’t study them, you’ll spend your life in the tumultuous waters of miscommunication. Our families, as you know, are ever-evolving. One minute, we have an infant, the next, a toddler, the next a high schooler, and before long, it seems that our kids will be taking care of us. Therefore, this takes meticulous study and calculation to be the men we need to be in the moment. Our teenage daughters do not need us relating to them as though they were merely four year olds (Oh that God would let them always remain four years old!!!). Men, we have to be studying our wives, where they are right here and right now and what brought them to this point. Are they healthy, happy, and holy? How are we helping them bloom into the woman that God created her to become as they are our partners?

Keep Asking Questions!

Who is in front of you? What do they need from you? What are they seeking to give you? How’s your wife feeling about herself, her faith, her life? What’s she excited about? What’s troubling her? What about your kids? Do they know you? How well do you know them? Exegete them. Reach in, and keep asking the questions until you strike gold! Study them. Such is an act of love. This takes time, thought, prayer, and intentionality. Men, talk to a pastor or trusted friend as you figure your family out. Women, you too! Men, this is not to give you one more thing to do, but simply call you back to what you are intended to do from the outset when you married your bride. Studying our families will help us maximize their (your!) joy and to the glory of God! It may seem daunting, but it isn’t.

1) Put down your phone when you come in the door and engage even after a hard day.

2) Ask your kids tons of questions about how they feel, how their day was, and what they’re excited about or concerned over.

3) Ask your wife what she needs from you and how you can serve her.

4) Pray and ask Jesus to help you be gentle and to smile a ton as you give your life up for them. You won’t regret this!

5) Repeat.

 

God bless you men, for studying your families.

 

Ultimately, you have to be reminded that God studied his family, and yes, he certainly exegetes the hearts of men, and provided just what was needed in love, grace, and atonement through Jesus. Thus we should study our families and seek to provide what we can through the grace of God the Holy Spirit.

Why I Love the Book of Common Prayer

 

Recently, I’ve received plenty of texts or emails asking me about why I use the Book of Common Prayer in sermons, in meetings, and will occasionally post a quote out of it on social media. So I thought I’d give a brief reply here. The history of the BCP can be found here.  I love it for numerous reasons.

I Am Not A Trail Blazer

I love the BCP because it reminds me that I’m not a trail blazer. Rather than attempt to embark on a strictly private spiritual journey with God, going who knows where, I want to be apart of a community that has both depth and breadth. (This doesn’t mean that I don’t enjoy the mystical aspects of our faith) – I just find that in the BCP (Book of Common Prayer), I am instantly connected to a larger,global community scattered all over the world. From remote impoverished villages in Africa to cathedrals throughout Europe, saints all over the globe are praying the same prayers and thus, I get the privilege of holding hands with them, reading and praying the same prayers as my brothers and sisters of so many races, nations, and ethnicities. It is beautiful.

It’s Not ALL About Me

My ego is massive. Ugh. It stinks to even have to say it, but it’s true. As much as you and I are turned off by self righteousness, I have to admit I’m self-righteous and self-centered. You don’t have to know me well to know this. Just a simple, honest inventory of how I pray reveals this. You see, when I pray, I usually approach it as a one-way street. God is there to listen to me talk about me, think about me, ask for a few things for me, and so on. In our hyper-individualistic culture that we live in today, where we post statuses about what we’re eating, where we are, who we’re with, and what we’re doing, we are tempted to think life is all about being “liked” or “retweeted.” Maybe I’m the only one feeling this way but I bet I’m not. I want physical community. Not just electronic community. In turn, this affects my prayer life or lack thereof. The Book of Common Prayer is just that “Common Prayer.” It’s not about me. Life isn’t about me. The Church isn’t about me. The faith isn’t just about me. I get to be apart of the Church and that’s one more thing I’m gaining from this masterful book.

Depth and Breadth

I love the depth reflected in the prayers as well. Time and time again, I find myself reflecting on the robust theology that is compacted into just a few sentences at a time. The deep, but poetically nuanced theology gives me an onramp to incredible worship, though in my experience there is nothing “common” about it. More than that, Personally, I’m too scattered. I’m doing so many things all the time, just like you. I’m a husband, a daddy of 2, a pastor of a church that’s in 5 locations, a podcast host, an author, a director of the Acts 29 West Academy, and a doctoral student. When I sit down to pray, I honestly don’t know where to go or what to say almost 100% of the time. Most people are busy just like me. My wife is a stay at home mother of our 3 and 4 year old kids and she’s just as busy as I am and sometimes more busy than me (all the moms said “Amen!”).

Life can be overwhelming. So, when I sit down to just be with God, because my life is one in which I preach, I teach, I write, and so forth, it is imperative that I stop running my mouth so that, in his infinite mercy, God may open his and speak to me. The prayers written are short but powerful. They say what I’m trying to say or want to say, or need to say. Maybe I don’t have the gift of praying in tongues? I’ve asked for it several times but to no avail. Therefore, I just use the BCP and it’s working out fine. The BCP ties me to a tradition, a history, and a community that is much larger than myself. Rather than blaze my own path, I’ll just walk the path that millions of others have traveled. I don’t want to be a hero. I just want to be in the community. Creativity is exhausting. I don’t want to be the head of the Church or even my own spirituality. Heck, nobody nominated me anyway! I just want to be part of the body, the local church—I love Her.

For All Occasions

I’m certainly not arguing to replace your Bible reading with the BCP (though a lot of the Bible is in there!) The BCP is supplemental to Bible reading, definitely not a replacement. Open your Bible, read through it and respond in prayer (both saying things to God and listening in stillness before him). I often need a jumpstart to time with the Lord and so I’ll go to the back of the BCP and simply thumb through some of these prayers and pray about things that I typically wouldn’t because I just don’t remember to (for example, there’s prayers for cities, rural areas, education, and farmers). These aren’t small things to pray for! We enjoy the benefits of them everyday! If you look in the back (p. 810) of the BCP, you’ll find different prayers for all occasions (even birthdays which we find to be very special around our house)!

It Will Outlast Me

 

Finally, it will outlast me. It was here long before I got here and will be here long after I’m gone. I love that my children and grandchildren will, by God’s grace be able to reach back in the past and pray prayers that I prayed. I love that we will share the communion of the saints in this way. Maybe you have a grandparent that had a favorite verse or prayer, and every time you read it or pray it, you’re reminded of them, their legacy and their faith in Jesus. My grandfather, Fredrick McCormick was a pastor at First Baptist Church, Jacksonville, Florida. His favorite Psalm was Ps. 42:1 – “As the deer panteth for the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.” I can not read that verse or pray it without gratitude for my grandfather. I love that the BCP will outlast me and yet serve as one more instrument the Holy Spirit will use to unite our family under Jesus’ name to the glory of God.