The Christian faith consists of certain beliefs, called doctrines. And theology is the study of doctrine. Theology is important if we are to know God rightly and live in his world accordingly as those he has redeemed. Christopher Morgan’s Christian Theology: The Biblical Story and Our Faith provides a fantastic and accessible overview of our Christian beliefs.
Understanding Typology (with Mitch Chase)
Jesus is the true and better Adam. He’s our Passover Lamb whose death brings about a new Exodus. Indwelt by God’s Spirit, Christ’s church is the end-time temple of God. And on and on we could go. The Bible is littered with types, “prophetic patterns,” that anticipate and find their fulfillment in Christ. But what exactly is typology, and how does it function? What are its underlying assumptions, the theological operating system if you will, on which it runs? And should we be imitating the apostles by practicing typological interpretation even today? Mitch Chase joins us to help us answer these questions.
Access the episode here. (Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, and more.)
An Accessible Guide to Systematic Theology, Christian Theology by Christopher Morgan
For a while now, I’ve been on the hunt for a solid, entry-level systematic theology to use with people in my church. We have a wealth of in-depth, academic-level systematic theologies available to us today, especially for those of us in the Reformed tradition. But there’s a notable gap in literature that hits the sweet spot—at least for those of us who are Reformed and Baptist—between those more technical, lengthier works and systematic theologies that are geared to the average person in the pew.
This is partly why I think Wayne Grudem’s Systematic Theology has been so popular despite its methodological and theological problems. I’ll be honest; I’ve used it with people! It’s accessible, easy to understand, saturated with scripture, and generally takes Reformed positions. In terms of those qualities, it’s ideal for use in the church. But alas, there’s that pesky methodology (Biblicism) along with his odd (Grudem’s view of prophecy) to even straight-up aberrant (eternal subordination of the Son) theological positions at times.
So I’ve long desired a replacement, something that’s equally accessible, readable, scripture saturated, but without the problems of Grudem.
I’m pleased to say that I think I’ve found that in Christopher Morgan’s Christian Theology: The Biblical Story and Our Faith.
Continue readingA Concise Explanation of the SBC Guidepost Abuse Report
Note: The above diagrams are admittedly simplified, obscuring two things.
First, for most participating churches, their financial contributions do not go directly to the “Cooperative Program” or its entities. Rather, their financial contributions are made to their respective state convention, which then collects some of those funds for its purposes and then passes on the rest to the “Cooperative Program.” It’s not required to give this way. A church can give directly to the “Cooperative Program,” or select “Cooperative Program” entities, by sending their money straight to the Executive Committee and bypassing any state convention.
Secondly, although LifeWay and Guidestone are entities that serve participating churches, they do not actually receive financial support from the “Cooperative Program.” I nonetheless included them here though to make you aware of their existence within the “SBC ecosystem.”
I’ve heard things about abuse in the SBC. What was that all about?
In early 2019, an investigative journalist published a report detailing cases of abuse that occurred in churches that participate in the “Cooperative Program” (often less precisely referred to as “SBC churches”).
Participating churches grew in concern over how abuse was being handled within the association. More and more victims continued to speak up. And suspicions eventually emerged regarding how the Executive Committee (EC) in particular handled (or better, failed to handle) reports of abuse they had received.
So at the 2021 annual Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) in June 2021, the church delegates voted to hire an independent entity to conduct a thorough (and very costly) investigation into the Executive Committee’s handling of abuse claims.
Continue readingShould I Attend My Friend or Family Member’s Gay Wedding Ceremony?
I was recently asked, “Can you think of any particular Bible passages that might help us think through the above question?” I answered as follows:
My mind goes to 1 Cor 10:25-29.
“25 Eat whatever is sold in the meat market without raising any question on the ground of conscience. 26 For “the earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof.” 27 If one of the unbelievers invites you to dinner and you are disposed to go, eat whatever is set before you without raising any question on the ground of conscience. 28 But if someone says to you, “This has been offered in sacrifice,” then do not eat it, for the sake of the one who informed you, and for the sake of conscience— 29 I do not mean your conscience, but his.”
Paul seems to say, if your participation in something gives the unbeliever the impression that you condone something wrong, don’t do it.
Of course, loving the gay friend or family member is imperative, as well as showing love to their partner. And if your unbelieving friend or family member has an event that’s super special and meaningful to them, your presence at the event communicates that you care about them. I think that’s why most people find this to be a difficult question. Attending such a special event feels like a way of saying, “I love you.”
The question here though is, is it possible to attend a homosexual wedding ceremony without your very attendance implicitly acknowledging it as a wedding ceremony–which Biblically speaking it is not (a gay marriage is an oxymoron and not an actual marriage whatever the state says). In other words, you aren’t just attending an event which happens to involve a wedding you disagree with that you can somehow distance yourself from while remaining in attendance. The event itself *is* a wedding you disagree with. It’s comparable to the unbeliever in 1 Cor 10 saying, “This meat is offered to my god.” Can your attendance at an event that claims to be a wedding be perceived in any other way than you recognizing the event’s legitimate claims to be what it purports to be? In other words, is it possible to attend what others are calling a “wedding ceremony” while simultaneously saying, “But I don’t think that’s what I’m attending”? Then what are you attending, and why are you attending it? Or, is it possible to attend while making it clear to those around you, or at least those who know you, that you disapprove of what the very event you are attending claims to be?
Someone might respond, “But aren’t we all sinners? I wouldn’t not go to someone’s wedding just because they are a sinner.” Of course! But the issue with a so-called “gay marriage” isn’t that its participants are sinners. It’s true, every marriage involves sinners! The issue here, though, is that the “marriage” itself is sinful.
I can celebrate a legitimate marriage between two sinners, because the marriage itself is still a good God-given thing. I can’t celebrate an illegitimate marriage that in itself is an affront to God’s design.
Kirk E. Miller 