Depending on the tribe you belong to, the term “pastor/theologian” might be seen either as a redundant, or oxy-moronic expression. Some view the pastor as a practitioner, and the theologian as a theoretician; two separate roles. Others, like those of us in Acts 29, understand the pastor to be a leading theologian among the people he is called by God shepherd.

At the recent Acts 29 Bootcamp in Louisville, KY I was given the opportunity to lead a break out session in the Pastor as Resident Theologian Track. The title of my session was, “How Theology Can Kill Your Church.” If the audio is made available, I’ll link to it [Now available: here]. I sought to make four basic points.

Thanks to Chuck Heeke who took some amazing photographs throughout the bootcamp.

Theology Can Kill Your Church (Plant) when:

1. Your Theology is Under-developed
Under-developed theology leaves your church defenseless against false doctrine and heresy, and corrupts the spiritual growth of the body. We need a robust theological confession and culture in our churches.

2. Your Theology is Over-valued
Theology is over-valued when we find our identity more in a system than in the Savior. The dangers here are often pride and pugnacity. Good theology will always give a clear picture of God and self, which promotes strong convictions and humble hearts.

3. Your Theology is Compartmentalized
Compartmentalized theology is a purely academic discipline removed from Christian experience. The danger here is being satisfied with knowledge over transformation. We need “experimental Calvinists” who are not content to be right, but desire to be made right by the Spirit of God in conjunction with the truth of God.

4. Your Theology is Disconnected
When our theology is disconnected from the gospel, all of the above dangers are likely, and additionally our preaching will be little more than moralism. Imperatives apart from the gospel tell people to “do this,” and doctrinal preaching divorced from the gospel tell people to “know this.” In both cases people are not led to the grace of God in Christ, but to their own attainments. We need theologians who can show the connection between doctrines like sin, creation, the Trinity, etc. and the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.

In short, I was aiming at encouraging our men to be passionate, convinced, humble, experiential, gospel-centered theologians.

I shared some of my journey and failures in all this, and some of you asked what books I have found helpful. Here are just a few of them, but these were instrumental in breaking me of pride and theological elitism, while encouraging humility. Feel free to make your recommendations in the comments.

The Practical Implications of Calvinism, A. N. Martin (read it online for free)
Words to Winners of Souls, Horatius Bonar (read it online for free)
Vital Godliness, by William Plumer (read it online for free)
Quest for Meekness and Quietness of Spirit, Matthew Henry

I just started in on Michael Horton’s new book, The Gospel-Driven Life: Being Good News People in a Bad News World. The Introduction was good enough to pull a few quotes from. Here’s one where Horton explains the gospel in terms of our story, and The Story.

The Good News is not just a series of facts to which we yield our assent but a dramatic narrative that replots our identity. Think of it in terms of a theatrical play. Each week we come to church with our own scripts. If yours is anything like mine, it’s “the show about nothing.” Yet God descends to give us a new script: a rich plot in which our original character dies and is raised with the lead character. Instead of trying to find a supporting role for God in our play, God writes us into his script as a part of a growing cast for his new world. The script does not offer a blueprint for a new creation, if we will only follow certain steps for realizing it. Instead, through this gospel the Spirit sweeps us into the drama, into the new creation that has already been inaugurated.

photos by our own Brian Malcolm

Dear Self,

Take note – your view of Jesus tends to shrink over time. It’s not that your theology itself drifts, but that sometimes you so focus on one aspect of Jesus that you tend to forget the rest. The result is a shrinking Jesus (in your faith). And as your shrinking Jesus becomes small Jesus he is easily eclipsed by idols. This is why you sometimes lack passion and earnestness for the kingdom and the glory of God. This is why the church is shrinking in North America – because small Jesus does not inspire awe, command respect, lead to worship, nor compel us to talk of him (much less suffer for him). And small Jesus is too little to arrest the attention of the world.

So, please remember – Jesus is bigger than you tend to think. He is the perfect revelation of God, the radiance of his glory, the exact imprint of his nature; he is the Creator and Sustainer of all that exists. Everything belongs to him and exists for him. He is the author of your salvation, the perfector of your faith, and the only one in whom you can find life.

Dear Self,

Like Israel, you tend to forget the most basic things. Important things. You need constant reminders. So, find ways to remind yourself about these things that matter. If you aren’t intentionally setting the truth before yourself you will forget.

You’ll forget what you were (a slave to sin, a child of wrath, a dead man walking).
You’ll forget what you are (a disciple of Christ, a child of God, a new creation).
You’ll forget what you are made for (the glory of God, the good of my neighbors).
You’ll forget what you’re sent to do (make Christ known, make disciples).
You’ll forget it all.

And when you forget these things – you get into trouble. So erect something like “memorial stones” that will remind you of all these things (and more). Get back to personal journaling, preach these things to yourself, share them with your kids, and help others to see and savor them wherever you can.