Thabiti Anyabwile on Why Theology Is Important

theology is critically important because it's how we know God it's it's the language for talking about what God is like what his heart is like what is what his thoughts are what is what his ways are in the world and we wouldn't know that about God except that God revealed it to us and he's done it in two books he's done it in the book of nature so Paul says in Romans chapter one what may be known of God is is clearly visible it's seen in the in the creation there's a problem with that in Romans 1 we suppress that knowledge as sinners and and we would not know God a worship God accurately we would make images of birds and creeping things and call them God though they're not God if we were simply left to our fall and apprehension of the book of nature and so God has spoken to us and revealed himself to us in his special book in the book of Revelation in the Bible in 6 or 6 books of the Bible now there's where God is speaking to us specifically and directly about who he is how he acts in the world what it requires of us what he's like and to in any way think about the Bible and make statements about God and about Jesus from the Bible we're doing theology so even a person who says why do I need theology can't Jesus be enough is in fact making theological statements about both the Bible and theology he's kind of saying it's secondary or unnecessary whereas I think classically history Christians have believed it is necessary and sufficient and authoritative and infallible those are all theological claims and that person who says can't Jesus be enough I guess my next question would be well who is Jesus and the moment you begin to answer that question you're doing theology we can't live without theology we can't talk about God without theology for theology is talk about God the question is whether in our theology is good or not and whether or not our theology is accurate or not whether or not we believe truth things about God or errant things about God and we want to get this right because this is the God of the universe in John 17:3 says this is eternal life that they know you the one true God and Jesus Christ whom you have said eternal life requires theology requires that we know the one true God and that we know Jesus Christ and that God sent him and that he is God's Son and that he was perfect in his obedience to God in order to supply our righteousness and he's our substitute he dies on the cross in order to atone for our sins and he really did die and he was buried for three days and he really was resurrected bodily for our justification and he really did ascend into heaven where he sits at the right hand of the Father in his session interceding for us and he's coming again to gather his bride and to consummate all things and to renew all things that's why you need theology is to see this Jesus and to love this Jesus and to adore him for who he really is and to worship him for who he really is and not merely as we imagine him to be all of our imaginations will come short of the glory of God so God has given us his word that we might do theology that we might in some way taste and see his glory

Channel: The Gospel Coalition

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Keywords: the gospel coalition, the gospel, gospel, coalition, pastors, pastor, minister, ministry, Christ, Christian, Christianity, church, churches, faith, reformed, reformation, bible, biblical, evangelical, Jesus, God, spiritual, spirit, Holy Spirit, preacher, preaching, teaching, theology, thabiti anyabwile

Id: yJoF496GcK4

Length: 3min 46sec (226 seconds)

Published: Fri Sep 01 2017