070114
THEME: Doctrine
(the teaching of the church) is an important element in evangelical churches.
QUESTIONS:
Why are some churches trying to avoid doctrine?
- They
believe that doctrine is a concern for those of a certain intellectual
bent, but unnecessary for most Christians.
- They fear
that the teaching in doctrine will lead to argument or division in the
church
What is the result of avoiding doctrine?
- The
members will be rootless and fruitless Christians, without a mature
knowledge of Christian faith.
- One of
the first signs of denominational decline is a lessening of doctrinal
attention, followed by decline in membership and evangelistic outreach.
What is the relationship of doctrine and discipleship?
- Doctrine
without piety is dead, but piety without doctrine is immature at best, and
inauthentic at worst. Faithful Christians are always concerned with the
development of true Christian piety and discipleship in believers. Yet, as
John A. Broadus commented over a century ago, doctrinal truth is “the
lifeblood of piety.”
==============================
THEME: One of the
greatest theological challenge Christians face is the problem of evil and
suffering. Christians should formulate an answer based on Biblical principles
but at the same time admit that we have limited understanding.
QUESTIONS:
How do atheist answer the problem of evil?
- For
the atheist, this is no great problem. Life is a cosmic accident, morality
is an arbitrary game by which we order our lives, and meaning is
non-existent.
- As
Oxford University’s Professor Richard Dawkins (recent book, The God Delusion) explains, human
life is nothing more than a way for selfish genes to multiply and
reproduce. There is no meaning or dignity to humanity.
Why is this a problem for Christians?
- The
reality of evil challenges the belief that God is both good and
omnipotent.
How do most Christians explain the reality of evil?
- Christians
simply explain suffering as the consequence of sins, known or unknown.
- Some
suffering can be directly traced to sin. But some cannot.
What are the two kinds of evil?
- Moral
evil: In Luke 13, the murder of the Galileans is clearly moral evil, a
premeditated crime—just like the terrorist acts in New York and
Washington.
- Natural
evil: It comes without a moral agent. A tower falls, an earthquake shakes,
a tornado destroys, a hurricane ravages, a spider bites. In John 9, a man
is blind from birth, and Jesus tells the Twelve that this blindness cannot
be traced back to this man’s sin, or that of his parents.
What is the position of Christians?
- We
must resist two wrong teachings:
- (a)
God is either not omnipotent or not omniscient;
- (b)
God created evil.
- We
must reconcile God’s rule and with the reality of evil:
- (a) We
cannot explain why God has allowed sin, but we understand that God’s
glory is more perfectly demonstrated through the victory of Christ over
sin.
- (b) We
cannot understand why God would allow sickness and suffering, but we must
affirm that even these realities are rooted in sin and its cosmic
effects.
- We
must keep our faith that God is good:
- (a) We
dare not speak on God’s behalf to explain why He allowed these particular
acts of evil to happen at this time to these persons and in this manner.
Yet, at the same time, we dare not be silent when we should testify to
the God of righteousness and love and justice who rules over all in
omnipotence.
- (b) Humility
requires that we affirm all that the Bible teaches, and go no further.
There is much we do not understand. As Charles Spurgeon explained, when
we cannot trace God’s hand, we must simply trust His heart.
==============================