Your True Theology is Displayed not Merely Confessed
I recently enjoyed a great discussion with some seasoned saints. One gentlemen wisely stated that your true theology is how you live. This is an incredibly inciteful and important conclusion.
Here are some examples that have been fermenting in my mind since then:
Most of us do not openly confess to be open theists but then when a trial or tragedy comes we react like God is not sovereign or knowledgeable of the present and the future.
We confess that God is loving and good but yet complain and bemoan circumstances.
We confess that God answers prayer but yet there is dust in our prayer closets.
We confess that God’s Word is sufficiently powerful to equip and sanctify us yet we too often tip our hat to it like a privacy disclosure form.
We confess that Jesus is the only Savior yet we rely upon other saviors to meet and satisfy our deepest needs (money, sex, power, fame, fitness, etc).
We confess that we must honor Christ with our mouths yet we find ourselves attacking others because they are not like us.
We confess that the church is the unique place whereby God has designed to meet with his people through the Word and corporate gathering yet we too often arrive for meetings dull & distracted.
We confess that this is not our home and our citizenship is in heaven yet we plant roots here, find our identity in politics, a flag, and are more moved by the National Anthem than In Christ Alone and are more frequently reading Drudge Report than God’s Word.
We confess that God is a God of grace but yet we are quick to engage in and rely upon religious duties (quiet times, service in church, evangelism, etc) for our righteousness & merit.
We confess that the preaching of the Word is indispensible for our growth yet we are carried away during sermons into the fantasy land of self-glory.
We confess that trials are important for our sanctification and even brought by God for good, yet in the midst of them we grumble, complain and petition for deliverance out of them.
We confess that it is the gospel alone that saves sinners yet we suffocate our unbelieving friends and neighbors with the blanket of morality rather than the tonic of grace.
We confess that missions are important but we remain deaf and mute to those who are spiritually blind.
At the end of the day our true theology is how we live. It is the picture of arrogance and hypocrisy to think that biblical Christianity is true and that you have got everything all figured out; we all have our blind spots and issues. We all need to grow. We need to reform. None on earth are glorified.
Therefore, we study and learn so that we might know, love and serve God better–not to just be affirmed, get a fat head, or intoxicate ourselves with self-righteousness.
It is as good a time as any to take a look at the rope that you have tied together to form your theological bridge. After all, you are stading upon it. I suspect as you look at it from the vantage point of your everyday life that you will see that you have some holes, loose edges, and danger points. It is time then to sure things up with the Word that you might find yourself walking safely across the ravine of life supported by the word of truth and not by the false affirmation that everything is good on paper; you need to look at reality. Because this is, after all, who you are.
Possibly Related posts:
- American Evangelicalism, Light Beer, and Reformed Theology
- How to live a miserable Christian life (part i)
- That Marvelous Book
- How to live a miserable Christian life (part ii)
- The Essence of the Christian Message is…
14 Responses to “Your True Theology is Displayed not Merely Confessed”
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[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Erik Raymond, The Reformed Hub. The Reformed Hub said: IRISH CALVINIST: Your True Theology is Displayed not Merely Confessed http://bit.ly/5QNLOT [...]
Great post Erik.
I couldn’t agree more and confess that I too often do not live out my life displaying that Chirst is All. I am thankful that God will continue to sanctify me and destroy the old man within. May I make it easy for him, for I am a sinner, yet my Savior is AWEsome.
[...] This post was Twitted by ecrosstexas [...]
Amen. What a humbling reminder.
Awesome post today, Erik. Thank you.
Wow, that wasn’t a slap in the face, it was like a hard right to the jaw. I was just thinking the last couple of days how more often than not, my reasons for helping people isn’t so much based on loving them with Christ’s love, it is based on whether or not it is “Convenient” for me at the time.
I have to say that it broke my heart to realize there are differrent motives at work in my heart. The only hope I have is in Christ and Him working in me and living through me. Thanks for the post, it speaks volumes…………..
“We confess that it is the gospel alone that saves sinners yet we suffocate our unbelieving friends and neighbors with the blanket of morality rather than the tonic of grace.”
That made me think of this quote: “We’re not called to clean the fishbowl, but to fish.” -J. Vernon McGee
Great post. Tons of good stuff to think about.
The Bible is so essential, isn’t it. I love to read about guys like David, Peter, and Samson, because I’m more in their camp then say a Joseph, Daniel, or Paul.
It all comes down to Christ saving us all with the same forgiveness for all our sins, and giving us the saving faith to receive His righteousness. I may have 900,000 plus sins, and someone else may only have a few hundred, but we both need to be trusting in Christ as our Savior.
Have a good Lord’s Day.
I think it was Greg Koukl who I heard talking about “practical atheism” once. (I’m sure other theologians/apologists have talked about the same issue.) I confess I believe God to be alive and true, YET many decisions I make betray my beliefs. I live as though there will be no consequences for my actions…and therefore, practically live like an atheist.
Great list, brother!
A few years ago a letter to the editor of our small town newspaper accused Christians of “flaunting what they believe,” quite offensive to the author. As I thought about it in retrospect I realized: we all flaunt what we believe. What I believe, or not believe, about God is evidenced in how I live–it is displayed, not merely confessed, as you’ve stated so well here. Great post.
Ralph Waldo Emerson may have been talking about Reformed people when he said, “What you do speaks so loud that I cannot hear what you say.” If my excellent theology is not apparent to my neighbor, it occurs to me that perhaps God may not be as pleased with it as I am.
OH mate… you got some hidden cameras down under or what? That was such a timely word for us as a family! Thank you mate, for your encouragment and faithful wound… You continue wounding us to the cross mate… that was awesome!
[...] leads me to this post by the Irish Calvinist. I think it is summed up best in the following sentence. At the end of the day our true theology [...]
Patrick, these things were Spirit induced blows into my own heart.
[...] And last but not least, over at the Irish Calvinist blog, Erik Raymond has a post up regarding how Your True Theology is Displayed not Merely Confessed. [...]