“Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.”
John 17:17
“and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
John 8:32
I recently wrote an entry in which I talked about how I am starting to read Scripture with a renewed seriousness, asking myself if I really believe what it is I read there. I talked about how by consciously choosing to trust that what God says about me is true, the Bible has started to come alive in fresh and comforting ways I’ve never really known before. For example, when I feel sorry for myself, I take comfort that in God’s eyes I’m a blessed man because my sins are forgiven (Psalm 32:1-2). When I feel like God must hate me for all the ways I fail him each day, I remember that because of Christ’s work on the cross, God does not condemn me (Romans 8:1). When I feel like I have to prove myself to God or others, God’s Word reminds me that I am fully justified and accepted before God (Romans 5:1), and therefore I have nothing to prove.
This is “practical theology.” Practical theology takes the truths we confess and makes them applicable to all areas of our lives. It answers questions like:
- How is God’s sovereignty and goodness relevant to you while you’re stuck in traffic on the way to an important meeting?
- How is Christ’s ascension into heaven to sit at the Father’s right hand relevant to you when your desire to look at pornography is overwhelming?
- How does a proper understanding of your accepted status before God (justification) help you to fight loneliness and depression?
- How does God’s promise to never leave or forsake you help to dismantle anxiety?
- How is God sending his own Son to die for your sins relevant to your struggling marriage and/or friendships?
The degree to which Scripture is relevant to circumstances like the ones listed above is the degree to which our theology is practical. And if it’s not practical, it is not true theology. Ed Welch says that the “only true theology is applied theology. If it’s on the shelf, it’s unglodly.” As Jesus prays in the verse above, truth is meant to sanctify us. And since God’s word is the truth referred to here, the truths found in the Bible are given to transform us. If they fail to do that, it is because we have failed to truly grasp them.
If truth is what transforms us, then what kills us and fuels sin in our lives are lies. Tim Chester writes that “[s]inful acts always have their origin in some form of unbelief. Behind every sin is a lie.” When I first read that sentence, it seemed almost too simple. But after reading Chester’s dissection of it, I think he’s absolutely right. We may say we believe something (confessional faith), but that may not be exactly what we believe in practice (functional disbelief). The distance between our confessional beliefs and our practical beliefs is indicative of the number of lies we’re believing. For example, I may confess that God is in control of all things and that his purposes for me are good. But as Chester observes, if I get caught in a traffic jam and start getting angry, I’m demonstrating that I don’t honestly believe those things deep down. How can I get angry with my circumstances if I believe that one who is in complete control of all things is the same one who loves me deeply? Take a minute and think about the tremendous implications of truly believing God’s complete power over all things and his love toward you. Seriously. It’ll do wonders for your faith to realize that God’s not trying to screw you over.
I believe that the lack of a practical theology is killing many Christians, especially the ones like me who have heard Bible truths so often that we’ve become numb to them. The phrase “God loves you” is boringly familiar instead of a truth of immeasurable comfort. The promise that “God is with you” feels about as impactful as a lucky rabbit’s foot than a truth which decimates anxiety and worry. But I have personally experienced the transforming power of stopping at these Biblical truths and swallowing them rather than passing by the all-too-familiar verses. I am experiencing the freedom that comes from digging up the lies that lead to my sinful behavior and replacing them with truths from Scripture. If sinful behaviors are merely the symptoms of lies we believe deep in our hearts, it’s very likely that the Bible passages which give us freedom from those behaviors will on the surface look almost irrelevant to our sin struggles, because they will address the lie and not the behavior itself. For example, I’ve found a treasure-trove of ammunition for battling lust not from Matthew 5:27-30, not from Job 31:1, and not from Proverbs 5, but from Psalm 32:1-2 (among others). What possible relevance do these two verses have for fighting sexual temptation? Another entry is coming soon devoted entirely these two verses and their implications, but briefly I’ll say that it comes down to where you’re getting your sense of identity. Historically, my heart has been a breeding ground for lustful thoughts when I feel very negative about myself. Even if I knew lust was wrong, I didn’t care. It’s hard for a person with a negative sense of identity to care about what will benefit them because…what’s the point? Enter Psalm 32:1-2, where I’m reminded that my greatest need is salvation, and because I’ve been given it I’m a blessed man, not a victim. Enter Psalm 84:11, where I’m reminded that God’s not withholding anything from me. Enter Ephesians 1:3 and 2 Peter 1:3-4, where I’m reminded that not only is God not a withholding God, but that he gives and gives and gives to me. Suddenly I realize I’m a rich, blessed man, without a lick of condemnation against me (Romans 8:1). Suddenly I start to feel how precious I am to God. And since people have an instinctual need to protect what is precious, the desire to pollute myself weakens, while the desire to preserve my value in my Savior’s eyes grows. And that is how you beat sin: by enjoying God more than it.
God glorifies himself in the mercy and joy he gives to undeserving sinners like you and me. He gives us his Word (the Bible) in order to give us truth, and by doing so, to sanctify us. This means that transformation is unattainable apart from being in God’s Word. To have a theology that’s practical, one must first have a theology. Studying theology and doctrine is not reserved for those in the Church that have the spiritual gift of teaching. It’s not for the elite. It’s not on one end of the Christian spectrum with “social involvement” on the other. The “conflict” between focusing on doctrine or focusing on social issues is the result of a theology that’s not practical and is therefore, in the words of Ed Welch above, ungodly. We need a theology which yields results.
This is the first of many entries which will deal with this subject. In closing though, I’d encourage you the reader to read Scripture, pause, and ask yourself if you truly believe what you’re reading. Believe it and let it sink deeply into your heart. That’s the beginning of a harvest right there.
