I decided to write this post after hearing several people in the body of Christ state a position that I believe is quite dangerous. The position that I've heard several times now is "Theology is not important." On one end of the spectrum, some Christians believe that theology is of utmost importance. They believe in extensively studying the Bible and uphold their doctrines of belief to such a degree that anyone believing differently is at risk of being considered uneducated or a heretic. On the other side of the spectrum, some Christians believe that theology is not important for the following reasons: "It puts God in a box," "It quenches the Spirit from moving," etc. I see why those two sides exist, but I believe there is a middle ground between them. Hence, the title of this post: Media terram (Latin for "middle ground"). I believe that finding a middle ground (or common ground) between the two is healthy. If not, continuing to stay on opposing sides will only solidify the sides while broadening the road between them.
So, what is theology? Theology, by definition, is the study of the nature of God. It is the combining of the Latin word Theo (meaning "God") and Logia (meaning "the study of"). Theology is a framework that we, as humans with finite minds, use to try to understand the infinite. It's man's attempt to understand God based on what He has revealed in His Word. So if theology is the attempt to understand who God is, where lies the problem?
The problem is us. Theology is not innately flawed, but we are. Think of theology as a collection of attributes about who God is. How we grasp those attributes is not innately good or bad because we are limited in our understanding. However, once our thoughts about God are given life through our understanding of them, we choose how those concepts should be used whether that be for good or bad. In the end, how we act on our ideas is what matters most.
In the body of Christ, there are doctrines (a set of beliefs) that we adhere to because of the strenuous study of the ancient church fathers. Through their prayer and studying of Gods Word and through many ecumenical councils, doctrines arose that were not to act as a box for God, but as a guarantee of who He is. They were instituted so that the body of Christ could come together with a universal understanding of who He is and just as important, who He is not. This was also largely done, so that as the church continued to grow in the future, it would have a solid foundation of beliefs thus preventing other religious doctrines from permeating the church.
Personally, I like to think of theology as a system of guard rails on a highway. The highway has plenty of freedom on the road while journeying with Him, but the guard rails exist for my own safety. They prevent me from going off course into a ditch or going off a cliff. I think, to some degree, people want things to be nebulous but I don't think that honors God. If He wanted His attributes to be nebulous, then there would be no point in Him revealing His nature to us in Scripture. But, in the same way, He does not want His nature to be all we know about Him without actually knowing Him. I married my wife not because of what I knew about her but because I knew her in relationship. There is an unsearchable, infinite depth to who God is and having his nature be ambiguous or strictly defined, again, I do not think honors Him.
I believe that we can love the Lord with one foot in the spirit and one foot in truth. They are supposed to go hand-in-hand since God is both spirit and truth (Jn 4:23-24). The purpose of theology is not to put God in a box nor to club people over the head with information but to have a fuller picture of who God is. If we approach theology correctly, it should be leading us into a deeper place of worship for who He is.
