Friday, March 07, 2014

The End of All Learning: Love God with all your mind. This is our duty and should be our delight.

Beware both theological ignorance and theological arrogance:

Perhaps never in the history of the Protestant faith has the evangelical church been more shallow and superficial in its theology. Some of this theological ignorance is due to laziness in the pulpit. How much of the institutional church is comprised of weak, anemic, starving sheep languishing under idle shepherds?

Yet, much theological ignorance is not due to laziness in the pulpit, but laziness in the pew. The lazy pew yawns, “It’s Sunday, the day of rest. Don’t make me think too much.” Then of course, the lazy pew is quick to add, “But don’t bore me either!”

Alas, the lazy pew is shallow and superficial and cannot love God with the mind. Sadly, the church is never more like the world than when she is weak-minded.

To be sure, theological ignorance is an obvious, prevalent way that we fail to love God with our mind. But there is another way, less obvious and prevalent but more insidious: theological arrogance.

We could stress the difference thus: The theologically ignorant fail to love God with their mind; while the theologically arrogant fail to love God with their mind.

Theology is not God. We must never forget this. It is altogether possible to be more excited or proud concerning our theology than our God. When we love doctrine more than we love God theological arrogance ensues...

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