Why Study Theology?
“The aim of Christian theology is to know, enjoy, and walk in the light
of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”
- Kevin DeYoung
The words “study theology” may cause several unpleasant thoughts to enter your mind. “Study” makes us think of school, that prison we were all sentenced to for the first eighteen years of our lives until we joyfully threw our hats in the air and shouted, “Never again!”
“Theology” typically makes us think of arrogant, ivory tower scholars who use big words and look down on those who don’t know their Greek conjugations. Granted, this may not be the case for all of us, but it is the typical reaction of everyday evangelicals. “We just want to love Jesus,” so thanks but no thanks to your theology.
Yet when we read the Scriptures, the people of God place a high value on studying theology. The man of Psalm 1 is blessed because he delights to meditate on the Law day and night (Ps. 1:2). Joshua is told, before launching his military campaign on the Promised Land, to carefully study the Scriptures day and night (Josh. 1:6-8). Paul prays earnestly that the Colossian church would “increase in the knowledge of God” (Col. 1:10).
What’s going on here? Does God want a bunch of big-headed jerks for followers? Is it His plan to keep us shackled to never-ending school? No. God has very good reasons for calling us to study theology.
Here are three of them.
Three Reasons to Study Theology
1) Study Theology Because You Are a Theologian
You just want to love Jesus? Then answer me this: Who is Jesus? Why should we love Him? Can someone love Him but not submit to His every word? Can we love Jesus as a moral example but not as God? You, right now, have answers to these questions. (Even “I don’t know” is an answer.) And guess what – that is your theology! Any statement you make about Jesus, God, salvation, or the world is a theological statement. You have thoughts and convictions about the world and your place in it. You have beliefs about how you should behave in society. By the very nature of being a thinking human, you are a theologian; therefore, there is no escaping theology. As biblical scholar Graeme Goldsworthy says, “Every Christian by definition knows God, thinks about God and makes statements about God...Part of being a Christian is that we do theology.”¹
So the question isn't, “Are you a theologian?” The question is, “Are you a good theologian?” Do you believe and live rightly, according to God’s design? Are you “tossed to and fro” by every new trend that comes along (Eph. 4:14)? In the words of C.S. Lewis, if you don’t study theology, “that will not mean that you have no ideas about God. It will mean that you have a lot of wrong ones — bad, muddled, out-of-date ideas.”² Why study theology? You are already a theologian. You might as well put your cap and gown back on and be a good one!
2) Study Theology to Learn God’s Ways
Years ago, I moved to Australia, thinking it would be like living in Texas but with better beaches (and worse steaks). It only took a couple of near-death encounters to discover I was mistaken. I drove on the wrong side of the road. Every animal I encountered wanted to kill me (Yes, even the cute kangaroo). I didn’t know what Australian “delicacies” to avoid (Vegemite). I was living in a new realm with new rules, and I quickly learned I needed to change my ways if I was going to live well “down under.”
The same is true for all of us who live in God’s world. Though we eat God’s food and breathe His air, we are born thinking we are in charge. And the bad news is, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death” (Prov. 14:12). We need to change our ways if we are to live well in God’s world. But how? Paul tells us in Romans, “Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Rom. 12:2). How do you know not to hug a kangaroo? How do you learn which side of the road to drive on? Study the ways of life in Australia. How can we know God’s ways and live rightly in His world? Have your mind renewed by His Word. In other words, study theology!
Why study theology? Because when we dive into the depths of doctrine, our minds are renewed to know God’s ways and stand firm when the storms of this world come (Matt. 7:24-27).
3) Study Theology to Know and Love God
So far, we have two good reasons to study theology: 1) You’re already a theologian, so you might as well be a good one, and 2) Living well in God’s world requires the renewal of our minds. But there is a third reason, an ultimate reason, to study theology: We must study theology to know and love God. It is not enough to know about God. That only puts you on equal footing with the demons (Jas. 2:19)! If we are to live the life we were meant to live, and experience the joy we were made for, we must know God Himself.
A few hours before Jesus would be arrested and crucified, He prayed His longest prayer in John 17. The prayer itself is worth a lifetime of meditation, but its beginning reveals something profound about theology. Jesus says, “This is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent” (Jn. 17:3). There are a few important things to see there. First, Jesus says eternal life is knowing God and His Son. This doesn’t mean heaven is a never-ending SAT exam on God’s attributes, with Gabriel chastising you for spelling “omnipotent” wrong. Rather, Jesus is giving a gracious correction to our typical view of theology. The essence of theology isn't about endless school or ivory tower arrogance. Rather, theological study, according to Jesus, is in the context of a relationship. It’s a way of fellowship with the living God. After all, the greatest commandment is to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matt. 22:37). Working hard in our thinking about Him is a way of expressing our love for Him. In other words, we do not study theology as students begrudgingly poring over a textbook, but as children joyfully getting to know the heart of their Father. You are learning about who your God is, what He has done for you in saving you, and where He is leading history.
Studying theology is a means by which we enjoy Him. It's a way of experiencing the life-giving fellowship we have with Him in Christ. This is not a foreign idea to us. Your closest relationships involve study. You pay attention to your friend's character, what they like and don't like. You listen to their words and know they listen to yours. Learning more about them deepens your relationship. So it is with God. Theology deepens our worship and grows our love for Him. As one pastor has observed, “We learn that we might love. We grow as we behold glory. We dig deeper into doctrine that we might soar higher in worship.”³
So, why (ultimately) should we study theology? To know and enjoy our God. He is an inexhaustible treasure of joy, and He has invited you to mine the depths of who He is. Seen in this light, theology is not a duty, it's a delight! You will spend an eternity studying Him, learning who He is, and beholding His glory (cf. Jn. 17:24). You have the privilege to start now. So pick up a book and get to work! I promise, when you get a glimpse of the King in His beauty, you will never again wince at the words “study theology.”
¹ Graeme Goldsworthy, According to Plan: The Unfolding Revelation of God in the Bible
² C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
³ Kevin DeYoung, Daily Doctrine
“Unfathomable oceans of grace are in Christ for you.
Dive and dive again, you will never come to the bottom of these depths.
How many millions of dazzling pearls and gems are at this moment hid in the deep recesses of the ocean caves! But there are unsearchable riches in Christ.
Seek after them.”
– Robert Murray M’Cheyne
