Closer than system, more integrated than logic

I used to think “systematic theology” mean that each “point” in the teaching was logically related to other points.

But I don’t think that image goes far enough.  In many cases, the points of dogmatics are not like joints in a structure.  They’re more like windows on a single object.

Theology and eschatology are distinct, except that the way God has chosen to work in history reveals who He is.  When we talk about God Christians will invariably end up talking about the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  When we talk about Anthropology we will talk about what it means to be made in the image of God.  When we talk about God we will be talking about how we relate to him.  When we talk about Scripture we will be talking about what must be true about God for him to communicate.  Discussions of the covenant, the mediatorial office of Christ, and of basic soteriology all go over the same material with differing emphasis.

A single reality that can be viewed from multiple perspectives sounds more accurate to me than the usual models for systematic theology.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *