Theology
Yep. The God stuff.
The big kahuna.
The very thing that seems to either bring people together or splits a whole church apart.
Theology.
Say it slow.
Theee-awww-looo-geee!
Theology. The study of God. I’m sure you already knew that.
I grew up Baptist.
‘nuff said. I could’ve ended that right there!
Within the Christian faith there’s more than a few different streams of thought when it comes to our theological understanding and how we behave with that in mind. Presbyterians believe that baptism can be used with little water… and from what I’ve gathered, they like to drink a little. Catholics believe that in order to serve the church better, celibacy is a gift from God that allows you to do so. Pentecostals believe that when you are baptized in the Spirit, a sign will be given (speaking in tongues) to confirm that He really is anointing you. Baptists typically do church on Sunday twice… and don’t drink and dance… ever… that is, unless there are no other baptists in an ear or eyeshot…
And no matter what category you find yourself falling into (or not for you "emerging" leaders), here’s what I’ve gathered…
Most of the time, you’re absolutely sure you’ve got this God stuff figured out until He throws a curveball that shatters your theological grounding in which you stand. At least, for me anyways.
And without going into too much detail, here are a few theological curveballs that God has thrown at me.
1. Maybe footwashing isn’t as much as an act of service to someone else, but an every day occurrence where we are already clean but need Jesus to wash the gunk off our feet (spiritually) every day.
2. Yeah, the church does suck sometimes. But it’s the best picture that we’ll have of heaven until we get there.
3. Women are just as gifted as men and there are more than a handful of women who are better pastors than I’ll ever be.
4. Although we’re notorious for sinful behaviour even after the salvation moment, we’re not expected to live perfectly in order to take the bread and juice on Sunday morning. In fact, communion is actually intended for that specific purpose—to remind us that Jesus gave his flesh and blood because we suck at life. And we’ll probably always suck at life until He comes back.
5. A mark of a good minister is not his or her personal holiness or track record, but the willingness to be transparent, honest and a personal desire to be more like Jesus.
Why am I sharing this?
Because the truth is, my theology is not rock solid.
And I’m learning to be okay with that.
The way in which I know God and understand His word changes so frequently because I’ll never fully come to grasp God in His complete glory.
With that being said, I believe that as youth workers, it is imperative to allow our convictions to shape the way we do things. As our view of God and the way He loves and treats us changes, so should the way we love and reach out to other people… and hopefully as you do, your actions will line up with scripture more and more as the days go by.
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