The Pastor Theologian

 A common criticism often directed at many church members is their lack of knowledge of basic Bible doctrines. I have often been amazed at the number of Christians who did not know even basic Christian teaching. Some of these individuals faithfully attended church and even Sunday school but had little knowledge of theology. It makes one wonder what they have been hearing from the pulpit. Many sitting in the pews have been fed a steady diet of self-help messages, sermonettes that could have come out of Reader's Digest, or the pastor's weekly rant, but they have not been fed a steady diet of theological instruction. They have been fed milk, not meat, and now many prefer the milk.

Gerald Hiestand and Todd Wilson wrote a book I read when I first found it titled The Pastor Theologian: Resurrecting an Ancient Vision. It impacted me greatly, and, I must admit, convicted me. They point out in the book that the pastor is the theological leader of the church. They write, "As goes the pastoral community, so goes the church. Assuming sufficient tenure, show us a pastor with robust theological depth, and we'll show you a local church with a corresponding theological depth. Likewise, show us a pastor who lacks the capacity to think meaningfully about the gospel, and we'll show you a church that lacks the same...The theological integrity of a local church will never rise above that of the pastor."

These are serious words a pastor must consider as he or she reflects on his or her preaching. If people sitting in our pews do not even know the difference between the Old and New Testaments or that there are four Gospels that is on the pastors who have served that church. Likewise, if our congregations do not understand the importance of the various attributes of God and how they impact our lives and faith and do not know how to lead someone to faith in Jesus Christ, that is also on the pastors.

The authors point out the difference between academic theology and popular theology. Academic theology is the theology one studies in seminaries I visited a church one Sunday whose pastor was working on his PhD. His sermon contained excellent theology which no one in his church could understand or relate to. Sitting there, I wondered if he was repeating what one of his professors taught in a class that week. Popular theology brings sound theology down into the world where people live. It addresses such issues as marriage, finances, leadership, worship, family life and much more. Yes, the Bible has much to say about each of these areas, and much more, that are important to ordinary people.

Many who reject the church and the Christian faith accuse both of being irrelevant to their lives. Nothing could be further from the truth. The Bible addresses virtually every area of life experienced by ordinary people. Unless they can be shown that this is true, they will continue to consider the church to be irrelevant, and that very belief can keep them from finding faith in Jesus Christ.

Pastors, we are the resident theologians in our churches. The depth of our congregation's theological understanding is totally dependent upon us. This is a role we must take seriously.