Theology is the study of the nature of God and religious beliefs; religious beliefs and theory when systematically developed. It is a word that is not used very often by most, but it is important to understand the implications of having good theology over bad theology. Some may disagree but we are all theologians in some way. Each of us have our own opinions about God. Does he exist? If he does, then who is He? What does He do? How does He think or how does He save? This is not an exhaustive list of questions but just a few to consider in understanding that we all must draw our own conclusions regarding God. The question is, which category do we fall under? Are we good or bad theologians?
For starters, I want us to understand what bad theology is. It is simply anything that is contrary to the will of God. If God reveals himself in a specific way, then we must affirm that. If we do not, we have bad theology. We will go over three examples in this study…
- God does not exist.
- There is not one God, but three Gods.
- All roads lead to God.
Bad theology #1 (God does not exist)
Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
God was in the beginning. It is not a stretch to believe that there was a mastermind behind all this creation. No sane individual would ever conclude that Henry Ford and his other investors waited for a car to just pop up into existence. On June 16, 1903, Henry Ford and some others created Ford Motor Company. The first car built by Ford was sold on July 15, 1903. That vehicle was put together with a design in mind. There was a purpose. It did not happen by mere accident. It was a creation. Legitimately, how can any sane individual claim that our existence, this world, our universe, came to be- by and through nothing? Atheism, agnosticism, or whatever you want to call it- is clearly bad theology.
Bad theology #2 (There is not one God, but three Gods)
Genesis 1:26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
Not only was God in the beginning, but He reveals something that is important about His nature. He does not say “I will make man in My image, after My likeness.” This isn’t the only place in scripture that this occurs. After Adam & Eve sinned, He says something that ought not to confuse us but for some, it has. Notice what is revealed. He certainly does not say that “man has become like Me”.
Genesis 3:22 “Behold, the man has become like one of Us…”
Scripture reveals that there are three persons in the Godhead. We do not mean “human beings”. They are all God, but they all have their own functions. They have their own roles.
Matthew 28:19 “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit“
Consider Jesus in the beginning!
John 1:1-2 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.
Consider the Holy Spirit in the beginning!
Genesis 1:2 The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.
If you believe that there are three Gods, you are on the road to believing similarly as the Mormons do. Mormonism teaches that there are multiple gods and that humans can become God. They teach that Jesus was a man who became God but was not in the beginning with God. The Bible clearly teaches that Jesus is God who became man. Anything to suggest otherwise is bad theology.
Bad theology #3 (All roads lead to God)
John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”
There is one way to Heaven. I don’t care what the preacher at (Insert Denomination Here) says. If they are not submitting themselves to the will of God, they are not getting to Heaven.
2 Thessalonians 1:8-9 dealing out retribution to those who do not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. These will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power
I hope we can see the importance of considering the implications of keeping a good head on our shoulders and believing in good theology. We are warned in scripture that there will be those who fall away from the faith while paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons (1 Timothy 4:1) We need to make sure we are relying on God and His revealed word to guide us into all truth. I hope this article will help establish some basic principles and standards for consideration in your Bible study.
-Lee Elkins
