Metaphorically speaking, my umbilical cord to my mother, the seminary I attended, was cut many years ago. I entered the world of theological studies as a newborn, without a family, a church, or a Bible College background. It took me several years to begin to walk and talk theology, but by then there were no professors I could run home to or siblings I could look up to. I was under the gun to create messages that people wanted to listen to. Not being as creative as the next guy, I sought refuge in developing a method of studying the Bible that made sense to me.
Challenged by professors who stated, “No pastor worth his salt had fewer than 3,000 volumes in his library,” and “One has to keep up with current thinking to be successful,” I tried that path but soon got lost in the opinions of men. Besides, books weren’t in my family’s budget nor the church’s for that matter. So I resorted to the only tools I had, a Greek text, some Dictionaries, and the almost always faithful, Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance. Soon, I was able to acquire a concordance that reversed the order from English to Greek to a concordance of Greek to English. That was a giant step for me in those days. But now, everyone has computers with tools to do the hard work for us.
Reflecting on the fading light of my seminary education, I began to develop my own method of studying which, in truth, is probably a conglomeration of things I learned in my master’s program but never really understood at the time. My methodology involved positing meaning to terms I heard and remembered like inspiration, dispensation, exegesis, and exposition.
Not having the time or resources to ponder all of the highfalutin jargon of modern-day theologians, I came up with my own definition of these terms and ways to incorporate them into my methodology. For instance, inspiration means “God-breathed”.[i] Kind of original isn’t it? Or exegesis, “to fully explain, or declare”.[ii]
Early in my Christian experience, before I got educated, I heard an individual say he didn’t like theology. Since most of my classes in seminary had the term theology somewhere in the title or syllabus, I knew I had to learn to like the term, even if others didn’t. Then I was faced with confusion regarding what theology is and especially the distinction between Biblical Theology and Systematic Theology. I have long since lost my notes regarding what the differences were then. So, recently I set out to try to rediscover their meanings today. What a shock. I have referred to these two approaches to studying the Scriptures with my own definitions for over a half century. Now I find that somehow my path has led me far afield of what many think they mean. This is especially true now that we have the ESV Systematic Theology Study Bible and the NIV Biblical Theology Study Bible. Which one of these is going to get me to heaven? Did I somehow take the wrong path? Listening to explanations by theologians regarding the difference between these two theologies only confuses the issue. How did things get so complicated and messed up?
The first step down the road to this confusion was probably taken way back in early church history when men put down in writing what they thought the Bible teaches. Then men began to compare what others were teaching. Soon theology became a study of men’s thoughts about the Bible rather than a study of the Bible itself. It took on a life of its own. Shouldn’t theology be a study about God and what He has revealed to man through the Holy Spirit moving in the minds and hearts of the authors of Scripture?
This takes me back to some of those terms I learned in seminary like verbal, plenary, God-breathed, plain-language and figurative-language, literal interpretation. Of course in this woke generation, words take on meanings apart from the context of the author's meaning and become whatever someone wants them to mean. But this will not do if we really believe the Bible is God’s Word. Do we really believe what the Bible says about itself?
God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son…[iii]
There was the true light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man. He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.[iv]
All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.[v]
What is important is not what man says about the Bible but what God has said in His Word. For this reason, I will stick to my own definitions of Biblical Theology and Systematic Theology. Here they are:
Theology – a study of God in His Word.
Biblical Theology – a study of the Bible from the author’s perspective, observing all of the contexts of each term. This must include the historical, and geographical contexts, the immediate text, and the overall context of the book or books of that author. From this, we might come up with Pauline Theology or Johannine Theology. But never Dr. Back’s Theology.
Systematic Theology – a study of God in His Word from the standpoint of all that the Bible says about a term, concept, or topic.
Notice that both are focused on the Bible. Both begin with a complete study of all of the occurrences of a term, a concept, or a topic in the Bible. This is hard work. It takes time, diligence, and discipline. But it is worth it. Only when we know what the Bible says can we know what the Bible means. Only then will our salvation be based on what God says and not what men say.
Both Biblical Theology and Systematic Theology are essential to understanding God's doctrine.
There were times when I struggled to get my mind around a concept using this approach to Bible study. When I could not fully grasp a concept, I put it aside until God gave me further illumination. Looking back, I have confidence that I did not lead anyone astray and, hopefully, helped some choose the right path to understanding God's doctrine.
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[i] Θεοπνευτος, 2 Tim 3:16.
[ii] Εξηγησατο (εχηγεομαι), Jn 1:18.
[iii] Heb 1:1-2.
[iv] Jn 1:9-14.
[v] 2 Tim 3:16-17.