The Consequences of our Theology
(Editorial - February 2000)
(This adjustment in theology is not about re-writing our Statement of Faith. Perhaps that is needed, because the meanings of words change and each generation of believers needs to ensure that the fundamental truths delivered to the saints are expressed in language that is intelligently comprehended. But to attempt rewriting the BASF would expend far more time and energy than it would be worth. Even if we did, it would scarcely help the growing segment of the brotherhood -- rapidly approaching a majority -- whose native language is not English. Today the BASF is akin to the "testimony" which Moses placed in the ark: a standard by which true faith or heresy could be measured over time. We need to remember that by the time of Jeremiah a linguistic expert would have been required to decipher whatever was in the ark, even though it was in Hebrew!)
Impact of our view of God
Our theology simply means our ideas about God. And the consequences of our ideas about
God are profound, regardless of what Statement of Faith we use.
You might think that a religious body would be very careful to define its ideas about God. It is a matter of considerable interest that the scriptures abound with examples of believers in true doctrine who held appalling theology -- appalling ideas about God.
Take the man in Matthew 25:14-30 who called the Lord "a hard man" to his face. He was not a heretic in the sense that he rejected the BASF. He simply believed that God and His Son are basically unfair and deal with people only in the mass and not on an individual basis. But the parable shows that this is not just a personal whim: it is a theological heresy resulting in damnation. His false theology had consequences. It made him mean, lazy, self-righteous, and ultimately "worthless."
We believe that there is One God. James points out that a definition of God which merely concerns this critical fact is not a decisive theological statement (James 2:19).
The real theology is in Ephesians 4:1-6, where the consequences of believing in God’s Oneness are clearly spelled out. If we had really believed the truths in this passage the history of our Brotherhood would not have been a series of window-shattering divisions with bits of broken glass everywhere. Thankfully, that is changing.
Take another absolutely fundamental Bible doctrine: repentance. The main reason the Christadelphian forefathers who framed our Statement of Faith gave it such scant attention was that many of them felt they only needed to switch church hats, not humbly repent of the sin of ignorance. (Bro. John Thomas was a most noteworthy exception!)
We are told that Judas Iscariot and Simon Peter both in their own way repented, but their theology was as different as night from day, so one will be eternally lost and the other will live for ever. Judas and Peter no doubt used the same statement of faith. It was their theological use of it that differed so radically. Judas said "Master!," gave that Master the kiss of death, and then spilled his innards over the field of blood in a last futile gesture of egocentrism. Peter said, "Lord, you know all things: you know that I love you," begged for another chance, got it with a big bonus, and then glorified God with a death like his Lord’s.
Impact of views of the atonement
We all claim to believe that Jesus of Nazareth gave his life a ransom for many.
However defined and argued over, the theology we draw from that fundamental doctrine will
save us eternally or condemn us to the outer darkness for ever. We can believe that we
have the right to decide for God who will be included in the "many,"
and be quick and adept at showing respect of persons, excommunication, ostracism, and smug
hypocritical self-congratulation ("I thank you that I am not as other men
are..."). Or we can rejoice that Jesus was and is a "friend of
sinners" and be motivated to follow his example that by all means we may help to
save some -- and in that process ourselves as well.
Interestingly, it is our re-thinking of the atonement, by discussion in Bible schools large and small throughout the brotherhood, that has transformed the Christadelphians into (at last) an unstoppable international evangelical force. That re-thinking has involved no radical change of traditional doctrine. It is the personal theology of the doctrine of the atonement that is so exciting. At last we are willing to really confess that we are converted sinners, washed in the blood of the Lamb, who have a loving helper and friend in our Lord, and who know deeply and intimately the Spirit’s power and providence in our daily lives.
The faith to be honest
Thankfully, it is no longer taboo to confess that life in the truth is not always an
unqualified success, that godly Christadelphian couples might have marital problems or
wayward children or some other serious problem. Most significant of all, in my opinion, is
that we are abandoning theories of the atonement which were constructed for the purpose of
proving how right and good we are, and accepting, unreservedly with the apostle, that we
live by faith in the Son of God, who "loved me and gave himself for me."
In that conviction lies transforming power.
The most wonderful thing about the magazine Gospel News (a magazine edited by Bre. Marcus and Duncan Heaster which features personal testimonies and short exhortations from relatively new brothers and sisters in mission areas) is not the amazing explosion of the Christadelphian community into "all the world." It is that it will never be taboo again to admit that we have problems and that living the truth is not easy, and that we can share those problems in a loving, constructive, way.
Understanding judgment begets mercy
If we believe that the light of knowledge brings responsibility -- and surely it does,
even in ordinary human relations -- then equally surely that doctrine should make us
tolerant of others’ ignorance and weaknesses, and cause us to be gently caring,
thoughtful, generous, and loving. For we know these are the criteria that Jesus will apply
to us as well as to that other brother and sister whom we happen to dislike. The
theological consequences of the Bible doctrine of judgment are spelled out by Jesus
himself: "I cancelled all that debt of yours because you begged me to.
Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?"
(Lk. 18:33). Failure to realize the theological implications of the doctrine of judgment
will mean that when the judgment day comes, this believer will be turned over to the
torturers until he recognizes how self-centered he has been.
It turns out that every fundamental doctrine has a life or death theological consequence. If it doesn’t it is not an important doctrine.
Moving forward
It is our profound conviction that, overall, our Brotherhood is moving in a positive
direction. It has never been healthier since the apostolic age. At last we are discerning
the theological consequences of our doctrinal faith, and at last we are learning to love
the brothers and sisters in our ecclesia -- the estranged, the wayward, the lost sheep,
smokers, refugees, addicts the heartbroken and (absolutely unthinkable when I was a young
brother) those deemed to be guilty of some sexual sin, such as fornication or divorce. And
yes, thank God, we are even realizing that Christian love is to be a fundamental part of
our characters. We recognize we are to show it to all, even our "enemies"
and people "in the world," without which love Jesus told us we never
will be saved.
May the revolution continue until our Lord shall come.
Alan Eyre (Cayman Brac)