I spent a lot of time last year wondering what it was about Biblical Theology that I resonated with so strongly. It seemed to spend a lot of time on the forefront of my mind, and I remember bringing it up several times during my homegroup from NLNE church. But it was not until the other night during our first Human Personality class that it finally hit me in full force.
We were discussing (or rather, being lectured at by Ed Welch, whom I think I will enjoy) the different ways to approach theology and how to make it relevant in the personal or the counseling realm. I really do enjoy learning theology and discussing it with friends, but many times I feel that this sort of discussion can actually prevent "real" conversation with people and I come away intellectually stimulated, to be sure, but also feeling that I don't know my friends any better because of it.
We hit upon using Biblical theological themes, as does the Westminster Confession, to access what the Bible has to say about people. Many times our theology is left in abstract or schematic forms, and this makes it extremely difficult to relate to and resonate with on a personal spiritual level. Granted, we may be academically enlightened, but how can we make the jump from the head to the heart? My pastor in Virginia used to say that the longest distance in the human body is the 18" from the head to the heart. Too true! Biblical Theology has something that resonates...a methodology that we find ourselves already using in daily life. Why shouldn't we harness that and put it to use? We spend our days listening to the stories of people's lives. In the counseling setting this is emphasized even more. This is why Biblical Theology has an inherent comprehensibility to it...it is taking what we know and using it to know not only the people around us, but the work of God as well. This is not a foreign concept for humans, and I think that it testifies to the brilliance of God and His planning for us; that He would take something that we do every day and make it a means for knowing Him more...! Awesome.
This also helps us feel connected with God. One thing that we struggle with (myself included) is feeling that God is somehow distant or that we aren't attached because we can't actually *see* Him on a day-to-day basis. But if we take what we learn in BT and apply it, seeing the entire Bible as a cohesive and coherent story, it's not too much of a leap to see how our own personal stories are simply an extension of that overarching narrative.
This changes the face of having "purpose" in our lives, of feeling that we are wasting our time on selfish endeavors. What would it look like for us to live on a daily basis knowing that our stories were all part and parcel to the Lord's metanarrative for this world? I have no idea! But it would be pretty spectacular, I can tell you that. So that is my challenge to myself and to all you who will take me up on it: don't lose sight of the Big Picture...instead, keep in sight the reality of God's continuing work in this world, in our lives. He is not finished with us yet. This extraordinary history is only culminated in Jesus Christ, and until He returns, there is much to be done.
