Theology on Thursday, A Lesson

Theology proper is the study of God and His attributes.
Systematic or Dogmatic Theology is an attempt organize an orderly, coherent and rational accounting of Christian beliefs.
Biblical Theology is tied directly to the biblical revelation in context and the progressive revelation of God's acts of redemption.
Historical Theology seeks to examine the way the church has viewed the doctrine of God through the ages.
Practical or Applied Theology is seeking to work out theology in a particular field: evangelism, missions, pastoral theology, spiritual formation et al. (Example; God is Sovereign. Therefore, my evangelistic methodology should accurately reflect His Sovereign character).
Of course, all of these must be constrained by biblical orthodoxy.

I hope this helps as you strive to order your own theological study. Sometimes we need to evaluate the questions we are asking about a text or subject. It may be most helpful to collate all of the passages that deal with the character of God (systematic/dogmatic approach). While other times we must let the text we are reading speak to us as it did to the original audience without importing all that we know from subsequent biblical revelation. This biblical-theological approach allows the "story" to unfold in a progressive and more natural manner. These individual theological disciplines should not be seen as mutually exclusive or in opposition to one another.

Enjoyed Sr. Bible study this morning. Looking forward to learning more about the Glory of Christ as I study and pray today.

Having a homegroup fellowship tomorrow @ 6:30 in the evening. Please contact me if you would like to attend.
reformedbaptistpastor@yahoo.com