Higher math was never my thing. Quickly adding or multiplying numbers in my head is relatively simple—a skill I inherited from my father. But once numbers give way to letters, in geometry, algebra, and calculus, I am lost.
Theology is a little like math. Some doctrines are easily straightforward. There’s little debate about the power of God, the enslaving sin of humanity, the transformative work of the Holy Spirit, or the divinity of Jesus, the Messiah. Sure, some doubt such clear doctrines. But most have no problem adding up the scriptural evidence.
But keep your nose in your Bible long enough and you’ll eventually face more difficult theologies like election, divine sovereignty, the problem of evil, and the origin of sin, just to name a few. These doctrines aren’t basic math. They’re post-graduate abstract calculus.
So, what should you do?
I have learned several principles that guide me when I have trouble coming to a clear, theological conclusion.
First, embrace mystery. When the Bible speaks of “mysteries,” it means things which were hidden. They were not unknowable, just not previously known. Such mysteries include the Kingdom of God (Mark 4:11), God’s will (Ephesians 1:9-11), the incarnation (Colossians 2:2), and the church (Ephesians 4:32), to name a few. These grand truths were known in the mind of God and revealed at a particular time.
Similarly, some present truths are obscure and waiting to be revealed in their proper time. Our finite humanity can make only vague sense of what they mean, and the fuller answer will become clear only when we stand in the presence of God. Paul concedes, “For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known” (1 Corinthians 13:12). The apostle knew that some things just couldn’t be known…yet. So, we learn to embrace mystery.
Second, let the clear interpret the obscure. This is an indispensable principle of Bible study. Sometimes, Christians get their theology upside down by holding tightly to one opaque verse among so many others which are unquestionably obvious. The three “key” verses in support of baptismal regeneration are found in a debated ending to Mark’s Gospel (Mark 16:16); Peter’s first sermon but not in any of his later ones (Acts 2:25); and in a mysterious analogy of Noah’s ark, Jesus’ post-resurrection appearances, and the suffering of early Christians (1 Peter 3:13-22). Though each of these texts deserves careful study, they cannot undo the clear meaning of such texts as John 6:29, Ephesians 2:8-9 and 2 Timothy 1:9 where salvation is offered by grace alone. When we come to difficult texts, we start with what we know and interpret the obscure in light of the clear.
Third, coordinate the pieces. Some people do theology like they decorate their homes—a little mid-century modern, with Victorian fabrics, and a splash of Navajo. It’s what might best be described as “a dog’s breakfast.” And, while a homeowner might be comfortable with the hodge-podge of décor, it’s hardly a designed whole.
Good theology requires coordination–an integration of all the various parts.
My Anthropology (doctrine of humanity) must fit with my Soteriology (doctrine of salvation). My Theology (doctrine of God) must fit my Christology (doctrine of Christ) and my Pneumatology (doctrine of the Holy Spirit). To say it differently, it does no good to conclude a truth in a vacuum. For our theology to be logically consistent, it must fit all the other parts.
So, when you come to a complicated doctrine, ask “What do my other doctrines demand of this?” You cannot believe that all people are sinful from birth (Anthropology) and conclude that the virgin Mary was without sin. You cannot believe that God is sovereign over all things (Theology) and also think that He has nothing to do with the earthquake on the west coast. Your conclusions must coordinate with the rest of your theological décor.
Fourth, appreciate antimony. This is a concept that few people have heard of, but every Christian should know. Antinomy is a category of thought often used in discussions of philosophy or debate. From the words “against” (anti-) and “law” (nomos), antinomy is the appearance of contradiction between two conclusions which are both reasonable, logical, and necessary. On rare occasions, the Christian will study a topic which “appears to be contradictory.” They wholeheartedly agree with the conclusions reached on the left and the conclusions reached on the right. But they find it impossible to get the left and right conclusions to agree with each other.
Take the doctrine of the incarnation. On the one hand, we can agree that Jesus is God. He said He was God, believed He was God, and proved He was God. On the other hand, we agree that Jesus was human. He was born, He slept, He ate, He grieved, He bled, and He died. It’s when we try to hold both sides together that we encounter difficulty. The God-man seems to be a contradiction. But it’s not. It’s an antinomy.
Antinomy is hard to swallow because the tension “scandalizes our tidy minds.” The late J.I. Packer wrote:
“Our minds dislike antinomies. We like to tie up everything into neat intellectual parcels, with all appearance of mystery dispelled and no loose ends hanging out. Hence, we are tempted to get rid of antinomies from our minds by illegitimate means: to suppress, or jettison, one truth in the supposed interests of the other, and for the sake of a tidier theology.”
While we aim to have our whole theology coordinate (see the previous principle above), we must resist the temptation to adjust one side or the other in antinomy to make all the pieces fit. Some of the worst of heresies were formed out of the best of intentions—theologians trying to “clean up” the confusion. Some doctrines will have to be believed in tension.
Fifth, choose the conclusion that has the fewest difficulties. When we do theology, we endeavor to form conclusions that are neatly packaged, without any loose ends. But not all questions have such a clear conclusion. In this way, theology isn’t always like math, which enjoys the luxury of one absolute answer.
When you are studying a theological topic—say, the ever-challenging doctrine of election—you must responsibly study all the relevant biblical data. You may find that some verses support God’s divine choice of sinners to salvation without any merit of their own and other texts which seem to support a level playing field for anyone to freely make a choice of God. In fact, the more you search, the more evidence you may discover for both sides. It’s possible that you will never fully resolve the tension between competing positions. But you can rest your head on the side that has the fewest difficulties. One seminary professor noted, “This may be as close as you can get and that’s alright.”
Finally, never give up. The guaranteed way to never struggle with theology is to stop searching. The person who never opens their Bible to dive into the deep end of Scripture never encounters any difficulty. But such a person never grows and never discovers the infinite riches of God and His grace. Refuse to stop wondering. Be like Jacob who wrestled with God and got his hip out of joint in the process (Genesis 32:22-32). Yet he walked away having met God and knowing His name. Let your lifelong wrestling with truth lead you to a deeper relationship with God. Never give up!