Christian Doctrine & Philosophy

There a topics that arise as we explore what it means to follow Christ. Some are settled and others are not. When we responsibly discuss particular Christian doctrines, we are called to discover what the whole Bible says about a topic and prayerfully come to our conclusions after doing systematic theology regarding the topic. Possessing sound doctrine is a sign of Christian maturity (1 Tim 6:3, Titus 1:1) while those who lack it (1 Tim 1:10) find trouble in their lives.

Doctrine can be categorized as major and minor. The entire Church should be of some accord on the major doctrines while allowing a measure of difference in areas of minor doctrine. Major doctrine, according to Wayne Grudem, is

one that has a significant impact on our thinking about other doctrines, or that has a significant impact on how we live the Christian life. A minor doctrine is one that has very little impact on how we think about other doctrines, and very little impact on how we live the Christian life.

Major doctrine includes the authority of the Bible, the Trinity, the deity of Christ and justification by faith alone while the list of minor doctrine would include such topics as the timing of the tribulation, the details of the Lord’s Supper, and the formation of our churches. Doubtless there is disagreement amongst followers on the shelving of certain doctrines but it should not contribute to disunity within the Body.

The Christian faith is meant to be the worldview through which a person frames their thinking about life and relationships. The reality of our modern life is that our faith has more often than not been compartmentalized as a component of our worldview rather than the determinant of our worldview. The posts that are linked on this page speak on the issues that touch our lives and require the application of the spectrum of Christian thought in order to properly frame the issue as followers of Christ. Whether it be philosophy or doctrine, I pray that you find them helpful and I look forward to engaging you in conversation on these (or any other) topics.

Spirit Baptism