What Good Is Theology Or Theologians?

Theology is given a bad rap and theologians are looked upon as being suspect in their testimony of Christianity as to their motive for being so attentive or even intellectual and academic in their studies.  But we are all theologians and it's just a matter of how good your theology is that matters: our lives speak much louder than our words anyway. But one cannot mature without a basic understanding of theology, though it's not sufficient, it's necessary.  One must be totally devoted to Christ and obey wholeheartedly as well.  Part of the reason theologians don't have a good reputation is because they study so-called controversial doctrines, even ones that divide sincere believers.  But we are not called to avoid godly controversy, just godless ones.

I might add that theology isn't just for seminary and that it's not too arcane for the average believer; God will enlighten anyone with an open mind, willing heart, and needy soul. But we must not revert to the Scholasticism of medieval Europe and avoid the applications.  We don't want to just know about the Bible and not know the Author or how to happy it to our lives.  We could get A's in theology in a seminary and hardly know our Lord at all. It must not be just in our minds, but in our hearts; i.e., we must love the study of God's word, even the deeper truths, for it's the infant believer who balks at learning the things of God in depth and is only able to consume the milk of the Word and not the meat or solid food.  Doctrine is what makes us grow and understand God. We cannot avoid theology; to do so is to avoid Christ!  We must seek to understand the Bible in Toto, not just our favorite teachings or doctrines as Paul sought to teach the full counsel of God.

We need theologians who do it as a discipline though I do not believe this is a spiritual gift, I do think that some teachers are more inclined to explain doctrinal truths in plain talk.

Theology is literally the study of God or Theos using the Greek. It is like a "God-talk." Theology has a bad connotation for some but I hope to clear this up.

I'm writing this because every believer ought to know his way around the block theologically and not be an ignoramus, but have a working knowledge of basic doctrine or credo.

Theology is not an abstract science like economics with many conflicting schools of thought and interpretation. It is the "Queen of Sciences" because it deals with the truth of Jesus who is the embodiment of truth. It is not a fool's errand of speculation but a revealed knowledge from divine revelation. We could not know God apart from revelation because the finite cannot penetrate the infinite--God must take the initiative because no man can see God and live.

Great preachers are those who have honed their theology to perfection and can then deliver the goods. Every Christian is a theologian, what kind of theologian is open to question. We all have a theology; the question is whether we have sound theology. You can have a sound theology and an unsound life, but you cannot have a sound life without a sound theology.

In sum, everyone has a theology and you cannot avoid it. The question is how good and sound it is because we cannot have a sound life without sound theology, though sound theology doesn't guarantee sound life and spirituality.
Soli Deo Gloria!